James Dean (1976) - full transcript
A dramatization of the story of legendary movie actor James Dean. The film's writer, William Bast, had roomed with Dean in the early '50s, when both were trying to break into films as actors.
NARRATOR: His name
was James Byron Dean.
He was an actor.
He died in 1955
at the age of 24.
He had starred in just three
pictures, only one of which
had been released
prior to his death.
Yet before he was in his
grave, he was already a myth.
What you're about to see
is one man's recollection,
an image of the actor as seen
through the eyes of a friend.
Like all memories,
it is intensely
personal, elusive,
and incomplete,
yet it refuses to die.
[music playing]
WILLY: I had another
dream last night.
PSYCHIATRIST: James Dean again?
WILLY: Yes.
I can't seem to shake it.
PSYCHIATRIST: These
things take time.
WILLY: I don't think I'll
ever get over this one.
It was too real.
PSYCHIATRIST: Why don't
you tell me about it?
WILLY: I can't remember
exactly how it started,
but somehow I got word that
Jimmy wanted to see me.
PSYCHIATRIST: Then in this
dream he was still alive?
WILLY: No.
He was already dead and buried.
PSYCHIATRIST: Go one.
WILLY: I found
myself at this place,
like a sanitarium, where
they had him locked up.
Jimmy was sitting on
the bed when I came in.
He looked fine at first,
I mean, just like himself.
He even laughed,
called me Willy.
No one else ever
called me Willy.
Only there was something wrong.
I could see it in his eyes.
He kept saying I was the
only one who could save him.
PSYCHIATRIST: You?
How?
WILLY: He never got to tell me.
Just then we heard
a car outside.
It was getting dark.
They were coming to take
him away, back to the grave.
PSYCHIATRIST: They?
WILLY: Two men, like hospital
orderlies, and a nurse.
They came in an ambulance,
but they brought a coffin.
His coffin.
PSYCHIATRIST: What do you
suppose all of that means?
It was as if he was putting
his fate in my hands,
trusting in me.
PSYCHIATRIST: How did
you feel about that?
I was terrified.
PSYCHIATRIST: Of what?
Of letting him down again.
PSYCHIATRIST: Again?
I meant just letting him down.
PSYCHIATRIST: You said again.
There must have been
another incident.
Do you recall any?
Not off hand.
PSYCHIATRIST: How
badly do you want
to get to the bottom of this?
That's why I'm here.
PSYCHIATRIST: Then you're going
to have to take some risks.
Like what?
PSYCHIATRIST: Like
taking a closer
look at this relationship,
confronting it.
Are you willing to try?
I think so.
PSYCHIATRIST: Let's go
back to the beginning,
find out what happened.
How did you first
feel about him?
Deaner?
He was the last
guy in the world I
would have picked for a friend.
As a matter of
fact, I thought he
was a joke when we first met.
I was in college, back in 1950.
[music playing]
We were doing
Shakespeare's "Macbeth".
Jimmy was playing
the part of Malcolm.
There sure wasn't
anything so special
about him then, not
that I could see anyway,
at least not at first.
Before we reckon
with your several
loves and make us even with you.
My thanes and kinsmen,
henceforth be earls, the first
that ever Scotland in
such an honor named.
What's more to do as would be
newly planted with the time.
Hey, who's your
hick playing Malcolm?
Transfer student from
Santa Monica City College.
His name's James Dean.
Oh yeah, Dean.
I can't ever remember his name.
Don't bother.
I get a feeling that's one name
you'll never see in lights.
You aren't kidding.
Would you two hush up?
JAMES DEAN: By self and violent
hands took off her life.
This--
[WHISPERING]What needful else.
And what need for else--
[WHISPERING]That call upon us.
That calls upon us
by the grace of grace.
We shall perform in
measure, time, and place.
So thanks to all at once and
to each one whom we invite
to see us crowned at Scone.
[music playing]
[applause]
You were really
[inaudible] tonight.
Well, it's true.
Isn't it, Bill?
[inaudible]
Ah, Jim, excuse me.
There's someone over here
I'd like you to meet, OK?
OK.
[mumbling incoherently]
Who's that female
he's talking to?
Looks like Claire
Folger's assistant.
WOMAN: Claire Folger?
The motion picture agent.
You mean she might
be interested in him?
WILLY: Will you look at him?
Maybe he can't act, but he
sure knows how to operate.
Let's put this away.
Hey Willy, where you
been keeping yourself?
Cramming for midterms.
Listen, would you mind
not calling me Willy?
I really hate that.
Whatever you say.
Anything out there look good?
Only this one?
Oh, apartment on Comstock, huh?
Probably too expensive though.
What's the matter?
Tired of fraternity life?
Yeah, I guess
it's not my speed.
You're not supposed to do that.
Why?
You want somebody else
to get there first?
[church bells ringing]
You're really something.
You checking out of dorm?
Yeah, I can't concentrate.
It's like a barracks.
Where you headed now?
Up to Hollywood,
a guy that says he
can give me a job as
an usher over at CBS.
You mind if I bum a ride?
I got to see some
agent up there.
So, you want me to
represent you, hm?
Uh huh.
Why?
Because you're good.
Well, you certainly have all
the right answers, don't you?
Do you know what I
expect from my clients?
Hm.
I've got a pretty good idea.
Mm-hm.
There's a TV
commercial coming up.
I'll let you know about it.
Is that all for now, ma'am?
For now.
Did you really go
through with it?
I mean, even for
a TV commercial?
Who said anything about
going through with it?
Well, sooner or later, you're
going to have to pay the piper.
Yeah?
You don't get something for
nothing, not in this town
anyway.
Yeah, well, you let
me worry about that.
How did you make
out over at CBS?
WILLY: I start Monday.
Doesn't pay much,
but work is work.
Got to start somewhere.
Hey, maybe I could
get you in too.
You mean it, Willy?
Oh. that would be
fantastic, because I've
got to start learning.
I mean, really, really learning.
You see, ever since
I was a kid, well,
I've always known I was
going to be an actor.
I mean, do you ever get the
feeling that your destiny is
not your own hands, like there's
something you just got to do
and you have no control over it?
Well, that's how I
feel about acting.
You really think
it's possible, huh?
I mean, make it big.
[laughter]
Only thing stopping you is you.
[honking]
Huh.
You know, Willy, you
and me make a good team.
Now we can learn
from one another.
How do you mean?
Well, like, uh, like the
other day when, when you were
talking about Tchaikovsky--
Mm-hm.
Shoot.
I don't even know where that is.
[laughter]
Tchaikovsky's a
who, not a where.
He was a Russian composer.
There, you see what I mean?
Hey, why don't we share a place?
Room together?
Sure, why not?
Hey, what-- what do you
say we uh, take a look
at this place on Comstock, huh?
I don't know.
See?
There you go.
What do you mean there I go?
There I go what?
[sighing]
Putting up barriers.
Listen up, let life happen.
Take a chance.
What do you got to lose?
OK, OK.
Why not?
Only one condition.
Mm?
You've got to stop
calling me Willy.
Scouts honor.
Some boy scout.
Next you'll swear on
your mother's grave.
My mother's dead.
My mother died when I was
wee, maybe that's why I'm me.
Sorry.
I didn't know.
I thought I heard you mention
her like she was still alive.
I didn't-- you know?
That's my aunt Ortense.
Ortense?
Ortense.
I call her Mom.
She and my uncle Marcus
raised me, back in Indiana.
No offense, honest.
Mm.
You know, Willy,
I got a feeling.
If you and me stick
together we're
going to take this whole town.
We're going to grab it by
a tail and give it a spin.
[music playing]
WILLY [VOICEOVER]: Jim loved
to show off, do crazy things,
impress people.
Some people even fell
for it, including
Beverly, my latest conquest.
Beverly was one of
those Hollywood brats.
You know, movie star's daughter,
but I thought she was really
something, so I introduced him.
BEVERLY: I like your friend.
He's a little weird though.
How do you mean?
I don't know.
Something about him.
He kind of scares me .
Jimmy?
No.
JAMES DEAN: OK, wait.
You watch this now.
[pop music playing on radio]
Head down, legs
together, [inaudible].
[pop music playing on radio]
You're good.
Did you ever think of
trying out for the Olympics?
No thanks.
I'll stick to acting.
Jimmy wants to go
back to New York,
get into the Actors'
Studio, study
the method with Elia Kazan.
Like Marlon Brando.
Brando, [inaudible],
all the greats.
Man, what I would
give to get back East.
Well, if you want to go so
bad, why don't you just go?
JAMES DEAN: I would, if my
old lady was as rich as yours.
Hey, I met, uh, James
Whitmore at CBS to other day.
He studied at the
Actors' Studio.
Well, why don't
you ask him if he'll
start an acting class for us?
Well, I don't
know him that well.
What's the harm in asking?
[pop music playing on radio]
Yeah, I guess the worst
he could do is say no, huh?
[laughter]
Now you're talking, Willy.
Heads up.
[yelling indistinctly]
[music playing]
William, help me.
Come on, drown him.
You're stronger than he is.
[giggling]
[music playing]
MAN: First thing I
want you to know, this
is not a formal acting class.
As a matter of fact, let
me get something straight.
I'm not here to
teach you acting.
I'm here to learn
along with you.
See, learning to act is
a continuing process.
Acting is a craft,
a serious profession
that takes time,
patience, study,
and a great deal of sacrifice.
OK, now what is acting exactly?
If I were asked to
sum it up in one word,
I would say concentration,
total involvement.
That's what acting is all about.
To be or not to be?
That is the question.
Whether 'tis nobler in the mind
to suffer the slings and arrows
of outrageous fortune
Or to take
arms against a sea of troubles
and by opposing end them.
To die, to sleep.
[clattering]
And by that sleep of death,
to say we end the heartaches
and the thousand natural
shocks that flesh is heir to.
[chewing]
'Tis a consummation
devoutly to be wished.
[crashing]
JAN: No, look at my dress.
Why is he worth this trouble?
He's just got a downright
mean streak in him.
[carnival music playing]
WILLY [VOICEOVER]: It wasn't
like that all the time.
You never knew what
to expect from Jimmy.
I mean, one minute he
was warm and friendly,
and then all of a sudden
he'd turn into a wild man.
Sometimes he'd just sulk and
refuse to talk to anyone.
I guess that's why he didn't
have many friends, at least not
then.
[gunshots]
Come to think of it, he was
the loneliest guy I ever knew.
[carnival music playing]
For a while there, we
had some great times.
Jim's sense of humor could
get pretty bizarre though.
Like you never really
knew if he was being
sincere or putting you on.
With Jim, nothing was sacred.
The point is,
you were speeding.
You broke the law.
There's no excuse
for that, is there?
No sir, not even if my
friend was depending on me.
Friend?
Yes, sir.
The one who loaned me the car
to go on the job interview.
I promised I'd get back in time
to drive him to the hospital.
Did you say hospital?
JAMES DEAN: Yes, sir.
He's uh, he's
dying of Leukaemia.
I guess I just didn't-- I
didn't want to let him down.
Did you get the job?
No, no I didn't.
I'm still looking.
$5.00.
Pay the bailiff.
Next case.
[giggling]
WILLY: Well, cop, I'm
just a poor starving
student trying to work
his way through college.
[laughter]
[inaudible]
[giggling]
Of course [inaudible].
I couldn't believe it.
[giggling]
Hey, Bev, why don't we go
to your place for a swim
this afternoon?
Well, I'll tell you,
Willy, I kind of promised
Bev that we'd um, uh--
Pardon?
Jimmy and I were thinking of
going out to my mother's house
on the beach.
Sounds great.
For the whole weekend.
Suits me.
I don't have to be back
to work till Sunday night.
I mean alone.
Oh.
Nobody planned it
this way, Willy.
Honest.
[music playing on radio]
[honking]
Now, don't forget, you
hate each other's guts.
You hate each other.
Now, the watch isn't important.
The important thing
is who gets it.
Here.
I don't want to feel that
you're just acting, OK?
Now go ahead.
