James Dean (1931.2.28.~1955.9.30) left behind his meeting with Liz Sheridan, who promised to see him again, and began his career as an actor.
While living as an actor, he was introduced to actor Barbara Glenn through his friend Martin Landau.
1. James and Barbara Glenn’s Meeting and Letters
Barbara Glenn (1933–2016), born in South Carolina, United States, was a typical American actress whose relationship was not long.
James, who has just reached stardom, couldn’t spend long time with Barbara on film shoots, but they were dating for two years. Sometimes they argue and break up, then they meet again.
They exchanged letters because of their busy filming schedule. The love letters they exchanged were sold for $36,000 at an auction in 2011.
The letter, dated 10 January 1954, tells Glenn about rehearsals for the adaptation of Andrzej’s The Immoralist,
A letter from the St. James Hotel in Philadelphia depicts a graffiti on the building and predicts that the play will “probably be a huge success.”
James moves to Los Angeles, close to Hollywood, with his future prospects as a positive actor.
On May 7, 1955, when he was busy, another letter was sent to Glenn a month after filming his first major film, East Of Eden.
The letter included Glenn’s anger at the fact that he was taking photos of his swimsuit and accusing him of cheap behavior. However, this was when James’ mind and body were already in love with another woman.
And James’s last letter joked to Glenn, ‘I didn’t write because I was in love,’ but suggests that the relationship might be over.
Eventually, James and Glenn’s relationship was estranged, and James fell for another woman. Glenn met actor and director Mark Gordon and even married him.
Glenn’s son and film director Keith Gordon said: “My mother Glenn never talked about their romance in detail, but I know James was my mother’s first serious and mature relationship.
“My mother repeated her separation and reconciliation with James, but apparently it was a very intense love. And even after her separation, she remained his friend, meeting and spending time with him from time to time.”
James Dean met Italian actress Pierre Angeli by chance while filming East of Eden, although he was in a letter-exchanging relationship with Barbara Glenn.
2. filming east of Eden and meeting fateful Pierre Angeli
In May 1954, James Dean signed with the film company Warner Bros. and met Pierre Angeli for the first time at the studio.
There was a spark in James’ eyes when he first saw Angeli. James’ first major film, East of Eden, was still being edited, but the handsome, melancholy, and slightly quirky young man, James Dean, 23, was already a celebrity, and the celebrity’s attention was enough to charm Angeli.
James asked Angelie out and went straight to a restaurant on Santa Monica Beach for dinner.
And James named Anna and Cinderella compound “Anarella,” giving them jewelry as a token of love and taking pictures together.
Then we quickly spent time together, using the cottage on the beach of California as a refuge.
Anna Maria Pierangeli (1932 – 1971) was an Italian actress, model, and singer who was known for her stage name Pierre Angeli.
She won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in 1950 for her debut film, Tomorrow Is Too Late, and later won the Golden Globe Award for Best New Actor for her performance in the American film Teresa (1951).
In addition, he was a versatile actor who was fluent in Italian and English and spoke almost fluent in French.
In addition to being a versatile actor, he was precocious in male and female relationships. In 1953, when she was 21, she began dating co-star Kirk Douglas while filming the movie Three Love Stories.
They promised to get married and even got engaged. However, their relationship grew estranged as they were never able to meet each other due to their busy schedules.
Meanwhile, in 1954, he filmed “The Silver Holy Grail” and met James Dean, who was filming “East of Eden” at an adjacent Warner Bros. studio.
Their love was relentless and heated. They were oblivious to others’ eyes and were even caught by people around them having loud sex in James’ dressing room on set.
James, who is obsessed with Angeli, proposes to Angeli six months after meeting her. Angeli readily agreed and promised to marry. Compared to the speed at which the two fell in love, the proposal seems to be late.
James raves about Angeli, saying, “Everything about Angeli, especially her soul, is beautiful. She doesn’t have to give it all out. She’s wonderful in her own right. Angeli is a beautiful woman with rare insights.”
But their love doesn’t just go to plan like this. Two days later, Angeli returns to Dean after telling her mother the news and delivers a shocking message to him. What were her shocking words??
