The man who plays Saddam Hussein in "Hot Shots! Part Deux" couldn't be more delighted at his character's violent demise.
"I think it's great that he's played by a nice Jewish boy," said Jerry Haleva, who took time off from his regular job as a Sacramento lobbyist to play the Iraqi dictator in both the original "Hot Shots" and the sequel.Haleva's striking resemblance to Saddam Hussein was noted before the gulf war, but the conflict prompted celebrity look-alike czar Ron Smith to sign him as a client. Haleva had met Smith years earlier when, as chief of staff for State Sen. William Campbell, R-Whittier, Haleva worked on the Celebrity Rights Act giving heirs of famous people the right to control use of the deceased's likeness.
Haleva's first job was in the first "Hot Shots." "I was only on screen for 15 seconds, but the scene was in the trailer so it was seen by a lot of people who didn't see the movie," he said.
For the much larger role in the sequel, Haleva had to audition for director Jim Abrahams, who was surprised to learn Haleva had never before acted professionally.
"I told him, `Of course I have - I've been in politics for 15 years!' " Haleva said.
Haleva is a Sephardic Jew whose grandparents were from Turkey. "I'm very active in the Jewish community," he said. Three years ago, he founded the lobbying firm Sergeant Major Associates; clients include Pfizer Pharmaceuticals, Ticketmaster and Pepperdine University.
Co-starring in a movie was "a dream come true," he said. "But I'm not giving up my day job."