‘Marlon Brando Broke My Jaw’: Ron Galella, The Paparazzo Who Defined the Celebrity Snapshot
For over half a century, photographer Ron Galella got up close – often far too personal – with some of the world’s biggest celebrities. His unrelenting style and invasive camera lens helped to shape the modern idea of celebrity, capturing unguarded moments on the streets and in the nightclubs of New York and Los Angeles. Whether invited or not, Galella's snapshots became iconic, yet his methods made him one of the most controversial figures in photography. From being punched by Marlon Brando to having a restraining order filed against him by Jackie Onassis, Galella lived by his own motto: “Shoot first, ask questions later.”
Galella’s story is filled with drama and celebrity clashes, but none was more famous than his infamous run-in with the legendary Marlon Brando. In 1973, Galella was following the actor to a restaurant in New York’s Chinatown when Brando snapped. Without warning, the actor threw a punch so powerful that it knocked out five of Galella’s teeth in one blow. Not one to let the incident slide, Galella sued Brando, eventually settling for $40,000 (£26,262). Reflecting on the incident in a 2010 documentary, Galella remarked, “I don't want anyone to think they can go around punching me if I am taking their picture. Get that story out, not the money.” Galella’s response to the punch was memorable: the next time he attempted to photograph Brando, he donned a football helmet emblazoned with his name ‘Ron’ – a tongue-in-cheek way of ensuring his safety while continuing his relentless pursuit of the perfect shot.
Marlon Brando wasn't the only celebrity to react violently towards Galella. Brigitte Bardot had him hosed down by her boyfriend; Richard Burton sent people to steal his film; and Sean Penn once started a brawl with Galella’s nephew while dating Madonna. Galella recalls, “He started spitting and fighting with my nephew. But it was just a boxing match. Nobody got hurt. Madonna was yelling ‘Oh, stop, stop!’ at the door.” Even at Studio 54, the famed nightclub where the rich and famous partied, Galella wasn’t always welcome. Co-founder Steve Rubell threw him out twice. But the setbacks never stopped Galella from capturing his vision of celebrity life.
Despite these confrontations, Galella had his fair share of positive encounters. Ali MacGraw, a 1970s Hollywood starlet, had written him a note thanking him for the “marvellous photographs” he took of her in 1971. However, their friendly rapport came to an abrupt end in 1973 when Galella flew to Jamaica, where MacGraw was having an affair with Steve McQueen during the filming of Papillon. Galella, in true fashion, left a note at the studio gates requesting to take a photograph of the couple. To his surprise, it wasn’t MacGraw who responded, but McQueen himself, brimming with aggression.
“Steve, not Ali, came to the gate and declared there would be no interviews and no visitors. Being streetwise, he threatened to send his posse of friends after me if I did not leave … I did not want to go home without any photos, so I asked for a fifteen-minute photo-op of him alone and then I would leave. He agreed only after I signed an agreement, and stated, ‘I’ll give you 15 minutes of me provided you leave on the next plane out of Jamaica.’” Galella, as always, got his shot, though McQueen’s threats lingered in the air.
Galella’s reputation for intrusiveness wasn’t limited to scuffles with celebrities. One of his most notorious subjects was Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, former First Lady of the United States. After years of relentless pursuit, which included him tailing her across the streets of New York, she filed a restraining order against him in 1972. Galella was required to stay 25 feet away from Jackie and 30 feet from her children. Yet even after the order, he continued to find ways to photograph her, often risking legal action for that one perfect candid shot.
What set Ron Galella apart from other photographers of his time was his European-inspired approach to celebrity photography. He modelled himself after pioneers like Tazio Secchiaroli and Marcello Geppetti, the very men who inspired Federico Fellini’s creation of Paparazzo in La Dolce Vita. Like them, Galella had little regard for boundaries, capturing stars in their most unguarded moments – no Hollywood glamour, just raw and unfiltered reality. This style came at a cost: physical altercations, legal battles, and being banned from certain circles. But Galella’s influence on celebrity culture cannot be overstated. His photos gave the public an intimate, albeit intrusive, view of their favourite stars, and helped shape the way we understand modern fame today.
Perhaps one of the nicest stories from Galella’s storied career occurred during an ordinary lunch in New York. “After grabbing a plate of food from the buffet at Sardi’s, I sat at a table with an unknown man sitting across from me. He said, ‘Someday you will be taking my picture.’ I did take two shots of this confident, handsome young man. Later, after Mean Streets and The Godfather Part II were released, I found out the unknown man was now-legendary actor Robert De Niro.”
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