Marlon BRANDO
* 03.04.1924, Omaha, Nebraska, USA † 01.07.2004, Los Angeles, USA

Schauspieler * 1943/44 Schauspielstudium an der New School for Social Research in New York * 1944 Debüt am Broadway in I Remember Mama * 1947-49 großer Bühnenerfolg als Stanley Kowalski in A Streetcar Named Desire - übernimmt die gleiche Rolle in der Filmversion von Elia Kazan (1950) * Ende der 40er Jahre Mitglied des Actors Studio * 1949 Filmdebüt in The Men * 1953 letzter Bühnenauftritt (Arms and the Man) * (als rebellischer Star) Idol der amerikanischer Jugend in 50er Jahren * 1955 Gründung von Pennebaker Productions (1963 an Universal verkauft) * 1958/59 einzige Regiearbeit (One-Eyed Jacks) * nach finanziellem Misserfolg (und Querelen während Dreharbeiten) von Mutiny on the Bounty (1961) sinkt sein Stern und die Qualität der Filme * 1972 Revival seiner Karriere mit grandioser Darstellung des Oberhauptes einer Mafiafamilie in The Godfather - anschließend lehnt den Oscar ab (aus Protest gegen die Lage der Indianer) * danach absolviert sporadische hochbezahlte (Kurz)auftritte * 1979 einzige Fernsehrolle (Serie Roots: The Next Generations) * 1980 zieht sich für acht Jahre aus dem Filmgeschäft zurück * 1994 Veröffentlichung der Memoiren * Gründer des American Indian Movement

"There are so many actors I really look up to. You feel like you could never wipe their shoes. But first and foremost will always be Brando. He seemed so effortlessly real, like he wasn't acting. And the more I got to know about acting, the more I realised he was really a poet. He condenses things and crystallizes them and brings them to a head. And the little things he does, My God! I think he's a genius." John Goodman (1990)

