All About Richard Pryor and Marlon Brando's Relationship

Did Richard Pryor and Marlon Brando really have a sexual relationship?

Ever since Quincy Jones first alleged in 2018 that the influential stand-up comedian and the A Streetcar Named Desire actor had sex back in the day, the internet has been ablaze trying to determine if the music icon was being facetious or letting the world in on a decades-long secret.

However, with confirmations and denials coming from both Pryor and Brando's family members, the mystery continues to grow. While the truth may never be clear, it’s important to look back at both sides of the story.

Here’s what’s been said about Richard Pryor and Marlon Brando’s alleged sexual affair.

The Grammy-winning producer was the first to claim the legendary comedian and Godfather actor had a sexual relationship, telling Vulture in a wide-ranging February 2018 interview that Brando would "f--- anything. Anything! He'd f--- a mailbox. James Baldwin. Richard Pryor. Marvin Gaye."

Among the other wild claims Jones made in the interview included that he knew the true identity of John F. Kennedy's killer, that he “used to date” Ivanka Trump and that the late Michael Jackson had once stolen music from Donna Summer.

Pryor's widow, Jennifer Lee, confirmed the rumor, telling TMZ that her late husband was always open about his bisexuality with friends and would not be ashamed that the relationship was revealed publicly.

She also said the comedy icon wrote about sleeping with men extensively in diaries, the contents of which were allegedly explored in the 2019 book The Richard Pryor Diaries, for which Lee wrote a foreward.

"It was the '70s! Drugs were still good, especially quaaludes," Lee said. "If you did enough cocaine, you'd f--- a radiator and send it flowers in the morning."

She also believed Pryor would have had a good laugh at Jones spreading the news.

Days after Jones’ interview, Rain Pryor — Pryor’s daughter with his second wife, Shelley Bonus — denied the alleged affair in an impassioned Facebook post about her late father (which has since been deleted), slamming both Jones and Jennifer as "bottom feeders."

"All you who touted Faux News and preach about wanting blacks to be represented in a great light and then posted Q’s interview are irrelevant and full of your own BS," Rain wrote. "Q, was once a brilliant music producer who is losing his mind, and decided to garner publicity for himself with a sensationalized interview; and because y'all think and equate Fame and Money with decency, you ate it up like thirsty dogs, as he spewed out a lie about my father who's not here to defend himself."

"Then on top of it all, my dad's so call -

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ed widow validated it, because she needs to keep legitimizing herself and tarnish our dad even after he's dead," Rain continued.

Rain ended her note letting her fans know that she wouldn't be putting up with hearing the news and would be "getting my millions the correct way, with integrity!!!!"

"Y'all so thirsty and LOVE THEM but ever know the real source or full story, and you're gonna wonder how Donald Trump became president? WAKE UP!!!" she wrote.

"So read this, I don't need you as a fan or a friend. I don't need anyone in my life that thinks a sensationalized interview is relevant and 'incredibly well done,' ” Rain added. "People who lie or share information to raise themselves up are bottom feeders no matter how much money or influence they have. Wrong is still wrong!!! #GTFOH."

Brando's eldest living son, Miko Brando, also disputed claims that his father had a sexual relationship with Pryor.

"The Marlon Brando family has heard the recent comments by Quincy Jones and we are disappointed that anyone would make such a wrongful comment about either Marlon Brando or Richard Pryor," Miko told TMZ on Feb. 12, 2018.

While the idea of Brando and Pryor hooking up certainly sounds scandalous, both men had rather chaotic love lives during their time.

Pryor — widely regarded as one of the most influential stand-ups of all time — was married seven times to five different women. Lee was both his fourth and seventh bride. They married in August 1981, divorced in October 1982 and later remarried in 2001. They were together until Pryor died at age 65 in 2005.

He also had relationships with actresses Pam Grier and Margot Kidder and another with a drag queen he said looked like Josephine Baker. He described the affair in his 1995 autobiography, Pryor Convictions: And Other Life Sentences, writing: "I discovered that she was actually a he. For some reason, I didn't care. … But after two weeks of being gay … I went back to life as a heterosexual."

Brando — considered one of Hollywood's all-time greatest actors and a legendary sex symbol — was married three times, had numerous girlfriends and was a father to 11 children. As Newsweek reported, he was also open about his bisexuality, telling French journalist Gary Carey in 1976, "Homosexuality is so much in fashion, it no longer makes news."

He added: "Like a large number of men, I, too, have had homosexual experiences, and I am not ashamed. I have never paid much attention to what people think about me. But if there is someone who is convinced that Jack Nicholson and I are lovers, may they continue to do so. I find it amusing."

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