James Dean

His very brief career, lifestyle, bisexuality, violent death and highly publicized funeral transformed James Dean into a cult object and pop icon of apparently timeless fascination. Ferrer died of colon cancer in Coral Gables, Florida at the age of 80. Many teenagers of the time modeled themselves after him, and his death cast a pall on many members of his generation. Ferrer is the uncle of actor George Clooney and the father-in-law of singer Debby Boone. Dean epitomized the rebellion of 1950s teens, especially in his role in Rebel Without a Cause. At the time of his death, Ferrer was married to Stella Magee, whom he married in 1992. He is one of only five people to be nominated for Best Actor for his first feature role, and the only person to be nominated twice after his death. Ferrer had previously been married to Uta Hagen (1938-1948) and Phyllis Hill (1948-1953).

He is buried in Park Cemetery in his home town of Fairmount, Indiana. The two were married in 1953, divorced in 1961, and remarried in 1964, only to be divorced again in 1967. This occurred before the release of Giant. Clooney was Ferrer's third wife. Dean died in a road accident in a Porsche 550 Spyder near Salinas, California when a car driven by Donald Turnupseed veered into Dean's lane. Ferrer had five children with singer-actress Rosemary Clooney: Miguel was born in 1955, Maria in 1956, Gabriel in 1957, Monsita in 1958, and Rafael in 1960. He followed this up in rapid succession with two more starring roles, in Rebel Without a Cause, and in the 1956 release Giant, for which he was also nominated for an Academy Award. in the 1980s.

He appeared in several uncredited bit roles in such forgettable films as Sailor Beware, but finally gained recognition and success in 1955 in his first starring role, that of Cal Trask in East of Eden, for which he received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor in a Leading Role. Ferrer also had a recurring role as Julia Duffy's wealthy father on the popular Newhart television sitcom in the U.S. During his New York period he spent time in Sayville and the resort towns of Fire Island. His other notable films include Lawrence of Arabia in 1962, The Greatest Story Ever Told in 1965, Ship of Fools also in 1965, Woody Allen's A Midsummer Night's Sex Comedy in 1982, Dune in 1984. His rave reviews in André Gide's The Immoralist led to his being called back to Hollywood and film stardom. Ferrer also directed, but did not appear in, Return to Peyton Place in 1961 and the re-make of State Fair in 1962. His career turned around and Dean did several episodes of such early-1950s episodic television programs such as Kraft Television Theater, Danger, and General Electric Theater. In 1958 Ferrer appeared in I Accuse! and The High Cost of Loving.

While there he was accepted to study under Lee Strasberg in the storied Actors Studio. The Cockleshell Heroes followed a year later, along with The Great Man. Following the advice of friends, Dean moved to New York to pursue a career in live stage acting. In 1955 Ferrer directed himself in The Shrike. He quit college to focus on his budding career, but he struggled to get jobs in Hollywood and only succeeded in paying bills by working as a parking lot attendant. He appeared in 1953's Miss Sadie Thompson opposite Rita Hayworth, in 1954's The Caine Mutiny and the MGM musical Deep in My Heart. Dean began his career with a soft drink commercial followed by a bit part in the television series, Hill Number One. Also in 1952, Ferrer portrayed French painter Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec in John Huston's Moulin Rouge (Oscar nominated).

The resulting parental fight left Dean once again being turned out of his father's house. In 1952 Ferrer won three Tony Awards for directing three plays during the same season (The Shrike, Stalag 17, The Fourposter) and earned another Tony for also acting in The Shrike. After struggling with law, against his father's wishes, Dean changed his major to drama after transferring to UCLA. He played Cyrano yet again in the French movie, Cyrano et D'Artagnan. While there, he enrolled in Santa Monica City College, pledged Sigma Nu fraternity and majored in pre-law. He played the same role on stage in 1946 (winning a Tony Award), and on TV in 1949 and 1955. After graduating from Fairmont High School in 1949, Dean moved back to California to live with his father and stepmother. In 1950 Ferrer won an Academy Award for his portrayal of Cyrano de Bergerac in the 1950 film of that name.

In high school, Dean played on the school basketball team and participated in forensics debate and drama. Ferrer made his film debut with Ingrid Bergman in Joan of Arc in 1948, for which he received his first Academy Award nomination for "Best Supporting Actor". Then, at age nine, Dean's father sent him back to live with relatives on a farm near Fairmount, Indiana where he was raised with a Quaker upbringing. José Vicente Ferrer de Otero y Cintron, known as José Ferrer (January 8, 1912-January 26, 1992), was an actor and director, born in Santurce, Puerto Rico. While there, Dean was enrolled in Brentwood Public School until his mother died of cancer in 1940. Jose Ferrer profile, NNDB (http://www.nndb.com/people/311/000026233/). The family moved to Santa Monica, California six years later after Winton left farming to become a dental technician.

Born on a Marion, Indiana family farm to Winton and Mildred Wilson Dean. Epitomizing youthful angst and charisma, Dean's screen persona is probably best embodied in the title of his most representative work, Rebel without a Cause. James Byron Dean (February 8, 1931 - September 30, 1955) was an American film actor. You might also be looking for Jimmy Dean..

This article is about the actor James Dean.