Unbelievably, the ultra-cool James Dean started out as an Indiana farm boy. When his father decided he wanted to go to dental school, the three-member family moved to Santa Monica, California. James and his mother were very close and he was devastated by her death of uterine cancer (when she was 29 and he was 9). When James' father became overwhelmed with parenthood and college, James was sent back to his aunt and uncle in Fairmount, Indiana to live until he finished high school.
We often hear of the 'casting couch' for young women hoping to become movie stars. However, it was a shock to hear that Dean faced the same thing.  This Hourly History book was very interesting, although I wish it were longer. It would have been nice if there had been photos of the women in Dean's life (Piers Angeli, Maila Nurmi, Dizzy Sheridan, etc.).
We often hear of the 'casting couch' for young women hoping to become movie stars. However, it was a shock to hear that Dean faced the same thing.  This Hourly History book was very interesting, although I wish it were longer. It would have been nice if there had been photos of the women in Dean's life (Piers Angeli, Maila Nurmi, Dizzy Sheridan, etc.).