Give me the watch.
Why should I?
Because it's mine.
Give it to me.
Go to hell.
Who are you telling
to go to hell?
Listen, you little creep.
Who you calling a
creep, you phony?
You're the phony.
Go ahead, feel it, feel it--
[inaudible] phony.
MAN: That's it, good, good.
All right now, hold it.
Break it up.
I said break it up.
That's enough.
Come on.
Break it, break it up, you two.
What's the matter with you?
Look, in case I
forgot to mention it,
you're not supposed
to kill each other.
This is just an improvisation.
I don't know what
sense memory or what
personal experience
you guys drew on,
but uh, you're getting the idea.
Oh boy, are you
getting the idea.
All right everybody,
let's take a break.
Go relax for awhile.
[music playing]
WILLY [VOICEOVER]: I don't know
why I stuck around so long.
I guess because he
made life interesting.
Never a dull moment, you know?
And too, he was
beginning to grow on me.
He gave me the feeling
that he really needed you.
It's hard to turn your
back on somebody like that.
Anyway, it didn't
last much longer.
Well, why don't you move out?
Couldn't just walk
out on him, stick
him with the rent and all.
Well, he'd do it to you.
No, Jim's too loyal.
Oh--
[vocalizing]
Look how he's been
treating me lately.
You call that loyalty?
That's different.
We're buddies.
Well, if you asked me, I
think he's acting like he's
got a guilty conscious.
Must be over Beverly.
Crazy part is I can't
seem to convince him
that it doesn't really matter.
No really, I don't care.
I was never really hooked
on her in the first place.
He's welcome to her.
Beverly who?
Why did you go and tell her?
I thought she knew.
You sneaky little weasel.
Sneaky?
Look who's talking.
You better keep out of this.
You don't scare me [inaudible].
Go ahead, I dare you.
Go on.
I dare--
[screaming]
Ah.
Hey.
Jan.
[banging]
Jan.
I'm sorry.
I didn't mean it.
Jan, please.
[banging]
Jan, I'm sorry.
[honking]
Hey, come on, Willy.
Don't be like that.
I just lost my head, that's all.
Yeah, right.
[honking]
I'll pick up the rest of my
stuff in a couple of days.
Rent's paid till the
end of the month.
Maybe you can find
somebody else.
Hey, come on.
I don't give a damn
about the rent.
You're my friend.
We're a team.
We're going to stick together.
Hey come on, we're going
to take this phony town.
[honking]
Yeah, tell it to
the judge, Deaner.
[honking]
Willy, don't go, Willy.
You're the only friend I got.
[honking]
You don't need
a friend, Deaner.
[honking]
You need a spectator.
I suppose he cried and
carried on like Faust.
Why don't you knock it off?
Oh, what's eating you?
Nothing.
I enjoy watching my
best friend squirm.
Hey Willy.
Willy, I trusted you.
I trusted you.
[music playing]
WILLY [VOICEOVER]: I
didn't see much of Jim
after the split up
in Santa Monica.
[phone ringing]
We kind of kept out
of each other's way.
Then one day I heard he finally
managed to get himself back
east to New York, and I
don't know if it was him
or lure of the big city,
but it wasn't long before I
turned up on his doorstep.
Yeah?
What do you want?
WILLY [ON PHONE]: Dean.
That you, Deaner?
Mm.
Who is this?
WILLY [ON PHONE]: It's me, Bill.
Bill.
Bill who?
WILLY [ON PHONE]: Bill Bast.
Hey, Willy.
WILLY [ON PHONE]: Yeah.
Willy.
Where the hell are ya?
WILLY [ON PHONE]: Right
here, in New York.
So after the
[inaudible], I hung
around Hollywood
about six months,
which was six months too long.
Got myself a new
agent, did a couple
more commercials, met a
few people in the business.
Yeah, I even started
doing some film work.
Mostly bit parts, of course.
Listen, work is work.
I should be so lucky.
Who said anything about luck?
All you gotta do is
know the right people.
That's not as easy
as you make it sound.
Yeah.
Gets to be a real pain though.
You dance, they call the tunes.
And who pays the piper?
Well, he can always
put it on the cuff.
Split when the bill comes.
WILLY: Well, that takes a
little more style than I got.
JAMES DEAN: You
thinking of trying
out for the Actors' Studio?
If you are, I better
warn you, it's rough.
I'm still waiting
for an audition.
Well, I kind of
decided to give up
on the acting, Deaner,
concentrate on my writing
instead.
You're going to give up acting?
Well, let's face it, either
you've got it or you don't.
You got it.
I see you still got
your bull fight gear.
Yeah.
I don't get much
practice here though.
[stomping feet]
Remember those practice
sessions we used to have?
Do I.
[honking]
Hey toro.
[grunting]
Hey toro.
Hey toro, hey toro.
[yelling]
Hey toro.
[grunting]
Hey toro.
[stomping]
toro.
[grunting]
Hey--
[yelling]
Hey toro.
[stomping]
Hey toro.
Hey toro.
[stomping]
[yelling]
[grunting]
Hey toro.
[stomping]
Hey, hey toro.
Hey toro, hey toro.
I guess I'm out
of practice too.
You always did chicken
out just before the kill.
A momento de verdad.
Moment of truth.
Sure didn't expect
to hear your voice
on the other end of that phone.
Don't know anybody
else in New York.
Besides, you always said,
well, New York was where
it was happening, [inaudible].
[chuckling]
Well, shoot.
I never thought
you were listening.
It's good to see you, Willy.
It's good to see
you too, Deaner.
[chuckling]
Looks like you're
doing all right.
These yours?
Those aren't prints.
Those are the real thing.
Marc Chagall.
French, isn't he?
Um, Russian I believe.
Sounds like you did
some fast catching up.
Some.
Well, if these aren't
yours, then whose are they?
This belongs to the piper.
Come on.
I'll buy you some breakfast.
There's someone I
want you to meet.
[music playing]
That there is Dizzy Sheridan.
She's a dancer.
[laughter]
[music playing]
Willy.
It's nice to meet you.
Jim's told me so much about you.
Welcome to cuckoo land.
[laughter]
What do you say?
Let's go get
something to eat, huh?
Because I'm hungry.
Hey, what am I doing
playing in the park?
I've got to find
a place to live.
[laughter]
Where did you stay last night?
The Y.
Uh.
[laughter]
Yeah, you can forget it.
[laughter]
Poor baby.
Where do you live, Dizzy?
Us professional girls
live at the rehearsal club.
No men allowed.
Damn.
A-ha.
Why don't you guys look
for a place to share?
Huh?
What you say?
I said, why don't you and
Willy look for a place to share?
[chuckling]
[popping]
[screams]
[laughter]
What are you doing?
[laughter]
Did I say something wrong?
[laughter]
May I have the key, Mr. Robin?
How did the interview
with the ad agency go?
Oh, fantastic.
They told me to come
back, in a couple years.
Well, it's a slow season.
Bound to pick up soon.
Jim come back yet?
He was supposed to audition
for a TV show today.
Been up there all afternoon.
Don't be afraid.
Come inside with me.
Hm.
No.
[sighing]
Why did you break your head?
Huh?
What?
When?
Just then?
Your eyes, they were
so remote as if you'd
come from a long way off.
Another planet?
Further.
And then they focused
and became very warm.
What color are my eyes?
They're sort of blue now.
Sometimes they're hazel.
Oh.
You can change the color
of your eyes, can't you?
Sometimes it just happens.
[door opening]
Oh, uh--
JAMES DEAN: No, it's OK, Willy.
That's OK.
We're just uh, we're
rehearsing a scene.
Oh, this is Chris.
Hi.
Chris, um--
White.
Chris White.
Right.
She wrote it.
Hi.
Hi.
Scene for what?
Uh, Actor's Studio.
You got your audition.
That's great.
When?
Um, about six weeks
if we can get it right.
Oh.
Uh, in that case, I
better let you guys--
JAMES DEAN: No, no, no.
Stick around.
We could use some--
[giggling]
Objective criticism.
[music playing]
Maybe we should postpone.
No, I just want to do
it and get it over with.
They're probably all in
there, Strasberg, Kazan, Cheryl
Crawford, Tennessee Williams--
Shut up, will you?
Your glasses.
You must have left
your glasses They're
probably in that restaurant.
JAMES DEAN: Oh no, it's OK.
It's OK.
I don't have to see clearly.
No--
I can sense.
Burke and Marioni.
No, it's too risky.
Maybe we should call
the whole thing off.
The thing to do is
just keep acting.
Sculpting, racing my bike,
everything in the arts
is risky.
That's why I don't own
anything but these boots.
Everything, everything--
all my clothes are
either borrowed or bestowed.
Did I tell you I'm learning
how to play the recorder?
What?
The flute.
The flute.
If I can learn how to
play the flute, then maybe
I can dance [inaudible].
Will you slow down?
You're talking a mile a minute.
Let's go over the lines, OK?
No.
No.
[phone ringing]
[giggling]
Are you as scared as I am?
More.
Paralyzed.
I'm not going through with it.
Wait a minute, wait a minute.
Wait.
Now wait a minute.
Jimmy.
It's my audition too.
[music playing]
RECEPTIONIST: McQuaid and Olson.
[music playing]
James Dean and Christine White.
Excuse me, I'm
White and my partner
had to go get his glasses.
And I was wondering
if you'd be so kind--
I'm back.
We're ready.
OK.
Where the hell have you been?
Running.
Take off your coat.
Running?
Where to?
Just running.
RECEPTIONIST: OK,
right in there.
Begin whenever you're ready.
OK, go.
[music playing]
[phone ringing]
WILLY: Anybody going
to answer that?
[phone ringing]
Deaner, get the phone.
[phone ringing]
[dial tone]
WILLY [VOICEOVER]: "Dear
Marcus and Mom, I have
made great strides in my craft.
After months of auditioning,
I am very proud to announce
that I am now a member of the
Actors' Studio, the greatest
school of theater in New York."
Never said a word.
WILLY [VOICEOVER]:
"Very few are admitted
and it's absolutely free.
It is the best thing that
can happen to an actor
and I'm one of the
youngest to belong.
Each day here in New York,
I grow more as an artist.
I see now that an actor
must be willing to accept
all experiences that
life has to offer.
In fact, he must seek
out new experiences.
To grasp the full significance
of life is the actor's duty.
To interpret it, his problem,
to express it, his dedication.
Tell Mrs. Hampton when you see
her that I have never forgotten
the thespian creed,
'Act well your part,
for there all honor lies'
PS, I would be grateful
if you could spare $10 or so.
I need it desperately.
I'm sorry that when I write
I always need something.
Sometimes I feel I've
lost the right to ask.
I shall never forget
what you've done for me.
I want to repay
you someday, but it
takes time and many
disappointments
to achieve success as an actor.
I'll try very hard
not to take too long.
If I've asked at the wrong
time, please forgive me.
I will understand.
Love, Jim."
[music playing]
Jim changed over the
next few months, a lot.
It was like he suddenly found
the key, some special secret,
and it was beginning to
open all the doors for him.
Trouble was, I got the feeling
he was leaving me behind.
He practices and he practices,
and he works his little fingers
to the bone, but [inaudible].
He can't do it.
He can't believe it.
So he works and works, but he
still can't do the passage.
One afternoon, Schoenberg
comes around to his house,
and he says, would
you play it for me?
[inaudible] says, I would
be only too delighted.
So he starts and then he cooks,
and he cooks, and he cooks.
And he comes to the one
passage and he can't do it.
And he says, Schoenberg,
a violinist would
need six fingers to play this.
[chuckling]
Schoenberg says, uh, he looks
at his watch and he says,
I have time.
I'll wait.
[laughter]
JAMES DEAN: Excuse me.
[laughter]
[street noise]
Hey Willy, you awake?
Mm-hm.
Why did you take off like that?
[sirens approaching]
I don't know.
I wanted you to meet everybody.
It was your scene, Deaner.
[chuckles]
My scene.
I didn't want to barge in.
I mean, how were you
going to introduce me?