Begonnen hatte alles am Broadway, wohin es den jungen Marlon Brando - Jahrgang 1924 - in den frühen 40er-Jahren auf der Suche nach einem Lebensziel verschlagen hatte. 1947 katapultierte er sich mit der Darstellung des Stanley Kowalski in Tennessee Williams' Drama 'Endstation Sehnsucht' an die Spitze. Drei Jahre später eroberte er in der Rolle eines querschnittgelähmten Kriegsveteranen in Fred Zinnemanns Film 'Die Männer' die Leinwand. Sie war das ideale Medium für seine magnetisierende Persönlichkeit und faszinierende Präsenz, verknüpft mit seiner subtilen, am Actors Studio geschulten Schauspielkunst. Von da an ging es Schlag auf Schlag: die Verfilmung von 'Endstation Sehnsucht', das Revolutionsdrama 'Viva Zapata', der Kultfilm 'Der Wilde' - mit dem Brando die Rebellion der Jugend einläutete und Modetrends evozierte -, der Historienfilm 'Julius Cäsar' und schließlich 1954 das sozialkritische Drama 'Faust im Nacken', das ihm nach drei Nominierungen hintereinander den Oscar einbrachte. Diesen nahm er noch an, einen zweiten, den er für den 'Paten' bekam, schlug er aus, um auf diese Weise auf die Not und die Ziele seiner indianischen Freunde aufmerksam zu machen. Hollywood sah ihn nur noch sporadisch - vor allem immer dann, wenn er für seine politischen Aktivitäten, sein Südseeatoll oder seine geschiedenen Frauen Geld brauchte. Und jeder Auftritt wurde zur Sensation: Die Geschichte einer Amour fou 'Der letzte Tango in Paris', Coppolas grandioses Vietnam-Epos 'Apokalypse Now', in dem Brando den dämonischen Oberst Kurtz genial verkörperte, der Südafrika-Politthriller 'Weiße Zeit der Dürre', die köstliche Mafia-Satire 'Freshman', in der er seine 'Patenrolle' herrlich parodierte, das Historienepos 'Christopher Columbus - Der Entdecker', die Coppola-Komödie 'Don Juan de Marco' mit Brando als Psychiater und Johnny Depp in der Titelrolle, der Action-Film 'The Brave', in dem Brando und Johnny Depp wieder als Team glänzten, 1998 noch einmal Brando der 'Über-Pate' in der Komödie 'Free Money' und last not least der Gangsterfilm 'The Score' (2001), in dem mit Marlon Brando, Robert De Niro und Edward Norton drei Generationen der aufregendsten Schauspieler zusammentrafen. [BR, Oktober 2003]
FILMS
# The Men (Die Männer, 1949-USA; R: Fred Zinnemann, B: Carl Foreman, K: Robert de Grasse, M: Dimitri Tiomkin, D: MB-Ken, Teresa Wright) 85m-Drama
# A Streecar Named Desire (Endstation Sehnsucht, 1950-USA; R: Elia Kazan, B: Tennessee Williams; Oscar Saul, K: Harry Stradling, M: Alex North, D: Vivien Leigh, MB-Stanley Kowalski) 122/5m-Drama
# Viva Zapata! (Viva Zapata!, 1951-USA * Elia Kazan ... Emiliano Zapata) (5202)
# Julius Caesar (Julius Caesar, 1952-USA; R+B: Joseph L. Mankiewicz, K: Joseph Ruttenberg, M: Miklos Rozsa, D: MB-Marcus Antonius, James Mason, John Gielgud, Louis Calhern, Edmond O'Brien, Greer Garson, Deborah Kerr) 120m-Historiendrama
# The Wild One (Der Wilde, 1953-USA * László Benedek ... Johnny) (Kurzgeschichte von Frank Rooney) (02-03; 5312)
# On the Waterfront (Die Faust im Nacken, 1953/54-USA; R: Elia Kazan, B: Budd Schulberg, K: Boris Kaufman, M: Leonard Bernstein, D: MB-Terry Malloy, Karl Malden, Lee J. Cobb, Eva Marie Saint) 108m-Sozialdrama
# Désirée (Désirée, 1954-USA; R: Henry Koster, B: Daniel Taradash, K: Milton Krasner, M: Alex North, D: MB-Napoléon Bonaparte, Jean Simmons, Merle Oberon, Michael Rennie) 110m-Historienmelodram (Roman von Annemarie Selinko)
# Guys and Dolls (Schwere Jungs - leichte Mädchen, 1955-USA; R+B: Joseph L. Mankiewicz, K: Harry Stradling, MÜ: Jay Blackton, D: MB-Sky Masterson, Jean Simmons, Frank Sinatra, Vivian Blaine) 150m-Musical
# The Teahouse of the August Moon (Das kleine Teehaus, 1956-USA; R: Daniel Mann, B: John Patrick, K: John Alton, MÜ: Saul Chaplin, D: MB-Sakini, Glenn