Marlon Brando (1924–2004,) fully Marlon Brando, Jr., was an American actor and stage actor known for his slurred delivery marked and brooding characterizations. One of the greatest actors of his generation, he was the leading exponent of the Method school of American acting.
Born in Omaha, Nebraska, Brando studied acting under Stella Adler at the Dramatic Workshop in New York City. He first attracted critical acclaim in the Broadway production of Tennessee Williams’s A Streetcar Named Desire (1947.)
Brando brought its method acting style to his first film, The Men (1950.) He was nominated for an Academy Award for his second movie, the film version A Streetcar Named Desire (1951.) Brando went on to repeat the accomplishment with each of his next three performances: Viva Zapata (1952,) Julius Caesar (1953,) and On The Waterfront (1954,) with the latter performance finally resulting in the Oscar for best actor.
Brando created one of the most memorable film characters of all time as organized-crime boss Don Vito Corleone in Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather (1972; Academy Award.) However, he refused the Oscar for The Godfather to protest the American government’s policy toward Native Americans. Later films include Last Tango in Paris (1972,) Apocalypse Now (1979,) A Dry White Season (1989,) The Freshman (1990,) Don Juan De Marco (1995,) The Island of Dr. Moreau (1996,) Free Money (1998,) and The Score (2001.)
Brando’s autobiography is Songs My Mother Taught Me (1994.) His collection of many years of personal audio diaries was the basis of the documentary Listen to Me Marlon (2015.)
More: Wikipedia • READ: Works by Marlon Brando
To grasp the full significance of life is the actor’s duty, to interpret it is his problem, and to express it his dedication.
—Marlon Brando
Topics: Acting, Actors
Acting is the least mysterious of all crafts. Whenever we want something from somebody or when we want to hide something or pretend, we’re acting. Most people do it all day long.
—Marlon Brando
Topics: Acting
If you want something from an audience, you give blood to their fantasies. It’s the ultimate hustle.
—Marlon Brando
Topics: Audiences
An actor is at most a poet and at least an entertainer.
—Marlon Brando
Topics: Actors
Wondering Whom to Read Next?
Tim Robbins American Actor, Director
Dustin Hoffman American Actor
Vincent Price American Actor
Charlton Heston American Actor
Tom Hanks American Film Actor
Sidney Poitier American Actor, Film Director
James Dean American Film Actor
Mickey Rourke American Actor
Burt Reynolds American Actor
Gary Sinise American Actor, Musician