Biography
Marlon Brando is a legendary American actor and political activist. Considered one of the most significant actors in the history of cinema. Over more than 50 years of his career, he starred in 40 films, many of which ended up in the golden fund of world cinema. Brando is a two-time Oscar winner, a two-time Golden Globe winner, and an Emmy and Cannes Film Festival winner.
Marlon Brando was born in Omaha, Nebraska. His father, Marlon Brando Sr., owned his own production facility, which produced food for farm and pet animals. Dorothy Pennybaker's mother played in the local theater and was close to actor Henry Fonda. Marlon, who was called Bud as a child, was the youngest child in the family. He had older sisters Jocelyn and Frances.
Marlon Brando in his youth
Brando Sr. was a rather reserved and tough person. He raised his children with extreme severity; they were forbidden to do almost everything, including the outward manifestation of emotions. For example, hugging each other in a family was allowed only on a birthday. The only entertainment in the house was the piano, which Dorothy sometimes played and sang on.
When Marlon was 6 years old, the family moved to the suburbs of Chicago, where Bud went to the fashionable Lincoln School. Until the age of 11, he had no friends, but then he met Wally Cox, who would later also become a famous actor, and from him he became infected with the dream of cinema.
A few years later, Brando’s parents temporarily decided to live separately, and Dorothy and the children moved to her mother in the Californian town of Santa Ana. Brando Jr. began to show himself well as an athlete at his new school and set several local records in athleticism. In addition, he showed himself to be a rebel: he dressed very flashily and brightly, had conflicts with teachers and the director, and had defiant behavior. In high school, Marlon actively played in school plays, mainly dramatic heroes or villains. He wasn't good at comedy roles at all. The young man was also a drummer in a local band.
Actor Marlon Brando
After school, against his own wishes and at the strict insistence of his father, Marlon Brando becomes a cadet at the Shattuck Sainte-Marie military school. There he discovers an amazing ability to imitate other people’s voices, plays Tutankhamun in the school production of “The Message from Hafu” and not only receives a storm of applause from the audience, but also with his performance convinces professor of English language and literature Earl Wagner that his place is on the stage, and not on battlefield. Shocked by the young man's talent, Wagner convinces Brando's parents to allow their son to start an acting career.
Personal life of Marlon Brando
The great Marlon Brando was explosive not only on stage or on the set. The actor’s personal life, like his career, is full of amazing dramas, ups and downs. Marlon preferred mainly oriental beauties, and on principle did not want to have any serious relationships with white girls.
Marlon Brando in the film The Godfather Officially, Marlon was married twice. His first wife was film extras Anna Kashfi. This love was strong and short-lived - the difficult characters of the spouses soon led to constant scandals. The marriage, during which they had a son, broke up. The second wife was actress Maria Luisa Castenade, whose marriage turned out to be equally fragile. Maria Louise gave birth to two children for Marlon.
The third of Marlon Brando’s main muses, Tahitian Tarita, was not the actor’s official wife. Brando lived with Tarita starting in 1963 on his own small island, bought off the coast of Tahiti. Tarita gave birth to the actor’s son and daughter. It is interesting to note that Marlon's second wife, Maria Louise, played the role of a native girl in the 1935 film Mutiny on the Bounty (1935). Tarita played the same role in the film of the same name in 1962.
There are six children officially recognized by Marlon Brando, and all of them bear his last name. The rest (and it is difficult to say how many there are) have never met their father, and many do not even know about their origin. Almost all of Marlon's children have an unhappy fate - at least in their personal lives. One of the actor's daughters committed suicide at age 25, and his eldest son was convicted of murdering her boyfriend in 1990.
Movies
Marlon Brando starred in a large number of films over the 50 years that his career spanned. From the very beginning he was a staunch supporter of Stanislavsky's system, and in his work adhered to the principles of his methodology. Subsequently, Marlon Brando's performance began to be considered a standard, a model to which not only students of theater and film universities, but also famous actors are compared.