Ford, Machiko Kyo) 123m-Komödie (Buch/Roman von Vern J. Sneider)
# Sayonara (Sayonara, 1957-USA; R: Joshua Logan, B: Paul Osborn, K: Ellsworth Fredericks, M: Franz Waxman, D: MB-Major Lloyd [Ace] Gruver, Patricia Owens) 147m-Liebesdrama (Roman von James Michener)
# The Young Lions (Die jungen Löwen, 1957-USA; R: Edward Dmytryk, B: Edward Anhalt, K: Joseph MacDonald, M: Hugo Friedhofer, D: MB-Christian Diestl, Montgomery Clift, Dean Martin) 167m-Kriegsfilm (Roman von Irwin Shaw)
# One-Eyed Jacks (Der Besessene, 1958/59-USA; R: Marlon Brando, B: Guy Trosper, Calder Willingham, K: Charles Lang, M: Hugo Friedhofer, D: MB-Johnny Rio, Karl Malden, Katy Jurado) 141/3m-Western (Roman von Charles Neider)
# The Fugitive Kind (Der Mann in der Schlangenhaut, 1959-USA; R: Sidney Lumet, B: Tennessee Williams, Meade Roberts, K: Boris Kaufman, M: Kenyon Hopkins, D: MB-Val/entine Xavier, Anna Magnani, Joanne Woodward) 119/35m-Drama
# Mutiny on the Bounty (Meuterei auf der Bounty, 1961-USA; R: Lewis Milestone, B: Charles Lederer, K: Robert Surtees, M: Bronislau Kaper, D: MB-Fletcher Christian, Trevor Howard, Richard Harris) 179/83m-Abenteuerdrama (Roman von Charles Nordhoff & James Norman Hall)
# The Ugly American (Der häßliche Amerikaner, 1962-USA; R: George Englund, B: Stewart Stern, K: Clifford Stine, M: Frank Skinner, D: MB-Harrison Carter MacWhite, Eiji Okada) 120m-Drama (Roman von William J. Lederer & Eugene Burdick)
# Bedtime Story (Zwei erfolgreiche Verführer, 1964-USA; R: Ralph Levy, B: Stanley Shapiro, Paul Henning, K: Clifford Stine, M: Hans J. Salter, D: MB-Fred/dy Benson, David Niven, Shirley Jones) 99m-Komödie
# Morituri / The Saboteur, Code Name Morituri (Morituri, 1964-USA; R: Bernhard Wicki, B: Daniel Taradash, K: Conrad L. Hall, M: Jerry Goldsmith, D: MB-Robert Crain/Keil, Yul Brynner, Janet Margolin) 123m-Kriegsdrama (Roman von Werner Jörg Lüddecke)
# The Chase (Ein Mann wird gejagt, 1965-USA * Arthur Penn ... Sheriff Calder) (Bühnenstück + Roman von Horton Foote) (04-08; 6602)
# The Appaloosa (Südwest nach Sonora, 1965/66-USA * Sidney J. Furie ... Matt Fletcher) (Roman von Robert MacLeod) (?-01; 6609)
# A Countess from Hong Kong (Die Gräfin von Hongkong, 1966-GB; R+B: Charles Chaplin, K: Arthur Ibbetson, M: Charles Chaplin, D: MB-Ogden Mears, Sophia Loren) 120m-Liebeskomödie
# Reflections in a Golden Eye (Spiegelbild im goldenen Auge, 1966-USA * John Huston ... Major Weldon Penderton) (Roman von Carson McCullers) (6710)
# The Night of the Following Day (Am Abend des folgenden Tages, 1967-USA; R: Hubert Cornfield, B: Hubert Cornfield, Robert Phippeny, K: Willy Kurant, M: Stanley Myers, D: MB-Bud, Richard Boone, Rita Moreno) 93m-Krimidrama (Roman von Lionel White)
# Candy e il suo pazzo mondo / Candy (Candy, 1967/68-I/F; R: Christian Marquand, B: Buck Henry, K: Giuseppe Rotunno, M: Dave Grusin, D: Charles Aznavour, MB-Grindl, Richard Burton, James Coburn, John Huston, Walter Matthau, Ringo Starr & Ewa Aulin) 108/14m-Erotikfarce (Roman von Terry Southern & Mason Hoffenberg)
# Queimada (Queimada - Insel des Schreckens, 1968/69-I * Gillo Pontecorvo ... Sir William Walker) (11-07; 6912)
# The Nightcomers (Das Loch in der Tür, 1971-GB; R: Michael Winner, B: Michael Hastings, K: Robert Paynter, M: Jerry Fielding, D: MB-Peter Quint, Stephanie Beacham) 96m-Thriller
# The Godfather (Der Pate, 1971-USA * Francis Ford Coppola ... Vito Corleone) (Roman von Mario Puzo) (MB > 04-05; 7203)
# Ultimo tango a Parigi / Le dernier tango à Paris (Der letzte Tango in Paris, 1972-I/F; R: Bernardo Bertolucci, B: Bernardo Bertolucci, Franco Arcalli; Agnes Varda, K: Vittorio Storaro, M: Gato Barbieri, D: MB-Paul, Maria Schneider) 126/32m-Erotikdrama
# The Missouri Breaks (Duell am Missouri, 1975-USA; R: Arthur Penn, B: