I love Kumar! But does this mean that he won't be making any more movies? That scene in HKGTWC when they are riding the cougar is hilarious.

I've never really liked him as an actor.
I dont really know what to say about this.

I've never really liked his acting, although I was starting to warm up to him on House. Maybe politics is more his foray. He knew what he wanted to do and went for it. Can't fault him for that.

I really like him (but I guess not his politics), so I'll be sorry not to see him in any movies any time soon. And Muppets, it was a cheetah, but yeah that scene was awesome

He was really good in the Namesake, if you haven't seen it I recommend you add it to your Netflix queue. Its always cool to see someone who is financially successful make a change to politics, volunteering, charity work because they believe they are serving the greater good.

yay kumar!

I'm glad to see he isn't dead (House made it look like he had actually died), but I'm sorry he's gone over to the dark side.

This seems like such a cliché liberal move. I mean, would this guy have gotten a job if he weren't a famous hollywood actor? I seriously doubt it. Makes me sad for all the people who majored in political science and have put in work at internships and lower level jobs hoping to get a position like this, whereas he just gets to skip to the head of the line.

Penn worked on Obama campaign and always has had some political involvement. A lot of people on both sides of the political spectrum jump to the head of the line, and since his real life experience probably brings more to the job than an internship.

Interesting point, Modus. I know people who have PS degrees with lots of public relations experience who would have given up a limb for this job - and this guy (who has what qualifications, exactly?) just waltzes in and takes this position?
(Has he committed tax evasion? I still think that's a necessary qualification in this administration!)

"Has he committed tax evasion?"

The dark side has unicorns

Yeah, kind of like Arnold Schwarzenegger's impressive resume with lead roles in both Terminator 1 AND 2.

According to imdb, here are some of Penn's qualifications:

Is the first Indian-American actor to have a successful career in mainstream Hollywood.

During the Spring 2008 semester, he was an adjunct faculty member in the Asian American Studies Program at the University of Pennsylvania (familiarly called "Penn") in Philadelphia. He taught a lecture course, "Images of Asian Americans in the Media," and a seminar, "Contemporary American Teen Films," both of which were cross-listed in the Cinema Studies department. His faculty listing on the Asian America Studies Program website gives his name as Kalpen Modi (his real name) first, with his stage name, Kal Penn, in parentheses.

Is in the process of earning a graduate certificate in international security from Stanford University.

Wow, didn't know all of that!

I knew all of it besides the last bit about the graduate degree.

But still...do you think the average joe could get a gig like his with the greatest qualification being "still in grad school"?

And my guess is his fame *might* have had something to do with him getting in grad school at Stanford.

Because most people, and certainly the admissions people at Stanford, are keen Harold & Kumar fans? How many minor celebrities do you think California colleges take because of their 'fame'?

A lot.

Kerri Strug and Shekira went to UCLA, a good half a dozen Real World alum went to UC Berkeley. Didn't Clare Danes go to Yale, Natalie Portman to Harvard, and Julia Stiles to Columbia?

Those are just the ones I know of off hand. I'm sure there are more, especially at UCLA (where Kal Penn did his undergrad, but I'm too lazy to figure out if that was before or after he started in movies)

Yeah Modus, not that your points are valid, but it happens on both sides. But with republicans since most actors are liberal pull from the ranks of their wealthy friends children or major campaign donors. And universities might take in academically underqualified actors but they also take in academically underqualified rich people's kids.

I guess my point is life isn't fair and neither is the hiring or admittance process. If you are rich or famous you get things easier.

I mean to say invalid

Haha. I was like whaaat...?

Yale, Harvard and Columbia are not in California.
Do you think UCLA and Berkeley actually took Matt and Kaia because of their 'fame'?

I know. That's why I started a new sentence to talk about non-California schools. Though I don't see why it matters what state they are in.

Kal was wonderful in the Namesake, and I loved him on House - I actually didn't know that they killed his character off...

He will definitely add an interesting comedic element to Obama's staff.

More importantly, I said "because of their 'fame'" - you can't reasonably compare Danes, Portman and Stiles' fame to people who appeared on Real World, or Kal Penn for that matter.

"Though I don't see why it matters what state they are in."
Because it's hard to toss a pebble in California without hitting someone who has some minor claim to fame.

Steph, I don't know every celebrity that ever got into a good school. Are you trying to say that celebrities don't get special treatment? That Kal Penn would have this job if he were not an actor?

I agree with Mydiadem on this one:

I guess my point is life isn't fair and neither is the hiring or admittance process. If you are rich or famous you get things easier.

It just seems like getting into college is one thing (there are a bazillion colleges) and getting a job at the White House is another (much more limited opportunity).

There are tons of people hired for jobs government and private sector based on who they know.

Yeah I am saying that.
Be serious, Kal Penn isn't 'famous' - he's someone people see and wonder where they know him from.
He worked for the campaign, he's got a strong political science AND entertainment background, his grandparents marched with Gandhi and he's taking a pay cut to take a low visibility position with the administration - there's NOTHING unusual or privileged about this switch except on his part - He'll be making in a year what he makes on one episode. If he's trading on his fame, he's stupid.

Strong political background? He stumped for Obama (what Hollywood celeb didn't?) and he's half way through a graduate program. Oh, and his parents marched with Ghandi...

Angie Harmon didn't.

and he's Indian-American, and his stage name in Kal Penn, and he was one of Lex Luthors cronies in "Superman Returns", and he was Van Wilder's secretary in that Van Wilder movie, and he...and he...and he...

It wasn't his first involvement in a political campaign - if he was some conservative chick from Alaska you'd be saying he was qualified to be king of the world!

Yeah. Being halfway through grad school is totally the same qualifications as being governor of a state.

Well, it's not as if a grad student can leave school for a couple of months and have his studies continue along just fine without him...

"if he was some conservative chick from Alaska you'd be saying he was qualified to be king of the world! "

"if he was some conservative chick from Alaska you'd be saying he was qualified to be king of the world! "

Ummm, no.

good for him!

the reason "under qualified" celebrities get positions like these is because it helps get the issues into the public forum. we wouldn't even be talking about the Office of Public Liason if some non-celebrity took this position. and while i agree, it sucks for people who went to school and got degrees in poli sci, the greater purpose of someone like kal penn taking this position is to bring attention to it. that's why it's important to have people like angelina jolie or oprah doing charity work or working for the UN, cuz it brings it into the limelight when you have someone famous. they know what kind of influence/pull they have, and in the process, if they can get something that helps better the world, than that should be a good thing.