James Dean Might Still Be With Us
You may have never heard of Robert Hinkle. He was a Texan who talked like a Texan and for that reason George Stevens hired him to teach Rock Hudson how to talk Texan for the starring role of Bick Benedict in the epic movie GIANT.
One day, James Dean was talking to Robert and asked if Robert would teach him to talk Texan as well and he would pay Robert the same amount that the studio was paying him to train Rock. Robert agreed and they soon became friends.
On the morning of James Dean's untimely death, Jimmy (as Robert called him) called Robert and asked him to join him on a weekend getaway. Robert was busy that morning working on some lines with Rock Hudson and declined.
Fate has a hand in everything we do. If Robert had gone with James he might have arrived one minute late, or they may have traveled at a different speed than Jimmy did being alone, or they may have stopped along the route for coffee. James Dean could still be with us today if Fate had taken a different course.
He only made three films....East of Eden, Rebel Without a Cause and Giant. He was nominated for the Oscar in two of those films and won two Golden Globes.
I miss James Dean and get all worked up thinking just how great an actor he could have been in his 30's, 40's and even 60's. The ageing process did well for Brando's career. I think we would have seen brillance from Jimmy.