This is my dumb friend, Bill.
See how funny he dresses?
I felt out of place.
They all look so, I
don't know, important.
They are.
They're my friends.
Oh Willy, Willy, Willy.
You've got to get over that.
What?
JAMES DEAN: Judging by
surface appearances.
What is essential is
invisible to the eye.
Huh?
"The Little Prince".
Did you ever read it?
Looks like a kids books.
[laughter]
There you go.
You haven't even
opened the cover.
What's it about?
Oh, cutting through the
fears, the pettiness,
letting people in, finding
out what really counts.
Do you want to hear
my favorite passage?
Sure.
[clears throat]
Well, it's about this little
prince who comes from a very
distant planet, very tiny star.
And one day he meets this fox,
and so he asks the fox to play
with him because he's lonely.
But the fox says he can't
because he hasn't been tamed.
So Little Prince asks
the fox what tamed means.
"To establish
ties, said the fox.
To me, you are still nothing
more than a little boy who's
just like 100,000 little boys.
I have no need of you.
To you, I'm nothing
more than a fox, who
is like 100,000 other foxes.
But if you tame me, then
we shall need each other.
To me, you will be
unique in all the world.
To you, I shall be
unique in all the world.
If you tame me, it
will be as if the sun
came to shine on my life.
You see the grain
fields down yonder?
Well, you have hair which
is the color of gold.
Think how wonderful it will
be when you have tamed me.
The grain, which is
also golden, will bring
me back the thought of you.
Oh, and I shall love to listen
to the wind in the wheat.
[music playing]
Well, the fox gazed at the
little prince for a long time.
Please tame me, he said.
So the little prince
tamed the fox.
And then the hour of
his departure drew near.
Ah, said the fox.
I shall cry.
That is your own fault,
said the little prince.
I've never wished
you any sort of harm
and now you're going to cry?
Yes, that is so, said the fox.
Then it's done you
no good at all.
Oh, it has done me
good, said the fox.
Because of the color
of the wheat fields.
[music playing]
Goodbye, said the little prince.
Goodbye, said the fox.
And now here is a
very simple secret.
It is only with the heart
that one can see rightly.
What is essential is
invisible to the eye.
Men have forgotten this truth,
but you must never forget it.
You become responsible forever
for what you have tamed."
[music playing]
WILLY [VOICEOVER]: Of all the
people he managed to tame,
I don't think he ever
did better than Dizzy.
And of all the people
who tried to tame him,
I think she probably
came the closest.
[music playing]
WILLY: Why'd you stop?
Did you ever make
it with another guy?
[chuckling]
Are you serious?
I've got to prepare
a scene for class.
I don't know how to approach it.
What's it about?
It's about this
guy, had a thing
once with his best friend.
Ever since it's been
tearing him apart.
That's a rough one.
I don't mean kid stuff.
Everybody does that.
I mean, really.
Did you ever?
Did you?
Why not?
[laughter]
What?
Come on.
I mean, I've known
you to flatten
guys for even joking about it.
No, no.
That was before I was
committed to my craft.
What's that got to do with it?
JAMES DEAN: Oh, grow up, Willy.
We're not in college anymore.
This is the real thing.
This is life, and
that's a part of it.
Ah, you know what
Stanislavsky says,
an actor has to be prepared.
That go for writers too?
All artists.
We owe it to our craft to
experience everything we can.
What?
Are you selling it?
I don't--
Maybe some things are
better left to imagination.
No.
WILLY: Even for an artist.
No.
Life's too short.
I want to do it all.
Besides, you know what they say.
Huh?
JAMES DEAN: Don't knock
it till you tried it.
[laughter]
Are you kidding?
I wouldn't even know
how to go about it.
I mean, if and when I
was ready to experiment.
What's going on?
-Get dressed.
-Huh?
JAMES DEAN: Just get
up and put clothes on.
Uh, some jeans and a shirt's OK.
What for?
Where are we going?
Oh, come on.
Will you shut up and
do what I tell ya?
Hey, do you what time it is?
I have to go to
work in the morning.
Just-- you've got
to make certain
sacrifices for your art.
Bull.
I bet Brando gets his sleep.
No, no, this one.
I hate that one.
Can you shut up and put it on?
You know, you're crazy.
You get up in the
middle of night,
you get completely dressed--
why aren't you getting dressed?
Uh, well, um, I'm
not going anywhere.
OK.
What's the game?
There's no game.
Just listen to me and do
exactly as I tell you.
I don't think I like this.
This may be the
most important step
you ever take as an artist.
It's going to take guts.
I know I don't like this.
You know, the Aster Bar,
over on Times Square?
Yeah.
What about it?
I want you to go over there.
Just go to the bar
and order a beer.
Yeah?
And then what?
Nothing.
Just wait.
What am I waiting for?
You'll see.
Things will start happening.
What kinds of things?
Things.
That's what you're there for.
That's what you're
going to find out.
I think one of us is nuts
and if I go through with this,
then it's got to be me.
Why don't you do these things?
Call me if you
got any questions.
WILLY: Deaner.
Deaner.
Deaner.
[sirens approaching]
[music playing]
I must be out of my mind.
Hi.
Hi.
I'm Ray.
Bill.
Glad to meet you, Bill.
Can I buy you another beer?
Sure.
[phone ringing]
Yeah?
WILLY [WHISPERING ON
PHONE]: Deaner, it's me.
Where are ya?
I'm at a phone in the Aster.
How's it going?
I'm not sure.
Some guy just asked me back
to his place for a drink.
JAMES DEAN [ON PHONE]: Yeah?
Well, what do you
think I should do?
Well, what do you want to do?
Deaner, I don't think
I'm ready for this.
JAMES DEAN [ON PHONE]: Why?
Don't you like him?
WILLY [WHISPERING ON PHONE]:
I don't even know him.
Besides, that's not the point.
What the hell am I doing here?
Yeah, yeah.
I guess it really ought to be
somebody you've tamed first.
I beg your pardon?
I was-- it's my mistake, Willy.
Come on home.
[music playing]
[stomping]
I'm home, Deaner.
Why did you make me do that?
Huh?
You was just using me as
a guinea pig, weren't ya?
OK, then why did you
tell me to come ho--
oh-- what do you want from me?
"It is only with the heart
that one can see rightly.
What is essential is
invisible to the eye."
I hate this town.
It's cold, and it's dirty,
and it's depressing.
And you hated Hollywood too.
That was phony.
This is ugly.
DIZZY: Where would
you like to be, huh?
Hm?
Home, on the farm.
This is the best time
of year for it too.
Leaves are beginning to
change, harvest is almost in.
Mom's starting to put
up preserves for winter.
Ma.
My mama-- I can smell the
home-baked bread right now.
[laughter]
Cut it out, will you?
When do we leave?
Right now.
We could leave right now.
Right this very moment.
JAMES DEAN: Yes.
DIZZY: Yeah?
Are you serious?
You can't just
take off like that.
Why not?
OK, and what if this
part comes up for Jim?
[giggling]
Oh.
What part?
Um, I auditioned
for "See the Jaguar".
It, uh, goes into
rehearsal in a week or so.
Opens in the fall.
The fall?
Yeah.
It's a central character.
He could steal the show.
I have to get the part first.
Nobody ever tells me anything.
Oh, come on.
I didn't tell you
because I didn't
want you to get your hopes
up again for nothing.
Mm.
Besides, I heard they
want Tony Perkins.
I never heard of him.
[laughter]
When are you going know?
When are you going to know, huh?
Ah, a week or so.
Well, guess that shoots
the trip back home.
Why?
Indiana's not the
moon, you know?
If anything came up, my agent
could let us know in uh--
he could send us a telegram.
We could be back in 24 hours.
[laughter]
Well, that brings up
another little point,
trivial I know, but uh,
where are we going to get
the money for the bus fare?
No.
Oh.
Willy.
[laughter]
What bus fare?
[laughter]
[music playing]
[honking]
WILLY [VOICEOVER]: The farm
was like a tonic for all of us,
but especially for Jim.
Marcus and Ortense were
just what he needed.
He was home and happier
than I'd ever known him.
[music playing]
[birds singing]
The telegram cut short
our visit to the farm,
but before we left Fairmount,
Jim had one last goodbye.
From there we thumbed our way
back to good old New York.
Then on the night of
December 5th 1952,
the guy whose name
I once said would
never be up in lights had his
name up in lights on Broadway.
[music playing]
[background chatter]
[muttering]
DIZZY: Well?
Huh?
[muttering]
Listen, list-- listen
to this. "James Dean,
in an almost impossible
role, delivers
an extraordinary performance."
Let me see.
[music playing]
[yelps]
[laughter]
I'll be right back.
[music playing]
I have the dumbest
feeling something
very beautiful is about to end.
Don't look so worried, Willy.
I might be cuckoo, but I
don't believe in miracles.
It's like our visit
to the farm, it was
a nice dream while it lasted.
You know, of the three of
us, I think I like you best.
[background chatter]
WILLY [VOICEOVER]: [inaudible]
started making a little headway
with my television writing.
Seemed every time I picked up a
"Variety" or a New York paper,
there was Jim doing another big
TV show, getting another lead
in an important play.
I mean, he was
really going places.
Deaner.
[laughter]
Hi Willy.
What are you
doing in Hollywood?
Uh, grab your duds.
I'll tell you about
it on the way.
The way where?
JAMES DEAN: [inaudible].
Gadge wants me to get a tan
before I start shooting.
Gadge?
Elia Kazan.
WILLY: I don't get it.
You got such great reviews
for "The Immoralist".
Why walk off a Broadway hit?
I didn't get along
with the director,
so I gave them the
notice opening night.
Just to do a
picture in Hollywood?
What?
For Kazan?
Are you kidding?
What's the name of it?
"East of Eden".
Good part?
Lead.
[chuckling]
WILLY: Oh is that all?
JAMES DEAN: How's the writing?
WILLY: Eh, doing a little TV.
Nothing to brag about.
Hey, you ever see Dizzy?
JAMES DEAN: Uh, she took off.
Virgin Islands or
some place to dance.
Kazan thinks I could win an
Academy Award for this role.
They'll never vote
me an Oscar though.
Why not, if you deserved it?
You've got to be loved
in Tinsel Town, Willy.
They're going to hate my guts.
Who's they?
The philistines,
the dull accountants
that sit behind the big desks
and tell us what art is.
Us, the talent, us,
the creative people.
That's why they hate
our guts, Willy.
We're special.
We got the gift.
The gods have smiled on us.
They know without
us, they're nothing.
They come and go, we abide.
You make it sound like
it's them against us.
I know the game
out here, Willy.
I played it for
awhile, remember?
You let them and they'll treat
you like so much raw meat.
Not me.
Not anymore.
You've changed, Deaner.
I never heard you
talk like this.
Winged flights of harpies have
escorted this trip of vengeance
back to Tinsel Town, Willy.
Only from now on, I'm the piper.
They dance to my tune.
Ah, why'd you agree to do it
if it's such a lousy script?
Because in this business, you
take what you can when you can.
[chuckles]
Oh.
Where's your integrity?
Oh, don't give me
that integrity bull.
If nobody gives you a
hand, you're on your own.
You grab what
comes along, right?
Well, nobody gave
me a hand out.
I said a hand, not a hand out.
I heard what you said
and I'm telling you,
nobody did a damn thing for me.
Oh, come on, Deaner.
This is me, Willy.
You're trying to tell me nobody
ever made it easier for you?
Nobody opened a few doors,
paved the way a little bit?
That's right.
You're damn right.
What are you getting
so excited about?
Listen, nobody did
a damn thing for me.
I don't owe anything to anyone.
Not one stinking favor,
not one lousy penny.
I did it all myself.
I don't kiss anybody's butt.
[phone ringing]
Hello.
JAMES DEAN [ON PHONE]:
Hey Willy, what you up to?
I'm just trying to finish
this bugger of a script.
Why?
JAMES DEAN [ON PHONE]:
They're sneaking Eden tonight
over at the Ritz Theater.
