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James Dean: A Biography (Paperback)

by John Howlett (Author)

4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)

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Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Five decades after the death of James Dean, he is still revered as a distant myth and remains an enigma to a generation that hardly knows him. Yet it is this generation that has made him the most idolized actor of all time. While his film career lasted only sixteen months, it produced three cinematic greats: East of Eden, Rebel Without a Cause and Giant.

John Howlett conducted extensive research and interviews with actors and directors who knew Dean, to produce a revealing portrait of a complex and tragic man — the perfect embodiment of an eternal struggle who was an inspiration to several generations of rebels without a cause. His anguish was exquisitely genuine on and off the screen, and his moments of joy are rare and precious. Here is James Dean from all sides: his talent for interpreting and expressing his role as an actor, his rebellious nature, his personal frankness, his ever-probing curiosity, his tenacious struggle for success, and his sadness and sensitivity. Includes color photos. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

Paperback: 176 pages
Publisher: Plexus Publishing; 2nd edition (July 21, 1997)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0859652432
ISBN-13: 978-0859652438
Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.7 x 0.4 inches
Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces

Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)

Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,686,725 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Back Cover

Citations (learn more)

6 books cite this book:

James Dean: The Biography by Val Holley in Back Matter
James Dean: The Mutant King: A Biography by David Dalton in Back Matter
Big Bend Country: Land of the Unexpected (Centennial Series of the Association of Former Students, Texas a & M University) by Kenneth Baxter Ragsdale in Back Matter
Gay Fandom and Crossover Stardom: James Dean, Mel Gibson, and Keanu Reeves by Michael DeAngelis in Back Matter
Rebel Males: Clift, Brando and Dean by Graham McCann in Back Matter

See all 6 books citing this book

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	27% buy the item featured on this page: James Dean: A Biography 4.7 out of 5 stars (6)
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	20% buy James Dean: The Mutant King: A Biography 4.6 out of 5 stars (5) $14.21
	15% buy Surviving James Dean 3.9 out of 5 stars (25)

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Customer Reviews

6 Reviews

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4 star:		(2)
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Average Customer Review

4.7 out of 5 stars (6 customer reviews)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very Thorough Retrospect, November 10, 1999

By A Customer

This biography is very thorough on describing the life and history of James Dean. From his childhood to an in-depth look at what he was like on the set, this book is great. The great thing is that the author doesn't concentrate on his sexuality through the whole book. A great tribute to an icon that will never die.

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11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Solid., October 17, 2001

By	Brandon (USA) - See all my reviews

As an owner of 8 Dean biographies, and numerous other celeb bios, I've witnessed almost every approach of examining a person's life. Some are utterly biassed and uninformed, others too objective and lacking direction, and every other angle in-between. Here we have an example of solid objectivity and direction. It's a quick read and I would say NOT for the first time Dean bio reader. This is simply because it does not delve as deeply into the recesses of the less known events and traits that are necessary to paint a well rounded portrait of an artist like Dean. At least not if you're serious. For basic facts and a well written and fluid approach-this is perfectly adequite. One of the nicest attributes is some rarer photos you won't find in most other bios. It's also nice as a second (or third or eighth) addition to a Dean collection. The perspective is legitimately supported by facts and the wording is pleasant to read. However, it brings nothing new to the table for a well-read Dean fan, and does skip some smaller events that are nice to know of. I read every Dean bio I find, and usually buy them (unless they prove to be fictionalized...written for fiction readers)-hence I'm Very discriminating of Dean bios. And here's my take on this one: Not a "must have", but a "nice to have"- and definitely good for those adding to their Dean library or those just dabbling in Dean-ology. Over all-pretty good.

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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars worth reading, January 24, 2007

By	William LaRochelle (Maine) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: James Dean: A Biography (Paperback)

I found Howlett's biography a thoughtful, compelling read overall. He packs quite a bit into 170-odd pages, but then, the print is comparatively small.

Though admittedly of rather minor importance, the same annoying and excuseless errors of fact found in most Dean bios are found in this one: According to Howlett, Dean was born at Green Gables Apartments (it was Seven Gables); he was six years old when he moved with his parents to California in September 1936 (he was actually five, having been born in February 1931); his mother died of breast cancer (it was uterine cancer); he played the part of John the Baptist in the TV production, "Hill Number One" (it was John the Apostle); he won the Donaldson award for his performance in the Broadway play, The Immoralist (the winner that year was John Kerr for his performance in Tea and Sympathy).

Alone among Dean biographers, apparently, Howlett maintains that his subject was "a straight 'A' honor student throughout high school"; but that's simply not true. Granted, biographer Ronald Martinetti does affirm, on the word of Dean's aunt/foster mother, that he was an honor student in his senior year. (I accept that as true because I can't believe Martinetti would concoct such a claim and put it in the mouth of so innocuous a creature as Dean's Aunt Ortense.) But Howlett's assertion flies in the face of what author Randall Riese, who is probably the most reliable, most consistently accurate authority on Dean, has written on the subject. According to Riese, "Academically he was not particularly adroit. In fact, with the exception of art, speech, and drama, at which he excelled, and Spanish, which he nearly flunked, he was basically a C student" (The Unabridged James Dean: His Life and Legacy from A to Z; p. 165. Be it noted that NONE of the errors I've pointed out above is found in Riese's book. Further, Riese certainly attests that Dean's senior year was an outstanding one in several respects.)

Howlett's blunders apart, what I especially value in his account of Dean's life are: 1) his superlative observations on the nature of Brando's influence on Dean with respect to the art of acting; 2) his insightful, fairly lengthy discussion of Dean's films; and 3) his clear-sighted treatment of the subject of Dean's sexuality. These are his concluding words on that score: "Whatever his appetites, he does not appear to have found the availability or execution of sex difficult; nor did it seem to play a particularly important part in his life [ . . . ] He was certainly bisexual--a close friend, Jonathan Gilmore, referred to him as 'multisexual'--though how actively heterosexual or homosexual no one really knows."

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Very Interesting.
This biography is packed with a lot of interesting information about James and a lot of information I didn't know about him. Read more

Published on October 30, 2005 by HM

5.0 out of 5 stars A great read
James Dean: A biography is one of the most compelling biography's to date on the mysterious man that was James Dean. It is very clear that Mr. Read more

Published on December 9, 2000 by J. Hall

5.0 out of 5 stars it was great
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Published on February 6, 1999

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