Thomas McGuane, K: Michael Butler, M: John Williams, D: MB-Lee Clayton, Jack Nicholson) 126m-Western
# Apocalypse Now (Apocalypse Now * Apocalypse Now Redux, 1976/77-USA * Francis Ford Coppola ... Colonel Kurtz) (03.76-05.77; 7908)
# Superman [: The Movie] (Superman, 1977/78-USA; R: Richard Donner, B: Mario Puzo, David Newman, Leslie Newman, Robert Benton, K: Geoffrey Unsworth, M: John Williams, D: MB-Jor-El, Gene Hackman) 143m-Fantasyabenteuer
# The Formula (Die Formel, 1980-USA; R: John G. Avildsen, B: Steve Shagan, K: James Crabe, M: Bill Conti, D: George C. Scott, MB-Adam Steiffel, Marthe Keller) 117m-Thriller (Roman von Steve Shagan)
# A Dry White Season (Weiße Zeit der Dürre, 1988-USA; R: Euzhan Palcy, B: Colin Welland, Euzhan Palcy, K: Kelvin Pike, Pierre-William Glenn, M: Dave Grusin, D: Donald Sutherland, Janet Suzman / MB-Ian McKenzie) 107m-Politdrama (Roman von Andre Brink)
# The Freshman (Freshman, 1989-USA; R+B: Andrew Bergman, K: William A. Fraker, M: David Newman, D: MB-Carmine Sabatini, Matthew Broderick) 102m-Krimikomödie (06-08; 9007)
# Christopher Columbus - The Discovery (Christopher Columbus - Der Entdecker, 1991-USA; R: John Glen, B: John Briley, Cary Bates, Mario Puzo, K: Alec Mills, M: Cliff Eidelman, D: MB-Tomas de Torquemada, Tom Selleck, Georges Corraface, Rachel Ward) 120m-Historienabenteuer
# Don Juan DeMarco (Don Juan DeMarco, 1994-USA * Jeremy Leven ... Jack Mickler) (05-07; 9504)
# The Island of Dr Moreau (DNA - Die Insel des Dr. Moreau, 1995-USA; R: John Frankenheimer, B: Richard Stanley, Ron Hutchinson, K: William A. Fraker, M: Gary Chang, D: MB-Dr. Moreau, Val Kilmer) 95/7m-Horror (Roman von H.G. Wells)
# The Brave (The Brave, 1996-USA; R: Johnny Depp, B: Paul McCudden, Johnny Depp, D.P. Depp, K: Vilko Filac, M: Iggy Pop, D: Johnny Depp, MB-McCarthy) 123m-Drama (Roman von Gregory McDonald)
# Free Money (Free Money, 1997-CDN; R: Yves Simoneau, B: Anthony/Tony Peck, Joseph Brutsman, K: David Franco, M: Mark Isham, D: MB-Sven Sorensen [der Schwede], Donald Sutherland, Charlie Sheen) 94m-Schwarze Komödie
# The Score (The Score, 2000-USA; R: Frank Oz, B: Kario Salem, Lem Dobbs, Scott Marshall Smith, K: Rob Hahn, M: Howard Shore, D: Robert De Niro, Edward Norton, MB-Max Baron, Angela Bassett) 120/4m-Thriller
AWARDS
> Darstellerpreis für Viva Zapata! [Filmfestspiele Cannes 1952]
> British Academy (BAFTA) Award (bester ausländischer Darsteller) für Viva Zapata! (1953)
> British Academy (BAFTA) Award (bester ausländischer Darsteller) für Julius Caesar (1954)
> New York Film Critics Circle Award (bester Darsteller) für On the Waterfront (1954)
> Academy Award / Oscar (bester Hauptdarsteller) für On the Waterfront (1955)
> Golden Globe (bester Darsteller – Kategorie Drama) für On the Waterfront (1955)
> British Academy (BAFTA) Award (bester ausländischer Darsteller) für On the Waterfront (1955)
> Goldene Muschel für One-Eyed Jacks [Filmfestival San Sebastián 1961]
> Academy Award / Oscar (bester Hauptdarsteller) für The Godfather (1973)
> Golden Globe (bester Darsteller – Kategorie Drama) für The Godfather (1973)
> New York Film Critics Circle Award (bester Darsteller) für L'ultimo tango à Parigi (1973)
> Darstellerpreis für A Dry White Season [Filmfestival Tokyo 1989]
BOOKS
> Robert Tanitch: Brando. London: Studio Vista, 1994
> Lothar Schirmer [Hg.]: Marlon Brando: Portraits und Filmstills 1946 - 1995. München [u.a.]: Schirmer/Mosel, 1995
> Claver Salizzato: Marlon Brando. Roma: Gremese Ed., 1996
> Lawrence Grobel: Conversations with Brando. New York: Cooper Square Press, 1999
+ Gespräche mit Marlon Brando. Weinheim [u.a.]: Beltz-Quadriga, 1993
> Marli Feldvoß: Marlon Brando. Berlin: Bertz, 2004
> George Englund: Marlon Brando: The Naked Actor. London: Gibson Square, 2005

