Whether you’ve seen the series of films or not, everybody knows the name Crocodile Dundee. Paul Hogan is the man that brought the character to life, and he claims that people around the world oftentimes have a hard time realizing that he isn’t the iconic poacher that he played on the screen. Though being typecast as the character of Crocodile Dundee has prevented Paul Hogan from having much of a future career in the entertainment industry outside of sporadically reprising the role, the actor doesn’t much mind. He’s grateful for the fact that he got to appear on the big screen at all! Instead of worrying about what could’ve been with his career, the things that Paul Hogan seems more worried about nowadays include the increasing homeless population in his neighborhood of Venice, Los Angeles, as well as the recent COVID-19 pandemic. Join Facts Verse as we explore why Crocodile Dundee’s Paul Hogan was never seen again.
Today, Paul Hogan is 82 years old. Though the iconic Australian actor isn’t seen much nowadays, he’s still doing fairly well for himself despite some small problems. The actor is best known for his portrayals of the character Crocodile Dundee. The character has appeared in three films since the 1980s, with the first film being released in 1986. Like the previous Australian hit Mad Max, which made a global star out of actor Mel Gibson, Crocodile Dundee seemed poised to turn Paul Hogan into the next big thing. However, the actor has decided not to do much with his career since outside of playing the character a few more times. Paul reprised the role of Crocodile Dundee in a 1988 sequel, and then again in 2001’s Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles. Recently, Paul played a caricature of himself in the Dundee-related film The Very Excellent Mr. Dundee.
Outside of diehard Paul Hogan fans, most people likely aren’t even aware that 2020’s The Very Excellent Mr. Dundee exists. For the most part, Paul Hogan likes to keep to himself and stay away from the entertainment industry. Sightings of the actor have become so rare that they quickly become the stuff of legend. Earlier this year, the actor made tabloid headlines when someone recognized him filling up his car at a gas station. A year prior to that, there was a public debacle wherein the actor was accused of writing a rather rude letter to his neighborhood’s homeless population.
Paul Hogan says that he didn’t write the letter that he was accused of writing, though evidence suggests otherwise. The actor was photographed at the scene with a pen in his hand that appeared to utilize the same color of ink that was used on the letter. Paul defended himself by claiming that he was standing around holding the pen because he was preparing to leave instructions for an electrician that he was expecting as his property. Though Paul alleges that he wasn’t attempting to express ire to the homeless population, the neighborhood that the actor lives in has certainly been suffering in the past couples of year from increased poverty.
What’s Happening in Venice, Los Angeles?
The area that Paul Hogan calls home is the Venice neighborhood of Los Angeles, which has seen a large increase in it’s homeless population within the past couple of years. Not only that, but the neighborhood has become increasingly crime-ridden. Not only has that led to fewer visitors coming to the town, but it has also led to residents becoming increasingly fearful of venturing outside. It seems that many of Venice’s residents are choosing to stay indoors with their doors locked, and this phenomenon was significantly exacerbated in the wake of COVID-19.
One thing that he has been outspoken about criticizing is the world’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. It seems that the Australian actor has a bone to pick with everyone when it comes to virus. For one thing, the actor was mad that he couldn’t travel back to his home continent of Australia during the time when the pandemic was at it’s worst. Paul claims that there was no way that he would’ve been able to make it through the mandatory quarantine period that such travelling would require. According to him, he would’ve had to make the trip with his youngest son, whose name is Chance. Paul says that he would’ve ended up strangling Chance if he was locked in the same hotel room as him during quarantine.
Besides not liking the restrictions that were placed on global travel during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Paul Hogan has also been vocally outspoken against what he calls “anti-vaxxers”. According to Paul, these anti-vaxxers are selfish cowards. If you’re enjoying this video so far, be sure to hit the like button to show your support! Also, subscribe to the channel if you’d like to be among the first to know when more Facts Verse videos are on their way!
