LOS ANGELES (July 2) - Marlon Brando, who revolutionized American acting with his Method performances in ''A Streetcar Named Desire'' and ''On the Waterfront'' and went on to create the iconic character of Don Vito Corleone in ''The Godfather,'' has died. He was 80.
Brando died of lung failure Thursday evening at UCLA Medical Center, said Roxanne Moster, a spokeswoman for the medical center. She didn't give details.
Brando, whose unpredictable behavior made him equally fascinating off the screen, was acclaimed the greatest actor of his generation, a two-time Academy Award winner who influenced some of the best actors of the generation that followed, among them Al Pacino, Robert De Niro and Jack Nicholson.
''He influenced more young actors of my generation than any actor,'' longtime friend and ''Godfather'' co-star James Caan said Friday through his publicist. ''Anyone who denies this never understood what it was all about.''
Brando was the unforgettable embodiment of the brutish Stanley Kowalski of ''A Streetcar Named Desire,'' the mixed up Terry Malloy of ''On the Waterfront'' (which won him his first Oscar) and the wily Corleone of ''The Godfather.''
But his private life may best be defined by a line from ''The Wild One,'' in which Brando, playing a motorcycle gang leader, is asked what he's rebelling against.
''Whaddya got?'' was his reply.
Another great actor has left us for the ulitmate casting call.
(I'm sorry if this ends up being redundant. I didn't see any other postings about this though.) I liked him best in THE WILD ONE and ON THE WATERFRONT. He will be missed.
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