"What're you rebelling against, Johnny?"
"What d'ya got?"

– The Wild One

when i was a wee teenager, way before i found punk rock, there were a
few screen legends i looked up to with much reverence and awe and one
of them was marlon brando. he was the one hell of a rebel icon, the
leader of the gang decked in black leather jacket, white t-shirt,
weathered jeans and a scowl. the man died yesterday. there goes the
godfather.

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"Brando’s childhood was anything but ordinary…his alcoholic parents
left him alone much of the time. Brando failed at school, and developed
a reputation as a fighter. He arrived in New York in the early 1940s
looking for a purpose to his life, and soon found his calling in
acting. Under the tutelage of noted teacher Stella Adler and director
Elia Kazan, Brando rocketed to Broadway stardom in 1947 as “Stanley
Kowalski” in “A Streetcar Named Desire”.

A notable film career soon began, culminating in the mid-1950s with his
Oscar-winning performance in “On The Waterfront”. But Brando’s
childhood had not prepared him for fame and success…he became known as
a sexual rogue and inveterate bad boy. The 1960s saw his star dimmed by
bad pictures made for a quick buck, and Brando turned his energies
toward the civil rights movement of the era. It wasn’t until “The
Godfather” and “Last Tango in Paris” in the 1970s that Brando returned
to prominence.

But Brando once again shunned the best roles for his island hideaway in
Tahiti. And as his children from many different relationships grew, he
endured tragedy in their lives. In the early 1990s, his son Christian
shot and killed his stepsister’s lover. The ensuing trial—and
subsequent suicide of his daughter—brought to light the tragic
circumstances of Brando’s family and his own pain and confusion over
his role in their lives.

Brando leaves the world a man of contradictions and enigma."


"I am myself," he once said, "and if I have to hit my head against a
brick wall to remain true to myself, I will do it."


read more:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/arts/national/2004/07/02/Arts/
brandodies040702.html

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