LOOKS LIKE JB TO ME!
by Lisa Oldham

Hello Everyone,

In The Look of Buster Keaton, French film critic Robert Benayoun claims, "Keaton can become an obsession. You begin to see him in everything, especially in certain fascinating works of art." To back up his unusual theory, Mr. Benayoun provides several convincing examples of Keaton-esque art, including a Hawaiian mask and a Picasso painting.

Strange as it may seem, I think I know where Robert Benayoun is coming from. While I don't quite see Jeremy Brett in everything, I have run across photos and paintings which remind me of him. Often the resemblance isn't identical, and sometimes there's only a hint of Brettish style, but it's just enough to make me think of JB.

Here are some examples:

• Marla Maples was probably going for the Lincoln look in this 1997 photo from George Magazine, but I think her elegant ensemble also has a bit of that jaunty JB je ne sais quoi.
  
  
  
  

• Speaking of Buster Keaton, here's the man himself, looking almost like Jeremy Brett's twin. However, this photo was taken in 1931--two years before JB was born.
  
  
  
  

• And, have a look at this detail from Renoir's Danse a la Ville (1883). The young man's face is obscured. Observe the dark hair and frock coat, though, and you may be able to picture a juvenile JB.
  
  
  
  

• Dueling JBs? That's what it looks like on the cover of (and inside) the January 2002 issue of Wireless Review:

• It's probably the suit, but this handsome hound from a magazine illustration reminds me of JB (perhaps he's doing his "Mr. Binks" impression?)
  
  
  
  

• David Strathairn earned a well-deserved Oscar nomination for portraying iconic newsman Edward R. Murrow in Good Night, and Good Luck. However, as I watched the film I kept thinking, "Good night, and good Sherlock"! Must have been the Brettish pinstripes, ciggies, and hairstyle:

• And, how about this cover from a vintage issue of Town & Country magazine?:
  

  
  
  

• Now, surely this is an illustration inspired by a Granada Sherlock Holmes episode, right? Wrong--it's from a 1958 issue of Life magazine! But, it sure looks like JB bellying up to the bar (he's even wearing pointed shoes). 

• A JB fan and TBE reader says, "I think that actor James Fleet who appears as Hugo in the British sitcom The Vicar of Dibley looks a little like JB from certain angles. What do you think?" (Yes, Geoff, I agree--thanks for the submission! :->)

I found another photo of Mr. Fleet (from the BBC's The Vicar of Dibley page) 
which also shows a resemblance to JB:

Now, where have you "seen" JB? (Let me know!)

Until next time,

Lisa

NEW! A reader's reply, inspired by this page! 

Image Credits: The images above are displayed solely for non-profit illustration and comparative purposes. Copyright ownership is neither implied nor infringement intended. Please do not copy or link to these images.

Jeremy Brett photo: Granada Television.
Marla Maples photo: Stephan Denalian, George, August 1997.
Buster Keaton photo: The Look of Buster Keaton, Robert Benayoun, St. Martin's Press, New York, 1983.
Danse a la Ville: Musee d'Orsay, Paris.
Wireless Review January 2002:  illustration by Jon Berkeley
Unknown magazine: illustration by Nick Dewar 
Stills from Good Night, and Good Luck (c) 2005, Warner Independent Pictures.
Cover from Town & Country, October 20, 1917.
Detail from painting by Morton Roberts in Life Magazine, December 22 1958 (I highly recommend this issue to any show biz buff, by the way--it's a special entertainment issue with tons of neat stuff, like the famous Richard Avedon photos of Marilyn Monroe posing as classic movie stars.)