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Obsessed with Leo DiCaprio

Cassie PenceVail CO, Colorado

What is Johnny Depp going to say?Since his days on Tiger Beat (that cheesy pre-teen pop mag), Depp has been my No. 1, my A-1 steaksauce, my celebrity hunk to lust over. And let’s get something straight: I’m not one of those pop culture junkies. I don’t read US (Weekly) or People, nor do I click on Yahoo to browse for gossip. Even when the New Kids on the Block were hotter than the Mojave on fire- and I an impressionable sixth-grader- did I give in to liking those dancing boys. I was listening to Led Zeppelin.But Depp, on the otherhand, is my constant crush. Like I tell my husband, if Depp offered me the chance at relations, I would happily sign the divorce papers.In some strange twist of the cosmos, however, Depp has taken the backseat. I have gained a new and unlikely obsession – Leonardo DiCaprio. I know what you all are thinking: That is like so early ’90s. I obviously missed the “Titanic” boat. It’s not like I didn’t think he was good in that romantic blockbuster, and I’ve seen all his greatest hits from “The Basketball Diaries” in 1995 to “Romeo and Juliet” in 1996 to “The Beach” in 2000. And let us not forget “What’s Eating Gilbert Grape,” a film starring both my crushes. (I might have to revisit that one.)But it wasn’t until watching “The Departed” that I sat up in my theater seat and began to take notice. When I call my Leo lust an obsession, I’m not exaggerating. I bought “The Departed” to watch in the comfort of my leather couch, and I proceeded to watch it for seven straight nights (as of recently, I’ve restricted myself to one night a week, skipping to the steamy scene with him and the shrink.) This is not your typical DVD repeat, like “The Big Lebowski” or “Old School,” where the jokes progressively grow funnier and funnier. No, this film is violent. My husband must think I’m taking notes to start my own mafia right here in Vail. To make matters worse, I Google Leo, searching for news on the latest supermodel he’s dating. (According to http://www.starmuscle.com, he asked his latest lean cat-walker Bar Rafaeli to marry him.) See what this has done to me? So after confessing my love of Leo to my co-workers, I began to analyze it. Why him? He’s not the boyish doll he used to be. He’s not dark and mysterious like my man Johnny. After round 20 with “The Departed,” I realized it’s not necessarily Leo I love, but his character Billy Costigan. Costigan is smart, defiant of authority, loyal, but very vulnerable at the same time, and in effect lovable. He’s the original bad boy (and appears to be a great kisser, too.) I’ve always been attracted to that type, which is perhaps why Leo’s never caught my eye until now.I guess that leaves Johnny still at the top, and considering my equal attraction to bad boys and pirates, I’m counting the days until Pirates 3 is at the big screen.Cassie Pence is the Arts and Entertainment Editor of the Vail Daily, but avoiding pop culture at all costs. Unless of course it involves Johnny Depp, Leo DiCaprio or Chris Robinson of the Black Crowes.


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