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Rob Lowe Says Bill Paxton Was ‘The Most Loyal, Old-School Friend’

By Stacey Cole
Published on: 02:38 PST, Mar 12, 2017

Rob Lowe has recalled some of the greatest moments he shared with Bill Paxton, who passed away last month at the age of 61, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

Speaking to the Hollywood Reporter‘s Andy Lewis, Rob Lowe opened up about his sweet friendship with the late Hollywood legend, whose death nearly made Jennifer Aniston, who was presenting the In Memoriam segment during last month’s Oscars broadcast, cry on stage.

Rob Lowe had plenty to say about Paxton and their decades-strong friendship. Lowe, who starred alongside Paxton in the heist comedy Frank and Jesse, recalled Paxton’s obsession with rare gifts (JFK’s aftershave) and their unique friendship.

Rob Lowe, who met Paxton for the first time on the set of 1991’s The Dark Backward, suggests that their meeting would never happen if his friends didn’t invite him to do one scene in the film. But then Rob Lowe noticed something in Paxton’s commitment to his work that made him want to get to know him better.

“And we were friends ever since. Five or six years later, I’m producing the movie Frank and Jesse and starring in it and I reached out to him to play my brother.”

Rob Lowe admitted that this was the first page of their long friendship. The actor said that one of the many great memories of his late friend is when they took their kids fishing 20 years ago. In fact, Paxton inspired Rob Lowe’s son so much during that fishing trip that he has been fishing every weekend ever since. Lowe also admitted that Paxton was one of the reasons he moved out of Los Angeles, because he saw something very inspirational in Paxton.

Rob Lowe confessed that in Paxton he saw “a really solid man,” whose life wasn’t revolving only around the film industry even though he grew up in that industry. Rob Lowe also shared his memories about one very fun gift Paxton gave him when he portrayed 35th President of the United States John F. Kennedy in Killing Kennedy.

While Rob Lowe says that Paxton was always “a fanatic” when it came to researching things, his late friend once left a note on his desk along with a package that had the exact aftershave Kennedy wore during his presidency.

“Oh I wore it. I wore it every day on the set.”

Rob Lowe described Paxton as “the most loyal, old-school friend.” Lowe says his late friend was one of those people who showed up for every single occasion when you needed them to, no matter how small that occasion is.

“If it was, you know, my kid’s Bar Mitzvah, Bill’s there. If it was my mother’s funeral, Bill’s there. If it was my book launch party, Bill’s there.”

Rob Lowe also recalled a moment when they were shooting Frank and Jesse together. The two friends were sitting on their horses and there was snow everywhere. Lowe remembered Paxton looking off into the distance in a “little melancholy” way. Rob Lowe asked Paxton if everything was all right, and his late friend opened up about his doubts regarding his career in his 40s. He thought nothing was working out the way it was supposed to. And within six months of their chat, Lowe says Paxton went on “one of the greatest rolls an actor ever had,” appearing in such iconic films as Titanic, Apollo 13, and Twister.

Rob Lowe recently returned to shoot a new Skechers ad after 15 years, and he kind of looks exactly the same, according to People magazine. The actor returned to star in the brand’s new campaign and he looks ageless.

[Featured Image by Michael Kovac/Getty Images]

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