- Born
- Died
- Birth nameLawrence Neville Brand
- Height5′ 10″ (1.78 m)
- Neville Brand joined the Illinois National Guard in 1939, bent on a career in the military. His National Guard unit was activated into federal service shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941. It was while he was in the army that he made his acting debut, in Army training films, and this experience apparently changed the direction of his life. Once a civilian again, he used his GI Bill education assistance to study drama with the American Theater Wing and then appeared in several Broadway plays. His film debut was in Port of New York (1949). Among his earliest films was the Oscar-winning Stalag 17 (1953). His heavy features and gravelly voice made Brand a natural tough guy (and he wasn't just a "movie" tough guy--he was among the most highly decorated American soldiers in World War II, fighting in the European Theater against the Germans). "With this kisser, I knew early in the game I wasn't going to make the world forget Clark Gable," he once told a reporter. He played Al Capone in The George Raft Story (1961), The Scarface Mob (1959), and TV's The Untouchables (1959). Among his other memorable roles are the sympathetic guard in Birdman of Alcatraz (1962) and the representative of rioting convicts in Riot in Cell Block 11 (1954). Perhaps his best-known role was that of the soft-hearted, loud-mouthed, none-too-bright but very effective Texas Ranger Reese Bennett of Backtrack! (1969), Three Guns for Texas (1968), and TV's Laredo (1965).- IMDb mini biography by: Kat Parsons <fke2d@Virginia.EDU> (qv's & corrections by A. Nonymous)
- SpousesLaura Rae Araujo(April 6, 1957 - 1970) (divorced, 2 children)Jean Carolyn Enfield(February 7, 1953 - October 5, 1955) (divorced)Eleanor Elizabeth Janssen(June 7, 1941 - 1946) (divorced, 1 child)Mae Brand(? - April 16, 1992) (his death, 2 children)
- ChildrenKatrina BrandMichelle BrandMary Brand
- ParentsLeo BrandHelen Brand
- RelativesCharles Brand(Sibling)Leo Bryce Brand(Sibling)Louise Eileen Turngren(Sibling)Wayne Eugene Brand(Sibling)SSGT Berton James Brand(Sibling)
- Bad guys, villains, blood gory characters
- Crazy Characters
- Gory movies
- Tooth and Teeth
- Neville Brand was regularly cited as the 4th most decorated soldier in WWII, but that information is incorrect and was denied by Brand before his death. He was, however, according to official military records, the recipient of the Silver Star for gallantry in combat. His other awards and decorations are the Purple Heart, the Good Conduct Medal, the American Defense Service Ribbon, the European/African/Middle Eastern Theater Ribbon with three Battle Stars, one Overseas Service Bar, one Service Stripe, and the Combat Infantryman's Badge.
- A voracious reader, he owned one of the largest private libraries in Hollywood with over 5,000 books. He once had over 30,000 books until a fire in 1978 destroyed his Malibu house and most of the books.
- Developing post traumatic stress disorder from his decorated military years, Brand later fought a long battle with alcohol.
- Won the Sylvania Award in 1958 for his lead role as Willie Stark in the TV special All the King's Men: Part 1 (1958).
- Lived in Sacramento, California during the last eight years of his life after he retired from acting in 1984. Died there of emphysema at age 71 due to his heavy smoking most of his adult life. Interred at East Lawn Memorial Park in Sacramento, CA. Plot Niche # 1327 Section L-L, Morning Glory Room.
- [on playing villains] I don't go in thinking he's a villain. The audience might, but the villain doesn't think he's a villain. Even a killer condones what he's done. I just create this human being under the circumstances that are given. I don't think he's a villain. Everybody just condones his own actions.
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