You want to come?
Oh no, I've got to
wash my socks tonight.
I'm on my way.
[music playing]
[applause]
JAMES DEAN: Willy, Willy.
[knocking]
Willy.
Come on, open up.
[knocking]
I know you're in there.
Come on, Willy, it's me.
Come on, open up the door.
[crickets chirping]
Lose your boat?
Willy?
Didn't you hear me knocking?
Sorry, Deaner.
I didn't feel like
talking to anyone.
What's going on?
Why didn't you stick
around after the preview?
Couldn't face it.
Picture's that bad, huh?
[chuckling]
Bad.
Why didn't you tell me
so I could be prepared?
I figured good, you
know, but man, I wasn't
ready for something like that.
King Kong and CinemaScope.
No, Bo.
I'm really happy for you.
Happy for me but a
little sorry for yourself?
I guess it shows, huh?
[chuckles]
Always did.
Yeah.
Only tonight, it
really hit home.
Maybe I'm dense or something,
but so help me, I had no idea.
I don't know what
I thought you were
up to these past few
years, but I never
imagined it was anything like--
watching you up there tonight,
believing every word,
every move, every gesture,
all of a sudden it hit home.
It can happen.
This is what it's all about.
It's not just some dumb dream.
It's not a crazy kid
game we've been playing.
It's for real and
it happened to you.
You made it happen.
You finally made it happen.
RIVA RANDALL [ON
TV]: Good evening.
This is your Hollywood
Reporter, Riva Randall,
with an urgent warning
from Marlon Brando.
Watch out, Marlon.
James Dean is stealing your act.
Ever since his success
in "East of Eden",
Dean has been treating
Hollywood to his brand
of sick humor and crude behavior
and getting away with it.
But he's not calling all
the shots, at least not yet.
First, Elia Kazan
made him stay off
his motorcycle until shooting
was completed on "Eden".
Now Warner's has grounded him
for the duration of his next
for them, "Rebel
Without a Cause".
Too bad, Jimmy.
Looks like you'll just have to
walk up to your nightly haunt
on the Sunset Strip of
you want to hang around
with those weirdo
playmates of yours.
[music playing]
[clears throat]
Uh, take off, you guys.
This is business.
I'll see you later, OK?
[music playing]
How'd you know
where to find me?
Are you kidding?
The whole world knows.
[chuckling]
You watch too much television.
Would you indulge
me for a minute
and tell me exactly what
you're trying to prove?
What do you mean what
am I trying to prove?
You can't make an
omelette without breaking
the eggs, Willy.
Now I understand.
[sighing]
Anyway, this town's
still full of phonies.
It's the only way I can
stay in touch with reality.
Reality?
You call these social
rejects reality?
[stammering]
Is that all you see, huh?
Just what's on the surface?
[music playing]
[door opens]
See that blonde over there?
Hey, see her?
[music playing]
She comes in here every
night, always alone,
and I'll just-- hey, come on.
Please.
Come on.
Hi.
You work over at the
Oriental Theater, don't you?
Yeah, in the box office.
Yeah.
Yeah, I thought I saw you there.
Oh, this is uh, this is Bill.
I'm Jim.
Arlene.
Would you mind if we sat down?
It's a free country.
[music playing]
Tell me something.
How'd you lose your leg?
Motorcycle accident.
Was it your bike?
My boyfriend's.
How did he come out?
He didn't.
Did you feel much pain?
Only in my toes.
[chuckling]
Yeah.
Yeah, I've heard that.
It's true.
[music playing]
Must be weird.
It stops after awhile.
Did it leave a scar?
That healed over
a long time ago.
See?
Go on, touch it if you want.
[music playing]
[giggling]
You know, you're
the first guy who's
ever had the guts to do that.
You live far from here?
Not far.
Bikes scare you now?
Come on, I'll give you
a ride home on mine.
It's just outside.
[music playing]
Reality.
See what I mean?
See you around, Willy.
[music playing]
RIVA RANDALL [ON TV]: Good
evening, ladies and gentlemen.
This is your Hollywood
reporter, Riva Randall.
Well, will wonders never cease?
As you know, I haven't
exactly been James Dean's
most ardent admirer till now.
Well, I spent time with
him on the set of "Rebel
Without a Cause" and
I've got to admit,
I've changed my
stubborn, old mind.
Confidentially, behind that
weirdo act, he's a charmer.
And now director George
Stevens has signed
Jimmy for his upcoming "Giant".
Is it any wonder?
Warner Brothers tells
me that Jimmy now gets
over 5,000 fan letters a week.
When I asked Elizabeth Taylor
how she feels about playing
opposite Hollywood's
bad boy, she
confided, I can hardly wait.
Is that true,
about the fan mail?
Mm.
Ah, look at this.
Makes me feel like
Miss Lonelyhearts.
Any good ones?
[chuckling]
Ah, there's this one.
Kid from Hollywood High,
right here in town.
Look at that picture.
Is that a sweet, normal,
healthy, sensitive face?
WILLY: Took the words
right out of my mouth.
[chuckling]
JAMES DEAN: Name's
Norma Brookman.
Bright, intelligent kid, lost.
Completely and utterly lost.
Letters that tear your guts out.
She wants to meet me sometime.
You're not considering it.
Oh, I know, I know.
You should read the letters.
WILLY: Deaner, you're
too vulnerable now.
This kid's jail bait.
You could wind up facing a
paternity suit or rape charges.
Yeah.
That's why I want to meet
her in a public place.
With you along as a chaperone.
I thought about it a lot and
I know just how you must have
felt when you tried to give
your father all that money
that you earned just for
him and he wouldn't take it.
Oh, you mean in,
in "East of Eden".
My mother's like that.
She doesn't understand anything.
That's why daddy left us.
When you did that to your
brother, I really knew why.
I mean, you, you were
just hurt and you
were trying to hurt back.
No, Cal was.
Cal?
Cal Trask, the
character I played.
Oh yeah.
What's the one thing you love
most, more than anything else?
[clears throat]
Um, life, I guess.
It's our most precious gift.
Not death?
What?
I read somewhere
that you respect
death more than anything else?
Oh, well, respect,
yeah, but that's
different than-- death is the
only thing left to respect.
It's the one inevitable,
undeniable truth.
You said in it likes the only
ultimate nobility for man.
Beyond it, through
immortality, the only hope.
I said that?
I've always remembered.
Come on, let's walk.
She got it in her head that
somehow I'd understand.
Understand what?
Her.
Her hopes, her dreams, her
loneliness, everything.
She wanted to turn her
whole life over to me.
She wanted to just dump
it right in my lap.
They're all like that, all
the ones that are ripe.
What do they see when they
look up at that screen?
Themselves.
Unwanted, unloved, rejected--
No, no, no.
It's got to be something
more than that.
Something more basic.
They see the
character you portray.
They see a tormented kid trying
to win his father's love.
They see an alienated
teenager trying to survive
in an indifferent society.
That's pretty good.
[chuckling]
You roll them all
together, what do you get?
James Dean.
He knows, he understands.
If only I could talk to him.
No, no, no, no.
It's the eyes.
WILLY: The what?
It's the eyes.
It's got to be the eyes.
What are you talking about?
Did you ever notice how, how
intense near-sighted people
look?
Like they could see
right into your soul?
It does kind of exaggerate
your normal intensity.
Well, and the
windows of the soul.
Isn't that what the
eyes are supposed to be?
Come on.
Are you serious?
You believe that all the movies,
and fan mail, and people, it's
all because you're nearsighted?
Well, it's got to be that.
What else could it be?
[motorcycle revving]
WILLY [VOICEOVER]: I'd
say it took all of a year.
Suddenly, Jim was the hottest
young actor in Hollywood.
True to his word, he was
making them dance to his tune.
Well, most of them anyway.
Her name was Pier Angeli.
For the first time since
Dizzy, Jim had found someone
he could really care for.
Trouble was, she decided
to marry the other guy.
I don't think he
ever got over it.
[music playing]
WILLY: Cute little guy.
Where did you get him?
Liz Taylor.
[laughter]
I love it.
What's his name?
I'll call him Marcus.
[music playing]
Little Marcus.
[sighing]
Hm.
You look old enough
to be my father.
Hm?
Oh, well, I shaved back
my hair for the last two
scenes of the picture.
Really good job, huh?
[chuckling]
Did I tell you what
they want me to do next?
Uh uh.
Rocky Graziano.
Somebody up there likes me.
Oh.
You going to accept?
Depends on the script.
How's yours coming?
Which one?
What do you mean, which one?
The one you're writing for me.
The Jekyll and Hyde thing.
[sighing]
Deaner, I'd really like
to but I-- I gotta take
these TV assignments now.
I mean, when I get a
little ahead maybe.
They offered me
$100,000 for this one.
Wow.
JAMES DEAN: Let me
take care of it.
I appreciate your offer,
but I couldn't do that.
Don't worry.
You'll earn it.
[phone ringing]
Want me to grab that?
Yeah, would you?
[phone ringing]
Hello?
Who's calling?
Uh, he's busy right now.
Can I take a message.
Yes.
Yes, I'll tell him.
Well?
Who was it?
Remember that kid
from Hollywood High?
Norma Brookman?
Oh yeah, yeah, yeah.
What does she want?
WILLY: That was her mother.
The girl took an overdose
of sleeping pills.
Where is she?
They took her to
Hollywood Receiving.
Deaner, Deaner, she's dead.
I'm sorry.
They all die or go away.
My mother died when I was
wee, maybe that's why I'm me.
I'll call you tomorrow, huh?
[crying]
[honking]
Hey, I thought you were
going up to Salinas?
Ah, just leaving.
Sandy's going to follow
in the station wagon.
Plenty of room.
Sure you don't
want to come along?
I got a script to
write, remember?
Ah, can't it wait?
Ah, not if you
knew my producer.
He's got a mean
streak this wide.
[laughter]
I just thought I'd ask.
You want me to stop by your
place, feed little Marcus?
Nah, nah.
I gave him away.
How come?
You know what a
crazy life I lead.
What if I run away some
time, never came back?
Yeah, I guess.
It's a lot of responsibility.
Hm.
Yeah.
It's best he weren't
so tamed to me.
Listen, Deaner,
thanks for the money.
I mean, for the script.
Can't hear a word
you're saying.
I got to split.
You stick to it, you hear?
[engine revving]
I'll be looking
over your shoulder.
So long.
[music playing]
PSYCHIATRIST: All right.
Let's get back to your dream.
You say they came to get
him and brought a coffin.
What happened then?
It was awful.
Jimmy was clinging
to the bed post.
The attendants pried him loose.
And as they pulled him away,
he broke and ran to me.
and held on.
He grabbed hold of my shirt.
He was crying hysterically.
And then they tore him loose.
He ripped my shirt
trying to hold on.
He was screaming at me.
Save me, Willy, save me.
Please save me.
I tried to tell him
I didn't know how,
but the words wouldn't come.
[music playing]
Then he clung to the door frame
and they smashed at his fingers
until he let go.
As they dragged him out, he took
his fist and shook it at me.
He was screaming, I trusted you.
I trusted you.
[music playing]
And then before the door closed,
a nurse stood in the doorway.
She said, aren't you coming?
That's when I woke up.
[sniffing]
And now I have this awful
feeling that I let him down.
PSYCHIATRIST: Because you
lived on and he didn't?
I guess so.
I mean, he did so much for me.
What did I ever do for him?
PSYCHIATRIST: Is
that the only reason?
I don't know.
No.
I think it's because
I never let him know.
Let him know what?
How much I loved him.
[music playing]
[birds singing]
JAMES DEAN
[VOICEOVER]: "This is,
to me, the loveliest and
saddest landscape in the world.
It is here that the little
prince appeared on Earth,
and disappeared.
Look at it carefully
so that you will
be sure to recognize
it in case you travel
someday to the African desert.
And, if you should come upon the
spot, please do not hurry on.
Wait for a time,
exactly under the star.
Then, if a little man
appears who laughs,
who has golden hair, and who
refuses to answer questions,
you will know who he is.