Peter Manso: Brando: The Biography. New York: Hyperion, 1994

Written by the esteemed journalist acclaimed for Mailer: His Life & Times, here is the definitive biography of Marlon Brando - published in time for the actor's 70th birthday. The result of seven years of intensive research and hundreds of exclusive interviews, Brando: The Biography reveals the man few have ever really known. xiii, 1118 s. * 24 pages of photos.

Patricia Bosworth: Marlon Brando. London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2001

From moody Omaha teenager to Method-trained star with the face of a poet to eccentric recluse in his later years, Marlon Brando offers a penetrating look at Brando's evolving persona and legendary roles: the volcanic Stanley Kowalski of A Streetcar Named Desire, the sensitive rebel of The Wild Ones, and the iconic Don Corleone of The Godfather. He achieved unparalleled critical acclaim for his many memorable characters. Bosworth probes the influence of Brando's alcoholic parents on his acting, his decades of psychoanalysis, and his tumultuous personal relationships. Here, from rebellious unknown to reluctant idol to falling star, is the complex, charismatic genius who changed the face of acting. Patricia Bosworth is an acclaimed biographer whose work includes A Portrait of Montgomery Clift, praised by Newsweek as 'the best film star biography in years.' Her firsthand knowledge of the entertainment industry infuses her writing with an intimacy and vividness that The Washington Post Book World calls 'extraordinary.' In Marlon Brando she evokes the magnetic sexuality, passion, and vulnerability of the icon and the man. > 216 p. : photogr., jaquette ill.

Darwin Porter: Brando Unzipped: Bad Boy, Megastar, Sexual Outlaw. New York: Blood Moon Productions, 2005

The blue jeans made famous by Marlon Brando in Streetcar Named Desire are unzipped in this richly anecdotal "warts-and-all" biography of the greatest film actor of the 20th century. Within its pages, veteran Hollywood reporter Darwin Porter paints an extraordinarily detailed portrait of Brando, particularly about his early years, that is as blunt, uncompromising, and X-rated as the man himself. A self-admitted bisexual, Brando seduced more women and the occasional man than any other actor in the history of Hollywood. His trail of conquests led him from the A-list boudoirs of New York to similar padded enclaves in Hollywood and eventually to the backwaters of the South Pacific. The roles Brando lived off-screen were even more provocative than those he created in his films. Through his life paraded an array of luminaries, including some of the most famous women of the 20th century. Personal family tragedy is documented in this book, always with a sense of irony at the larger-than-life anguish that often befalls the very rich and the terribly famous. If Marlon had not existed, no novelist could have invented such a towering, larger-than-life creature. The year of its publication, this title was serialized for millions of readers, worldwide, with the esteemed pages of Londons SUNDAY TIMES. > 625 p. : ill.

Sergio Arecco: Marlon Brando. Recco / Genova: Le Mani, 2007

Un volto di cruda bellezza. Una voce afona, seduttiva e carezzevole. Una personalità eccentrica e ribelle. L’attore più importante del XX secolo. Il più amato e controverso. Forse anche il più sexy. Il difficile rapporto con il padre. Il teatro e poi il cinema come sublimazione e terapia. Le vicissitudini della vita privata. L’impegno nella lotta per i diritti civili delle minoranze e la difesa dell’ambiente. Il volume, articolato in due parti – una biografia minuziosa, verificata direttamente sulle fonti; una filmografia che analizza uno per uno, praticamente sequenza per sequenza, tutti i film interpretati dall’attore – intende fornire un ritratto esaustivo, il più completo e aggiornato in Italia, di Marlon Brando uomo e performer, intrecciati al punto da costituire un unico inimitabile personaggio. Come ha detto Martin Scorsese, nella storia della recitazione esiste un prima e un dopo Brando. Il libro, saggio biografico e cinematografico insieme, mette a fuoco questa centralità, collocando Brando fuori dal mito e dentro la grande storia del cinema. > 413 p. : ill.

