Two chairs put at cardboard Clint Eastwood cutout on California trail

Life-sized cardboard cutout of actor Clint Eastwood next to two empty chairs -- one wooden, in left background, and one cardboard, is seen overlooking freeway in Glendale, Calif. / AP Photo/Reed Saxon

(AP) GLENDALE, Calif. — These days, wherever you see Clint Eastwood, an empty chair is sure to follow. Even if you're on a hike.

A life-sized cutout of a cowboy Eastwood has stood on a trail overlooking a Southern California freeway for months, but on Tuesday, two chairs were next to him, one also a cardboard cutout, the other an actual wooden chair.

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They're a clear reference to Eastwood's interaction with an imaginary President Obama in an empty chair at the Republican National Convention last week.

Complete coverage: Democratic National Convention

Eastwood and the chair have fueled a social media meme that's shown no signs of slowing.

Full coverage: Election 2012

An artist erected the cutouts of Eastwood and other Hollywood western heroes along the trail in Glendale, but it's not clear where the chairs came from.

[Dancing-in-the-Streets]

You Know there will be a reference to this "empty chair" thing in the debates! LOL

[92F150]

A resentful old man smirking at his own insults during an imaginary conversation with the president. Too bad the mature actor didn't visualize how this could define him as a curmudgeon for posterity.

[bigmanfrommaine]

Too bad. An American hero who is frankly too old to be ad-libbing on the national stage. Just really hard to see him stutter and stammer at some empty chair.

Really, someone should have stopped this from happening!

[Mikexxxxxxx]

Hey "Un-American",
You mis-spelled your own name! You must be older than Clint! I was going to say older than dirt, but thought I would at least be diplomatic.

[netjunkie1]

What's amazing is he really thought President Obama was there....

[commercial-pilot]

Obama really is missing. He has not been at work for a year, played more golf, gone on more vacations, and had more fund raisers than any other president. He might as well because he has no idea how to create an environment where business feels comfortable enough to invest. I know so many companies and individuals who refuse to invest until this idiot Obama is gone. I am one of them. If he goes, I will spend money, if he is re-elected I will not invest a dime nor hire anybody. I felt his hate towards business owners in that speech where his true feelings surfaced. He hates us so investment is out.

[ge556]

Wow, Pilot. Do you have any idea how nutty that sounds?

[jumkey]

"if he is re-elected I will not invest a dime nor hire anybody"

Really? You hire based on who is in office and not if you need the labor?

You're a greater threat to the success of your business than Obama is. Maybe you just need someone to blame for your own failures.

[HM8432]

From a propaganda viewpoint, Clint's message was highly successful; though many people disagree with it, they REMEMBER it. That, and the act has taken on a life of it's own, and it doesn't look it's going to go away anytime soon. It'll be interesting to see if it has a social impact on Election Day.

[Dancing-in-the-Streets]

The only message I remember is his depiction of Obama telling Romney to go **** himself! LOL

[stupa5]

Obama 2012
deport Romney to the Caymans!

[commercial-pilot]

deport Obama to Chicago!!! He has done enough damage to this country