JAMES DEAN
G'day folks,
Today, I present some facts about a former heart throb from Hollywood. James Byron Dean was an American actor. He is a cultural icon of
teenage disillusionment and social estrangement, as expressed in the
title of his most celebrated film, Rebel Without a Cause, in which he
starred as troubled teenager Jim Stark.
Everyone
remembers the stunning black-and-white photo taken of James Dean in the mean streets of
New York. He’s walking alone next to Central Park, hands wedged deep in the
pockets of an oversized trench coat, smoking a cigarette and looking off into
the distance. It’s an iconic image of an iconic young man, one who was taken from
the spotlight before he ever really entered it.
When
James Dean died in September 1955 he was just 24 years old. He had certainly
gained notoriety through his work on East
of Eden, a film that was largely improvised and won him the first
ever posthumous Academy Award nomination for lead actor. But it wasn’t until a
month after his death that the real film for which the actor became known for
was released: Rebel Without a
Cause. A short time later the third and final film for which the
actor would be known, Giant,
also hit theatres.
The actor’s roles in each of
the films may have been significantly different, but it was his portrayal of
rebellious teenager Jim Stark in Rebel Without a Cause
that hit the right notes with adolescent movie-goers. That, coupled with the
way Dean died (racing his Porsche 550 Spyder, which was nicknamed “Little
Bastard”) propelled him to a type of immortal cult status like Marilyn Monroe and
Elvis Presley,
but one that celebrated rebellion and going against the status quo. Fittingly,
it was also the only one of these three film for which Dean wasn’t nominated
posthumously for an Academy Award, and the role that made him go for Giant in
the first place; he didn’t want to be typecast as the bad boy teenager.
While
Dean may have become something of a teen heartthrob onscreen, behind-the-scenes
it was a different story. The man was known to pay very little attention to his
personal appearance, reportedly sometimes even showing up places with
disheveled hair or without shoes. That’s largely why the set of photos
including the one mentioned above were such an integral part of his story. Shot
by up-and-coming Life photographer
Dennis Stock, these prints included photos of Dean visiting the town of
Fairmount, Indiana, where he grew up, getting his hair trimmed or going about
his every day life.
It’s
this photo shoot that is the subject of the latest biopic revolving around the
actor’s life in Life.
In it, Dean is portrayed by Dane DeHaan, while the role of Stock is helmed
by Robert Pattinson. The flick doesn’t hit
theatres until December, but it’s already garnering mixed reviews from several
film festivals, with criticisms against the film accusing it of shying away
from digging deep into Dean’s personal interactions.
That includes the often looked
over fact that Dean was reportedly bisexual, having had relationships with
several men and women over the course of his short life. It’s a fact that’s
been confirmed by Elizabeth Taylor herself,
Dean’s Giant
co-star who once counted Dean among her many gay friends.
In fact, after Taylor’s death
in 2011, off-the-record interviews with the star surfaced revealing even more
gossip about her former co-star. In an interview with the Daily
Beast, the starlet dropped another bombshell to
Dean fans everywhere.
“I
loved Jimmy. I’m going to tell you something, but it’s off the record until I
die. OK? When Jimmy was 11 and his mother passed away, he began to be molested
by his minister. I think that haunted him the rest of his life. In fact, I know
it did.”
Whether
Dean’s racing and continued quest for speed (he upgraded racing cars several
times in the years before his death) had anything to do with trying to escape
his past is something the actor has taken to the grave with him. What he did
leave behind is an image of restless youth intent on fighting The Man, and an
actor who was able to express the hopes and dreams of the young in a way so few
others ever have. Even if that wasn’t exactly the legacy he planned on leaving
behind, it’s one that has stuck for more than half a century with movie buffs
everywhere. It’s an impressive feat indeed, considering the man’s altogether
short resume and life.
Clancy's comment: He sure was a pin-up boy.
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