If this should happen,
please comfort me.
Send me word that
he has come back."
[music playing]
was James Byron Dean.
He was an actor.
He died in 1955
at the age of 24.
He had starred in just three
pictures, only one of which
had been released
prior to his death.
Yet before he was in his
grave, he was already a myth.
What you're about to see
is one man's recollection,
an image of the actor as seen
through the eyes of a friend.
Like all memories,
it is intensely
personal, elusive,
and incomplete,
yet it refuses to die.
[music playing]
WILLY: I had another
dream last night.
PSYCHIATRIST: James Dean again?
WILLY: Yes.
I can't seem to shake it.
PSYCHIATRIST: These
things take time.
WILLY: I don't think I'll
ever get over this one.
It was too real.
PSYCHIATRIST: Why don't
you tell me about it?
WILLY: I can't remember
exactly how it started,
but somehow I got word that
Jimmy wanted to see me.
PSYCHIATRIST: Then in this
dream he was still alive?
WILLY: No.
He was already dead and buried.
PSYCHIATRIST: Go one.
WILLY: I found
myself at this place,
like a sanitarium, where
they had him locked up.
Jimmy was sitting on
the bed when I came in.
He looked fine at first,
I mean, just like himself.
He even laughed,
called me Willy.
No one else ever
called me Willy.
Only there was something wrong.
I could see it in his eyes.
He kept saying I was the
only one who could save him.
PSYCHIATRIST: You?
How?
WILLY: He never got to tell me.
Just then we heard
a car outside.
It was getting dark.
They were coming to take
him away, back to the grave.
PSYCHIATRIST: They?
WILLY: Two men, like hospital
orderlies, and a nurse.
They came in an ambulance,
but they brought a coffin.
His coffin.
PSYCHIATRIST: What do you
suppose all of that means?
It was as if he was putting
his fate in my hands,
trusting in me.
PSYCHIATRIST: How did
you feel about that?
I was terrified.
PSYCHIATRIST: Of what?
Of letting him down again.
PSYCHIATRIST: Again?
I meant just letting him down.
PSYCHIATRIST: You said again.
There must have been
another incident.
Do you recall any?
Not off hand.
PSYCHIATRIST: How
badly do you want
to get to the bottom of this?
That's why I'm here.
PSYCHIATRIST: Then you're going
to have to take some risks.
Like what?
PSYCHIATRIST: Like
taking a closer
look at this relationship,
confronting it.
Are you willing to try?
I think so.
PSYCHIATRIST: Let's go
back to the beginning,
find out what happened.
How did you first
feel about him?
Deaner?
He was the last
guy in the world I
would have picked for a friend.
As a matter of
fact, I thought he
was a joke when we first met.
I was in college, back in 1950.
[music playing]
We were doing
Shakespeare's "Macbeth".
Jimmy was playing
the part of Malcolm.
There sure wasn't
anything so special
about him then, not
that I could see anyway,
at least not at first.
Before we reckon
with your several
loves and make us even with you.
My thanes and kinsmen,
henceforth be earls, the first
that ever Scotland in
such an honor named.
What's more to do as would be
newly planted with the time.
Hey, who's your
hick playing Malcolm?
Transfer student from
Santa Monica City College.
His name's James Dean.
Oh yeah, Dean.
I can't ever remember his name.
Don't bother.
I get a feeling that's one name
you'll never see in lights.
You aren't kidding.
Would you two hush up?
JAMES DEAN: By self and violent
hands took off her life.
This--
[WHISPERING]What needful else.
And what need for else--
[WHISPERING]That call upon us.
That calls upon us
by the grace of grace.
We shall perform in
measure, time, and place.
So thanks to all at once and
to each one whom we invite
to see us crowned at Scone.
[music playing]
[applause]
You were really
[inaudible] tonight.
Well, it's true.
Isn't it, Bill?
[inaudible]
Ah, Jim, excuse me.
There's someone over here
I'd like you to meet, OK?
OK.
[mumbling incoherently]
Who's that female
he's talking to?
Looks like Claire
Folger's assistant.
WOMAN: Claire Folger?
The motion picture agent.
You mean she might
be interested in him?
WILLY: Will you look at him?
Maybe he can't act, but he
sure knows how to operate.
Let's put this away.
Hey Willy, where you
been keeping yourself?
Cramming for midterms.
Listen, would you mind
not calling me Willy?
I really hate that.
Whatever you say.
Anything out there look good?
Only this one?
Oh, apartment on Comstock, huh?
Probably too expensive though.
What's the matter?
Tired of fraternity life?
Yeah, I guess
it's not my speed.
You're not supposed to do that.
Why?
You want somebody else
to get there first?
[church bells ringing]
You're really something.
You checking out of dorm?
Yeah, I can't concentrate.
It's like a barracks.
Where you headed now?
Up to Hollywood,
a guy that says he
can give me a job as
an usher over at CBS.
You mind if I bum a ride?
I got to see some
agent up there.
So, you want me to
represent you, hm?
Uh huh.
Why?
Because you're good.
Well, you certainly have all
the right answers, don't you?
Do you know what I
expect from my clients?
Hm.
I've got a pretty good idea.
Mm-hm.
There's a TV
commercial coming up.
I'll let you know about it.
Is that all for now, ma'am?
For now.
Did you really go
through with it?
I mean, even for
a TV commercial?
Who said anything about
going through with it?
Well, sooner or later, you're
going to have to pay the piper.
Yeah?
You don't get something for
nothing, not in this town
anyway.
Yeah, well, you let
me worry about that.
How did you make
out over at CBS?
WILLY: I start Monday.
Doesn't pay much,
but work is work.
Got to start somewhere.
Hey, maybe I could
get you in too.
You mean it, Willy?
Oh. that would be
fantastic, because I've
got to start learning.
I mean, really, really learning.
You see, ever since
I was a kid, well,
I've always known I was
going to be an actor.
I mean, do you ever get the
feeling that your destiny is
not your own hands, like there's
something you just got to do
and you have no control over it?
Well, that's how I
feel about acting.
You really think
it's possible, huh?
I mean, make it big.
[laughter]
Only thing stopping you is you.
[honking]
Huh.
You know, Willy, you
and me make a good team.
Now we can learn
from one another.
How do you mean?
Well, like, uh, like the
other day when, when you were
talking about Tchaikovsky--
Mm-hm.
Shoot.
I don't even know where that is.
[laughter]
Tchaikovsky's a
who, not a where.
He was a Russian composer.
There, you see what I mean?
Hey, why don't we share a place?
Room together?
Sure, why not?
Hey, what-- what do you
say we uh, take a look
at this place on Comstock, huh?
I don't know.
See?
There you go.
What do you mean there I go?
There I go what?
[sighing]
Putting up barriers.
Listen up, let life happen.
Take a chance.
What do you got to lose?
OK, OK.
Why not?
Only one condition.
Mm?
You've got to stop
calling me Willy.
Scouts honor.
Some boy scout.
Next you'll swear on
your mother's grave.
My mother's dead.
My mother died when I was
wee, maybe that's why I'm me.
Sorry.
I didn't know.
I thought I heard you mention
her like she was still alive.
I didn't-- you know?
That's my aunt Ortense.
Ortense?
Ortense.
I call her Mom.
She and my uncle Marcus
raised me, back in Indiana.
No offense, honest.
Mm.
You know, Willy,
I got a feeling.
If you and me stick
together we're
going to take this whole town.
We're going to grab it by
a tail and give it a spin.
[music playing]
WILLY [VOICEOVER]: Jim loved
to show off, do crazy things,
impress people.
Some people even fell
for it, including
Beverly, my latest conquest.
Beverly was one of
those Hollywood brats.
You know, movie star's daughter,
but I thought she was really
something, so I introduced him.
BEVERLY: I like your friend.
He's a little weird though.
How do you mean?
I don't know.
Something about him.
He kind of scares me .
Jimmy?
No.
JAMES DEAN: OK, wait.
You watch this now.
[pop music playing on radio]
Head down, legs
together, [inaudible].
[pop music playing on radio]
You're good.
Did you ever think of
trying out for the Olympics?
No thanks.
I'll stick to acting.
Jimmy wants to go
back to New York,
get into the Actors'
Studio, study
the method with Elia Kazan.
Like Marlon Brando.
Brando, [inaudible],
all the greats.
Man, what I would
give to get back East.
Well, if you want to go so
bad, why don't you just go?
JAMES DEAN: I would, if my
old lady was as rich as yours.
Hey, I met, uh, James
Whitmore at CBS to other day.
He studied at the
Actors' Studio.
Well, why don't
you ask him if he'll
start an acting class for us?
Well, I don't
know him that well.
What's the harm in asking?
[pop music playing on radio]
Yeah, I guess the worst
he could do is say no, huh?
[laughter]
Now you're talking, Willy.
Heads up.
[yelling indistinctly]
[music playing]
William, help me.
Come on, drown him.
You're stronger than he is.
[giggling]
[music playing]
MAN: First thing I
want you to know, this
is not a formal acting class.
As a matter of fact, let
me get something straight.
I'm not here to
teach you acting.
I'm here to learn
along with you.
See, learning to act is
a continuing process.
Acting is a craft,
a serious profession
that takes time,
patience, study,
and a great deal of sacrifice.
OK, now what is acting exactly?
If I were asked to
sum it up in one word,
I would say concentration,
total involvement.
That's what acting is all about.
To be or not to be?
That is the question.
Whether 'tis nobler in the mind
to suffer the slings and arrows
of outrageous fortune
Or to take
arms against a sea of troubles
and by opposing end them.
To die, to sleep.
[clattering]
And by that sleep of death,
to say we end the heartaches
and the thousand natural
shocks that flesh is heir to.
[chewing]
'Tis a consummation
devoutly to be wished.
[crashing]
JAN: No, look at my dress.
Why is he worth this trouble?
He's just got a downright
mean streak in him.
[carnival music playing]
WILLY [VOICEOVER]: It wasn't
like that all the time.
You never knew what
to expect from Jimmy.
I mean, one minute he
was warm and friendly,
and then all of a sudden
he'd turn into a wild man.
Sometimes he'd just sulk and
refuse to talk to anyone.
I guess that's why he didn't
have many friends, at least not
then.
[gunshots]
Come to think of it, he was
the loneliest guy I ever knew.
[carnival music playing]
For a while there, we
had some great times.
Jim's sense of humor could
get pretty bizarre though.
Like you never really
knew if he was being
sincere or putting you on.
With Jim, nothing was sacred.
The point is,
you were speeding.
You broke the law.
There's no excuse
for that, is there?
No sir, not even if my
friend was depending on me.
Friend?
Yes, sir.
The one who loaned me the car
to go on the job interview.
I promised I'd get back in time
to drive him to the hospital.
Did you say hospital?
JAMES DEAN: Yes, sir.
He's uh, he's
dying of Leukaemia.
I guess I just didn't-- I
didn't want to let him down.
Did you get the job?
No, no I didn't.
I'm still looking.
$5.00.
Pay the bailiff.
Next case.
[giggling]
WILLY: Well, cop, I'm
just a poor starving
student trying to work
his way through college.
[laughter]
[inaudible]
[giggling]
Of course [inaudible].
I couldn't believe it.
[giggling]
Hey, Bev, why don't we go
to your place for a swim
this afternoon?
Well, I'll tell you,
Willy, I kind of promised
Bev that we'd um, uh--
Pardon?
Jimmy and I were thinking of
going out to my mother's house
on the beach.
Sounds great.
For the whole weekend.
Suits me.
I don't have to be back
to work till Sunday night.
I mean alone.
Oh.
Nobody planned it
this way, Willy.
Honest.
[music playing on radio]
[honking]
Now, don't forget, you
hate each other's guts.
You hate each other.
Now, the watch isn't important.
The important thing
is who gets it.
Here.
I don't want to feel that
you're just acting, OK?
Now go ahead.
Give me the watch.
Why should I?
Because it's mine.
Give it to me.
Go to hell.
Who are you telling
to go to hell?
