James Dean - ProfilesArchive

About Me

-Born James Byron Dean to Winton and Mildred Wilson Dean on February 8, 1931 in Marion, Indiana. -James and his family moved to Santa Monica, California, six years after his father had left farming to become a dental technician. -James attended Brentwood Public School until his mother died of cancer in 1940. -At age nine, James was sent to live with his aunt Ortense and Uncle Marcus Winslow on a farm in Fairmount, Indiana. -In highschool, he played on the basketball team and studied forensics and drama. -After graduating from Fairmount High School in 1949, Dean moved back to California with his beagle, Maxx, to live with his father and stepmother. -He enrolled in Santa Monica College (SMCC), pledged to the Sigma Nu fraternity and majored in pre-law. -James transferred to UCLA and changed his major to drama, which resulted in estrangement from his father. -While at UCLA, he beat out 350 actors to land the role of Malcolm in Macbeth. -Dean began his professional acting career with a Pepsi-Cola television commercial, followed by a stint as a stunt tester for the Beat the Clock game show. He quit college to focus on his budding career, but struggled to get jobs in Hollywood and paid his bills only by working as a parking lot attendant at CBS Studios. -He actually had very small parts in several films before achieving stardom. The first film in which he spoke was Sailor Beware, where he played a boxing trainer. The Paramount comedy starred Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis. -Following friends' advice, Dean moved to New York City to pursue live stage acting, where he was accepted to study under Lee Strasberg in the storied Actors Studio. His career picked up and he did several episodes on TV shows such as Kraft Television Theater, Studio One, Lux Video Theatre, Robert Montgomery Presents, Danger and General Electric Theater. -James Dean starred in three major movies, East Of Eden, Rebel Without A Cause, and Giant. He was nominated for Best Actor in a leading role for East Of Eden & Giant. -On September 30, 1955, James Dean died of a broken neck and a few other injuries due to a car accident.~Dedicated To James Dean.~

My Interests

Writing, Reading, Bull Fighting, Bongo Drums, Cars, Motorcycles, Race Car Driving

I'd like to meet:

My Mother.

Music:

Billie Holiday, Frank Sinatra

Movies:

Fixed Bayonets(1951), Sailor Beware(1952), Has Anyone Seen My Gal?(1952), Trouble Along The Way(1953), East Of Eden(1955), Rebel Without A Cause(1955), Giant(1956)

Television:

Father Peyton's Family Theatre, "Hill Number One" (April 1; Easter Sunday, 1951) |The Web, "Sleeping Dogs" (February 20, 1952) | Studio One, "Ten Thousand Horses Singing" (March 3, 1952) | Lux Video Theater, "The Foggy, Foggy Dew" (March 17, 1952) | Kraft Television Theater, "Prologue to Glory" (May 21, 1952) | Studio One, "Abraham Lincoln" (May 26, 1952) | Hallmark Hall of Fame, "Forgotten Children" (June 2, 1952) |The Kate Smith Show, "Hounds of Heaven" (January 15, 1953) | Treasury Men In Action, "The Case of the Watchful Dog" (January 29, 1953) | You Are There, "The Capture of Jesse James" (February 8, 1953) | Danger, "No Room" (April 14, 1953) |Treasury Men In Action, "The Case of the Sawed-Off Shotgun" (April 16, 1953) | Tales of Tomorrow, "The Evil Within" (May 1, 1953) | Campbell Soundstage, "Something For An Empty Briefcase" (July 17, 1953) | Studio One Summer Theater, "Sentence of Death" (August 17, 1953) |Danger, "Death Is My Neighbor" (August 25, 1953) | The Big Story, "Rex Newman, Reporter for the Globe and News" (September 11, 1953) | Omnibus, "Glory In Flower" (October 4, 1953) | Kraft Television Theater, "Keep Our Honor Bright" (October 14, 1953) | Campbell Soundstage, "Life Sentence" (October 16, 1953) | Kraft Television Theater, "A Long Time Till Dawn" (November 11, 1953) | Armstrong Circle Theater, "The Bells of Cockaigne" (November 17, 1953) | Robert Montgomery Presents the Johnson's Wax Program, Harvest (November 23, 1953) |Danger, "The Little Women" (March 30, 1954) | Philco TV Playhouse, "Run Like A Thief" (September 5, 1954) | Danger, "Padlocks" (November 9, 1954) | General Electric Theater, "I'm a Fool" (November 14, 1954) | General Electric Theater, "The Dark, Dark Hour" (December 12, 1954) | U.S. Steel Hour, "The Thief" (January 4, 1955) | Lux Video Theatre, "The Life of Emile Zola" (March 10, 1955) | Schlitz Playhouse of Stars, "The Unlighted Road" (May 6, 1955)

Books:

Heroes:

Marlon Brando, Montgomery Clift