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Marlon Brando: The Way It's Never Been Done Before
This is an intimate and exceptionally candid memoir of the reclusive superstar Marlon Brando and a portrait of his decades-long friendship with the author, George Englund.
Since bellowing and blustering his way into the spotlight with A Streetcar Named Desire, Marlon Brando has been one of the most revered performers in the world. He was also incredibly reclusive, having shied away from the spotlight for decades. Marlon Brando, written by Brando's close friend George Englund, offers an intimate glimpse into the life and death of the amazing theatrical legend and a portrait of the friendship the two men shared.
Since bellowing and blustering his way into the spotlight with A Streetcar Named Desire, Marlon Brando has been one of the most revered performers in the world. He was also incredibly reclusive, having shied away from the spotlight for decades. Marlon Brando, written by Brando's close friend George Englund, offers an intimate glimpse into the life and death of the amazing theatrical legend and a portrait of the friendship the two men shared.
- GenresNonfiction
304 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2004
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
June 11, 2009
great for Brando fans only. A buddy of Brando wrote it. He is more than a little cheesy, and talks about himself a lot, oddly enough. But every now and then you get a great Brando story that is behind closed doors that leaves you more than content.
August 15, 2020
Ok but all over the place
Had to follow. So much not touched on. Interesting but cannot recommend. Alice Marchak’s two books about Brando much better.
Had to follow. So much not touched on. Interesting but cannot recommend. Alice Marchak’s two books about Brando much better.
January 6, 2018
Recently, I have been going through a Marlon Brando phase where I have been reading and watching countless interviews about Marlon Brando, or by Marlon Brando himself. Marlon Brando was an enigma with a personality larger than life. The moment I think that I have been able to uncover what sort of person he was, I end up realizing that I was farther away from the truth than I thought.
George Englund's biography of Marlon Brando is a fragment of who Marlon was as seen through the eyes of his business partner and friend. Englund had been the director of one of Brando's films, The Ugly American in 1963. Englund's vision of Brando is not a definitive vision of Brando. What bugged me the most about this biography is Englund's attempt to assure everyone that he was, indeed, friends with Marlon Brando. It is very clear that they were close based on the transcripts of phone calls and letters they sent to each other. However, I began having doubts about Englund's role in Brando's life when he began writing about Marlon's children and the conversations he had with them. Although I genuinely believe that he and Marlon Brando were friends, I also believe that Englund overestimates himself as a prominent figure in Brando's life.
In Marlon Brando: The Way It's Never Been Done Before Englund takes us on a journey of their forty eight year friendship, through the highs and the lows. They met in 1956 at a party and had become inseparable until Brando's death in 2004. The book was told in vignettes instead of in sequential order. One memory of Englund's would lead to another. One moment, Englund was recounting an event that occurred in the sixties, then he would return to 2004 describing Brando in his last days. While I was able to follow the anecdotes, I found that I couldn't place them on any sort of timeline in sequential order.
Englund also tends to talk a lot about himself, more than most biographers. At some point, he would describe Brando's poor relationship with his father. Then suddenly, fifteen pages of the book was devoted to Englund's meeting with his own estranged father. I began to forget that I was reading a biography about Marlon Brando until Englund would bring up how Brando reacted to this story. I began to see what held these two together in friendship, they both liked to venture off on tangents that sometimes would lead them away from their initial intentions.
All in all, this was an entertaining biography of Marlon Brando, full of life with anecdotes that had me giggling under my breath. Englund describes how Brando was forced to loose at least fifteen pounds before filming The Ugly American . Englund, as the director of the film, was enlisted to help Brando loose weight. When it seems as if Brando is behaving, Englund discovers that Brando has disappeared from a party. He then finds Brando stuffing his face with pie (an entire pie) with a glass of milk.
I would recommend this witty, and at times tragic, biography to those who are fascinated by Marlon Brando (as I am).
George Englund's biography of Marlon Brando is a fragment of who Marlon was as seen through the eyes of his business partner and friend. Englund had been the director of one of Brando's films, The Ugly American in 1963. Englund's vision of Brando is not a definitive vision of Brando. What bugged me the most about this biography is Englund's attempt to assure everyone that he was, indeed, friends with Marlon Brando. It is very clear that they were close based on the transcripts of phone calls and letters they sent to each other. However, I began having doubts about Englund's role in Brando's life when he began writing about Marlon's children and the conversations he had with them. Although I genuinely believe that he and Marlon Brando were friends, I also believe that Englund overestimates himself as a prominent figure in Brando's life.
In Marlon Brando: The Way It's Never Been Done Before Englund takes us on a journey of their forty eight year friendship, through the highs and the lows. They met in 1956 at a party and had become inseparable until Brando's death in 2004. The book was told in vignettes instead of in sequential order. One memory of Englund's would lead to another. One moment, Englund was recounting an event that occurred in the sixties, then he would return to 2004 describing Brando in his last days. While I was able to follow the anecdotes, I found that I couldn't place them on any sort of timeline in sequential order.
Englund also tends to talk a lot about himself, more than most biographers. At some point, he would describe Brando's poor relationship with his father. Then suddenly, fifteen pages of the book was devoted to Englund's meeting with his own estranged father. I began to forget that I was reading a biography about Marlon Brando until Englund would bring up how Brando reacted to this story. I began to see what held these two together in friendship, they both liked to venture off on tangents that sometimes would lead them away from their initial intentions.
All in all, this was an entertaining biography of Marlon Brando, full of life with anecdotes that had me giggling under my breath. Englund describes how Brando was forced to loose at least fifteen pounds before filming The Ugly American . Englund, as the director of the film, was enlisted to help Brando loose weight. When it seems as if Brando is behaving, Englund discovers that Brando has disappeared from a party. He then finds Brando stuffing his face with pie (an entire pie) with a glass of milk.
I would recommend this witty, and at times tragic, biography to those who are fascinated by Marlon Brando (as I am).
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August 1, 2019The book was enjoying to hear stories about Marlon, but I wasn't expecting so many stories about George Englund. That did disappoint me a little, but then I decided I was getting two biographies in one.
September 14, 2019
Fans of the late Brando would enjoy the memories of him and his friend (author), George Englund. Quite interesting with new details of Marlon’s life (and death).
January 29, 2018
This biography isn't going to redefine the genre but the subject matter is fascinating and the author had a front row seat to it for years. Good stuff. Pedestrian writing but good material.
December 10, 2025
a proper mess and george talks about himself a hell of a lot but it brings some great insight I guess… I love mar and his relationships with other people but if you want a biography based on his career then this isn’t the one for you— but why should you?brando as a person is much more interesting. still, pick alice marchak’s books over this.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews