Yul Brynner Photographer (Hardcover)

~ Victoria Brynner (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This collection of duotone and color photographs by the famed screen actor, who died in 1985, was put together by his daughter, herself a photographer and photography producer. Brynner took pictures of his family, the occupants of the refugee camps he visited as Special Consultant to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and his friends and colleagues in the film world. His success as a photographer rested not so much on technical skill as on a gift for putting his subjects at ease, with the result that he could capture Cecil B. DeMille at a private mountain retreat in California where few photographers were allowed; Elizabeth Taylor, who never let anyone else photograph her off the set or without makeup, in a pool with her daughter; Ingrid Bergman and Deborah Kerr relaxing between takes; a radiant Mia Farrow cradling her enormous stomach a week before she gave birth to twins. In her brief introduction, Victoria Brynner writes of her close relationship with her father, from whom she gained her love of photography, and she includes brief comments by many of the famous friends who trusted and respected him enough to allow him to shoot these intriguing pictures.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

The actor who made baldness sexy was also an accomplished photographer. Compulsive, too, he stashed a camera behind his throne or in his chariot while playing the pharaoh in The Ten Commandments (1956), so he could snap away "during rehearsals or while waiting for a scene to begin." This album shows off his talent most winningly. Many of the images are candid portraits of the rich and renowned; outstanding among them are those of that whimsical ham of an artist, Jean Cocteau; of tiny Ron Howard striking muscle poses on the set of his first movie in 1958; and of virtually all the women, for what Roddy McDowall says in one of the many appreciative remarks sprinkled throughout the book seems true: "He was wonderful with women--they all felt safe with him." As warm is the handful of pictures of refugee children and elderly that Brynner took while serving as a special consultant to the UN in 1959. Loving and lovely. Ray Olson

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 210 pages
• Publisher: Harry N. Abrams; First Edition edition (September 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0810931443
• ISBN-13: 978-0810931442
• Product Dimensions: 10.4 x 9.9 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #203,672 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Wonderful Actor, An Even Better Photographer, April 25, 2000

By	Lee Kanne (Ramat-Hasharon, Israel) - See all my reviews

Yul Brynner was a very good actor. A lot of people know that. What most people don't know is that he was also a brilliant photgrapher.

This book is just beautiful. It has pictures of Yul himself, taking pictures of other people; Yul's family; and of course, what we all want to see, photos of his famous friends. Only he could photogrpah Liz Taylor, swimming in the pool with her daughter, without any makeup on, or Deborah Kerr standing with a color palet over her head, while the director of "The King And I" tries to decide what color her hair will be in the film. His daughter, who edited the book, wrote that her father was charmed by Ingrid Bergman's beauty, and it certainly shows - we see some wonderful, candid pictures of this great actress in the book, too. Also included are pictures taken on the sets of his famous movies - "The Ten Commandments", "Anastasia", "The King And I", and "The Magnificent Seven", and pictures of his celebrity friends, including: Sophia Loren, Audrey Hepburn, Charlton Heston, Jean Cocteu, Kay Kendall, Charlie Chaplin,Frank Sinatra, Rita Hayworth, Richard Burton and Salvador Dali.

My favourite photos, however, are of his (later ex) wife, Doris. You can see that he really loved her - like he loved each and every one of the people he photgraphed. They trusted him, and gave them the best gift possible -his art.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Yul Brynner, fotógrafo, December 17, 2007

By	M. Ruiz "Mañica71" (Zaragoza, Spain) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Bonito libro que muestra las inquietudes fotográficas del recordado Yul Brynner, el actor más magnético y apasionado que haya existido nunca.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Captivating Coffee Table Book, October 10, 2004

By	Nelson Aspen "Author/Journalist" (Los Angeles & NYC, USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

Amazon Verified Purchase

The wonderful Brynner's excellent photography is showcased here with a great assortment of pictures, assembled by his daughter. She tends to overdo it with her prose, as I suppose any adoring daughter would, but the moody B&W images are the star here...so skip right to them and enjoy a glimpse back at the times captured by the talented actor/photographer.