With devastating effects still felt all throughout Haiti from an earthquake that happened two years ago the country is looking for as much help as they can get and they are receiving it from actor Sean Penn.

Penn was named on Saturday as the newest Haiti ambassador because of all the relief work the A-List actor has done to help secure a better future for the people of Haiti.

The job was offered to Sean Penn by the Haitian foreign minister Laurent Lamothe at the Cinema for Peace benefit at the Montage Hotel in Beverly Hills.

In hearing about the invitation he said “I do accept” while adding that it would be nice to “change being called hey you (bleep), to hey Mr. Ambassador!”

At the event $5 million was raised to help in recover efforts in Haiti. Among the A-list crowd in attendance was Demi Moore, Melanie Griffith, George Clooney, Julia Roberts, Orlando Bloom, Mel Gibson, James Gandolfini and Hilary Swank.

Among the nights biggest auction buys were Damien Rice who bought Bono’s guitar for $475,000 and Danny Moder who paid $50,000 for the right to travel with Sean Penn on a trip to Haiti.

Are you surprised to learn that Sean Penn has been named as an ambassador to the earthquake ravaged region?

Sean Penn Named Newest Ambassador To Haiti is a post from: The Inquisitr

Holiday travelers at LAX were greeted to a new type of performance by Sean Penn and Cuban actress Maria Conchita Alonso.  The two were were once co-stars but they had a bit of a break up at LAX airport, with Alonso screaming at Penn that he was a “communist asshole” after he called her a “pig”.

It seems fate had the two meet at LAX, in Los Angeles, California.  Alonzo, who had been born in Cuba and raised in Venezuela, saw Penn trying to find a piece of lost luggage.

Alonso had, in the past, written a very public letter to Penn to call him out for his support of Venezuelan Dictator Hugo Chavez.

Fox News is reporting that the conversation was overheard to go like this.  Alonso said, “I was very calm. I said, ‘I would like to talk to you.’ He said, ‘I have nothing to say to you … You have been saying a lot of things about me in the press.’ I said, ‘How can you defend Chavez?’”

Alonso than started getting heated and the argument escalated to the point where she said “‘You are a communist, Sean Penn”.

Penn screamed and said, “You are a pig!”

So Alonso replied “And you are a communist asshole! Is it great to live the way you do as a communist?’” Nearly 60 people were watching and were quite shocked to see the melee.

The two had been co-stars in the 1988 film Colors.

Is Sean Penn a Communist Asshole? More importantly would you have liked to see the argument?

Sean Penn Gets Spanked By Former Co-Star in LAX Shouting Match is a post from: The Inquisitr

When Sean Penn appeared on Piers Morgan Tonight, the Oscar winning actor had a few things to say about the political climate in America. Penn called the Tea Party the “Get the N-Word Out of the Whitehouse” party and said that the group is a problem and a distraction for Obama.

Penn said:

“You have what I call the get the ‘N’ word out of the White House party, the Tea Party, this kind of sensibility, which is much more of a distraction. .. At the end of the day, there’s a big bubble coming out of their head saying, you know, can we just lynch him?”

But Penn didn’t reserve all of his criticism for the Tea Party. Penn also faulted Obama for playing down to Americans.

Penn said:

“I would love to see Barack Obama be Bulworth (the fictional movie president who speaks the truth in the 1998 Warren Beatty movie of the same name). I’d love to see what I’ve always wanted to see, somebody run as a one term President and show me that people aren’t stupid. They do care about each other. And when he does the right things and takes on the controversies, he’s going to win the next election.”

But despite the President’ flaws, Penn said that he is still “very likely” to vote for him in the 2012 election. Penn believes that “Barack Obama is as capable of being a great president as anybody that we’ve got walking.”

Here’s a video of Sean Penn on Piers Morgan Tonight.

Do you think the Tea Party is racist? Should Obama be more like Bullworth? Should Sean Penn keep his mouth shut?

Sean Penn: Tea Party Wants to Lynch Obama [Video] is a post from: The Inquisitr

Two-time Oscar winner Sean Penn took an active role in trying to free the American hikers that were recently released by Iran after years of state wrangling over the fate of the men.

Penn pulled some strings with Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez in the months leading up to release of Josh Fattal and Shane Bauer, asking the leader to approach his buddy Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and implore Iran to free the hikers. The Hollywood Reporter cites Reuters as confirming Penn had what appears to be a pretty big hand in securing the freedom of Fattal and Bauer:

Venezuela’s deputy foreign minister told Reuters that Chavez brought up the case with his Iranian ally Mahmoud Ahmadinejad after being alerted to the Americans’ plight by friends in U.S. “intellectual circles.”

