September 30, 1955

[B_blueonblue1964]

I'm sorta surprised that some members here have never heard of James Dean, either. He was certainly an icon to the gay community when I was coming of age and he'd already been dead for ~20 years by that point.

There is some controversy, though, as to how long he could have remained a star in Hollywood. He was notoriously difficult to work with: sullen, moody and frequently late or otherwise uncooperative. His death proved to be a box-office bonanza, as his last two (of three total) films were released posthumously; I frankly doubt that he could have carried out the pace and pressures of stardom.

That, of course, in no way diminishes his overwhelming charisma.

He had been dead for 30 years when I stumbled onto his legacy. But maybe you & I were just more curious about the world around us than the younger generation is. If James Dean hadn't died, then Paul Newman wouldn't have gotten his big break----Newman may have then gone back to Ohio and sold cars.
Sadly, this younger generation also has no idea about Stonewall:frown1:

 

[B_blueonblue1964]

I graduated I got the hell out. That aside, which has nothing to do with anything nor anyone's business, you're right PR has a lot to do with movie success and popularity. I still say Titanic was damn good.

As for the whole, my gen did this, we had to do this and this plus that, which you guys (the next gen) never did, great, more power to you and whoever had to do it that way. Yes, we have the internet, but it is too large a resource and too time consuming to search out the 50s culture, one simple google search wouldn't begin to cover nor could possibly elicit all a culture has to offer and had experienced. So you can call that lazy or whatever. I'm interested enough, in that I like to watch classic films, a simple name throw-out doesn't garner my interest enough to avidly look up whomever it is, a good synopsis of a person and what great work they do/did however would be. But remember, not only does my gen have the internet, so does yours, it's not an exclusive network of information to my gen, so with that said, what culture of my gen's have you looked up? Don't discount all my gen has done so far as utterly amounting to nothing, we have our gems too. This discussion is definitely the archetype of a two-way street.

We all could go on waving about how our gen is better than the other, or has more this or that, but it's still all a pointless bit of banter. Every gen's gen before it bemoans what a lost cause the next gen is, the gen before yours bemoaned how the youth were ruined with rock and roll, the hippies, greasers, etc. Your gen bemoans how mine is lazy, and whatever else spit tongue remarks that just keep getting repeated again and again with each gen to come, I've noticed even my gen bemoans the gen after us. But just because my gen, supposedly doesn't have to do all the hard work you had to with your gen, is just being foolish to complain about, sorry technology advanced and we don't have to belabor the same way. We do belabor just differently. Keep in mind your gen didn't have to do the same hard work the previous gen before yours did either, with the hardships of the great depression, dust bowl (a bit too previous perhaps), not having the full advent of vaccines, etc. No gen is better than any other gen, no one is better than any other person, it's okay to be proud of what your gen made, produced, and accomplished, but don't be a dick about it.

You're a very smart, articulate young man. And, yes, I can sometimes be a dick. I was beginning to sound like my parents----"We had to walk 5 miles in the snow, no shoes, to get to school. Then found out it was Saturday!"
Most of my friends are in their 20s (and they work). I'm always learning from them. They are always asking me about the 1980s. We CAN learn from each other. When I was younger, your age, I hung out with people who were twice my age, always learning from them. Now, I am drawn to people who are half my age, your generation. I do find all generation interesting. I just wish more people (your age, my age, and younger and older) were more curious. I'm 45 (forty-fucking-five), and I have experienced more than most men my age. In fact, an old school mate told me the other night that he hasn't done anything, except raise a family and work. I've partied with celebrities, seen most of the world, beat several addictions, failed at more than most men will ever try, had it all, lost it all (literally! I was on the mean street on Southern California at one point, eating out of dumpsters), had it all again. What was it worth? Raising a family and working ain't too bad!:smile:

 

[D_John Quicky Adams]

And all is well in the land of lspg:smile:

 

[Errol_Sin]

´

.......... Here's JD in Samuel Fuller's Fixed Bayonets! . (1951)



.......... James Dean First movie appearance (1951) - YouTube




http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fixed_Bayonets!


http://www.sensesofcinema.com/2009/feature-articles/samuel-fuller-tag-gallagher/





´

 

[bigone90036]

Holy shit! If someone has never heard of James Dean, they need to just give up and put a gun in their mouth! Unreal.

 

[B_blueonblue1964]

A few gay icons EVERY gay male should know...

Madonna
Judy Garland
Bette Midler
Cher
Barbara Streisand
James Dean
Freddie Mercury
Marilyn Monroe
Diana Ross
Liza Minnelli
Elton John
Donna Summer
Rock Hudson
Elizabeth Taylor
Montgomery Clift
Liberace

Those are in no particular order. If I forgot someone, please let us know (as I'm sure you will).
Plus, EVERY gay man should know about Stonewall! Plus, how President Ronald Reagan ignored the AIDS epidemic.

 

[leapyear]

And how about something other than dance hit wonders and silver screen idols...
Armistead MAUPIN, Oscar WILDE, Langston HUGHES, James BALDWIN, Evelyn WAUGH,
Edward ALBEE, Gertude STEIN, Paul BOWLES, Noel COWARD, Hart CRANE, Harvey FIERSTEIN, David LEAVITT, Edna ST. VINCENT MILLAY, MILTON, PROUST, COCTEAU, T.S. ELLIOT, ISHERWOOD, David SEDARIS, CAPOTE, CHEEVER, Edmund WHITE, Alan GINSBERG and on and on...

