Dennis Hopper: 1936-2010

Cool. Out of control. Both descriptions have applied to actor-director Dennis Hopper (pictured here in 1991), whose credits include classics ("Rebel Without a Cause"), counter-culture hits ("Easy Rider"), art house favorites ("Blue Velvet") and Hollywood blockbusters ("Speed"). Hopper died in his Venice, Calif., home on May 29, 2010 after battling prostate cancer. He was 74.

Dennis Hopper in 1955, the year he made his on-screen debut as an epileptic on the television series, "Medic."

After several TV appearances, Hopper (background) made his film debut in Nicholas Ray's "Rebel Without a Cause" (1955) opposite James Dean. Hopper was later featured in another Dean classic, "Giant."

One of his earliest starring roles was in Curtis Harrington's moody low-budget drama "Night Tide" (1961), in which Hooper's character comes to suspect a mysterious dark-haired woman may be a supernatural creature.

Hopper directed, co-wrote and starred in "Easy Rider" (1969), a counterculture film released by a major Hollywood studio. It became a phenomeonal hit.

Hopper (far left) is pictured accepting the award for best production for "Easy Rider" at the 1969 Cannes International Film Festival in France.

In 1971 Hopper penned "The Last Movie," a box-office flop that momentarily derailed his career. The actor is shown here in Hollywood, following the film's disastrous release.

Following the failure of "The Last Movie," Hopper continued to act, mostly in low-budget, independent films like the 1976 movie "Tracks." He is pictured here at the 1976 Cannes International Film Festival.

Hopper played a photographer caught up in the cult-like camp of Marlon Brando deep in the Southeast Asian jungle in Francis Ford Coppola's "Apocalypse Now" (1979).

Hopper's bouts with drug and alcohol damaged both his personal life life (he was married five times) and his career (blow-ups on the set led to his being blackballed). But following rehabilitation he made a brilliant film comeback in 1986, in part from his dynamic performance as criminal Frank Booth in David Lynch's "Blue Velvet" (pictured here with Isabella Rosellini). Hopper received an acting Oscar nomination that year — not for the violent and creepy "Blue Velvet," but for his recovering alcoholic assistant coach in "Hoosiers."

1986 was a banner year: Hopper won praise for his performance in "Blue Velvet," and earned an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor in "Hoosiers." Hopper is shown here at the 1987 Golden Globe Awards with actress Maria Conchita Alonso.

Hopper attended the American Cinema Awards in Los Angeles with then-wife Kathleen La Nasa. Prior to his 1989 marriage to La Nasa, Hopper had wed three other women, including singer Michelle Phillips of The Mamas and the Papas. All four marriages eventually ended in divorce. In 2010, Hopper filed for divorce from his fifth wife, Victoria.

Hopper, Lauren Hutton and Jeremy Irons pose behind the Captain America Harley-Davidson motorcycle from "Easy Rider," at the Guggenheim Museum in Las Vegas in October 2001.

Proving himself an artist in all senses of the word, Hopper presented a collection of his own photographic fine art at a 1998 news conference in Sundance, Utah.

In this May 19, 1982 file photo, actor Dennis Hopper is shown in Dallas, Texas.

Hopper and wife Victoria attend a 2000 Dolce & Gabbana fashion show in Milan, Italy. Hopper once worked the runway himself for designer Hugo Boss's 1996 spring/summer collection. The two married in 1996 and Hopper filed for divorce in January 2010.

Actor Dennis Hopper has a cigarette during an interview in Los Angeles, April 4, 1985.

Hopper's role in the motorcycle flick "Easy Rider" earned him an invitation to pose on a Harley Davidson at the Expo 2000 World's Fair in Hanover, Germany.

In a Wednesday, May 14, 2008 photo, Dennis Hopper, son Henry Hopper and wife Victoria Duffy-Hopper arrive to the opening night ceremony and premiere of the film "Blindness" during the 61st International film festival in Cannes.

Hopper is seen arriving at the 2002 San Sebastian Film Festival in San Sebastian, Spain, where he was honored with the Donostia Award for Lifetime Achievement.

Hopper follows his drive from the first tee of the Plantation Course during the pro-am of the Mercedes Benz Championship PGA Tour event in Kapalua, Hawaii, Wednesday, Jan. 3, 2007.

French Culture minister Christine Albanel, right, awards actor Dennis Hopper the Commander of the "Ordre des Arts et des Lettres" medal, on Monday, Oct, 13, 2008, in Paris. On Oct. 29, 2009, Hopper's manager announced that the actor had been diagnosed with advanced prostate cancer.

In this Feb. 23, 2008 file photo, Dennis Hopper and his then wife Victoria Duffy arrive at the 2008 Independent Spirit Awards in Santa Monica, Calif. Hopper filed for divorce on Jan. 14, 2010.

Dennis Hopper, left, and his wife, Victoria Duffy Hopper, arrive at the amfAR's annual Cinema Against AIDS 2008 gala at Le Moulin de Mougins, southern France, on May 22, 2008. Hopper filed for divorce on Jan. 14, 2010.

Hopper attends the press conference of the film " Chelsea on the Rocks" during the 61st International film festival in Cannes, southern France, on Friday, May 23, 2008. On Oct. 29, 2009, Hopper's manager announced that the actor had advanced prostate cancer. On March 24, 2010, his attorney wrote in a court filing that Hopper was terminally ill and unable to undergo chemotherapy.

Actor Dennis Hopper is honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Friday, March 26, 2010, in Los Angeles. Hopper, who is suffering from prostate cancer, appeared gaunt and was helped to the stage by a friend. The actor explained that his bandages were the result of a fall Thursday outside his home. Surrounded by his family, Hopper thanked Hollywood for being "my home and my schooling."

In a Friday, March 26, 2010 photo, actor Jack Nicholson, left, congratulates Dennis Hopper after Hopper was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, in Los Angeles.

Flowers and mementoes adorn the star of Dennis Hopper on the Hollywood Walk of Fame Saturday, May 29, 2010. Hopper died Saturday morning at the age of 74.