“The American ‘intellectual’ who took up the case with him was Sean Penn,” a source told Reuters. “Penn was very committed to the case. … He flew to Caracas several months ago to raise it with Chavez and he kept on it.”

Penn is known for political and social activism, having traveled to both New Orleans and Haiti after natural disasters swept through the regions and left devastation in their wake. The actor was also an outspoken critic of former President George W. Bush during his administration.

A rep for the Oscar winner did confirm that Penn was active in trying to get the men released, but refused to provide further detail:

“Yes, he was involved in working towards their release. He is not, however, providing detail or offering a statement.”

Sean Penn Helped Grease Wheels For Iran Hiker Release is a post from: The Inquisitr

Celebrities can do a lot to bring an issue into political discourse. Many people credit Jon Stewart for helping 9/11 responders to get medical attention. Johnny Depp and Eddie Vedder kept the West Memphis Three in the public spotlight until they were finally freed. And Lady Gaga is currently pressing President Obama to pass legislation against bullying. But it isn’t often that a celebrity has a direct influence on an international issue. But apparently, Sean Penn is at least partly responsible for freeing two American hikers from an Iranian prison.

The Inquisitr reported earlier this week:

“More than two years after they were convicted as spies by Iranian courts, the American hikers Josh Fattal and Shane Bauer have been released by Iran.”

The two hikers were flown from Iran to Oman where they were greeted by their families.

Fatal said:

“We’re so happy we are free and so relieved we are free. Our deepest gratitude goes toward His Majesty Sultan Qaboos of Oman for obtaining our release. We’re sincerely grateful for the government of Oman for hosting us and our families.”

Apparently Sultan Qaboos had a little push from Hollywood actor Sean Penn.

Reuters reports that Sean Penn flew to Venezuela to talk to President Hugo Chavez. CNN reports that Chavez was part of the mediation process that resulted in the release of Fatal and Bauer, and reportedly voiced his support of the hikers when he talked to his Iranian ally, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

A source close to Penn said:

 ”Penn was very committed to the case … He flew to Caracas several months ago to raise it with Chavez and he kept on it.”

Penn’s spokesman confirmed this, but no other details were given.

Do you think Sean Penn was influential in freeing the hikers?

How Far Does Sean Penn’s Star Power Reach? American Hikers Freed Thanks to Hollywood Influence is a post from: The Inquisitr

According to a report by People, Scarlett Johansson and Sean Penn have split up a little less than four months since the couple’s relationship first became public.

Speculation that the couple may be splitting up was high after Scarlett Johansson was noticeably absent at the Cannes Film Festival, where Penn’s film The Tree of Life was being premiered. Johansson is currently at work on The Avengers, to be fair, but that didn’t stop her absence from standing out like a sore thumb.

The Daily News’ Gatecrasher reported at the time that Penn was spotted returning to his hotel with two “super-hot” women. “They weren’t sharing the elevator. They were going up together,” their  source said.

Since their relationship went public, the couple had been spotted at several events together, such as the White House Correspondents’ Dinner back in April, getting cozy with one another. For a relationship I considered to be strange in the first place, I can’t say that I’m all that surprised. In fact, what took so long?

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Scarlett Johansson and Sean Penn Splitting Up? is a post from: The Inquisitr

The Brad Pitt, Sean Penn acted and Terrence Malick directed film “Tree Of Life” took the top prize at this years Cannes Film Festival.

The festivals top prize, known as the Palme d’Or was announced by this years festival chair Robert De Niro with two producers from the movie accepting the award.

Pitt was not in attendance as wife Angelina Jolie, Pitt and the entire Pitt-Jolie crew flew home to Hollywood for the premiere of Jolie’s newest animated adventure Kung Fu Panda 2.

Another notable win fell into the lap of Kirsten Dunst for best actress, apparently her director (Lars von Trier) and his recently announced love for Hitler didn’t deter judges from her excellent performance.

Brad Pitt Movie ‘Tree of Life’ Wins Top Prize at Cannes Film Festival is a post from: The Inquisitr

Earlier this month, Sean Penn appeared on HBO’s Real Time With Bill Maher, defending Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez. (Clip below.)

Penn’s remarks caused a stir, but Cuban-born actress Maria Conchita Alonso’s open letter to Sean Penn has drawn the most attention since Penn’s interview with Maher. The actress makes several counterpoints to Penn’s assertions, though some cross the line from fact into possibly misguided opinion. For instance, Alonso says:

We live in the U.S.A., the land of opportunity to do and say what we desire,  respecting dissenting points of view, of course and without reprisals.

