In the aftermath of the 1968 assassination of Martin Luther King , Jr. , Brando made one of the strongest commitments to furthering King 's work . Shortly after King 's death , he announced that he was bowing out of the lead role of a major film ( '' The Arrangement '' ) ( 1969 ) which was about to begin production in order to devote himself to the civil rights movement . " I felt I 'd better go find out where it is ; what it is to be black in this country ; what this rage is all about , " Brando said on the late-night ABC-TV talk show '' Joey Bishop Show '' . In A&E 's '' Biography '' episode on Brando , actor and co-star Martin Sheen states , " I 'll never forget the night that Reverend King was shot and I turned on the news and Marlon was walking through Harlem with Mayor Lindsay . And there were snipers and there was a lot of unrest and he kept walking and talking through those neighborhoods with Mayor Lindsay . It was one of the most incredible acts of courage I ever saw , and it meant a lot and did a lot . " Brando 's participation in the civil rights movement actually began well before King 's death . In the early 1960s , he contributed thousands of dollars to both the Southern Christian Leadership Conference ( S.C.L.C. ) and to a scholarship fund established for the children of slain Mississippi N.A.A.C.P. leader Medgar Evers . In 1964 Brando was arrested at a " fish-in " held to protest a broken treaty that had promised Native Americans fishing rights in Puget Sound . By this time , Brando was already involved in films that carried messages about human rights : '' Sayonara '' , which addressed interracial romance , and '' The Ugly American '' , depicting the conduct of U.S. officials abroad and the deleterious effect on the citizens of foreign countries . For a time , he was also donating money to the Black Panther Party and considered himself a friend of founder Bobby Seale . Brando ended his financial support for the group over his perception of its increasing radicalization , specifically a passage in a Panther pamphlet put out by Eldridge Cleaver advocating indiscriminate violence , " for the Revolution . " At the 1973 Academy Awards ceremony , Brando refused to accept the Oscar for his performance in '' The Godfather '' . Sacheen Littlefeather represented him at the ceremony . She appeared in full Apache attire and stated that owing to the " poor treatment of Native Americans in the film industry " , Brando would not accept the award . This occurred while the standoff at Wounded Knee was ongoing . The event grabbed the attention of the US and the world media . This was considered a major event and victory for the movement by its supporters and participants
1973 Academy Awards
45th Academy Awards
Marlon Brando