Yul: The Man Who Would Be King : A Memoir of Father and… (2024)

Richard Rogers’ song “Something Wonderful” , from the King and I, always makes me cry.
“This is a man who thinks with his heart
His heart is not always wise
This is a man who stumbles and falls
But this is a man who tries

This is a man you'll forgive and forgive
And help protect, as long as you live....”

...And I cried all the way through Rock Brynner’s biography of his father, as the scales fell from my eyes. Yul Brynner’s only son recounts the extraordinary life of an extraordinary actor. The portrait that emerges is of a deeply flawed individual who habitually discarded those who loved him; his children included. Heartbreaking. And yet this is not a bitter “celebrity tell-all”. Rock Brynner’s love for his father pours off every page, right along with the readers tears.

Recommended reading, but perhaps not for Brynner fans, who wish to maintain their delusions. Sometimes ignorance really is bliss.

I have always loved the great musicals, especially The King and I. Yul Brynner was very convincing in the role of the king, used to being worshipped by his many wives and children, getting his way about everything, no one daring to question or disagree with him. I, too, fell in love with the king, although I wouldn’t have tolerated him for a second in real life. This book by Yul Brynner's son, Rock, is a no holds barred look at the man, who he was and who he thought he was. He was not a very nice person. In fact, he was downright awful to people when they’d served their usefulness, discarding them like a worn hanky. Rock’s portrayal was honest, gritty, but yet loving as he came to terms with the reality of who his father was, and who he could not be. As someone who also desperately wanted my own father’s approval more than anything, I felt very sad for the disappointments Rock faced as he sought the approval and acceptance Yul simply could not give. This is a powerful, well written book.

Yul: The Man Who Would Be King is more of a cautionary tale than anything else - no one walks away unscathed at the end of it.

Despite author Rock Brynner's claims that this was something he needed to do to clear their air over the misconceptions of his father late in life, the book goes a long way to destroying the mystique of the entire Brynner family, including Rock himself. Yul is characterized as a womanizing playboy who could never keep it in his pants, disowned everyone around him, hated his fanbase unless they lavished him with praise, went broke near the end of his life and was forced to act in terrible films to pay the bills, and resented just about everyone who got close to him. Meanwhile, despite Rock's efforts to portray himself as the "wronged" party in the father-son spat, he was a rich playboy who (by his own admission) was an alcoholic and never bothered to change his ways until he was disowned by his family.

It is a fascinating read, though, because you get a clear sense of just how damaged everyone is. Yul shamelessly brags about his sexual conquests to his son, openly "entertains" his female admirers in his dressing room and plays hardball with studios who won't give him as much money as before. His first wife gets into screaming matches with him, they both sleep around, and she ends up an emotional and needy wreck for the rest of her life. Rock describes weird "conversations" with his father that were likely made up for the book, and is incredibly angered that Yul's final wife ostensibly cut him out of the family will.

As celebrity biographies go, you could do a lot worse than this.

Good but disillusioning look at Yul Brynner's life. I had always been drawn to him as an actor - at least to the characters he played and felt his screen presence was so much greater than his physical size would warrant. After reading this I'm glad I never had the chance to meet him in person- he would probably have squashed me like a bug. By chance I did run into someone who had had an encounter with Mr. B via telephone (she had something to do with the PR side of the theatre business). She reported that he had said vicious things to her & promised to see that she was fired. Guess the reputation as a megalomaniacal bastard was well earned.

Rock Brynner takes on a difficult subject; that of his father. Yul Brynner could, at times, be a very unpleasant person - it was the flipside of his incredible talent. The biography is warts and all, and worth the time it takes to read.

One of the few books I did not finish yet was very excited to read.

I think this book wasn't ready to be made. It is written by the subject's (Yul) son who needed more time since his fathers death and/or more introspection on his own narrative going into writing this book.

i was excited by the premise a person who has formal training in history writing a personal memoir surrounding a subject who was quite famously avoidant of his own past and history. I do not mind the premise of "shattering an illusion" surrounding big personalities or celebrities with egos but was disappointed to find this book feeling limited in its understanding of the Subject. Its is understandable that their is a lot of pain in the relationship presented between father and son here and i did not expect Yul the be presented as shining example of fame and fatherhood. but without any empathy or baseline curiosity the book lacks vision and a gripping framework.