Listen, you little creep.
Who you calling a
creep, you phony?
You're the phony.
Go ahead, feel it, feel it--
[inaudible] phony.
MAN: That's it, good, good.
All right now, hold it.
Break it up.
I said break it up.
That's enough.
Come on.
Break it, break it up, you two.
What's the matter with you?
Look, in case I
forgot to mention it,
you're not supposed
to kill each other.
This is just an improvisation.
I don't know what
sense memory or what
personal experience
you guys drew on,
but uh, you're getting the idea.
Oh boy, are you
getting the idea.
All right everybody,
let's take a break.
Go relax for awhile.
[music playing]
WILLY [VOICEOVER]: I don't know
why I stuck around so long.
I guess because he
made life interesting.
Never a dull moment, you know?
And too, he was
beginning to grow on me.
He gave me the feeling
that he really needed you.
It's hard to turn your
back on somebody like that.
Anyway, it didn't
last much longer.
Well, why don't you move out?
Couldn't just walk
out on him, stick
him with the rent and all.
Well, he'd do it to you.
No, Jim's too loyal.
Oh--
[vocalizing]
Look how he's been
treating me lately.
You call that loyalty?
That's different.
We're buddies.
Well, if you asked me, I
think he's acting like he's
got a guilty conscious.
Must be over Beverly.
Crazy part is I can't
seem to convince him
that it doesn't really matter.
No really, I don't care.
I was never really hooked
on her in the first place.
He's welcome to her.
Beverly who?
Why did you go and tell her?
I thought she knew.
You sneaky little weasel.
Sneaky?
Look who's talking.
You better keep out of this.
You don't scare me [inaudible].
Go ahead, I dare you.
Go on.
I dare--
[screaming]
Ah.
Hey.
Jan.
[banging]
Jan.
I'm sorry.
I didn't mean it.
Jan, please.
[banging]
Jan, I'm sorry.
[honking]
Hey, come on, Willy.
Don't be like that.
I just lost my head, that's all.
Yeah, right.
[honking]
I'll pick up the rest of my
stuff in a couple of days.
Rent's paid till the
end of the month.
Maybe you can find
somebody else.
Hey, come on.
I don't give a damn
about the rent.
You're my friend.
We're a team.
We're going to stick together.
Hey come on, we're going
to take this phony town.
[honking]
Yeah, tell it to
the judge, Deaner.
[honking]
Willy, don't go, Willy.
You're the only friend I got.
[honking]
You don't need
a friend, Deaner.
[honking]
You need a spectator.
I suppose he cried and
carried on like Faust.
Why don't you knock it off?
Oh, what's eating you?
Nothing.
I enjoy watching my
best friend squirm.
Hey Willy.
Willy, I trusted you.
I trusted you.
[music playing]
WILLY [VOICEOVER]: I
didn't see much of Jim
after the split up
in Santa Monica.
[phone ringing]
We kind of kept out
of each other's way.
Then one day I heard he finally
managed to get himself back
east to New York, and I
don't know if it was him
or lure of the big city,
but it wasn't long before I
turned up on his doorstep.
Yeah?
What do you want?
WILLY [ON PHONE]: Dean.
That you, Deaner?
Mm.
Who is this?
WILLY [ON PHONE]: It's me, Bill.
Bill.
Bill who?
WILLY [ON PHONE]: Bill Bast.
Hey, Willy.
WILLY [ON PHONE]: Yeah.
Willy.
Where the hell are ya?
WILLY [ON PHONE]: Right
here, in New York.
So after the
[inaudible], I hung
around Hollywood
about six months,
which was six months too long.
Got myself a new
agent, did a couple
more commercials, met a
few people in the business.
Yeah, I even started
doing some film work.
Mostly bit parts, of course.
Listen, work is work.
I should be so lucky.
Who said anything about luck?
All you gotta do is
know the right people.
That's not as easy
as you make it sound.
Yeah.
Gets to be a real pain though.
You dance, they call the tunes.
And who pays the piper?
Well, he can always
put it on the cuff.
Split when the bill comes.
WILLY: Well, that takes a
little more style than I got.
JAMES DEAN: You
thinking of trying
out for the Actors' Studio?
If you are, I better
warn you, it's rough.
I'm still waiting
for an audition.
Well, I kind of
decided to give up
on the acting, Deaner,
concentrate on my writing
instead.
You're going to give up acting?
Well, let's face it, either
you've got it or you don't.
You got it.
I see you still got
your bull fight gear.
Yeah.
I don't get much
practice here though.
[stomping feet]
Remember those practice
sessions we used to have?
Do I.
[honking]
Hey toro.
[grunting]
Hey toro.
Hey toro, hey toro.
[yelling]
Hey toro.
[grunting]
Hey toro.
[stomping]
toro.
[grunting]
Hey--
[yelling]
Hey toro.
[stomping]
Hey toro.
Hey toro.
[stomping]
[yelling]
[grunting]
Hey toro.
[stomping]
Hey, hey toro.
Hey toro, hey toro.
I guess I'm out
of practice too.
You always did chicken
out just before the kill.
A momento de verdad.
Moment of truth.
Sure didn't expect
to hear your voice
on the other end of that phone.
Don't know anybody
else in New York.
Besides, you always said,
well, New York was where
it was happening, [inaudible].
[chuckling]
Well, shoot.
I never thought
you were listening.
It's good to see you, Willy.
It's good to see
you too, Deaner.
[chuckling]
Looks like you're
doing all right.
These yours?
Those aren't prints.
Those are the real thing.
Marc Chagall.
French, isn't he?
Um, Russian I believe.
Sounds like you did
some fast catching up.
Some.
Well, if these aren't
yours, then whose are they?
This belongs to the piper.
Come on.
I'll buy you some breakfast.
There's someone I
want you to meet.
[music playing]
That there is Dizzy Sheridan.
She's a dancer.
[laughter]
[music playing]
Willy.
It's nice to meet you.
Jim's told me so much about you.
Welcome to cuckoo land.
[laughter]
What do you say?
Let's go get
something to eat, huh?
Because I'm hungry.
Hey, what am I doing
playing in the park?
I've got to find
a place to live.
[laughter]
Where did you stay last night?
The Y.
Uh.
[laughter]
Yeah, you can forget it.
[laughter]
Poor baby.
Where do you live, Dizzy?
Us professional girls
live at the rehearsal club.
No men allowed.
Damn.
A-ha.
Why don't you guys look
for a place to share?
Huh?
What you say?
I said, why don't you and
Willy look for a place to share?
[chuckling]
[popping]
[screams]
[laughter]
What are you doing?
[laughter]
Did I say something wrong?
[laughter]
May I have the key, Mr. Robin?
How did the interview
with the ad agency go?
Oh, fantastic.
They told me to come
back, in a couple years.
Well, it's a slow season.
Bound to pick up soon.
Jim come back yet?
He was supposed to audition
for a TV show today.
Been up there all afternoon.
Don't be afraid.
Come inside with me.
Hm.
No.
[sighing]
Why did you break your head?
Huh?
What?
When?
Just then?
Your eyes, they were
so remote as if you'd
come from a long way off.
Another planet?
Further.
And then they focused
and became very warm.
What color are my eyes?
They're sort of blue now.
Sometimes they're hazel.
Oh.
You can change the color
of your eyes, can't you?
Sometimes it just happens.
[door opening]
Oh, uh--
JAMES DEAN: No, it's OK, Willy.
That's OK.
We're just uh, we're
rehearsing a scene.
Oh, this is Chris.
Hi.
Chris, um--
White.
Chris White.
Right.
She wrote it.
Hi.
Hi.
Scene for what?
Uh, Actor's Studio.
You got your audition.
That's great.
When?
Um, about six weeks
if we can get it right.
Oh.
Uh, in that case, I
better let you guys--
JAMES DEAN: No, no, no.
Stick around.
We could use some--
[giggling]
Objective criticism.
[music playing]
Maybe we should postpone.
No, I just want to do
it and get it over with.
They're probably all in
there, Strasberg, Kazan, Cheryl
Crawford, Tennessee Williams--
Shut up, will you?
Your glasses.
You must have left
your glasses They're
probably in that restaurant.
JAMES DEAN: Oh no, it's OK.
It's OK.
I don't have to see clearly.
No--
I can sense.
Burke and Marioni.
No, it's too risky.
Maybe we should call
the whole thing off.
The thing to do is
just keep acting.
Sculpting, racing my bike,
everything in the arts
is risky.
That's why I don't own
anything but these boots.
Everything, everything--
all my clothes are
either borrowed or bestowed.
Did I tell you I'm learning
how to play the recorder?
What?
The flute.
The flute.
If I can learn how to
play the flute, then maybe
I can dance [inaudible].
Will you slow down?
You're talking a mile a minute.
Let's go over the lines, OK?
No.
No.
[phone ringing]
[giggling]
Are you as scared as I am?
More.
Paralyzed.
I'm not going through with it.
Wait a minute, wait a minute.
Wait.
Now wait a minute.
Jimmy.
It's my audition too.
[music playing]
RECEPTIONIST: McQuaid and Olson.
[music playing]
James Dean and Christine White.
Excuse me, I'm
White and my partner
had to go get his glasses.
And I was wondering
if you'd be so kind--
I'm back.
We're ready.
OK.
Where the hell have you been?
Running.
Take off your coat.
Running?
Where to?
Just running.
RECEPTIONIST: OK,
right in there.
Begin whenever you're ready.
OK, go.
[music playing]
[phone ringing]
WILLY: Anybody going
to answer that?
[phone ringing]
Deaner, get the phone.
[phone ringing]
[dial tone]
WILLY [VOICEOVER]: "Dear
Marcus and Mom, I have
made great strides in my craft.
After months of auditioning,
I am very proud to announce
that I am now a member of the
Actors' Studio, the greatest
school of theater in New York."
Never said a word.
WILLY [VOICEOVER]:
"Very few are admitted
and it's absolutely free.
It is the best thing that
can happen to an actor
and I'm one of the
youngest to belong.
Each day here in New York,
I grow more as an artist.
I see now that an actor
must be willing to accept
all experiences that
life has to offer.
In fact, he must seek
out new experiences.
To grasp the full significance
of life is the actor's duty.
To interpret it, his problem,
to express it, his dedication.
Tell Mrs. Hampton when you see
her that I have never forgotten
the thespian creed,
'Act well your part,
for there all honor lies'
PS, I would be grateful
if you could spare $10 or so.
I need it desperately.
I'm sorry that when I write
I always need something.
Sometimes I feel I've
lost the right to ask.
I shall never forget
what you've done for me.
I want to repay
you someday, but it
takes time and many
disappointments
to achieve success as an actor.
I'll try very hard
not to take too long.
If I've asked at the wrong
time, please forgive me.
I will understand.
Love, Jim."
[music playing]
Jim changed over the
next few months, a lot.
It was like he suddenly found
the key, some special secret,
and it was beginning to
open all the doors for him.
Trouble was, I got the feeling
he was leaving me behind.
He practices and he practices,
and he works his little fingers
to the bone, but [inaudible].
He can't do it.
He can't believe it.
So he works and works, but he
still can't do the passage.
One afternoon, Schoenberg
comes around to his house,
and he says, would
you play it for me?
[inaudible] says, I would
be only too delighted.
So he starts and then he cooks,
and he cooks, and he cooks.
And he comes to the one
passage and he can't do it.
And he says, Schoenberg,
a violinist would
need six fingers to play this.
[chuckling]
Schoenberg says, uh, he looks
at his watch and he says,
I have time.
I'll wait.
[laughter]
JAMES DEAN: Excuse me.
[laughter]
[street noise]
Hey Willy, you awake?
Mm-hm.
Why did you take off like that?
[sirens approaching]
I don't know.
I wanted you to meet everybody.
It was your scene, Deaner.
[chuckles]
My scene.
I didn't want to barge in.
I mean, how were you
going to introduce me?
This is my dumb friend, Bill.
See how funny he dresses?
I felt out of place.
They all look so, I
don't know, important.
