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Val Kilmer praises Dave Chappelle for 'SNL' monologue

By Karen Butler
Val Kilmer arrives at the 54th annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles on February 12, 2012. File Photo by Jim Ruymen/UPI
1 of 3 | Val Kilmer arrives at the 54th annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles on February 12, 2012. File Photo by Jim Ruymen/UPI | License Photo

NEW YORK, Nov. 14 (UPI) -- Actor Val Kilmer took to social media during the weekend to talk about comedian Dave Chappelle's debut as guest host on Saturday Night Live.

Best known for his movies Real Genius, Top Gun, The Doors, Batman Forever and Tombstone, Kilmer recently made headlines when he denied his fellow actor Michael Douglas' claims that he is battling cancer and "things don't look too good for him."

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In Sunday's Facebook post, Kilmer admitted he is still recovering his voice after an unspecified ailment and emphasized: "I'm celebrating my health in public and sharing my best work with my community during these emotional times, and yet the press wrote last week was that I was 'denying the rumors of my illness...' What would they have me do? Dance in the streets? And why would I lie about something so glorious as a healing? What's the motive? Don't we have bigger fish to fry?"

The actor went on to say he wrote his one-man play Citizen Twain and its film adaptation "partly because I love our country so much and Twain takes on so many ideas with more grace and humor than I can muster. Man is he funny."

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The topic brought him around to Chappelle, who hosted the first episode of SNL since Republican Donald Trump beat out Democrat Hillary Clinton for the U.S. presidency last week.

"Did you all see SNL last night?" Kilmer asked his followers. "David Chappelle ended his opening so eloquently and said he's going to give Trump a chance -- and he on behalf of the disenfranchised demanded he do the same for them. When a comedian can earn the right to be so solemn and so correct, he deserves all our praise and attention. Comedy is clarity and no one in our history cut thru ignorance and racism cleaner than Mark Twain."

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