It feels like it is directed at an esoteric audience and appeals to a certain level of schadenfreude within its structure and tone. I cam away more curious about Yul and how he understood his world and being angered than Brynner the younger would paint over these questions with his own assumptions about why we as the reader should care about his view more than the subject as this book pitched itself on.

I was expecting a truthful or genuine look at Yul as a well known figure and as a flawed person this just read like a writer who already had formed opinions and did not challenge their own perspective while writing this book. Understandable but disappointing none the less.
This book lacks introspection on authors biases and leave the reader either wishing for more curiosity in these pages or awaiting the king to come crashing down.

TLDR: Rock needed something like therapy, not a book deal.

I'm fascinated by the charismatic Yul Brynner and all the stories and gossip you hear about his lifestyle. And it appears, that all the opposites are true. Both charming and arrogant, ambitious and big-hearted - in some instances. Spendthrift and rich film star. His demands are legendary.
But it goes back to him being the King, the King of Siam. He played the role over 4000 times over 30 years. He starred in terrible movies over and over again just to earn money to cover his extraordinary overheads. And this is a fascinating study of the flawed son of the King. Spoiled brat, alcoholic, writer, actor and a young boy who grew up idolising his father and trying to live by his principals, or lack of them. He was very aware that he could never measure up to his father and how often he disappointed Yul, even by trying to do the right thing.
The book is star-studded and surprising all the affairs that Yul had with Hollywood stars. But not surprising when you knew the magnetism of the man. He quite simply excelled at anything he put his mind to. And wouldn't hesitate to use his reputation to get what he wanted. Fascinating man and son.

I remember watching The Ten Commandments as a child and admiring Prince Ramses. I thought the actor playing him was amazing and commanding. He had the part down pat. I saw Yul Brynner later in Westworld and thought he did well as an unfeeling machine. Little did I know how well he personified those characters in real life. Starting with The King and I, his life took on the role of elevating Brynner to king in the eyes of the world and himself.

Written by his only son, Rock Brynner, this book is the biography of the infamous Yul Brynner. Actor, father, husband, lover, writer, producer, investor, and king. It is a memoir by the person who was closest to Yul but could see who he really was: The man who would be king.

If you enjoyed any of Yul Brynner's performances, this book is a must-read.

Wow……this book was everything I was looking for and MORE. Yul Brynner really was the king that he portrayed—his good points and his very low points. Rock paints an incredible picture of the man his dad was and doesn’t hold back. This book was written not just as a biography about Yul but also and autobiography about Rock and it doesn’t sell either of then short in their strengths and shortcomings. Yul was an enigmatic man with an unquenchable lust for winning, women, perfectionism, and being in control. Like the king he is equal parts villain and hero. He’s lovable but you despise him too. After finishing, I am still a fan of Yul on the screen and an even bigger fan of Rock, both as a human and a writer. I highly recommend this book if you are a fan of The King and I or even just classic cinema.

YUL The Man Who Would Be King: A Memoir of Father and Son by Rock Brynner was a wonderful book especially as I have been a fan since I was a small girl. I had a crush on him!!! and was so festinated by him as well. I remember I had a poster of him from King and I and other posters of him, my grandad got me when I was 8 years+ old back in the 70's and I always said
"When I grow up Grandad, I want to marry this man! He's handsome and bald just like you!" Well, I was only young and he was my grandad's age! lol.
So, to my surprise my Hubby of 30 years last month bought me one of the best pressies ever. This book as well as another book all about Yul!. I've finally got a piece of Yul in my Hands! lol.

I highly recommend this book especially if you are a fan like me. What an amazing man he was.

This is a fascinating biography of a man whose life story reads like fiction. When his adventurous great grandfather ran away from his home in Switzerland at age 14 and boarded a cargo ship bound for Japan, it was perhaps prescient of a family whose history would take many unexpected twists
and turns. From Vladivostok to Hollywood, Yul combined his startling good looks, ambition and talent into an unforgettable acting career. His greatest triumph, of course, was in The King and I - a role he owned indisputably. Written by Yul’s son, this book is a ‘warts and all’ account that doesn’t pull punches. No, he wasn’t the nicest man to ever walk the Earth, but he did prove that with the right face, hair is completely unnecessary!

