Today, February 8th is the Birthday of James Dean. Even though he only made 3 major films he is ranked 18th on the American Film Institutes list of Top 100 actors. James Dean had he lived would be 70 years old this year. It is absolutely amazing to realize what a huge influence James Dean has had in popular culture. His life was cut short in 1955 when he died in an automobile accident outside of Cholame, California. It is often said that he was going an unsafe speed, because he was, in fact, a race car driver. That very day he was headed to a race that he was set to compete in. He was driving his Porsche 550 Spyder when he was stuck by an oncoming vehicle. His last words were said to be “That guys gotta stop…he’ll see us”. Ironically earlier in the day he was issued a speeding ticket for going 65 in a 55 mile an hour zone. Not a very seemingly unsafe speed. At the time of his death according to investigators he was probably only traveling at about 55 MPH. There is a clip that is quite eerie [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hU5N2SrEaZI&w=480&h=390]. According to Forbes magazine the estate of James Dean continues to produce over $5 million dollars annually. He is a true icon and someone that we lost far too early. Some notable quotes by James Dean:
-Dream as if you’ll live forever. Live as if you’ll die today.
-If a man can bridge the gap between life and death, if he can live on after he’s dead, then maybe he was a great man.
-The only greatness for man is immortality.
So I guess you can say that James Dean was truly a great man. We have some biographies on Him and also the films Rebel Without a Cause and Giant. See what makes him so iconic.
Posted by Estel.