Josh Brolin Says His Mom Used To Sic Wild Animals After Him In New Memoir

Josh Brolin had a chat with The Times while promoting his new memoir, From Under the Truck, where he wrote about his childhood and dealing with his wildlife conservationist mother, Jane Cameron Agee. The book is set to be released on Tuesday, November 19, and is reportedly priced between $25 and $45 for varying formats.

Josh got the memoir’s title from an inspiration on a drunken night with his mother’s boyfriend, who passed out under a vehicle. Jane was also an alcoholic and would take Josh and his brother with her to bars as they watched her flirt with cowboys and truckers.

Josh Brolin’s mom made wild animals chase him down

Josh’s mother used to keep reduced bobcats, cougars, coyotes, wolves, and mountain lions on their ranch and would sometimes yell at them to chase Josh and his brother Jess. He wrote that the chase sometimes ended in bloody injuries on days when they did not get to the door quickly enough.

At 8, Josh was required to be up at the crack of dawn to do farm chores like cleaning cages, birthing foals, and feeding the animals on the Paso Robles ranch. They later moved to Santa Barbara, where he befriended other kids he described as neglected drug addicts– just like himself.

Josh Brolin admired his mother regardless of her vices

Josh’s tumultuous childhood took a different turn after his parents divorced, and he went to live with his father in Los Angeles. There, he decided to turn a new leaf to avoid going to prison and eventually landed a role in 1985’s Goonies.

Despite Jane’s inhumane acts toward him as a kid, Josh admired her strength and authenticity as she shaped some resilient parts of him. Josh lost his mom in a car crash in 1999, and although she was only 55 at the time, he thought she lived a nice long life for a heroin addict.