Hollywood actors protest oilsands to try to rebuild careers: chamber official | CanadianBusiness.com

Daryl Hannah and Canadian actress Margot Kidder were arrested in Washington, D.C., last month in a protest against the $7-billion pipeline, which would ship oilsands crude from Alberta to refineries on the U.S. Gulf Coast.

"I think it's people that are probably looking for some way to get back into the newspapers since they haven't been able to do it through their own careers," said Karen Harbert, president of the U.S. chamber's Institute for 21st Century Energy.

"I think it's a sideshow. It's sort of a circus-like atmosphere," she said.

"I can tell you the American public doesn't pay any attention to that. They see it for what it is. They see the benefits. They don't look at people who are trying to get arrested in front of the White House. That's a tactic that has been used forever."

Canadians Dave Thomas, perhaps best remembered as one of the hosers in SCTV's Great White North skits, and Graham Greene, who starred with Kevin Costner in "Dances With Wolves," have both said they support a protest in Ottawa on Monday.