Marlon Brando was no one's first choice for the role of Don Vito Corleone. Francis Ford Coppola wanted Sir Laurence Olivier and Paramount wanted Ernest Borgnine or Danny Thomas or. . . anyone.
Coppola was able to push his second choice of Brando through only after the legendary actor agreed to a paycut, to binding insurance claims and a screen test.
He wore cotton balls in his mouth to look extra jowly and won the Academy Award for his turn as the noble/terrible Lord of the the Corleone Crime Family.
A Native American activist names Sacheen Littlefeather picked up his award in his stead and yelled at the audience because it was the '70s.
