The Life of Yul Brynner (1920 – 1985)
Yul Brynner (1920 – 1985)
Yul Brynner was an actor most famous for his portrayal of King Mongkut in Rodger and Hammerstein’s musical, ‘The King and I’. Writing this article brought back many fond memories of my childhood. When I was a child, my parents let me watch the old 1956 version of ‘The King And I’ and I was held spellbound by Yul Brynner and Deborah Kerr’s performance, especially when they sang ‘Shall We Dance’.
Or view the video on the server at:
https://video.tsemtulku.com/videos/ShallWeDance1.mp4
After researching Yul Brynner’s life, I had mixed feelings about him. I knew he was talented and successful but I also discovered that he had a hidden past which he kept secret for quite a while. However in spite of all that, he was passionate in helping others. He used his fame to champion the plight of refugees and took up the position as Special Consultant for Refugees with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Even when he was dying of lung cancer, he made it a point to bring awareness to the very cause of his cancer – smoking.
I deeply rejoice that he used his fame to lessen other people’s suffering. At the end of the day, no matter how successful we are, nobody can escape death. Therefore, we should use our time wisely.
I hope you enjoy reading this short article about this multi-talented actor, author, singer, activist and photographer who played the role of King Mongkut an incredible 4,625 times!
Valentina
The Beginning
The statue of Yul Brynner in Vladivostok, Russia
Born on 11 July 1920 in Vladivostok, Russia, Yul Brynner was given the name Yuli Borisovich Briner. His father was a mining engineer named Boris Yuliyevich Briner of mixed Swiss-German and Russian descent. His mother was Marousia Dimitrievna of Russian descent. Yul Brynner was named after his paternal grandfather, Jules Briner. He also inherited the Buryat-Mongolian ancestry through his paternal grandmother, Natalya Yosifovna Kurkutova.
During his lifetime, very few people knew about Yul Brynner’s background. He liked to tease people by keeping his real ancestry a secret. At one time, he claimed to be a half-Swiss and half-Japanese man by the name of Taidje Khan and born on the island of Sakhalin. Yul Brynner remained a private person as he declared:
“People don’t know my real self, and they’re not about to find out.”
The closest he came to revealing his background was when he briefly mentioned his Mongolian ancestry,
“I am just a nice clean cut Mongolian boy.”
According to his friend J. Lee Thompson, Yul Brynner did not reveal much about his childhood or his parents, but
“…we [his friends] knew that somewhere there was something that had hurt him in days gone by. Here was this man who was the king, who overpowered everybody that he came in contact with, and yet you would see him sometimes sitting down and a glimpse of tears would come to his eyes and he would be thinking deeply about something. I knew that Yul with all his bombast was also a very human person who had been hurt and had largely succeeded in covering up those wounds.”
It was not until the publication of the biographies, ‘Yul: The Man Who Would Be King’ and ‘Empire and Odyssey’ by his son, Yul “Rock” Brynner II (“Rock Brynner”), that the public got a glimpse of the earlier part of his life.
Two books written by Rock Brynner: ‘Empire and Odyssey’ and ‘Yul: The Man Who Would Be King’
In 1923, when Yul Brynner was just three, his father had an affair with another woman, Katya Kornukova, an actress at Moscow Art Theatre, and soon abandoned his family. Perhaps, the emotional scars remained with him and made him into this brooding and intensely private person. After her husband left her, Marousia took her children Yul and Vera Brynner to Harbin, China where they attended a YMCA school.