Marlon Brando in the film A Streetcar Named Desire
Already the first film “Men” brought the aspiring actor rave reviews from critics and the Finnish film award “Jussi” as the best foreign performer. But real success came a year later, when the film adaptation of Tennessee Williams' classic play A Streetcar Named Desire was released, where Brando's partner was the famous actress Vivien Leigh. The film has become a classic of cinema and is constantly included in lists of the best films in the world. Thanks to this film, Marlon Brando's star rose, but for Vivien Leigh it became, on the contrary, tragic. After participating in the filming of the film, the actress developed manic-depressive psychosis.
For his participation in A Streetcar Named Desire, Brando was nominated for an Oscar, but then he did not receive the statuette. But in 1954, he nevertheless won an Oscar as best actor for his role as former boxer Terry Malloy in the crime drama about corruption On the Waterfront. There are several interesting incidents associated with the film. The main role was to be played by Frank Sinatra, who was personally invited by the director of the film. A contract was even signed with him, but producer Sam Spiegel wanted to see Brando exclusively in this role. He persuaded the increasingly popular actor to take part in the film and, despite legal proceedings with Frank Sinatra, who demanded a penalty for terminating the contract, he approved him in the leading role.
Marlon Brando and Karl Malden in the film On the Waterfront
Another curious fact is that “On the Port” was received rather coolly by the public the year it was released, despite the awards it received. But today the film, shot in just 36 days, is one of the hundred best films of the 20th century.
A notable year in Marlon Brando's acting career is 1972. Then he starred in two films – the gangster drama “The Godfather” and the erotic melodrama “Last Tango in Paris.” It is interesting that the film company that filmed “The Godfather” put forward a demand that Marlon Brando not participate in the film, since the producers had heard about his provocative behavior on film sets. But not a single actor who participated in the auditions was able to show the level of acting that Marlon demonstrated, and as a result, he was approved for the role of the head of the mafia clan Don Vito Corleone. During filming, Brando used a boxing mouthguard to give his jaw an aggressive shape.
In the film “Last Tango in Paris” the famous actor constantly improvised. Most of his lines heard in the final version of the melodrama are absent from the original script. Despite his great creative investment, Brando, like his partner Maria Schneider, was dissatisfied with the work in this film and, after filming, refused to communicate with director Bernardo Bertolucci for about 15 years.
However, the actor was again nominated for an Oscar for his participation in both films, but won the award with The Godfather. Unexpectedly for everyone, he refused to receive the prize and sent Sasha Light Feather, a girl of Indian origin from the Apache family, to the stage in his place, who also did not accept the award. With this act, Marlon Brando drew public attention to discrimination against the indigenous population of America.
"The Godfather" Marlon Brando. Why was he loved by everyone, but was not happy?
Oscar winner Marlon Brando is undoubtedly one of the most recognizable actors of the 20th century. He is remembered for his roles in films such as A Streetcar Named Desire, The Godfather and Last Tango in Paris.
According to Demotix, the American Film Institute named him the fourth best actor of all time. In addition to an incredible career, this man had a turbulent life full of controversial situations.
Brando's life was extraordinary from the very beginning. It also cannot be said that he grew up in an ordinary family. When he was 11 years old, his parents divorced. However, they never stopped loving each other, so they later got back together. This strange situation took its toll on Brando. He moved constantly and was never completely sure whether his parents were together or not.
Photo: instagram.com/marlonbrando
Marlon's mother was a talented woman, full of love, but she also suffered from alcohol addiction. During the quarrel with Brando's father, she earned money in local coffee shops by providing sexual services. After this, Marlon’s father returned his wife home and often resorted to physical violence. The man also beat his son.
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Brando's mother was also an amateur actress and played in the local theater. Moreover, she helped young Henry Fonda launch his career. Both Marlon's father and sisters were gifted with a talent for art. Among the celebrity family members there are many photographers, actors, artists and musicians.
Photo: instagram.com/marlonbrando
Although Brando had no academic problems, he did not graduate from high school, it was his decision. He didn't like taking orders from others, so one day he was rude to the teacher, after which he was expelled. Strictly speaking, there were other reasons. For example, riding a motorcycle through the corridors. After being expelled, the future actor decided that he would not return to school because, in his opinion, formal education did not make sense.
Marlon moved to New York and attended various acting schools. His father supported him. Brando began drinking, going on dates and developing his acting skills. And yet he found himself back on the streets because of his rebellious and insolent behavior - the man was expelled from school in Sayville. It didn't matter to Marlon, as he soon landed his first role on Broadway. Critics called him the most promising actor of his time.
