"Being a good actor isn't easy. Being a man is even harder. I want to be both before I'm done". James Dean
James Byron Dean (February 8, 1931 – September 30, 1955) was an American film actor. He is a cultural icon, best embodied in the title of his most celebrated film, Rebel Without a Cause (1955), in which he starred as troubled Los Angeles teenager Jim Stark. The other two roles that defined his stardom were as loner Cal Trask in East of Eden (1955), and as the surly farmer, Jett Rink, in Giant (1956). Dean's enduring fame and popularity rests on his performances in only these three films, all leading roles. His premature death in a car crash cemented his legendary status.
Dean was the first actor to receive a posthumous Academy Award nomination for Best Actor and remains the only actor to have had two posthumous acting nominations. In 1999, the American Film Institute ranked Dean the 18th best male movie star on their AFI's 100 Years...100 Stars list....
This is the pics after Dean re-fueling....On September 30, 1955....Dean would take his final ride. After completing filming on his last film Giant, Dean was preparing to leave Hollywood for Salinas, California to enter a racing competition. Of course, he never made it to the races. Dean died in a major car crash on his way there. Here are some of the places Dean was on that final day....its kinda shock when...
James Dean met the British actor Alec Guinness who commented car appeared “sinister” and said to Dean : “If you get in that car you will be found dead in it by this time next week.” Words that would prove to be prophetic.
On September 30, 1955, Dean was driving to a race along with Rolf Wütherich (a auto mechanic) They were traveling in the new Porsche Spyder. At 3:30PM, Dean was caught speeding and recieved a speeding ticket in Kern County for traveling 65 in a 55 mph zone.
James Dean Porsche 550 Spyder car after crash
As Dean drove west on on what was to become State Route 46 in Cholame, California, Donald Turnupseed a student in a 1950 Ford Tudor, approached in the opposite direction. The Ford driver attempted to turn onto State Route 41 at a fork in the road. The driver crossed into Dean’s lane and the two cars collided nearly head on. Dean survived immediately after the crash but was pronounced dead on arrival at 5:59PM after reaching Paso Robles War Memorial Hospital. His last words, according to Wütherich who was ejected from the car, but survived with a broken jaw were: “That guy’s gotta stop… He’ll see us.”
the location currently
the only thing left today....is the big rumours .....thats he's Bi-Sex..!!....
well i don't care bout it....all i care is the 'Little Bastard'....its an icon for Porsche and 550.Spyder
The "curse" of "Little Bastard"
Since Dean's death, a "legend" has arisen that his Porsche 550 Spyder was "cursed" and supposedly injured or killed several others in the years following his death.
One version of the tale goes as follows:
The famous car customizer George Barris bought the wreck for $2,500, only to have it slip off its trailer and break a mechanic's leg. Soon afterwards, Barris sold the engine and drive-train, respectively, to physicians Troy McHenry and William Eschrid. While racing against each other, the former would be killed instantly when his vehicle spun out of control and crashed into a tree, while the latter would be seriously injured when his vehicle rolled over while going into a curve. Barris later sold two tires, which malfunctioned as well. The tires, which were unharmed in Dean's accident, blew up simultaneously causing the buyer's automobile to go off the road. Subsequently, two young would-be thieves were injured while attempting to steal parts from the car. When one tried to steal the steering wheel from the Porsche, his arm was ripped open on a piece of jagged metal. Later, another man was injured while trying to steal the bloodstained front seat. This would be the final straw for Barris, who decided to store "Little Bastard" away, but was quickly persuaded by the California Highway Patrol (CHP) to lend the wrecked car to a highway safety exhibit.The first exhibit from the CHP featuring the car ended unsuccessfully, as the garage storing the Spyder went up in flames, destroying everything except the car itself, which suffered almost no damage whatsoever from the fire. The second display, at a Sacramento high school, ended when the car fell, breaking a student's hip. "Little Bastard" caused problems while being transported several times. On the way to Salinas, the truck containing the vehicle lost control, causing the driver to fall out, only to be crushed by the Porsche after it fell off the back. On two separate occasions, once on a freeway and again in Oregon, the car came off other trucks, although no injuries were reported, another vehicle's windshield was shattered in Oregon. Its last use in a CHP exhibit was in 1959. In 1960, when being returned to George Barris in Los Angeles, California, the car mysteriously vanished. It has not been seen since.
While it has proven impossible thus far to confirm or deny all the claims in this legend, it suffers from several clear factual errors. Barris was not the initial purchaser of the wrecked 550. Rather the doctors Troy McHenry and William Eschrid, both 550 Spyder owners, purchased the car directly from the insurance company. They removed the drivetrain, steering and other mechanical components to use as spares in their cars, then sold the shell to George Barris. William Eschrid used the engine in his Lotus race car.Troy McHenry was killed at a race at Pomona 1956 when the Pitman arm in his 550's steering failed; however this was not one of the "cursed" parts fitted to his 550.
Historic Auto Attractions in Roscoe, Illinois has claimed to have the last known piece of Dean's Spyder (a small chunk a few square inches in size). However this is untrue, as several other large parts are known to exist. The passenger door was on display at the Volo Auto Museum. The engine (#90059) is reported to still be in the possession of the son of the late Dr. Eschrich. Lastly the restored transaxle–gearbox assembly of the Porsche (#10046) is known to be in the possession of car collector Jack Styles.
source : Wiki - James_Dean , James Dean @ Speedhunters , Google