Harbin, China in the 1930s where Yul Brynner spent part of his childhood
In 1932 (some sources state 1934), sensing the rising tensions between Japan and China, Marousia moved her family to Paris, France in order to avoid the impending war. Although he was enrolled at an exclusive school in France, Lycée Moncelle, Yul Brynner was not interested in school. He instead wanted to be in the performing arts. He dropped out of school and subsequently worked as a trapeze artist in a famous circus, Cirque d’Hiver. It was during this time that Yul Brynner developed an appreciation for Gypsy folk songs and culture. In the documentary ‘Yul Brynner: The Man Who Was King’, his agent Guy McElwayne said:
His Gypsy background, which he was very proud of, gave him incredible sense of belonging wherever he was. When he was in America, he was an American. When he was in France, he was French…
Cirque d’Hiver where Yul Brynner used to work as a trapeze artist
During his 5th year in the circus, Yul Brynner suffered a back injury and his career as a trapeze artist came to an abrupt end. Subsequently, he played the guitar, primarily Gypsy songs, at various Russian nightclubs in Paris. In 1938, Marousia was diagnosed with leukaemia and the family briefly moved back to Harbin, China.
The Successful Career of Yul Brynner
Yul Brynner’s sister, Vera Brynner
In 1940, Yul Brynner and his mother decided to emigrate to the United States. They arrived in New York City on 25 October 1940 and were greeted by his sister, Vera, who had emigrated before them and worked as a singer on Broadway.
Yul Brynner’s acting mentor, Michael Chekov
Yul Brynner worked as a French-speaking radio commentator for the US Office of War Information during World War II where he broadcasted into German-occupied France. Around the same time, he studied under the tutelage of multi-talented Russian-American actor, Michael Chekhov. In December 1941, Yul Brynner performed his first Broadway show as Fabian in Shakespeare’s ‘Twelfth Night’. Subsequently, he worked in the television series ‘Mr. Jones and His Neighbors’ and another Broadway play, ‘Lute Song’ with actress Mary Martin. Although Yul Brynner only won mild acclaim for his work in ‘Lute Song’, his friendship with Mary Martin would later bring him the biggest acting role in his career.
In 1944, Yul Brynner married his first wife, actress Virginia Gilmore, and began his career as a film and television director at CBS. His directing debut was ‘Life with Snarky Parker’ (1950), a children’s puppet show. The show aired for eight months before it was cancelled. He eventually established himself as a successful director after directing the films ‘Studio One in Hollywood’ (1948), ‘Danger’ (1950) and ‘Omnibus’ (1952).
Mary Martin, who convinced Yul Brynner to audition for the role of King Mongkut in ‘The King and I’
In 1950, Mary Martin encouraged Yul Brynner to audition for the role of King Mongkut of Siam in Rodgers and Hammerstein’s new musical, ‘The King and I’. Although he was initially reluctant to return to the stage, he became fascinated with the character of King Mongkut and eventually agreed to join the cast for the original Broadway production in 1951. Yul Brynner was asked to shave his head for the role and he agreed. Since then, he kept his head shaved and his bald head became his most notable trademark.
Yul Brynner was sensational as King Mongkut and he won two Tony Awards. Throughout his career, he reprised the role 4,625 times. He also played the role of King Mongkut in the 1956 film version of ‘The King and I’ and won an Academy Award for Best Actor. In his acceptance speech, he famously said:
I hope this is not a mistake, because I won’t give it back for anything in the world. Thank you very much.
Yul Brynner won an Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in the film version of ‘The King and I’
The film version of ‘The King and I’ was launched in the same year as Yul Brynner’s two other blockbuster films, ‘The Ten Commandments’ in which he played the role of Ramesses II and ‘Anastasia’ in which he played the role of General Bounine. ‘The Ten Commandments’ is considered one of the most commercially successful films of all time. After the success of these three films in which he played the leading roles, Yul Brynner achieved worldwide fame and became one of Hollywood’s A-list leading men. One year later on 8 February 1960, he received a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in California.