Paul Stays in America Only to Be with His Son
Chance is Paul Hogan’s youngest son, but he’s far from being his only son! Paul has five sons and one daughter. Five of these children came from Paul’s first wife, whom he was actually married to on two separate occasions. Paul’s first wife was a woman by the name of Noelene Edwards. Paul first married her in 1958, and they stayed married for several decades before going through a difficult period in the early 1980s. In 1981, Paul and Noelene divorced, but they would remarry a year later and remain married until 1989.
It didn’t take long for Paul Hogan to remarry after divorcing from Noelene Edwards a second time, as he already had someone in mind. In 1986’s Crocodile Dundee, Paul Hogan had been paired up romantically on the screen with an actress by the name of Linda Kozlowski. Sparks ended up flying between the two performers in real life, and Paul knew that she was the one that he wanted as his second wife after things between him and Noelene were finally over.
Paul Hogan and Linda Kozlowski tied the knot in 1990. In addition to appearing in the first Crocodile Dundee film, Linda also reprised her role in that film’s two sequels. In 2013, Linda filed for divorce from Paul, with the actress citing irreconcilable differences as her reason. A year later, the divorce would be finalized. Since then, Paul has yet to remarry, though he remains optimistic at the age of 82. Though Paul had five children with his first wife, he only had one with his second. The child that Paul had with Linda is Chance. Paul might claim that he’d have strangled Chance if forced to quarantine with him for 14 weeks in an Australian hotel, but the two seem to have a pretty good relationship.
Paul threw a fit when he couldn’t journey back to his home continent of Australia during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Though he has since been able to travel back to Australia, he still chooses to call Venice, Los Angeles, his home. The reason that Paul chooses to continue living in Venice isn’t because he likes the area, or even because he prefers living in America to living in Australia. Instead, the reason that Paul Hogan chooses to stay in the country is purely out of support for his son Chance. According to Paul, if he could convince Chance to move out to Australia with him, the two would make the move immediately.
Paul Doesn’t Mind Being Known Just for Crocodile Dundee
The Crocodile Dundee series of films still has a significant following nearly four decades after the release of the first one. The success of 1986’s Crocodile Dundee was significant for several reasons. For one thing, the film was an independent feature. Independent features rarely become box-office hits, but Crocodile Dundee was an exception. The film was a fairly personal vision from Paul Hogan, who had come up with the titular character all on his own. Paul was a sketch writer and comedic performer in Australia that was given the chance to travel to America for a gig. During this visit, the actor came up with the idea for Crocodile Dundee.
Paul Hogan ended up making the concept of Crocodile Dundee into a film. The film grossed over $300 million at the box office, and it turned Paul into a big star. You could say that the film turned Paul into a household name, but it would be more accurate to say that it turned Crocodile Dundee into a household name. To this day, Paul complains about people he encounters on his worldly travels mistaking him for the character that he played. Though Paul claims that he and the character of Crocodile Dundee are very similar in spirit, they are a good deal more different than they are alike.
For a time, Paul did consider trying to use the success that he garnered via the Crocodile Dundee films to find roles in other features, though all of his attempts proved fruitless. Over the course of the 1990s, Paul appeared in three theatrical releases and one made-for-television film. However, none of these features led to anything greater.
At the turn of the millennium, Paul decided to bring Crocodile Dundee back for the first time since 1988’s Crocodile Dundee II with the aforementioned Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles. Released in 2001, the film remains the last official film in the Crocodile Dundee series. However, once again, the character was heavily referenced in The Very Excellent Mr. Dundee. Paul has only appeared in three non-Dundee-related features the past two decades.
The Crocodile Dundee films could’ve made a star out of lead actor Paul Hogan, but he ended up getting typecast because of the titular role. Now it’s time to hear from you: did you know that Paul Hogan was married to the same woman on two different occasions, and that he has six kids? As always, like this video to show your support, and subscribe and hit the notification bell if you’d like to be among the first to know when more Facts Verse videos are on their way!
