Clooney Talks About Paris, Parenthood and the Presidental Race
The king of Hollywood dishes on starlets in trouble and who should win in '08.
June 7, 2007 — -- As a throng of media and fans waited outside Grauman's Chinese Theater for a glimpse of Hollywood royalty, the three kings -- George Clooney, Brad Pitt and Matt Damon -- were inside signing their names in concrete and, of course, cracking jokes.
Clooney, well-known for his practical jokes on set, wore oversize shoes to the event, ensuring he'd cement his place in movie history, just a little larger than life.
"He said to me, 'Go one size bigger,'" Damon said, describing Clooney's shoe advice.
Clooney is all smiles and jokes when it comes to the "Ocean" movies, classic capers that pit a ragtag gang of thieves against various casino villains.
"Ocean's 13" is the third and rumored to be the last. The cast has grown as close as brothers, which is obvious from the good-natured ribbing Clooney gives his cast mates.
"Pitt has been the toughest to deal with because he is a big star, and Damon's gotten a little cocky since the 'Bourne' sequels," Clooney said. "[Don] Cheadle's got an Oscar nomination a while back, so you can imagine how difficult he's been."
But the days of being the new Rat Pack now compete with growing families and domestic demands among the "Ocean" cast. Clooney, the unapologetic bachelor, is unfazed.
"The baby issue, that's been quite something, I gotta say," Clooney said. "I'm good with other people's kids, fantastic. I'm the guy you want around because I go, 'Here, go over there and get me a drink,' and they seem to do it."
Jokes aside, Clooney is passionate about a number of political issues, especially genocide in Darfur.
But he also keeps up with less heady news of the day, including heiress Paris Hilton's prisoner number.
"I saw the New York Post. They do the hard-hitting news," Clooney said.
But he said that young celebrities getting into trouble in Hollywood was nothing new.
"You think about it, part of this is cash in very young hands and a lot of fame in very young hands," Clooney said. "Because they're doing all the sort of things some of us went through very quietly."
