Burt Kearns looks at a legend’s legacy in 'Marlon Brando: Hollywood Rebel'

Burt Kearns, who first hit the literary scene two decades ago with Tabloid Baby, and made a resounding return with with The Show Won’t Go On and Lawrence Tierney: Hollywood’s Real-Life Tough Guy, is back with a new book in which the journalist and pop culture authority tackles one of the most influential figures in movie and theater history.

Marlon Brando: Hollywood Rebel looks at the the great actor’s influence on popular culture, on the centenary of his birth in April 2024.

According to the publisher:

“Brando’s intense approach to acting technique was emulated by his contemporaries as well as generations of actors who followed, from Nicholson and De Niro to DiCaprio and Gosling. But his legacy extends far beyond acting, His image in The Wild One helped to catalyze a youth revolution, setting the stage for rock ’n’ roll culture in a way that directly inspired Elvis Presley, the Beatles, Andy Warhol, and punk rock culture.

“Brando was also frank about his affairs with both sexes: a leader in the sexual revolution amd hero of gay culurte, he defied stereotypes and redefined sexual boundaries in his life and the roles he played.

“But of all his passions, activism was even more important to Brando than acting. He was an early supporter of Israel, civil rights, the American Indian movement, Black power, gay rights, and environmentalism.”

The book is published by Applause Theatre and Cinema Books and is available for preorder at Amazon.com.