Hasta La Ideas

A cinema legend’s left-behind photos make up an enticing new book

Known for his impressive film career that spanned four decades and included prolific pictures like “The Ten Commandments,” “The King and I” and “The Magnificent Seven,” Russian-born actor Yul Brynner has most recently been in the public eye for his beautifully fascinating photos of fellow stars captured at unguarded moments.

Put together by the late actor’s daughter Victoria Brynner, publisher Edition 7L released a four-volume anthology of these images called Yul Brynner: A Photographic Journey earlier this month. Each volume is dedicated to a different portion of Brynner’s life.

Volume 1—Life Style—depicts images from his friends, with photos like Frank Sinatra getting out of his private helicopter with a whiskey glass in hand and Jerry Lewis and Dean Martin horsing around at the Hollywood Bowl. Volume 2—Life On Set—shows the behind-the-scenes photos of the films he starred in, while Volume 3—dubbed 1956—highlights the busiest year of his career and includes a foreword from the esteemed Martin Scorsese. For the full picture, Volume 4—Man Of Style—shows the man himself with images that “illustrate his love of photography, individuality, family, friends, and, quite simply, the art of living.”

The photos from the book have also been on display at NYC’s Lehmann Maupin Gallery. Exhibiting 70 works (those chosen by Victoria Brynner from the 8,000 her father left behind), the show is a sensational portrayal of a time without paparazzi documenting every celebrity’s move.

“Yul Brynner: A Photographic Journey” is on view through 25 September 2010 in NYC before moving to Paris in October 2010. The book of the same name is available for pre-order from Amazon and will sell at stores like Colette, Steidlville and Book Soup.