James Byron Dean was born on February 8, 1931, in Marion, Indiana, to Mildred Marie (Wilson) Dean and Winton A. Dean, a farmer turned dental technician. Tragedy struck when Dean was just nine years old, as his mother passed away, leaving him to be raised by his aunt and uncle on a farm in Fairmount, Indiana.
Despite the challenges he faced, Dean's passion for acting only grew stronger, and he moved to New York to pursue his dream. His early work included a critically acclaimed performance as the blackmailing Arab boy in the New York production of Gide's "The Immoralist", which earned him a trip to Hollywood.
Dean's early film efforts were largely small roles, including a sailor in the musical comedy Sailor Beware (1952),a GI in Samuel Fuller's Fixed Bayonets! (1951),and a youth in the comedy Has Anybody Seen My Gal (1952). However, he had major roles in only three movies.
One of his most iconic roles was as Cal Trask in Elia Kazan's production of John Steinbeck's East of Eden (1955),where he played the bad brother who struggled to connect with his stiff-necked father. Dean's true starring role, which cemented his image in American culture, was as the brooding teenager Jim Stark in Nicholas Ray's Rebel Without a Cause (1955).
Dean's final film role was in George Stevens' Giant (1956),where he played the non-conforming cowhand Jett Rink who strikes it rich when he discovers oil. Tragically, Dean's life was cut short when he collided with another car while driving his Porsche Spyder race car on September 30, 1955, just two hours after receiving a speeding ticket. At the age of 24, James Dean's life was taken from him, and his violent death transformed him into a cult object of seemingly timeless fascination.