Photo: instagram.com/marlonbrando
Already at the age of 24, Brando became the brightest star in Hollywood and gained worldwide fame. The film “A Streetcar Named Desire” and Brando’s acting in it became revolutionary in American cinema, because no one had ever seen such a performance before. For his performance, Marlon was nominated for an Oscar in the Best Actor category. For the next three years he repeated his success.
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His first five big roles changed the very essence of acting in Hollywood. In addition to his incredible talent, Brando had a bad boy charisma that was perfect for the coming era of rock and roll in popular culture. Elvis Presley once admitted that at the very beginning of his career he imitated Brando's style.
Photo: instagram.com/marlonbrando
Brando's appearance radiated magnetism no matter what role he played. Marlon won millions of women's hearts around the world. Theater owners recalled that when all the tickets were sold out, children ran down the hallway imitating the sounds of the engine from the film scenes while their mothers sat shocked by Brando's appearance.
Marlon received his first Oscar in 1954 for his role in the film On the Waterfront. After this triumph, he continued to play leading roles in many famous films. However, according to critics and film historians, his acting career became directionless.
Photo: instagram.com/marlonbrando
The role of Vito Corleone in The Godfather in 1972 marked a turning point in Brando's career and propelled him into stellar orbit with renewed vigor. Marlon received his second Oscar. “The Godfather” was followed by the most controversial film in the actor’s career, “Last Tango in Paris.” The film was banned due to its obscene nature. After this film, Brando no longer had to worry about the producers' demands. He was allowed everything.
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Photo: instagram.com/marlonbrando
For the role of Colonel Walter Kurtz in Apocalypse Now, Brando had to look thin and athletic. However, he gained a lot of weight and didn’t even read the script. The entire movie was improvised solely because of his refusal to learn his lines. When this film was shot, the actor’s weight became one of the decisive factors when approving him for the role.
In the 1950s and 1960s, Brando ate so much that directors sent his friend Carlos Fiore to pick the actor up from a coffee shop. During the filming of the film Mutiny on the Bounty, Marlon's trousers were torn - a total of 53 of them were needed, since 52 were somehow destroyed. One of the actor's girlfriends left Brando because he didn't keep his promise to lose weight.
Photo: instagram.com/marlonbrando
In the same 1960s, the actor was briefly imprisoned for illegal fishing. The man advocated for the rights of Native Americans and caught salmon in protest to show solidarity with the Indians.
Marlon's vibrant career went hand in hand with a busy personal life. Countless novels, many children, adultery, and constant outbursts of aggression secured Brando the title of one of the “bad boys” in the history of Hollywood.
It is believed that Brando was in love with Marilyn Monroe for many years. There is a legend that one day Marlon came to Monroe’s hotel room and did not leave there for three whole days.
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Photo: instagram.com/monroe.magicc
Brando once said: “Like many men, I too have had homosexual experiences. And I’m not ashamed of it.” Later his words were confirmed. The actor was in a love affair with singer Bob Dylan. Moreover, for a long time the man had a lover named Wally Cox.
“If Wally were a woman, I would marry him and we would live happily ever after,” Marlon once said.
After Cox's death, Brando kept his ashes for about 30 years. Cox's third wife only found out about this when Brando gave an interview to Time magazine. She wanted to sue him, but the lawyer refused to accept the case.
However, the actor also loved women, very much so. In 1957, he married actress Anna Kashfi. Their marriage lasted until 1959, during which time their son Christian was born. Anna knew that Brando liked Native American women, so she presented herself as a beauty of Indian descent, although in fact she was Irish. When the actor found out about this, he immediately filed for divorce.
Photo: instagram.com/marlonbrando
Soon a second wife appeared: Mexican actress, Movita Castaneda, who was seven years older than Marlon. Two years later they divorced. His third wife was the Tahitian beauty Tarita Teripia, who played Brando's lover in the film Mutiny on the Bounty. Tarita was 18 years younger than her husband. In a 10-year marriage, they had two children. Brando once said that he loved her because she was “simple and naive.”