Yul Brynner in ‘The Ten Commandments’
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https://video.tsemtulku.com/videos/TenCommandment.mp4
Yul Brynner in ‘Anastasia’
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https://video.tsemtulku.com/videos/Anastasia.mp4
For the next two decades of his career, Yul Brynner continued to be highly successful in Hollywood and starred in over 40 other films including ‘Solomon and Sheba’ (1959), ‘The Magnificent Seven’ (1960), ‘Taras Bulba’ (1962) and ‘Kings of the Sun’ (1963). Due to his exotic good looks and macho appearance, he was typically cast in strong leading roles such as kings, an Egyptian Pharaoh and a Western gunslinger.
The Other Talents of Yul Brynner
Yul Brynner was an accomplished photographer
In addition to being an actor and director, Yul Brynner was also an accomplished photographer, author and guitarist. He actively took many photographs of friends, family members and refugees whom he met while serving as the Special Consultant on Refugees for the UNHCR.
Yul Brynner wrote two books, ‘Bring Forth the Children: A Journey to the Forgotten People of Europe and the Middle East’ (1960) and ‘The Yul Brynner Cookbook: Food Fit for the King and You’ (1983). Victoria Brynner, his daughter, compiled the photographs he took during his lifetime and published a book entitled ‘Yul Brynner: Photographer’.
Book covers: ‘Bring Forth the Children: A Journey to the Forgotten People of Europe and the Middle East’ and ‘The Yul Brynner Cookbook: Food Fit for the King and You’
The Philanthropic Work of Yul Brynner
Yul Brynner served as Special Consultant on Refugees for UNHCR
Yul Brynner was passionate about refugee issues which arose from his interest in collecting United Nations Refugee stamps. This led to him taking up the post as Special Consultant on Refugees for the UNHCR. He took the job seriously and used his fame to bring awareness to the sufferings of refugees around the world from Asia to the Middle East. Although there were times when entering a refugee campsite was risky business with patrolling local armies, Yul Brynner remained fearless. His friends believe that it was his Gypsy background that made him so. He also made two documentaries to highlight refugee issues.
The Personal Life of Yul Brynner
Yul Brynner and his first wife, Virginia Gilmore
Yul Brynner’s personal life was not ordinary. He had numerous love affairs with many women and was married a total of four times, to:
- Virginia Gilmore (1944 – 1960; divorced; 1 child – Rock Brynner)
- Doris Kleiner (1960 – 1967; divorced; 1 child – Victoria Brynner)
- Jaqueline de Croisset (1971-1981; divorced; 2 adopted children – Mia and Melody Brynner)
- Kathy Lee (1983 – 1985; his death)
He had an interesting opinion of women in general. One of his famous quotes about women was:
Girls have an unfair advantage over men: if they can’t get what they want by being smart, they can get it by being dumb.
Yul Brynner and his second wife, Doris Kleiner
Yul Brynner, his third wife, Jaqueline de Croisset, and one of their adopted daughters
Yul Brynner also had a daughter, Lark Brynner, with German actress Frances Martin and was godfather to French actress Charlotte Gainsbourg. One of his daughters, Victoria Brynner is a successful businesswoman in her own right. She founded her company, Stardust Visions and Stardust Celebrities, a photo-production company in Los Angeles, California in 1992. Actress Audrey Hepburn was her godmother.
The Death of Yul Brynner
Yul Brynner began smoking at the age of 12 and chain smoked until he kicked the habit in 1971. In 1983, he found a lump in his throat and decided to go for a medical checkup. He received his test results several hours before his 4,000th performance in ‘The King and I’. The test results revealed that although his throat was fine, he was suffering from inoperable lung cancer and given three months to live.
Yul Brynner took several months off to undergo therapy which made it difficult for him to sing or speak. Therefore, during some performances, his son Rock Brynner would dub his voice from the seat beside the conductor. During one of these performances, Rock Brynner came to see him during the intermission. Yul Brynner embraced him and whispered:
You must play the king older now Rock. I am older. You are playing it like a 30-year-old. You are now, and I was then. But now it is an older king.
