163 thoughts on “Top Screen Duos of All-Time”

1. I agree with Brando’s Angel that this site would appear to show favoritism to certain ‘pets’ of its own at the expense of some performers with whom it might not be so preoccupied.

   However I am not suggesting that wilful bias is in play. It’s just that I feel that sometimes people get into their own comfort zones with certain performers and genres, so that they become imbued with them to the disproportionate extent that the relevant work of other performers can often escape notice. My father, for example was, so in thrall to the ‘old fashions’ likes Bing, Hope, The Duke and Stewart that he refused to recognise the importance in terms of stardom of even 1950s/1960s performers such as The Beatles, Elvis, Mumbles and Rock Hudson.

   For example I have no doubt that The Work Horse genuinely believed that Thins deserved to be in the AFI 50 Legends lists; and that Brando had had his fair share of glory from other sources and deserved to be excluded to let Thins in; though Bruce never explained how the switch was to be achieved in the Real World ; and I’m sure that WH is truly convinced that everybody needs to know what Joel thinks of sex, politics, the weather and maybe even movies.

   However as the Senator from Wisconsin said about his Witch Hunt Committee “This committee always seeks to be fair,” so I will concede that Teach like Steve does nonetheless get a tremendous amount of variety and diversity into his uniquely comprehensive site. Steve in turn seems to be more swayed by certain genres rather that be transfixed a la Work Horse with Leaches, Micklewhites and swearing McClanes.

   Joel’s own now legendary remark about nobody being interested in Desiree shows, I believe, how blinkered and even dismissive some observers, especially those with strong views, can often become, so that they often are seemingly oblivious of even FACTS that don’t suit them. Hirschhorn might for example have criticised the film Desiree and Brando’s performance but at the same time mentioned that the public flocked to it, as a more balance critic like say David Shipman often did particularly when writing in one of his books. Admittedly though David had no interest in getting the knife into Marlon.

   However my idols seem to be doing well for acquiring protective angels: first my Jimmy had his Clarence; and now The Great Mumbler has one! It’s still not enough though because many of my idols would seem to need a representative of The Deity – or at least Jason or Arnie – to intervene by metaphorically jumping off a bridge into the deep Cogerson waters to save them! See Part 2 – and commiserations to you too FLORA!

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2. WIKIPEDIA
   “Marlon Brando Jr. was an American actor and film director with a career spanning 60 years, during which he won the Oscar for Best Actor twice. He is well-regarded for his cultural influence on 20th-century film and was in fact ranked by the American Film Institute as the fourth-greatest movie star among male movie stars whose screen debuts occurred in or before 1950. He was one of only six actors named in 1999 by Time magazine in its list of the 100 Most Important People of the Century.The other 5 actors are:

   Charles Chaplin as a silent screen comic genius
   Lucille Ball for her influence on television
   Bruce Lee as a cultural icon
   Marilyn Monroe as a sex icon.
   Frank Sinatra for influence on popular music.

   In this list, Time also designated Brando as the “Actor of the Century”.

   Also his movies are used as learning aids at Institutes for the Deaf because his facial expressions and mannerisms are regarded as often speaking for themselves, so that deaf people can more easily follow the plots of his movies than those of most other actors. Richard Burton in his diaries claimed that whilst Brando was one of a number of contemporary Legends among movie stars and entertainers generally, he might well have been THE greatest ever if he had existed in the silent movies era.”

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3. WIKIPEDIA
   “Marlon Brando Jr. was an American actor and film director with a career spanning 60 years, during which he won the Oscar for Best Actor twice. He is well-regarded for his cultural influence on 20th-century film and was in fact ranked by the American Film Institute as the fourth-greatest movie star among male movie stars whose screen debuts occurred in or before 1950. He was one of only six actors named in 1999 by Time magazine in its list of the 100 Most Important People of the Century.[7] The other 5 actors are:

   Charles Chaplin as a silent screen comic genius
   Lucille Ball for her influence on television
   Bruce Lee as a cultural icon
   Marilyn Monroe as a sex icon.
   Frank Sinatra for influence on popular music.

   In this list, Time also designated Brando as the “Actor of the Century”.

   Also his movies are used as learning aids at Institutes for the Deaf because his facial expressions and mannerisms are regarded as often speaking for themselves, so that deaf people can mor easily follow the plots of his movies than those of most other actors. Richard Burton in his diaries claimed that whilst Brando was one of a number of contemporary Legends among movie starts and entertainers generally, he might well have been THE greatest ever if he had existed in the silent movies era.”

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4. Why is your site seemingly so determined to exclude, or at least be forgetful of, Brando-related matters? For example:

   1/You once inserted Joel Hirschhorn into an informal private exercise that some of your regulars were conducting among themselves, none of whom had included Hirschhorn; and the move had the effect of harming in the project the ranking positions of Brando and John Wayne, neither of whom Mr Hirschhorn seemed to like.

   2/You excluded Brando from your 25 Male Stars Legends [1950-2010] on the grounds that he was on the AFI list and if you dropped him and one or two others out that would leave room for Myrna Loy on the AFI lists. That idea had no basis in reality; and anyway you didn’t exclude from the female Top 25 list the ACTRESSES who ended up on both yours and AFI. Also why though would anyone who was being impartial WANT to exclude Brando to benefit Myrna Loy unless there were grounds for believing Miss Loy was a more deserving case? History would suggest that even on your site the jury would be out for a long time on that one!

   Cerainly It’s difficult to see this site being so calvalier with the ranking positions of Cary Grant or Michael Caine; or it ignoring/overlooking Grant teamings that had the historical importance in cinema folklore that The Godfather and Apocalyse Now have had [the first being listed among the greatest films of all time overall and the second considered one of the best war movies ever]. Waterfront and Streetcar are credited with changing American screen acing forever. Howevers both films had “earthy” central male characters; I suppose they count for little when placed on the scales in the overalll scheme of things with a screwball comedy in which its lead male speaks and endlessly quips pleasing things in a polished accent.

   “When Richard looked towards the East he frowned: when he turned to face the West he smiled.”

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5. b. Brando and Karl Malden are in 3 movies that collectively grossdomestically nearly three quarters of a billion: Streetcar, Waterfront and One Eyed Jacks. Brando was Oscar-nominated for Streetcar and won for Waterfront; and Malden won for Streetcar and was nominated for Waterfront. They had great scenes together in all 3 of the movies and in Jacks Karl was in a role originally intended for Spencer Tracy. Martin Scorsese and George Lucas recently spent 2 years and some of their own dollars in restoring Jacks. Brando and Malden less important than Flynn and Alan Hale, who was really just Flynn’s foil? It’s difficult for me to see why: how many noms/wins did Flynn or Hale have as a team or singly?

   “Do I doubt or do I dream?
   Do mine eyes deceive me?
   Are things what they seem:
   Or are visions about?

   c. Jean Simmons and Brando were in 2 movies that collectively grossed nearly $600 million – Guys and Dolls and Desiree – which are among the best AVERAGE grosses [around $290 million each] in your tables. Brando and Simmons less important than Clint and Sondra? As McEnroe used to say: “You cannot be serious man!” Sondra was in reality Clint’s foil; whereas Jean had the co-lead in Guys and Dolls and WAS Desiree. And Brando: well. he’s Brando and among most movie buffs that would be enough.Though possibly there I go too far: Brando let’s not forget was a “liability” in Guys and Dolls and “nobody” went to see him in Desiree; and your lists as they stand are ‘Classic Hirschhorn’

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