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In total, Marlon had five biological and six adopted children. Unfortunately, there was no family idyll. Brando's eldest son, Christian, often got into trouble. In May 1990, he killed his half-sister Cheney's lover. He was found guilty and sentenced to 10 years in prison. The incident so hurt Brando that he made a controversial statement to the media that he had “betrayed his own son.”
Photo: instagram.com/onlybrando1924
She was pregnant when Cheney's brother killed her boyfriend. After the incident, she tried to take her own life three times and also underwent psychiatric treatment. This tragedy ended in 1995. Cheney stated that she was still depressed over the death of her lover and committed suicide in Tahiti. She was 25 years old.
Over the years, Brando himself began to become increasingly entangled in problems. Their numbers have attracted attention in Hollywood. He quarreled with directors, refused to learn lines, got into fights and appeared on the set drunk. But he was considered witty and handsome. For this, the actor was forgiven a lot.
Photo: imdb.com
On July 1, 2004, at the age of 80, Marlon Brando died of diabetes and cancer. He was cremated. His ashes were scattered in two places. One part is in Tahiti, and the second, along with Wally’s ashes, is in Death Valley, a favorite hunting spot for Cox and Brando.
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Personal life
Marlon Brando was known as the conqueror of women's hearts. He had a large number of fleeting star romances, including a close relationship with film star Marilyn Monroe.
Marilyn Monroe and Marlon Brando
Officially, he was married three times. In 1957, Marlon married Indian actress Anne Kashfi, who gave birth to his son Christian Devi. In 1959, the couple divorced, and a year later Brando married for the second time to the Mexican actress Movita Castaneda, who was 7 years older than him. This family also lasted only 2 years, but Movita managed to give birth to a son, Miko Castanedo, and in 1966, already out of wedlock, a daughter, Rebecca, was born from Marlon.
Immediately after the second divorce, Brando married 20-year-old Tahitian actress Tarita Teripia, 18 years his junior. They had a son, Simon Teihotu, and a daughter, Tarita Cheney. The actor also adopted the child of his wife Maimiti. This marriage turned out to be the longest of all. They divorced only 10 years later.
Marlon Brando and Tarita Teripia
Marlon Brando never married again, but had a serious relationship with his housekeeper Maria Cristina Ruiz, who gave birth to three children from him: Nina Priscilla, Miles Jonathan and Timothy Gahan. In addition, the actor had several other children out of wedlock. Officially, he recognized 14 children, not counting adopted ones.
The Early Years of Marlon Brando
Marlon Brando was born in April 1924 in the largest city of Nebraska - Omaha. In addition to Marlon, the Brando family had two daughters - Frances and Jocelyn. The family idyll that the children enjoyed soon ended - the parents separated. A little later, Marlon, who remained with his father, could not stand his eternal nagging and went to his mother, where, in general, it was no easier - the constant drinking of his mother, who had seriously lost her mind after the divorce, was also unbearable. Marlon Brando left home and set off to conquer New York. “On the Port”: Marlon Brando and Rod Steiger It was difficult for the future Hollywood star not only to live with his parents, but also to get an education. The guy was expelled from school for his addiction to motorcycles - he really loved riding a bike along the school corridors. Brando was also kicked out of the military academy in Minnesota in disgrace for his disgraceful behavior, although the young man was only happy about this fact.
Death
In the 90s, Marlon Brando gained weight due to stage 2 diabetes; his weight was about 135 kg. In addition, he began to suffer from memory loss and had vision problems. He was also later diagnosed with liver cancer.
Son Miko, who worked as a security guard for Michael Jackson and who had a friendly relationship with Brando, often brought his father to the Neverland Ranch, where the actor could spend a long time in the open air, as he began to experience oxygen deficiency.
Marlon Brando
A week before his death, the actor received an offer from Tunisian director Reed Behi to work on the script for the new project “Brando and Brando.” But on July 1, 2004, Marlon Brando was admitted to the Ronald Reagan Medical Center in Los Angeles with a diagnosis of pulmonary fibrosis. He refused the offer to insert tubes into his lungs, which was the only way to prolong his life, and died that same day.
Marlon Brando was cremated, and his ashes, combined with those of childhood friend Wally Cox, whose funeral urn the actor had kept in his home since 1973, were scattered over the island of Tahiti and over Death Valley in California.
