He made only three movies 50 years ago, but James Dean is still a familiar name and face to many Americans. In Muncie, he is even more recognizable, as he grew up only half an hour north in Fairmount, Ind. The University Film Series brings him to Ball State with the showing of "Rebel Without a Cause."
Directed by Nicholas Ray, this is the second movie Dean filmed, but he died in a car crash before it was released. To commemorate his short but bright career and life, collector David Loehr opened the James Dean Gallery.
"My James Dean collection is the world's largest, and I wanted to share it with people. It's preserving an important and influential moment in American pop culture for generations to come," Loehr said.
The gallery, which opened in Fairmount in 1988, moved to a new location in May of 2004 at exit 59, off highway I-69. It is a six-room exhibit with a one-hour film about Dean and his life and has a gift shop on the side.
There is an entire room dedicated to each of Dean's movies, and the "Rebel Without a Cause" room has original movie posters in several languages, clothing worn on the set, a piece of the fence around Dean's house in the film, books and other items from the set or memorabilia from the show.
Dean was more than just the star of the film.
"Nicholas Ray was a rebellious director," Loehr said. "He basically let Dean co-direct the film and was very loose about the production, much like the popular independent film directors of today. It was one of the first movies to portray teenagers as rebellious and not just goodie-goodies."
That look at imperfect family and friends are part of the appeal to youth as Dean played the rebellious teenager that kids could relate to at both the time the movie was made and now.
"It is classic, definitely not like anything you see today," Freshman Jenn Dickey said. "I think the character he portrayed was who he was. He played the troubled teen or the troubled man in every part."
Whatever the reason, Dean was an American icon as both a Hollywood star and a fallen American idol. He died in a car crash weeks after finishing the filming of "Giant." Fans collected everything that belonged to him, including the car he died in, which disappeared and was never recovered.
The James Dean Gallery aims to show the public a man who, had he lived, would have gone on to become a mover and shaker in the film business. However, Loehr said it also wants to show that "James Dean was multi-faceted, the Indiana farm boy, New York bohemian, Hollywood actor, race car driver, artist, etc. I think that is why he is related to in so many different ways."
"Rebel Without a Cause" will be shown tonight in Pruis Hall at 7:30 p.m. For more information on the James Dean Gallery, visit www.jamesdeangallery.com.
Read More
Three Air Jam teams take home the win
October 12, 2012Nineteen teams shimmied, shook and flipped for a sold out John R. Emens Auditorium on Thursday night during the 25th annual Air Jam.
Bill Clinton Speaks at North Central High School
October 12, 2012Former President's Speech Could Have Effect on State Senate Race
