James Dean was 24 years old when he died on September 30, 1955. That was 71 years ago. He had starred in three films, and only one of them had reached theaters. He was driving his Porsche 550 Spyder to a race in Salinas when it collided with another car near Cholame, California, in the early evening. The news stunned young moviegoers who had only just discovered him.
Audiences had met him that spring in ‘East Of Eden,’ which premiered in New York in March 1955. ‘Rebel Without A Cause’ opened about four weeks after the crash, and it turned a promising newcomer into a symbol for restless teenagers everywhere. ‘Giant’ followed in 1956, pairing him with Elizabeth Taylor and Rock Hudson. DYR has looked back at the tension between Dean and Hudson on that set. According to Good Morning America, he received posthumous Best Actor nominations for both ‘East Of Eden’ and ‘Giant.’
James Dean Is Still Remembered In Fairmount
He was born in Marion, Indiana, on February 8, 1931, and he is buried in nearby Fairmount. The town has never stopped honoring him. The James Dean Festival is held there on the last full weekend of every September, according to the James Dean Museum, and the Grant County Visitors Bureau lists an annual memorial service on the anniversary of his death. He would have turned 95 this year. Three starring roles were all he left, and they have proved to be enough.
