9/30/55

Had he lived, James Dean would be 82 years old now.

Instead, on this day 58 years ago, he was killed in an auto accident on the way to a car race in Salinas, in which he was scheduled to participate. He was 24 years old, had starred in three major films, done some television and theater. Not that much, when you really think about it. On the other hand, he earned two Academy Award nominations as Best Actor in a Leading Role (both of them posthumous) out of those three starring roles and to this day he is a legend, with up and coming actors still trying to imitate his look, his style, and his talent. He has inspired books, films, and other art.

It's difficult to know what to write about James Dean and his short, illustrious career, because so much has already been said and written about him. On the other hand, as a fan of his work, I'm finding it even more difficult to let the day pass without remark.

James Dean was a good actor. That much is obvious from watching "East of Eden" (1955), "Rebel Without a Cause" (1955) and "Giant" (1956), the three films in which he starred. It is impossible to know if he would have continued growing as an actor and expanded his range - because, goodness knows, the three roles he is so acclaimed for are really very similar in a lot of ways. = or whether he would have failed to live up to the promise of those early roles.

Not that matters much now. The fact is that he only left a small but notable body of work, performances that mostly hold up over the years and to repeated viewings. Sure, "Rebel Without a Cause" seems very much a film of the time it was made, and light-years away from the lived experience of teens today. But, that film helped define what it is to be a teenager at a time when the expectation was that individuals went from child to adult with no real intermediate stage. The teen experience might be different in detail today, but the angst that Dean's character, Jim Stark, goes through is still recognizable in kind.

One thing I think needs to be remembered, though, is that James Dean did not emerge full-grown as an actor in those three films. Besides the work he did on stage and on television before "East of Eden", he had small roles in three films, "Fixed Bayonets!", "Sailor Beware", and "Has Anybody Seen My Gal?" The only one of those three in which he had any lines at all (and all he had was one line) was "Sailor Beware" (1952), which starred Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis. Even mostly in the background in his scenes, James Dean is, well, noticeable:



One thing is sure, and that is that James Dean is not just an American icon, but has fans all over the world. This is exemplified by a memorial just down the road from where Dean died, in Cholame, California. The memorial, which is the parking lot of a roadside restaurant, was built by a retired businessman from Japan, is simple and dignified, and includes a quotation that is said to have been one of Dean's favorite, from "The Little Prince": "What is essential, is invisible to the eye."

Live fast...

Had he lived, James Dean would have turned 82 years old today.

Of course, had he lived to see his birthday this year, he would probably not be the acting legend he is. He would have gone on to appear in many more films than he did, and some of them would have been bad films, and probably some of his performances would not have lived up to the standard he set in the three roles he is famous for: Cal Trask in "East of Eden", Jim Stark in "Rebel Without a Cause", and Jett Rink in "Giant". I say this not to discount the obvious talent he displayed in those roles; it's just the law of averages.

Those three roles, of course, are not the only ones Dean played in his short, legendary career. He played (mostly minor) roles in a fairly lengthy list of television dramas in the early fifties. However, some of those performances have been lost, and most of the ones that aren't lost are rarely seen. He also appeared on Broadway twice, in "See the Jaguar" in 1952 and in "The Immoralist" in 1954, and in three off-Broadway productions. In films, besides the three he is famous for, there were uncredited roles for him in four other films during 1951 through 1953.

And then there is this (very silly) Pepsi commercial, which was made in 1950:



But, these are the films, the performances, that will stand as James Dean's legacy. First, a scene from "East of Eden":



And from "Rebel Without a Cause", along with Natalie Wood:



And, from "Giant", with Elizabeth Taylor and Rock Hudson:



James Dean received posthumous Academy Award nominations for his performances in both "East of Eden" and "Giant".

While, had he lived, James Dean would undoubtedly, as I said earlier, turned in performances that would not have been anywhere near award-calibre. But, I wonder, what would he have done with his talent, had he managed to survive to act another day.

I think it's interesting. I avoided seeing any of James Dean's movies for years simply because I had heard so many glowing descriptions of his work in them, and I didn't think anyone could live up to those kinds of accolades. But, then, one night "Rebel Without a Cause" was on, and I watched it. And, yes, the movie is definitely a part of it's time, and seems dated in a lot of ways. But still, Dean's performance in it is compulsively watchable. So I sought out "East of Eden" and "Giant" as well, still expecting to be disappointed on some level. But I wasn't.

If you haven't seen these three films, you should. I'll confess that "Giant" is not my favorite of the three, and I don't recommend it as highly. But "East of Eden" and "Rebel Without a Cause" are both worth watching, and James Dean's performances in them are a major reason why they are so watchable.