Interestingly, Bill Maher, host of the show on which Penn made the initial remarks, was famously chided by the government for controversial statements made in the wake of the September 11th attacks.

In the U.S.A. the arm of the law comes down hard on government or private sector where cases of fraud and corruption are discovered.

Again, not necessarily true- in fact, we recently had a ruling here granting unprecedented rights to corporations.

Then WHY do you applaud the efforts of a government that has notoriously increased poverty (65% to 71%), produced scarcity of staple products and created an energy and water shortage crisis never seen in Venezuela?

Yet Alonso supported McCain in the last presidential election, representing a party who presided over a large spike in poverty in the US over the eight years of the Bush administration.

Maria Conchita Alonso’s missive is long, and you can read it in its entirety here. Below is a clip of Penn in Bill Maher, discussing Hugo Chavez.

Actress Maria Conchita Alonso blasts Sean Penn in open letter is a post from: The Inquisitr

Sean Penn and Robin Wright-Penn have reconciled and are back together again.

The pair filed for a divorce last month, citing irreconcilable differences. A representative of Penn has said that those papers have now been “dismissed and taken out of the system.”

The back flip on their divorce isn’t the first for the pair, who first married in 1996. Penn filed for divorce in 2007, then later withdraw that application as well. The only question now: will the next time be third time final divorce lucky for the pair?

During their time apart, Penn was linked to a number of people, including actress Natalie Portman.

Sean Penn Robin Wright-Penn back together again is a post from: The Inquisitr

Fresh from winning the Oscar for Best Actor for his role in Milk, Sean Penn is going for a second big award: the 2009 WTF couple award.

Sean Penn and the gorgeous Natalie Portman have been spotted getting up close and personal at the Sunset Tower Hotel in L.A. according to multiple reports.

The pair are reported to have had dinner on March 17 and were “constantly touching each other”, according to Star Magazine.

But after dinner it got more interesting: “They went to a bank of elevators that only goes to the spa or to private rooms. They came back about 45 minutes later, and that’s when I saw them making out!” a source told Star.

WTF Couple: Sean Penn and Natalie Portman is a post from: The Inquisitr

Slumdog Millionaire was the big winner at tonight’s Academy Award’s, picking up eight Oscars.

Slumdog won best picture, best director for Danny Boyle, best adapted screenplay, best cinematography, best sound mixing, best original score, best original song and best film editing, every category the film was nominated in.

The biggest upset of the night came in the best actor category, with short priced favorite Mickey Rourke losing out to Sean Penn for his role as Harvey Milk in Milk. Penn finished his speech with a big shout out to Rourke, praising him for his role in The Wrestler and his amazing comeback.

Kate Winslet won best actress for The Reader, Penelope Cruz best supporting actress, and as we reported earlier, Heath Ledger became only the second actor in Academy Awards history to win an Oscar posthumously for his role as The Joker in The Dark Night. Notably the only other person to win the award beyond the grave was fellow Australian Peter Finch who won for his role in the 1974 film Network.

Hugh Jackman shone in his role as host, bringing a real talent to the stage while managing to connect with his natural charm.

Slumdog Millionaire Sweeps Oscars With 8 Wins, Penn Wins Best Actor In Upset is a post from: The Inquisitr

Making things worse is the fact that Sam has made herself scarce, with Lindsay spotted going out alone for a couple of consective nights. Celebuzz claims that Lindsay is striking back and has been flirting with Sean Penn.

“Is Lindsay Lohan trading up?” they asked, reporting that Linds and Sean were spotted at Nobu along with a bunch of Lindsay’s gal pals. A source claims that “the whole table chatted and chain-smoked,” while E! muses that Lohan’s rep Leslie Sloan might know more than she’s letting on about the rumored Lohan-Ronson break-up.

I hope this gets cleared up soon– my head is starting to spin!

Lindsay Lohan’s “In Denial” Over Shattered Relationship is a post from: The Inquisitr

Harrison Ford returns to the big screen in Crossing Over, a story about people trying to get into the United States.

The movie covers immigrants of different nationalities struggling to achieve legal status in Los Angeles. The film deals with the border, document fraud, the asylum and green card process, work-site enforcement, naturalization, the office of counter terrorism and the clash of cultures.

Also starring are Sean Penn, Ashley Judd and Ray Liotta. Release date hasn’t been finalized, but is expected to be next year. Crossing Over movie trailer as follows:

Crossing Over Movie Trailer is a post from: The Inquisitr