Description: Actor Marlon Brando made his Broadway debut in 1944's "I Remember Mama." This original Broadway Playbill was given to me by a researcher on the set of "The Missouri Breaks" in 1975. There is a backstory to its existence and why it was important to the career of Marlon Brando. To retaliate for a childish prank by Marlon Brando, a young female researcher (who was working as a history expert with the film crew in Montana) discovered this program from Brando's first acting role on the NY stage. Writing her sarcastic comments in red ink on a Post-It, she decided to expose Brando in a lie.as a joke. She pinned the program to the outside of Brando's trailer, for all the world to see. On an inside page of the Playbill for "I Remember Mama, " next to Brando's fabricated biography, the intern pointed out the realities of his career. She wrote: "Brando lied about his birthplace here. He was born in Omaha, Nebraska." After Marlon Brando got a laugh at her expense, it was her way of getting even, in a funny prank of her own. During the filming of "The Missouri Breaks," which starred both Brando and Jack Nicholson, there were many problems. In order to break the monotony of production, Brando played bizarre jokes on the cast and crew. He loved scaring people with rubber spiders and raw eggs. In his boredom, he'd placed one of the realistic spiders inside the intern's office. Brando's other pranks included: mooning the entire company, shooting insects with his character's gun and biting a chunk of flesh from a live frog during a river scene. Brando also enjoyed lying about his real-life background. By creating an air of mystery, his personal history was more dramatic. When he was asked for a biography, during his Broadway debut, Brando created his own resume for the show. He thought it was funny, when others confronted him with the truth. After the intern offered him the original Playbill as a "gift from the past", Brando refused to accept it. If he did, Brando would actually be admitting the lie. The play of "I Remember Mama," was eventually made into an Oscar-winning film in 1948 with Irene Dunne. Brando wasn't cast in the film version. Written by John Van Druten, and based on a novel by Kathryn Forbes called "Mama's Bank Account," the play was set in San Francisco during the early 20th century. It focused on the lives of an immigrant family from Norway and premiered at the Music Box Theater in New York City on October 19, 1944. . The program measures 6 1/2 x 9 inches. It will be shipped by USPS First Class. The program does have some wear and tear. But given its age, and the ordeal it experienced, it's still in fairly good shape. However, the front page has separated from the rest of the program. Rather than fix or alter it with tape, I'm leaving the Playbill in its original condition. For theater buffs, and the diehard fans of Marlon Brando, the item may still hold some appeal.
Price: 12.99 USD
Location: Los Angeles, California
End Time: 2024-02-17T06:08:15.000Z
Shipping Cost: N/A USD
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Item Specifics
All returns accepted: ReturnsNotAccepted
Modified Item: No
Country/Region of Manufacture: United States
Original/Reproduction: Original
Industry: Theater