They are.
They're my friends.
Oh Willy, Willy, Willy.
You've got to get over that.
What?
JAMES DEAN: Judging by
surface appearances.
What is essential is
invisible to the eye.
Huh?
"The Little Prince".
Did you ever read it?
Looks like a kids books.
[laughter]
There you go.
You haven't even
opened the cover.
What's it about?
Oh, cutting through the
fears, the pettiness,
letting people in, finding
out what really counts.
Do you want to hear
my favorite passage?
Sure.
[clears throat]
Well, it's about this little
prince who comes from a very
distant planet, very tiny star.
And one day he meets this fox,
and so he asks the fox to play
with him because he's lonely.
But the fox says he can't
because he hasn't been tamed.
So Little Prince asks
the fox what tamed means.
"To establish
ties, said the fox.
To me, you are still nothing
more than a little boy who's
just like 100,000 little boys.
I have no need of you.
To you, I'm nothing
more than a fox, who
is like 100,000 other foxes.
But if you tame me, then
we shall need each other.
To me, you will be
unique in all the world.
To you, I shall be
unique in all the world.
If you tame me, it
will be as if the sun
came to shine on my life.
You see the grain
fields down yonder?
Well, you have hair which
is the color of gold.
Think how wonderful it will
be when you have tamed me.
The grain, which is
also golden, will bring
me back the thought of you.
Oh, and I shall love to listen
to the wind in the wheat.
[music playing]
Well, the fox gazed at the
little prince for a long time.
Please tame me, he said.
So the little prince
tamed the fox.
And then the hour of
his departure drew near.
Ah, said the fox.
I shall cry.
That is your own fault,
said the little prince.
I've never wished
you any sort of harm
and now you're going to cry?
Yes, that is so, said the fox.
Then it's done you
no good at all.
Oh, it has done me
good, said the fox.
Because of the color
of the wheat fields.
[music playing]
Goodbye, said the little prince.
Goodbye, said the fox.
And now here is a
very simple secret.
It is only with the heart
that one can see rightly.
What is essential is
invisible to the eye.
Men have forgotten this truth,
but you must never forget it.
You become responsible forever
for what you have tamed."
[music playing]
WILLY [VOICEOVER]: Of all the
people he managed to tame,
I don't think he ever
did better than Dizzy.
And of all the people
who tried to tame him,
I think she probably
came the closest.
[music playing]
WILLY: Why'd you stop?
Did you ever make
it with another guy?
[chuckling]
Are you serious?
I've got to prepare
a scene for class.
I don't know how to approach it.
What's it about?
It's about this
guy, had a thing
once with his best friend.
Ever since it's been
tearing him apart.
That's a rough one.
I don't mean kid stuff.
Everybody does that.
I mean, really.
Did you ever?
Did you?
Why not?
[laughter]
What?
Come on.
I mean, I've known
you to flatten
guys for even joking about it.
No, no.
That was before I was
committed to my craft.
What's that got to do with it?
JAMES DEAN: Oh, grow up, Willy.
We're not in college anymore.
This is the real thing.
This is life, and
that's a part of it.
Ah, you know what
Stanislavsky says,
an actor has to be prepared.
That go for writers too?
All artists.
We owe it to our craft to
experience everything we can.
What?
Are you selling it?
I don't--
Maybe some things are
better left to imagination.
No.
WILLY: Even for an artist.
No.
Life's too short.
I want to do it all.
Besides, you know what they say.
Huh?
JAMES DEAN: Don't knock
it till you tried it.
[laughter]
Are you kidding?
I wouldn't even know
how to go about it.
I mean, if and when I
was ready to experiment.
What's going on?
-Get dressed.
-Huh?
JAMES DEAN: Just get
up and put clothes on.
Uh, some jeans and a shirt's OK.
What for?
Where are we going?
Oh, come on.
Will you shut up and
do what I tell ya?
Hey, do you what time it is?
I have to go to
work in the morning.
Just-- you've got
to make certain
sacrifices for your art.
Bull.
I bet Brando gets his sleep.
No, no, this one.
I hate that one.
Can you shut up and put it on?
You know, you're crazy.
You get up in the
middle of night,
you get completely dressed--
why aren't you getting dressed?
Uh, well, um, I'm
not going anywhere.
OK.
What's the game?
There's no game.
Just listen to me and do
exactly as I tell you.
I don't think I like this.
This may be the
most important step
you ever take as an artist.
It's going to take guts.
I know I don't like this.
You know, the Aster Bar,
over on Times Square?
Yeah.
What about it?
I want you to go over there.
Just go to the bar
and order a beer.
Yeah?
And then what?
Nothing.
Just wait.
What am I waiting for?
You'll see.
Things will start happening.
What kinds of things?
Things.
That's what you're there for.
That's what you're
going to find out.
I think one of us is nuts
and if I go through with this,
then it's got to be me.
Why don't you do these things?
Call me if you
got any questions.
WILLY: Deaner.
Deaner.
Deaner.
[sirens approaching]
[music playing]
I must be out of my mind.
Hi.
Hi.
I'm Ray.
Bill.
Glad to meet you, Bill.
Can I buy you another beer?
Sure.
[phone ringing]
Yeah?
WILLY [WHISPERING ON
PHONE]: Deaner, it's me.
Where are ya?
I'm at a phone in the Aster.
How's it going?
I'm not sure.
Some guy just asked me back
to his place for a drink.
JAMES DEAN [ON PHONE]: Yeah?
Well, what do you
think I should do?
Well, what do you want to do?
Deaner, I don't think
I'm ready for this.
JAMES DEAN [ON PHONE]: Why?
Don't you like him?
WILLY [WHISPERING ON PHONE]:
I don't even know him.
Besides, that's not the point.
What the hell am I doing here?
Yeah, yeah.
I guess it really ought to be
somebody you've tamed first.
I beg your pardon?
I was-- it's my mistake, Willy.
Come on home.
[music playing]
[stomping]
I'm home, Deaner.
Why did you make me do that?
Huh?
You was just using me as
a guinea pig, weren't ya?
OK, then why did you
tell me to come ho--
oh-- what do you want from me?
"It is only with the heart
that one can see rightly.
What is essential is
invisible to the eye."
I hate this town.
It's cold, and it's dirty,
and it's depressing.
And you hated Hollywood too.
That was phony.
This is ugly.
DIZZY: Where would
you like to be, huh?
Hm?
Home, on the farm.
This is the best time
of year for it too.
Leaves are beginning to
change, harvest is almost in.
Mom's starting to put
up preserves for winter.
Ma.
My mama-- I can smell the
home-baked bread right now.
[laughter]
Cut it out, will you?
When do we leave?
Right now.
We could leave right now.
Right this very moment.
JAMES DEAN: Yes.
DIZZY: Yeah?
Are you serious?
You can't just
take off like that.
Why not?
OK, and what if this
part comes up for Jim?
[giggling]
Oh.
What part?
Um, I auditioned
for "See the Jaguar".
It, uh, goes into
rehearsal in a week or so.
Opens in the fall.
The fall?
Yeah.
It's a central character.
He could steal the show.
I have to get the part first.
Nobody ever tells me anything.
Oh, come on.
I didn't tell you
because I didn't
want you to get your hopes
up again for nothing.
Mm.
Besides, I heard they
want Tony Perkins.
I never heard of him.
[laughter]
When are you going know?
When are you going to know, huh?
Ah, a week or so.
Well, guess that shoots
the trip back home.
Why?
Indiana's not the
moon, you know?
If anything came up, my agent
could let us know in uh--
he could send us a telegram.
We could be back in 24 hours.
[laughter]
Well, that brings up
another little point,
trivial I know, but uh,
where are we going to get
the money for the bus fare?
No.
Oh.
Willy.
[laughter]
What bus fare?
[laughter]
[music playing]
[honking]
WILLY [VOICEOVER]: The farm
was like a tonic for all of us,
but especially for Jim.
Marcus and Ortense were
just what he needed.
He was home and happier
than I'd ever known him.
[music playing]
[birds singing]
The telegram cut short
our visit to the farm,
but before we left Fairmount,
Jim had one last goodbye.
From there we thumbed our way
back to good old New York.
Then on the night of
December 5th 1952,
the guy whose name
I once said would
never be up in lights had his
name up in lights on Broadway.
[music playing]
[background chatter]
[muttering]
DIZZY: Well?
Huh?
[muttering]
Listen, list-- listen
to this. "James Dean,
in an almost impossible
role, delivers
an extraordinary performance."
Let me see.
[music playing]
[yelps]
[laughter]
I'll be right back.
[music playing]
I have the dumbest
feeling something
very beautiful is about to end.
Don't look so worried, Willy.
I might be cuckoo, but I
don't believe in miracles.
It's like our visit
to the farm, it was
a nice dream while it lasted.
You know, of the three of
us, I think I like you best.
[background chatter]
WILLY [VOICEOVER]: [inaudible]
started making a little headway
with my television writing.
Seemed every time I picked up a
"Variety" or a New York paper,
there was Jim doing another big
TV show, getting another lead
in an important play.
I mean, he was
really going places.
Deaner.
[laughter]
Hi Willy.
What are you
doing in Hollywood?
Uh, grab your duds.
I'll tell you about
it on the way.
The way where?
JAMES DEAN: [inaudible].
Gadge wants me to get a tan
before I start shooting.
Gadge?
Elia Kazan.
WILLY: I don't get it.
You got such great reviews
for "The Immoralist".
Why walk off a Broadway hit?
I didn't get along
with the director,
so I gave them the
notice opening night.
Just to do a
picture in Hollywood?
What?
For Kazan?
Are you kidding?
What's the name of it?
"East of Eden".
Good part?
Lead.
[chuckling]
WILLY: Oh is that all?
JAMES DEAN: How's the writing?
WILLY: Eh, doing a little TV.
Nothing to brag about.
Hey, you ever see Dizzy?
JAMES DEAN: Uh, she took off.
Virgin Islands or
some place to dance.
Kazan thinks I could win an
Academy Award for this role.
They'll never vote
me an Oscar though.
Why not, if you deserved it?
You've got to be loved
in Tinsel Town, Willy.
They're going to hate my guts.
Who's they?
The philistines,
the dull accountants
that sit behind the big desks
and tell us what art is.
Us, the talent, us,
the creative people.
That's why they hate
our guts, Willy.
We're special.
We got the gift.
The gods have smiled on us.
They know without
us, they're nothing.
They come and go, we abide.
You make it sound like
it's them against us.
I know the game
out here, Willy.
I played it for
awhile, remember?
You let them and they'll treat
you like so much raw meat.
Not me.
Not anymore.
You've changed, Deaner.
I never heard you
talk like this.
Winged flights of harpies have
escorted this trip of vengeance
back to Tinsel Town, Willy.
Only from now on, I'm the piper.
They dance to my tune.
Ah, why'd you agree to do it
if it's such a lousy script?
Because in this business, you
take what you can when you can.
[chuckles]
Oh.
Where's your integrity?
Oh, don't give me
that integrity bull.
If nobody gives you a
hand, you're on your own.
You grab what
comes along, right?
Well, nobody gave
me a hand out.
I said a hand, not a hand out.
I heard what you said
and I'm telling you,
nobody did a damn thing for me.
Oh, come on, Deaner.
This is me, Willy.
You're trying to tell me nobody
ever made it easier for you?
Nobody opened a few doors,
paved the way a little bit?
That's right.
You're damn right.
What are you getting
so excited about?
Listen, nobody did
a damn thing for me.
I don't owe anything to anyone.
Not one stinking favor,
not one lousy penny.
I did it all myself.
I don't kiss anybody's butt.
[phone ringing]
Hello.
JAMES DEAN [ON PHONE]:
Hey Willy, what you up to?
I'm just trying to finish
this bugger of a script.
Why?
JAMES DEAN [ON PHONE]:
They're sneaking Eden tonight
over at the Ritz Theater.
You want to come?
Oh no, I've got to
wash my socks tonight.
I'm on my way.