I did read this book several years ago and I must say that I found Dr. Brynner's documentation of his dad's life interesting. He received his doctorate in 1989 and I received my MA in History from NCCU in Durham, NC in 1986. Dr. Brynner's PhD was from Columbia University in NYC. And although I did not know him personally, his writing style was good and informative. He also has written some other books and, finally, he also had an interesting life with many experiences. Bravo from one historian to
another! LJ Steele, MA Retired Educator K12/Museum Professional

I was quite enlightened by this memoir. So glad Yul birthed this son to keep him in our memory. I had a crush on Yul as Mongkut in 1956 when I was all of 7 years old, and am grateful to gain insight into what he was actually like. An amazing person, but sad that he moved into such a cynical mindset. Thank you, Rock, I see so much of him in your face. Hope you are still writing.

1.) this book does not age well
2.) where was the editor?! Tons of typos and just plain terrible writing, but the worst was that the author kept switching between first and third person to talk about himself
3.) I don’t abandon sleep reads because boring is the point, but I can’t anymore. I’m 60% in and refuse to go further.

Very dry reading.
I tried to read it three or four times and never got very far.

A very honest and revealing biography and well worth reading.

This is a heartbreaking book and if Rock is to believed,Yul was definately lacking in some fatherly qualities,though Rock does come across as a little pathetic at times.

As in a lot of father son relationships though,it's hard to fathom exactly who did what to whom.I read this during my early twenties when I was a young wayward lad when my father exhibited a certain degree of dissapointment in me,it certainly helped me gain a little bit of perspective about how fathers view themselves,their own shortcomings and their expectations for their sons.

All in all I found it very moving and now as a father myself,I'd perhaps like to re-visit this book.

As a side note,Brynners screen presence is probably what makes this such a great read,the seed is already sown in the mind of the reader through this presence which is akin to how a son must view his father,powerful,the tragedy most probably is that Rock never got beyond that in later life.

This was unexpectedly moving. It's received a lot of mixed reviews, both professionally and on Goodreads, so I had trepidations.

The book is written in a breezy, readable style for the most part and doesn't lapse into maudlin too often. Some of the stories about what it's like to have Liza Minelli be your girlfriend and have Elizabeth Taylor as your neighbor and almost proof positive that your father had a one night stand with Marilyn Monroe are fun in a tabloid way.

What redeems this whole exercise is the sympathetic and clear eyed description of the last 10 years of Brynner putting on 8 performances a week, 50 weeks a year in The King and I, and the difficult, harrowing way that he finally died. The rueful love and deep regret that colors the final three chapters made for memorable reading, and I think elevated the whole book to something more loving than a tell all or an attempt by a child to cash in on his parent.

I picked this book up at a library fair. The author of this book is Yul Brynner's son, Yul Brynner, Jr., who was nicknamed Rocky after the late boxer, Rocky Graziano. He may be both the best and worst person to write his father's biography. The best because he has access to the most information and the worst because he is way too close to his subject and it is totally impossible for him to be objective. I wonder as I am reading whether he is sometimes writing what he wished had happened instead of what actually happened. What are supposed to be actual conversations that he had with his father just sound silly.

I've just discovered that Rock Brynner is a pathetic liar, I lived part of what he describes in that book and are lies, supported by people who already died and nothing can argue in defense of Yul.

Rock must be in a psychiatric therapy, after his father did not let him anything in his will.

Is a poor social resentful.

This bio brings the multi-dimentional Yul Brynner to light. Written by his son, it is a very honest (or at least as honest as Yul's fabricating will allow it to be, even his son knows he wasn't told the complete truth) biography. Good and bad are all there.
This man had one monster ego.

Strong, but eccentric star whose opinion of himself and his abilities were always exagerrated....as a part of his charm. It really shows the toll that stardom takes on personal lives and those who surround them.

As a fan, I skimmed it, going for the bits that interested me most. His early years, as an acrobat and singer. I wasn't as involved in the interaction between son and father. I bet other people would find that really compelling.

All of i know i love Yul Brynner for ever! I can't believe the bar thing that someone said he was just a human and obviously not perfecto person and All of us hace a dark si de and a good side included Yul.

Interesting book. What a character he was. So much information I did not know.

Nice read !