James Dean

Racing hobby

In 1954, Dean started doing motorsports. He bought many automobiles after he was done acting for East of Eden. He bought a Triumph Tiger T110 and a Porsche 356. On March 26–27 1955, he was in his first professional race at the Palm Springs Road Races in Palm Springs, California. Dean was 1st place in the novice class. He was 2nd place at the main event. He raced in Bakersfield a month later. He was 1st in his class. He was 3rd overall. Dean said he wanted to race in the Indianapolis 500. However, he had a very busy acting schedule. This meant that this was not possible.

Dean's last race was in Santa Barbara on May 30, 1955. He was not able to finish the competition. This was because he had a blown piston (his piston was damaged). He was not able to race after that because Warner Brothers said he could not race while acting for Giant. Once he was done acting for that movie, however, he wanted to race again.

Accident

Dean loved motor racing. After acting for Giant, he bought a new 1955 Porsche 550 Spyder. He entered into the upcoming Salinas Road Race. This would be on October 1–2, 1955. Dean went to the race track. 3 other people went with him. The first person was the stunt coordinator Bill Hickman. The second person was Collier's photographer Sanford Roth. The 3rd person was Rolf Wütherich. He was the German mechanic from the who maintained Dean's Spyder car.

On September 30, the group went west on U.S. Route 466 (now SR 46) near Cholame, California. At the same time, a 23-year-old California Polytechnic State University student Donald Turnupseed, was driving east. He was in a 1950 Ford Tudor. At 5:45 p.m., Turnupseed turned left onto Highway 41. He would be going north toward Fresno. This turn was in front of Dean's Porsche. Dean was not able to stop his car in time. His car went into the Ford. Dean's car went into the pavement on the highway. Dean had many fatal injuries from this accident. Turnupseed had only minor injuries.

Dean was buried in Fairmount, Indiana.

Broadway

• See the Jaguar (1952)
• The Immoralist (1954) – based on the book by André Gide

Off-Broadway

• The Metamorphosis (1952) – based on the short story by Franz Kafka
• The Scarecrow (1954)
• Women of Trachis (1954) – translation by Ezra Pound

Movies

Television

Cited literature

• Alleman, Richard (2005). Hollywood: The Movie Lover's Guide: The Ultimate Insider Tour To Movie Los Angeles. Broadway Books. ISBN 978-0-7679-1635-6.
• Chandler, Joyce (September 27, 2007). James Dean: A Rebel with a Cause: A Fans Tribute. AuthorHouse. ISBN 978-1-4670-9575-4.
• Clayton, Marie (January 1, 2004). James Dean: A Life in Pictures. Barnes and Noble Books. ISBN 978-0-7607-5614-0.
• Dalton, David (2001). James Dean: The Mutant King : a Biography. Chicago Review Press. ISBN 978-1-55652-398-4.
• DeAngelis, Michael (August 15, 2001). Gay Fandom and Crossover Stardom: James Dean, Mel Gibson, and Keanu Reeves. Duke University Press. p. 97. ISBN 0-8223-2738-4.
• Epting, Chris (June 1, 2009). The Birthplace Book: A Guide to Birth Sites of Famous People, Places, & Things. Stackpole Books. ISBN 978-0-8117-4018-0.
• Ferguson, Michael S. (2003). Idol Worship: A Shameless Celebration of Male Beauty in the Movies. STARbooks Press. ISBN 978-1-891855-48-1.
• Greenberg, Keith Elliot (August 1, 2015). Too Fast to Live, Too Young to Die – James Dean's Final Hours: James Dean's Final Hours. Applause Theatre & Cinema Books. ISBN 978-1-4950-5041-1.
• Harbin, Billy J.; Marra, Kim; Schanke, Robert A. (2005). The Gay & Lesbian Theatrical Legacy: A Biographical Dictionary of Major Figures in American Stage History in the Pre-Stonewall Era. University of Michigan Press. ISBN 0-472-06858-X.
• Holley, Val (September 1991). James Dean: Tribute to a Rebel. Publications International. ISBN 978-1-56173-148-0.
• Perry, George C. (2005). James Dean. DK Publishing, Incorporated. ISBN 978-0-7566-0934-4.
• Roberts, Paul G. (2014). Style Icons Vol 1 Golden Boys. Fashion Industry Broadcast. ISBN 978-1-62776-032-4.
• Springer, Claudia (March 1, 2007). James Dean Transfigured: The Many Faces of Rebel Iconography. University of Texas Press. ISBN 978-0-292-71444-1.
• Tanitch, Robert (1997). The Unknown James Dean. Batsford. ISBN 978-0-7134-8034-4.
• Warrick, Karen Clemens (2006). James Dean: Dream as If You'll Live Forever. Enslow Publishers, Inc. ISBN 978-0-7660-2537-0.