Brando Unzipped: A Revisionist and Very Private Look at America's Greatest Actor [Hardcover]

Darwin Porter (Author)

Book Description

THE BOOK THAT HAD TO WAIT FOR BRANDO TO DIE The mysteries that enveloped the late superstar MARLON BRANDO (1924-2004) are unwrapped and exposed in a richly anecdotal “warts-and-all” biography, BRANDO UNZIPPED! by bestselling biographer, Darwin Porter. The greatest film actor of the 20th century lives again in these pages, each meticulously researched over a period of more than 40 years. Each of the people Porter interviewed, including many of Brando’s lovers—both male and female--had a different story to tell. Many of them contradicted heretofore published accounts of how those encounters evolved. Hostile witness or loving friend, each subject added a piece to the mosaic. The result is a fully rounded view of a revolutionary actor who, like “lightning on legs,” electrified the world in Streetcar Named Desire, where he played Stanley Kowalski in the Broadway version of 1947, and the film version in 1951. The book also describes his Oscar-winning turn as Terry Malloy, the boxer who could have been a contender in On the Waterfront in 1954, and his electrifying comeback as Vito Corleone in The Godfather in 1972. The combative, moody, iconoclastic, polarizing, and enigmatic figure appears as a flesh-and-blood creation in this revelation-studded bio. It’s all here: “The Rebel Without a Cause” who made rebellion hip. The suicide attempts of former girlfriends, Startling stories about “Sleeping with the Enemy” (bedding a stalker who turned out to be a cannibal in disguise). His involvement with the Black Panthers. The ill-fated marriages, bitter divorces, and child-custody battles. A son with a murder rap. Jealous actors who wanted to seduce Brando and then “become Brando” on screen. With candor, the author unveils the details of that ongoing disaster that Brando called “my life.” The charismatic personality of The Wild One is recaptured in all its brooding power that seemed forever ready to explode at any moment. The same animalistic intensity that Brando brought to the role of Stanley Kowalski lives again within the pages of this bio. From sex symbol of the 1950s to a swollen, overweight slob who became a tabloid scandal in the 90s, Brando was one of filmdom’s true originals. Women wanted him, and certain men wanted him, and Brando was willing to share his charms with a string of lovers whose hangouts ranged from the A-list boudoirs of New York and Hollywood to the back alleys of a string of cities from New York to the slums of the South Pacific. Throughout this biography, Brando’s quirky and sometimes bizarre humor often bubbles to the top. As an example, once, when he was asked for a summation of his life, Brando said: “I’ve never been circumcised, and my noble tool has performed its duties through thick and thin without fail!” More than the story of Brando himself, the biography chronicles the loves of his life, most of which were of short duration but played out with the same kind of intensity he brought to the screen. Regardless of their origins, his affairs invariably crossed the American plains to land on the opposite coast. His lovers were as mercurial as his own personality. They included Doris Duke, the richest woman in the world, and Burt Lancaster, the actor originally targeted for the role of Stanley in Streetcar. The true story of his explosive relationships with Elizabeth Taylor and Frank Sinatra is printed for the first time, as is an array of friendships and/or feuds with such unlikely figures as Richard Burton, Charlie Chaplin, and (believe it or not), Michael Jackson. The roles Brando lived off-screen were even more provocative and intriguing than those he created on screen. He paraded through the bedrooms of such luminaries as an aging Marlene Dietrich, and enjoyed one-night stands with both Grace Kelly and Jacqueline Kennedy. His tortured relationships and love affairs with James Dean and Montgomery Clift are explored in depth, as is the pass

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Brando Unzipped contains major revelations about the American actor. Its author spent 50 years assembling meticulously documented source material." -- Le Journal du Dimanche (France)

"Brando Unzipped is YUMMY. Practically every page discloses a fascinating tidbit. An irresistibly flamboyant romp of a read." -- Bookmarks / Books to Watch our For.

"Darwin Porter paints an extraordinarily detailed portait of Brando that is as blunt, uncompromising, and X-rated as the man himself." -- Women's Weekly (Australia)

"Deliciously low, with anecdotes that are so entertainingly outrageous, you'll want to throw your suspensions of disbelief out the window." -- Los Angeles' Frontiers Magazine, edition of Dec 20, 2005

"Lurid, raunchy, and perceptive...there's an astounding revelation on almost every page. Compelling...This book is certainly worth reading." -- The Sunday Times (London)

"Original and at times amazing, BRANDO UNZIPPED documents a life of gargantuan excess that only Hollywood could have produced." -- The editorial board of The Georgia Literary Association

Brando Unzipped is the definitive gossip guide to the late, great actor's life. -- The New York Daily News

From the Publisher

Mega-star Marlon Brando is remembered both as a sexual outlaw and as the most radical and astonishing actor of his generation.

The subject is fascinating, historically important, and highly commercial. In fact, I'm amazed that other, larger publishing houses failed to compile biographies of their own since his death in July of 2004.

Maybe they were afraid of the controversy, or maybe they didn't have access to the wealth of previously unpublished material that the book's author, Hollywood veteran Darwin Porter, spent 45 years compiling.

Much to my amusement, during our pre-publication publicity of this title, a well-preserved and sexy, but otherwise not-particularly-flamboyant woman confronted me at a trade fair, hoping that her name--based on a short sexual interlude she cited-- had been included among Marlon's thousands of "conquests."

It was then that I fully appreciated the animal attraction Brando held for his fans, and the energy that some of them expend, even today, linking their names to his historical record.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 550 pages
• Publisher: Blood Moon Productions, Ltd.; Third edition (January 5, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0974811823
• ISBN-13: 978-0974811826
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 1.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #877,124 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Needs a copy editor and designer, February 13, 2006

By 

Gentleman Smeller - See all my reviews

This review is from: Brando Unzipped: A Revisionist and Very Private Look at America's Greatest Actor (Hardcover)

The book is filled with typos and very poorly laid out, which damages the credibility and visual appeal of the book. (My previous review pointing this out was deleted for some reason).

It's hard to know exactly who this book is meant for--and it's no wonder it wasn't picked up by a major publishing house. The stories, even if all of them are true, need an editor and are so poorly written that the book is often unreadable.

33 of 38 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Tabloid Materials Amplified..., February 12, 2006

By 

Bay Reader (Bay Point, California USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Brando Unzipped: A Revisionist and Very Private Look at America's Greatest Actor (Hardcover)

Mr Darwin Porter's account of the events of Marlon Brando's life may contain some inchoate truths, but the book reads more like a long tabloid paper than a true biography. I find many of the supposed dialogues between individuals as unbelievable. And since Porter never consistently references his sources, you never know which information is reliable and which is tabloid and gossips.

Disappointing as a biography, but great as gossip book.

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars No Stars, May 9, 2008

By 

John Davenport "James" (California) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Brando Unzipped: A Revisionist and Very Private Look at America's Greatest Actor (Hardcover)

Cannot imagine someone enjoying this book or believing 99% of it. It is not even speculative. It's lower. Suited for a person of very low intelligence, so please do not waste your money. Talentless author that published the book a year after Brando died. Truly the work of genuine scumbag. Have to say I did not read the description before I purchased it. My fault. It's somewhere in the county garbage dump.