Although he was sick, Yul Brynner decided to continue to work and therefore ‘The King and I’ tour resumed. He ended the 4,625th show and his last performance as King Mongkut on 30 June 1985.
The tombstone of Yul Brynner
Acting gave him something to look forward to and Yul Brynner ended up living for two years after his initial cancer diagnosis. Aware that he was dying from a disease caused by smoking, he accepted an interview on Good Morning America in which he spoke of the dangers of smoking.
Yul Brynner passed away from lung cancer on 10 October 1985. He was cremated and his ashes were buried in the Abbey of Saint-Michel de Bois Aubry, France. Several days after his passing, the anti-smoking public service announcement that he recorded prior to his death was aired on all major television networks in the United States and other countries. In the commercial, he poignantly said:
Now that I’m gone, I tell you: Don’t smoke, whatever you do, just don’t smoke. If I could take back that smoking, we wouldn’t be talking about any cancer. I’m convinced of that.
Or view the video on the server at:
https://video.tsemtulku.com/videos/AntiSmokingCommercial.mp4
More Pictures of Yul Brynner
Yul Brynner on the set of ‘The Magnificent Seven’
Yul Brynner in 1957
Yul Brynner in ‘The West World’
Yul Brynner in ‘The Ten Commandments’
Yul Brynner in ‘The Magnificent Seven’
Yul Brynner and Patricia Morison in ‘The King and I’
Yul Brynner and his first wife, Virginia Gilmore
Yul Brynner and Deborah Kerr in ‘The Journey’
Yul Brynner accepted his Academy Award from Actress Anna Magnani
Filmography
Acting Roles
| Year | Title | Roles |
| 1949 | Port of New York | Paul Vicola |
| 1956 | The King and I | King Mongkut of Siam |
| 1956 | The Ten Commandments | Ramesses |
| 1956 | Anastasia | General Sergei Pavlovich Bounine |
| 1958 | The Brothers Karamazov | Dmitri Karamazov |
| 1958 | The Buccaneer | Jean Lafitte |
| 1959 | The Journey | Major Surov |
| 1959 | The Sound and the Fury | Jason Compson |
| 1960 | Once More, With Feeling! | Victor Fabian |
| 1960 | Testament of Orpheus | L’huissier / Court usher |
| 1960 | Surprise Package | Nico March |
| 1960 | The Magnificent Seven | Chris Larabee Adams |
| 1961 | Goodbye Again | Extra in nightclub scene |
| 1962 | Escape from Zahrain | Sharif |
| 1962 | Taras Bulba | Taras Bulba |
| 1963 | Kings of the Sun | Chief Black Eagle |
| 1964 | Flight from Ashiya | Sgt. Mike Takashima |
| 1964 | Invitation to a Gunfighter | Jules Gaspard d’Estaing |
| 1965 | Morituri | Captain Mueller |
| 1966 | Cast a Giant Shadow | Asher Gonen |
| 1966 | The Poppy is Also a Flower | Colonel Salem |
| 1966 | Return of the Seven | Chris |
| 1966 | Triple Cross | The Double Man |
| 1967 | The Double Man | Dan Slater/ Kalmer |
| 1967 | The Long Duel | Sultan |
| 1968 | Villa Rides | Pancho Villa |
| 1969 | The File of the Golden Goose | Peter Novak |
| 1969 | Battle of Neretva | Vlado (Vladimir Smirnov) |
| 1969 | The Madwoman of Chaillot | The Chairman |
| 1969 | The Magic Christian | Transvestite cabaret singer |
| 1970 | Adiós, Sabata | Sabata/ Indio Black |
| 1971 | The Light at the Edge of the World | Jonathan Kongre |
| 1971 | Romance of a Horsethief | Captain Stoloff |
| 1971 | Catlow | Catlow |
| 1972 | Fuzz | The Deaf Man |
| 1972 | Anna and the King | King Mongkut of Siam |
| 1973 | Night Flight from Moscow | Col. Alexei Vlassov |
| 1973 | Westworld | The Gunslinger |
| 1975 | The Ultimate Warrior | Carson |
| 1976 | Future World | The Gunslinger |
| 1976 | Death Rage | Peter Marciani |
Selected Directing Roles
| Year | Title |
| 1953 | 15 Million Men Without a Country |
| 1953 | Omnibus (Documentary) |
| 1953 | Omnibus (TV Series) (2 episodes) |
| 1950-1953 | Danger (TV series) (5 episodes) |
| 1950-1951 | Sure As Fate (TV series) (4 episodes) |
| 1950 | Starlight Theatre (TV Series) (3 Episodes) |
| 1950-1951 | We Take Your Word (TV Series) |
