2) His first T.V. appearance was in a Pepsi Cola commercial
Dean is the one to the right ,wearing a black jacket and light colored trousers.He bangs on top of the piano at the beginning of the commercial
3) Deans mother ,Mildred, died from cancer when he was just 9 years-old. His father,Winton , was unable to care for him,so he sent him to live with his aunt and uncle, Ortense and Marcus Winslow, on their farm in Fairmount, Indiana
Top left: James with his parents, Mildred and Winton Dean .Bottom left: James with his aunt and uncle Ortense and Marcus Winslow. Right: Dean outside of the family farm,where he grew up in Fairmount , Indiana
4) He had a Border Collie dog named Tuck
5) He had a pet cat named Marcus , which was a gift from Elizabeth Taylor
6) Dean appeared in numerous TV shows & Broadway shows, but he only starred in three feature films because of his untimely death in 1955. "East Of Eden", "Rebel Without A Cause" and "Giant" However, "East Of Eden" was the only one that was released while he was still alive. He was catapulted into a movie legend and icon after his tragic death
Movie Trailer's
East Of Eden
Rebel Without A cause
Giant
7) The love of his life was Italian actress, Pier Angeli
Angeli broke up with Dean , because her mother objected to the relationship due to Dean not being Catholic.Dean proposed marriage to Angeli and asked her to elope with him,but her mother told her to choose between Dean and her. Angeli chose her mother and ended her relationship with Dean in 1954. Dean was devastated when Angeli married singer and actor Vic Damone
8.) He enjoyed playing the conga drums
9) Dean was extremely near-sighted, but he never wore his glasses on-screen.
10) Dean wore two front false teeth.His teeth were allegedly knocked out while performing a trapeze act in his family's barn. However, Dean claimed he lost his front teeth in a motorcycle accident.(whatever the truth ,he wore two false teeth)
11) He had a passion for auto car racing.He competed in and won a few car rallies
12) Dean nicknamed his new silver Porsche 550 Spyder " Little Bastard"He had these words printed on the tail of his car
13) Shortly before his death,Dean ironically starred in a short video to promote road safety, and speed awareness on the highway
14) A few hours before his fatal car crash ,Dean was pulled over by a cop ,and given a speeding ticket .He was doing 65mph in a 55mph zone(the cop spelled his middle name incorrectly )
15) On September 30, 1955,James Dean was driving westbound on Highway 466, in his new silver Porsche 550 Spyder .He was traveling to Salinas, California, where he was to compete in an auto rally. Traveling Eastbound on Highway 466 ,the driver of a Ford Tudor Sedan wanted to turn onto Highway 41.He failed to notice Dean's porche heading up the road towards him in the opposite lane.As the driver of the Ford Tudor attempted to turn into the junction ,he made a quick left turn ,cutting across into Dean's lane. This caused the two cars to smash nearly head-on.The impact caused the porche to be thrown up in the air before it crashed back down to the ground with a crunch .The car then rolled and landed at the side of the road in a mangled heap .Donald Turnupseed,the driver of the Ford Tudor , survived with only minor injuries. Rolf Wütherich, Deans mechanic,was thrown out of the porche .He was severely injured ,but survived the horrific accident. Dean sadly died instantly of a broken neck and internal injuries .He was only 24 years-old
All of the above photos were the last pictures ever taken of James Dean alive. They were taken on the day of his fatal car crash on 30 , Sept 1955.
Top: James Dean & his mechanic Rolf Wütherich. Bottom left: Dean at a petrol station with his new Porsche.Bottom right: Dean & Wütherich's last ride,heading to Salinas races.Middle : Dean's mangled up Porche Spyder after the fatal crash
16) Dean received two posthumous Oscar nominations.One for “East of Eden”and the other for “Giant”
17) James Dean was buried at Park Cemetery, Fairmount, Indiana, US
Over the years,avid fans have chipped away at his headstone to take pieces of it for a memento
18) Every year, a James Dean Festival is held on the last full week of September in Fairmount ,Indiana. (Dean's hometown) It includes a street fair, car shows, rides ,vendor booths, and entertainment and much much more
19) Hollywood actor, James Franco, played the role of James Dean in the 2001 movie "James Dean"
Dream as if you will live forever. Live as if you will die today -James Dean
19 Facts About 1950's Legendary Hollywood Actor, James Dean
I really dig his style. I remember a photo of him sitting on a porch wearing a white tee, blue jeans and some western boots which is my favorite photo of him.
I once watched Rebel Without A Cause, and didn't think he was all that impressive. He's a handsome guy, but I never understood why people paint him up as some 'legend' or god.
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