James Dean

But what did this boy with a shy air, concentrated expression and sad look have that made him continue to fill the covers of adolescent magazines or folders after fifty? Perhaps it was not Bogart, nor Brando, but it was enough for him to perfectly embody the obsessions, misunderstandings and rebelliousness of an entire generation to win the favor of the public. It is already known that the rebellious character has always been a magnet for consciences, especially if they live asleep in the routine of a flat life. And the talent of James Dean came at the right time, he was the Elvis of the interpretation, the Warhol of the screen, the Che Guevara of the cinema. And although his light was soon extinguished, his clarity was also dazzling.

James Byron Dean was born on February 8, 1931 in Marion, Indiana. A few years later he moved to Los Angeles, but after his mother died –when he was 9 years old– he returned to Indiana, where he lived on his uncle’s farm. He soon, however, returned to California to study acting at UCLA. There he worked on commercials, television series and plays on Broadway. And taking advantage of his stay in New York, he completed his training at the prestigious Actors Studio.

He started in the movies with menial jobs – Go for sailors! (1951), A Conflict Around Every Corner (1953)–, but the “alma mater” of the Actors Studio, Elia Kazan , had already had his eye on him. The director of Armenian origin offered him his first great role in East of Eden (1955), based on a magnificent work by John Steinbeck . Before the premiere of the film, there was already talk of a new phenomenon from the Actors Studio. Jimmy’s work had such an impact that he was nominated for an Oscar for best actor. Before the end of the year he confirmed his talent with Rebel Without a Cause(1955), about the tragic story of a misplaced and non-conformist young man. His attractiveness was indisputable and ever since that film, the ‘outsider’ and romantic spirit of youth (how apt was his middle name, Byron) was forever defined in his person. But it was written… On September 30, 1955, James Dean crashed his Porsche Spider and died instantly. He was 24 years old. He had made a will before him with his last film De él Gigante (1956) , for which he achieved another Oscar nomination, this time posthumously. elizabeth taylor, a co-star in the film, said of him: “Everyone who came in contact with Jimmy realized that his life would never be the same again. Only God knows where a spirit like that comes from, lighting up our lives like a shooting star.” In little more than a year, James Dean had marked an era – “without him the Beatles would never have existed”, Lennon went so far as to say – and had trodden the difficult and tortuous road to maturity for his audience. The actress Pier Angeli was his great love, but a tragic love. They never married and Angeli would commit suicide in 1971 after leaving a note where she said that she had never been able to forget him.