| 1950 | Actor’s Studio (TV Series) (2 Episodes) |
Selected Stage Work
| Year | Title |
| 1941 | Twelfth Night (Broadway) |
| 1946 | Lute Song (Broadway and US national tour) |
| 1951 | The King and I (Broadway and US national tour) |
| 1976 | Home Sweet Homer (Broadway) |
| 1977 | The King and I (Broadway, London and US national tour) |
| 1985 | The King and I (Broadway) |
Sources:
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yul_Brynner
- http://www.biography.com/people/yul-brynner-9542628
- http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000989/bio
- https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/yul_brynner/biography
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=prWyqhOSjLM
For more interesting information:
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PLease can you tell me why did Mr Brynner ask for his ashes to be buried in that particular abbey?
Thank you
Pamela Shields
http://www.pamela-shields.com
Well there you have it, smoking can get you to have a shorter life.
To add on to that, Yul Brynner is one of many few actors and actresses who have reached the pinnacle of success yet still gives time for humanitarian causes. They use their fame and influence to do good, in this case for the Children that are usually one of the first casualties of war.
Inspiring biography of Yul Brynner (1920 – 1985).I do not know much of him other then watching his show Anna and the King many years back.He was a talented actor and director, Yul Brynner was also a good photographer, author and guitarist as well.He was a Special Consultant on Refugees,Even though he was sick he try to bring awareness of smoking bad for health in all major television networks in the United States and other countries..A beautiful quote by him…..We are born alone, we live alone, we die alone, everything in between is a gift .Very true.
Thank you Valentina a very inspiring post.
It is an enjoyable read on the biography of Yul Brynner, who played the role of King Mongkut. It is little known that Yul Brynner had a sad past and that he was multi-talented; in addition to being an actor and director, he was also an accomplished photographer, author, guitarist and philanthropist. He put his past behind him and wooed the world with his excellent acting is something we can learn from. Thank you Valentina for this article.
Dear Valentina,
I remembered i watched the movie ‘The King and I’ when i was very young. Yul Brynner have leave an impression on the King’s image that he cast in. It is quite shocking that a person can play the same role for over 4000 times! His determination and consistency is incredible.
Thank you for writing this story
Thank you Valentina for this inspiring post . I don’t really know about this actor but after reading his life story he is a wise man and intelligent man I personally like the quote that he said ‘we are born alone, we live alone, we die alone, everything in between is a gift , to me this quote sound very Dharma this is what happen to all of us.
“The King and I” is one of those classics that will not fade into obscurity with time. I remember watching the black and white version and was utterly enthralled with the famous epic dance scene where Yul Brynner waltzed with Deborah Kerr. Years later, when I watched the musical, although the lead actor was good, I felt that the role of the King of Siam belonged to Yul alone and no one would come close.
It is such a pity that his life and acting career was cut short due to his cancer. But what he did towards the end of his life is inspiring. Not many people would do what he did. His passion and dedication to his art made him rise above his illness and he gave his all, even after he lost his voice.
His poignant anti-smoking commercial is probably one of his best performance. Spoken from the heart, honest and brave. Kudos to Yul for using his illness and fame to speak about the ills of smoking.