[music playing]
[applause]
JAMES DEAN: Willy, Willy.
[knocking]
Willy.
Come on, open up.
[knocking]
I know you're in there.
Come on, Willy, it's me.
Come on, open up the door.
[crickets chirping]
Lose your boat?
Willy?
Didn't you hear me knocking?
Sorry, Deaner.
I didn't feel like
talking to anyone.
What's going on?
Why didn't you stick
around after the preview?
Couldn't face it.
Picture's that bad, huh?
[chuckling]
Bad.
Why didn't you tell me
so I could be prepared?
I figured good, you
know, but man, I wasn't
ready for something like that.
King Kong and CinemaScope.
No, Bo.
I'm really happy for you.
Happy for me but a
little sorry for yourself?
I guess it shows, huh?
[chuckles]
Always did.
Yeah.
Only tonight, it
really hit home.
Maybe I'm dense or something,
but so help me, I had no idea.
I don't know what
I thought you were
up to these past few
years, but I never
imagined it was anything like--
watching you up there tonight,
believing every word,
every move, every gesture,
all of a sudden it hit home.
It can happen.
This is what it's all about.
It's not just some dumb dream.
It's not a crazy kid
game we've been playing.
It's for real and
it happened to you.
You made it happen.
You finally made it happen.
RIVA RANDALL [ON
TV]: Good evening.
This is your Hollywood
Reporter, Riva Randall,
with an urgent warning
from Marlon Brando.
Watch out, Marlon.
James Dean is stealing your act.
Ever since his success
in "East of Eden",
Dean has been treating
Hollywood to his brand
of sick humor and crude behavior
and getting away with it.
But he's not calling all
the shots, at least not yet.
First, Elia Kazan
made him stay off
his motorcycle until shooting
was completed on "Eden".
Now Warner's has grounded him
for the duration of his next
for them, "Rebel
Without a Cause".
Too bad, Jimmy.
Looks like you'll just have to
walk up to your nightly haunt
on the Sunset Strip of
you want to hang around
with those weirdo
playmates of yours.
[music playing]
[clears throat]
Uh, take off, you guys.
This is business.
I'll see you later, OK?
[music playing]
How'd you know
where to find me?
Are you kidding?
The whole world knows.
[chuckling]
You watch too much television.
Would you indulge
me for a minute
and tell me exactly what
you're trying to prove?
What do you mean what
am I trying to prove?
You can't make an
omelette without breaking
the eggs, Willy.
Now I understand.
[sighing]
Anyway, this town's
still full of phonies.
It's the only way I can
stay in touch with reality.
Reality?
You call these social
rejects reality?
[stammering]
Is that all you see, huh?
Just what's on the surface?
[music playing]
[door opens]
See that blonde over there?
Hey, see her?
[music playing]
She comes in here every
night, always alone,
and I'll just-- hey, come on.
Please.
Come on.
Hi.
You work over at the
Oriental Theater, don't you?
Yeah, in the box office.
Yeah.
Yeah, I thought I saw you there.
Oh, this is uh, this is Bill.
I'm Jim.
Arlene.
Would you mind if we sat down?
It's a free country.
[music playing]
Tell me something.
How'd you lose your leg?
Motorcycle accident.
Was it your bike?
My boyfriend's.
How did he come out?
He didn't.
Did you feel much pain?
Only in my toes.
[chuckling]
Yeah.
Yeah, I've heard that.
It's true.
[music playing]
Must be weird.
It stops after awhile.
Did it leave a scar?
That healed over
a long time ago.
See?
Go on, touch it if you want.
[music playing]
[giggling]
You know, you're
the first guy who's
ever had the guts to do that.
You live far from here?
Not far.
Bikes scare you now?
Come on, I'll give you
a ride home on mine.
It's just outside.
[music playing]
Reality.
See what I mean?
See you around, Willy.
[music playing]
RIVA RANDALL [ON TV]: Good
evening, ladies and gentlemen.
This is your Hollywood
reporter, Riva Randall.
Well, will wonders never cease?
As you know, I haven't
exactly been James Dean's
most ardent admirer till now.
Well, I spent time with
him on the set of "Rebel
Without a Cause" and
I've got to admit,
I've changed my
stubborn, old mind.
Confidentially, behind that
weirdo act, he's a charmer.
And now director George
Stevens has signed
Jimmy for his upcoming "Giant".
Is it any wonder?
Warner Brothers tells
me that Jimmy now gets
over 5,000 fan letters a week.
When I asked Elizabeth Taylor
how she feels about playing
opposite Hollywood's
bad boy, she
confided, I can hardly wait.
Is that true,
about the fan mail?
Mm.
Ah, look at this.
Makes me feel like
Miss Lonelyhearts.
Any good ones?
[chuckling]
Ah, there's this one.
Kid from Hollywood High,
right here in town.
Look at that picture.
Is that a sweet, normal,
healthy, sensitive face?
WILLY: Took the words
right out of my mouth.
[chuckling]
JAMES DEAN: Name's
Norma Brookman.
Bright, intelligent kid, lost.
Completely and utterly lost.
Letters that tear your guts out.
She wants to meet me sometime.
You're not considering it.
Oh, I know, I know.
You should read the letters.
WILLY: Deaner, you're
too vulnerable now.
This kid's jail bait.
You could wind up facing a
paternity suit or rape charges.
Yeah.
That's why I want to meet
her in a public place.
With you along as a chaperone.
I thought about it a lot and
I know just how you must have
felt when you tried to give
your father all that money
that you earned just for
him and he wouldn't take it.
Oh, you mean in,
in "East of Eden".
My mother's like that.
She doesn't understand anything.
That's why daddy left us.
When you did that to your
brother, I really knew why.
I mean, you, you were
just hurt and you
were trying to hurt back.
No, Cal was.
Cal?
Cal Trask, the
character I played.
Oh yeah.
What's the one thing you love
most, more than anything else?
[clears throat]
Um, life, I guess.
It's our most precious gift.
Not death?
What?
I read somewhere
that you respect
death more than anything else?
Oh, well, respect,
yeah, but that's
different than-- death is the
only thing left to respect.
It's the one inevitable,
undeniable truth.
You said in it likes the only
ultimate nobility for man.
Beyond it, through
immortality, the only hope.
I said that?
I've always remembered.
Come on, let's walk.
She got it in her head that
somehow I'd understand.
Understand what?
Her.
Her hopes, her dreams, her
loneliness, everything.
She wanted to turn her
whole life over to me.
She wanted to just dump
it right in my lap.
They're all like that, all
the ones that are ripe.
What do they see when they
look up at that screen?
Themselves.
Unwanted, unloved, rejected--
No, no, no.
It's got to be something
more than that.
Something more basic.
They see the
character you portray.
They see a tormented kid trying
to win his father's love.
They see an alienated
teenager trying to survive
in an indifferent society.
That's pretty good.
[chuckling]
You roll them all
together, what do you get?
James Dean.
He knows, he understands.
If only I could talk to him.
No, no, no, no.
It's the eyes.
WILLY: The what?
It's the eyes.
It's got to be the eyes.
What are you talking about?
Did you ever notice how, how
intense near-sighted people
look?
Like they could see
right into your soul?
It does kind of exaggerate
your normal intensity.
Well, and the
windows of the soul.
Isn't that what the
eyes are supposed to be?
Come on.
Are you serious?
You believe that all the movies,
and fan mail, and people, it's
all because you're nearsighted?
Well, it's got to be that.
What else could it be?
[motorcycle revving]
WILLY [VOICEOVER]: I'd
say it took all of a year.
Suddenly, Jim was the hottest
young actor in Hollywood.
True to his word, he was
making them dance to his tune.
Well, most of them anyway.
Her name was Pier Angeli.
For the first time since
Dizzy, Jim had found someone
he could really care for.
Trouble was, she decided
to marry the other guy.
I don't think he
ever got over it.
[music playing]
WILLY: Cute little guy.
Where did you get him?
Liz Taylor.
[laughter]
I love it.
What's his name?
I'll call him Marcus.
[music playing]
Little Marcus.
[sighing]
Hm.
You look old enough
to be my father.
Hm?
Oh, well, I shaved back
my hair for the last two
scenes of the picture.
Really good job, huh?
[chuckling]
Did I tell you what
they want me to do next?
Uh uh.
Rocky Graziano.
Somebody up there likes me.
Oh.
You going to accept?
Depends on the script.
How's yours coming?
Which one?
What do you mean, which one?
The one you're writing for me.
The Jekyll and Hyde thing.
[sighing]
Deaner, I'd really like
to but I-- I gotta take
these TV assignments now.
I mean, when I get a
little ahead maybe.
They offered me
$100,000 for this one.
Wow.
JAMES DEAN: Let me
take care of it.
I appreciate your offer,
but I couldn't do that.
Don't worry.
You'll earn it.
[phone ringing]
Want me to grab that?
Yeah, would you?
[phone ringing]
Hello?
Who's calling?
Uh, he's busy right now.
Can I take a message.
Yes.
Yes, I'll tell him.
Well?
Who was it?
Remember that kid
from Hollywood High?
Norma Brookman?
Oh yeah, yeah, yeah.
What does she want?
WILLY: That was her mother.
The girl took an overdose
of sleeping pills.
Where is she?
They took her to
Hollywood Receiving.
Deaner, Deaner, she's dead.
I'm sorry.
They all die or go away.
My mother died when I was
wee, maybe that's why I'm me.
I'll call you tomorrow, huh?
[crying]
[honking]
Hey, I thought you were
going up to Salinas?
Ah, just leaving.
Sandy's going to follow
in the station wagon.
Plenty of room.
Sure you don't
want to come along?
I got a script to
write, remember?
Ah, can't it wait?
Ah, not if you
knew my producer.
He's got a mean
streak this wide.
[laughter]
I just thought I'd ask.
You want me to stop by your
place, feed little Marcus?
Nah, nah.
I gave him away.
How come?
You know what a
crazy life I lead.
What if I run away some
time, never came back?
Yeah, I guess.
It's a lot of responsibility.
Hm.
Yeah.
It's best he weren't
so tamed to me.
Listen, Deaner,
thanks for the money.
I mean, for the script.
Can't hear a word
you're saying.
I got to split.
You stick to it, you hear?
[engine revving]
I'll be looking
over your shoulder.
So long.
[music playing]
PSYCHIATRIST: All right.
Let's get back to your dream.
You say they came to get
him and brought a coffin.
What happened then?
It was awful.
Jimmy was clinging
to the bed post.
The attendants pried him loose.
And as they pulled him away,
he broke and ran to me.
and held on.
He grabbed hold of my shirt.
He was crying hysterically.
And then they tore him loose.
He ripped my shirt
trying to hold on.
He was screaming at me.
Save me, Willy, save me.
Please save me.
I tried to tell him
I didn't know how,
but the words wouldn't come.
[music playing]
Then he clung to the door frame
and they smashed at his fingers
until he let go.
As they dragged him out, he took
his fist and shook it at me.
He was screaming, I trusted you.
I trusted you.
[music playing]
And then before the door closed,
a nurse stood in the doorway.
She said, aren't you coming?
That's when I woke up.
[sniffing]
And now I have this awful
feeling that I let him down.
PSYCHIATRIST: Because you
lived on and he didn't?
I guess so.
I mean, he did so much for me.
What did I ever do for him?
PSYCHIATRIST: Is
that the only reason?
I don't know.
No.
I think it's because
I never let him know.
Let him know what?
How much I loved him.
[music playing]
[birds singing]
JAMES DEAN
[VOICEOVER]: "This is,
to me, the loveliest and
saddest landscape in the world.
It is here that the little
prince appeared on Earth,
and disappeared.
Look at it carefully
so that you will
be sure to recognize
it in case you travel
someday to the African desert.
And, if you should come upon the
spot, please do not hurry on.
Wait for a time,
exactly under the star.
Then, if a little man
appears who laughs,
who has golden hair, and who
refuses to answer questions,
you will know who he is.
If this should happen,
please comfort me.
Send me word that
he has come back."
[music playing]