 

[chesschess]

I haven't seen Titanic {I think the public was duped in to seeing that flick due to the marketing that the $400 million campaign bought}---I was in Los Angeles during the time that that flick was made and marketed. The PR leading up to its release was a fraud. Everyone wanted to see that flick because the PR suits & ties conned the media in to believing it was a $400 million venture. People saw it out of curiosity.
The media was played by the PR department (READ: FREE ADVERTISING).
As for The Wizard of Oz---Yes, it's a classic. I love it. Why is it so widly known? Because it's shown on TV at least once a year. PR!
I saw the original Star Wars all those years ago----I hated it! I glanced at it's sequels---CRAP!
Citizen Kane is one of my favorite movies----maybe my all-time favorite.
The younger generation amazes me----They have access to the world with the Internet....Yet many of them think Tennessee Williams was a country singer from the 1950s! There is no reason for the younger generation not to know who Bob Geldof is! Maybe they should spend more time Googling our culture and less time Googling porn...My generation was taught with encyclopedias, dictionaries, and libraries. We didn't have the luxury of the Internet. Plus, with the History Channel, National Geographic Channel, and Discovery Channel, the younger generation has no excuse to be uneducated. They're simply lazy, not interested, and not curious. :frown1:

Sorry, I have a problem with anyone criticizing something they really know nothing about. Go see Titanic and then play the role of a critic. Otherwise you're being guilty of the same ignorance about which you're criticizing the younger generation.

That being said, I have heard of Bob Geldof but know nothing about him even though I am sure I was a member his generation as I'm probably one of the oldest, if not the oldest one, here. I will have to do some googling myself and see what I can learn about him.

 

[B_blueonblue1964]

And how about something other than dance hit wonders and silver screen idols...
Armistead MAUPIN, Oscar WILDE, Langston HUGHES, James BALDWIN, Evelyn WAUGH,
Edward ALBEE, Gertude STEIN, Paul BOWLES, Noel COWARD, Hart CRANE, Harvey FIERSTEIN, David LEAVITT, Edna ST. VINCENT MILLAY, MILTON, PROUST, COCTEAU, T.S. ELLIOT, ISHERWOOD, David SEDARIS, CAPOTE, CHEEVER, Edmund WHITE, Alan GINSBERG and on and on...

Great choices! Just add Tennessee Williams...On the political front, Harvey Milk.

 

[luvmycock]

james

 

[elegant20]

Funny you mention Elvis Presley being influenced by James Dean. In fact, early in Presley's acting career, he was copying a bit of James Dean's own persona, as seen in movies like Jailhouse Rock and Flaming Star. Though Elvis was hardly an actor, you could see how influential James Dean was to him. However, as the years go, Elvis became more of himself due to Colonel Tom Parker's hold on his later movies...in fact, Parker had a bit of a control on Elvis as well.

 

[B_blueonblue1964]

Funny you mention Elvis Presley being influenced by James Dean. In fact, early in Presley's acting career, he was copying a bit of James Dean's own persona, as seen in movies like Jailhouse Rock and Flaming Star. Though Elvis was hardly an actor, you could see how influential James Dean was to him. However, as the years go, Elvis became more of himself due to Colonel Tom Parker's hold on his later movies...in fact, Parker had a bit of a control on Elvis as well.

:smile:Thank you! Yes, Elvis said he studied James Dean's movies to learn about acting. Elvis copied Dean, Elvis was a huge Dean fan, Elvis was influenced by Dean! And, Tom Parker (who was by no means a real Colonel, but then again, neither was Colonel Sanders) was a crook! He was making more money from Elvis than Elvis was making. Elvis died with a couple of million dollars----thanks to Priscilla, Elvis' estate is now worth billions! But that's another story.

 

[elegant20]

As strange as it might, James Dean was very influential among other future generations that wanted to act. I believe both River Phoenix and Corey Haim were great fans of Dean's work. While James Dean did copy a bit of Brando's method acting earlier on, there was no doubt he was a very influential individual. Yes, he did have problems and would arive late on the set, but still he was a very influential actor that lots of future generations cited as being their biggest influence for acting. Like Michael Jackson was influential to the music industry in general, James was influential to method actors.

Not just the gay community, he was pretty influential abroad. And nobody ever came close to his status in his short career span.

 

[B_blueonblue1964]

How many gays know the importance & meaning of Doris Day's Secret Love?

 

[rhonnie14]

I'm 19 but I love classic movies. My favorite movie of all time is John Huston's version of The Maltese Falcon and I even love silent films like Intolerance, Sherlock Jr., Pandora's Box, and Nosferatu. But while I don't think James Dean was as great as Bogie, Monty, Marlon Brando, or Jimmy Stewart, I do still think that he's a great actor and all three of the films that he starred in are terrific (My favorite being his performance as Jim in Rebel Without A Cause, though he's great as Cal in East Of Eden also). Do I hate my generation for being so ignorant as to all the great classic movies? Absolutely. There's not much I can do about that though except recommend these excellent movies to my friends or tell them to watch TCM more or go to any public library and rent these masterpieces for free. Instead they'd rather go waste several dollars on these shitty modern movies that Hollywood keeps making. There will never be any consistently excellent film era like The Golden Age Of Hollywood (which I say is 1938-1957 in my opinion).

 

[D_Harry_Scholnga]

Guess I ain't gay.