Jörg Fauser: Marlon Brando, der versilberte Rebell. Zürich: Diogenes, 2009

Vor 26 Jahren, 1978 verfasste der heute fast vergessene Journalist Jörg Fauser "in einer Bude über den Dächern Münchens" die vorliegende Biografie "Brando - Der versilberte Rebell". Fauser hat damit etwas geschaffen, das viel mehr ist, als nur das übliche Legenden-vermarktungsgerechte Stück Text, das sich von Imagewechsel zu Imagewechsel hangelt. Der versilberte Rebell ist Prosa, ist Fausers Prosa, die Brandos Lebenslauf besetzt hat und ihn als Gedankenstrom durchfließt. Fauser schrieb hier aber nicht etwa seine eigene Version von Brandos Leben, er war ziemlich gut informiert und stellte den zitierten Quellen auch immer eine eigene Einschätzung zur Seite. Aber das Buch lebt von der spürbaren Inspiration, die Fauser durch Brando erfuhr. In ihm fand er einen der Seinen. Und in dessen Leben und den Legenden, die um ihn ranken, eine Partitur, die dem Sound seiner Schreibe entsprach. > 255 p. * Filmogr. S. 221 - 234; mit einem Nachwort von Michael Althen und einem Gespräch mit Monika Nüchtern

Stefan Kanfer: Somebody: The Reckless Life and Remarkable Career of Marlon Brando. London: Faber, 2011

Marlon Brando will never cease to fascinate us: for his triumphs as an actor (On the Waterfront, The Godfather, Last Tango in Paris), as well as his disasters (in roles he took for money, or on a whim); for the power of the portrayals he gave on screen, and for his turbulent, tumultuous personal life. Now Stefan Kanfer gives us the definitive life of this iconic artist, seamlessly intertwining the man and the work to produce the fullest and most illuminating appraisal we have had. Kanfer takes us through Brando’s childhood - troubled by a brutal father and an alcoholic mother - so supplying the background we need to understand the Brando who arrived in New York in the 1940s, studied with the legendary Stella Adler, and at the age of twenty-three became the toast of Broadway in A Streetcar Named Desire . Kanfer examines each of Brando’s films - from The Men in 1950 to The Score in 2001 - providing brilliant analysis of the actor’s craft and making clear the evolution of Brando’s singular genius. * Stefan Kanfer is the author of Ball of Fire: The Tumultuous Life and Comic Art of Lucille Ball and Somebody: The Reckless Life and Remarkable Career of Marlon Brando. He was a writer and editor for Time magazine for more than twenty years. He lives in New York and on Cape Cod. > 368 p. * paperback - originally published 2008.

Susan L. Mizruchi: Brando's Smile: His Life, Thought, and Work. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2014

A groundbreaking work that reveals how Marlon Brando shaped his legacy in art and life. When people think about Marlon Brando, they think of the movie star, the hunk, the scandals. In Brando’s Smile, Susan L. Mizruchi reveals the Brando others have missed: the man who collected four thousand books; the man who rewrote scripts, trimming his lines to make them sharper; the man who consciously used his body and employed the objects around him to create believable characters; the man who loved Emily Dickinson’s poetry. To write this biography, Mizruchi gained unprecedented access to a vast number of annotated books from Brando’s library, hand-edited copies of screenplays, private letters, and recorded interviews that have never before been quoted in a biography. Original interviews with some of the still-living players from Brando’s life, including Ellen Adler, his one-time girlfriend and the daughter of his acting teacher Stella Adler, provide even deeper insight into the complex person whose intelligence belied the high-school dropout. Mizruchi shows how Brando’s embrace of foreign cultures and social outsiders led to his brilliant performances in unusual roles - a gay man, an Asian, a German soldier - to test himself and to foster empathy on a global scale. We also meet the political Brando: the civil rights activist, the close friend of James Baldwin, the actor who declined his Oscar to support Indian rights. More than seventy stunning - and many rare - photographs of Marlon Brando illuminate this portrait of the man who has left an astounding cultural legacy. > xxxix, 469 pages : illustrations (hardcover) * includes filmography (pages 365-366), bibliographical references and index.

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