Thank you for this interesting read, Valentina.
Yul Brynner was a multi-talented actor, singer, author and photographer with a kind heart. He used his fame as Special Consultant for Refugees with the United Nation High Commissioner to look into the plight of refugees from Asia and the middle east. He even risked his life by entering the campsites and he also made two documentaries to high the refugees issue.
Before he died of lung cancer he spoke of the danger of smoking.
Thank you Velentina for sharing the great actor Yul Brynner’s life with us. I really enjoyed his show ‘The King and I’ and also ‘The Ten Commandments.’
I also saw the remade of “The King and I’ with Chow Yun Fatt, the Hong Kong famous actor as the King and part of the location was done in the states, of Perak and Penang.
A man who showed strength of character, he refused to talk about his sad past. It did not diminished him as a person, instead made him stronger and kinder. From as painful past he learnt to care for others in his work with the UNHCR as Special Consultant on Refugees.
And, back when people did not talk about their illness, he championed a disease that still affects millions today – lung cancer. He stood up and voiced his concern and advised smokers to mend their ways. There was no hint of bitterness is these acts of his.
Hats off to man who used his influence and stature for the betterment of others and not let his paind affect what he became.
Yul Brynner was a man of many talents and accomplishments -acting, photography and writing. One of the two books he wrote was a cookbook! Yes,the world remembered him best as the King in the film “King and I” and also for the famous dance scene in “King and I”. He won an academy award as best actor for the film. He had a great passion for acting and continued to act despite being very sick and until the last few months of his life.
His humane side is seen in his work as a special consultant on Refugees for the United Nations, where he bought the suffering of Refugees to the knowledge of the world. He was brave too, going into dangerous refugee camps possible to see for himself the actual situation.
It is good for him to have spoken up against smoking and to show the world that it was smoking that had caused his cancer and would kill him.
Yes Yul Bynner is a remarkable person. I admire him for his courage to speak up and let the world know about two big issues -the suffering of refugees and the terrible consequences of smoking.
The King and I is perhaps one of the best classics that is ever green until today. And it was one of my favourite movies when I was growing up as a kid. But like many people, we did not know much of this actor Yul Brynner, well at least I did not know right up until now.
It is interesting and inspiring to see how he continues to work even though he had cancer he carried on working. But what is most inspiring is that he used this illness of his to spread more awareness on cancer and the risk we take when we smoke. I am glad due to Rinpoche’s instructions I have quite smoking. Cancer is actually in all of us, it what we do that would trigger it from opening up like eating etc. Hence we so our very best to ensure it does not happen.
When we asked people if they remembered the movie “The King & I”, we will get the reply, Oh! They remembered Yul Brynner as the Siam (Thai) king singing and dancing around with the English school teacher and governess to his children.
That scene has remained as one of the most popular memories for many. Yul Brynner was literally the icon of the movie “The King and I”, as with Elizabeth Taylor, the actress to the movie “Cleopatra” as the female pharaoh of ancient Egypt.
Most of us knew of Yul Brynner as a famous actor but wasn’t aware that he was a strong supporter of the UN to help to bring relieve of sufferings of refugees around the world from Asia to the Middle East. Reading about his autobiography is an eye opener to many for he had strong presence as an actor as well as being a humanitarian activist.
Thank you Valentina for writing this article. It evoked many memories of younger years when I sat glued to watching his movies on videos. I actually read the book “The King and I” before I watched the movie. The movie made the imagination from reading comes through although many parts were left out in the movie due to time constraint. Yul Brynner was good in his role as the King as his reserved manner matches the command of a King and at the same time you see his emotions bubbling behind his demeanour. It is nice to learn that he was an avid humanitarian volunteering at UNHCR using his fame to lend clout to the care of others. He had always seemed to have very deep thoughts and very private. Now with this article we learn more of him and his achievements. A good visit in memory of a famous actor who is more than his fame & fortune.