Surviving James Dean

By William Bast

A beautifully written memoir, candid and definitive, that tells the story of Bast's five year relationship with the charismatic actor and American legend--James Dean. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 156980298X
• ISBN13: 9781569802984
• Release Date: April 2006
• Publisher: Barricade Books
• Length: 320 Pages
• Weight: 1.37 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.4" x 1.1" x 6.4"

Customer Reviews

New material

This is a book originally published in 1956, a year after James' death with some added text. One of the greatest and most sought after bios on Jimmy.

Surviving James Dean

Even someone with a mediocre interest in Hollywood's rebel will find Bast's account intriguiing. There's something more than a biography hidden in the pages of "Surviving James Dean." It's almost much more like a memoir of William Bast's, and it allows the reader to get a sense of longing that one can easily relate to. "Surviving James Dean," is as much a love story as it is a recount of the icon-formation days of one of Hollywood's most enigmatic figures. The book honestly portrays the lonely, the erratic, and the very honest side of James Dean in a way that neither flatters nor harms a golden reputation shrouded in foggy dust. One of the best lines in the novel regards a hug shared between the "teammates," (Dean's reference for the friendship) on the New York streets before James flies off to LA to begin filming "East of Eden." Bast references the warmth the hug left on him that day and even now, while writing the book, the warmth is remembered. Reading this book is much like the warmth from a good, meaningful hug. Even now, writing this review, I can feel the warmth left by an honest and intriguing memory of one of America's notable figurines.

Age passes

Some time ago I met a gentleman who said he knew the roommate of James Dean (I was an Ensign USPHS at the time). He told me a number of things which at the time I thought were a little far fetched. But when I read this book I find that the things told to me were in fact "MORE THAN TRUE". This book is well written and has some very true to life facts that make it very memorable. To the point and very truthful as well as believeable. After all these years, reading this book, I realize that I really indirectly met and knew the James Dean and am grateful to read it.

The Real James Dean

I just finished reading Surviving James Dean by William Bast. Bast was Dean's best friend during the last five years of his life. The book is excellent. I have read other Dean biographies, but Bast's book completes the portrait of the man in a way that could only be done by a close friend. Dean is fairly and lovingly portrayed, but the book is not a hagiography. Bast acknowledges Dean's character flaws (we all have them!) without dwelling on them. Instead of the rebel, the introvert, the selfish fellow who has been written about in many lesser biographies, Bast introduces the reader to a young man filled with compassion, generosity, and love of life. This is the James Dean who crawls into Bast's bed and holds him after Bast says good-bye to a lover headed to the battlegrounds of Korea. This is the man who holds his aunt's arthritic hand and strokes it soothingly as he talks with her. This is the movie star on the cusp of success who stops his car on the side of a desert highway to hold and comfort a bird as it dies. Bast argues that Dean was at the very least bisexual and more likely homosexual. He acknowledges that the two of them had a sexual relationship and that Dean had sexual relations with several other men. That information, combined with Bast's conviction that Dean's relationship with Pier was blown way out of proportion, will undoubtedly upset some fans who are homophobic or starry-eyed romantics. Surviving James Dean, however, is not a sexual biography and Dean's sexuality is not the central focus of the book. Many rumors or myths about James Dean are debunked. For example, Bast writes that Dean was not deeply involved in the occult. He also reports that Dean was unfairly accused of copping a "Brando act" when in reality it was coincidental that the two of them had so many interests in common. Bast spends considerable time discussing his own life during the 1950s and his story is nearly as compelling as Dean's. It is amazing what two Midwestern boys from modest means accomplished via their own talent and determination. Bast's book gave me a whole new respect for James Dean and also increased my sadness regarding his early death. James Dean was a very special man indeed and would have left his mark on the world in multiple ways had his life not been so tragically short.

Bast lays it all out with humor and integrity

Well, at long last, the book has arrived. For better or worse, depending upon your view of James Dean, it's here. William Bast knew James Dean when he returned to California to pursue his acting dream. He was one of his first close friends there & a roomate. With balance & humor, Bast lays out the psyche of these 2 friends & writes in such a manner that you feel that you knew him back in the early 50s & just why he came to view Dean as he did. Bast provides a view to his observations & fears, his trepidations about Jimmy, as he got to know the hidden shadow parts of his personality, all the while growing closer. You come to sense that he was, at times, walking a tightrope in his friendship with him. As with each author who knew Dean, a door is opened in our minds on Jimmy, a door to the past, to his ideas, how he thought, his insights, his passions. He's fleshed out by this friend who also lived with him while Jimmy was cutting his teeth in NY. Bast was a friend during Jimmy's formation years, an Icon in the making. He melts away some of the questions & assumptions each Dean fan has of that time & opens up this most personal relationship, all the while discovering/accepting his own sexuality. Unlike some authors, Bast touches several times on Jimmy's true goodness, his tenderness & ability to give to others. On pg 159, your heart will give a little thump as he describes Jimmy's tenderness towards Ortense. He more than any author, will show you how wonderfully God weaved Dean's loving heart. He mirrors carefully Jimmy's own special brand of wisdom & insight: Dean would say things in the moment that displayed his profundity. William's prose is seductive, self disclosing & is reflective of a very bright mind. His sincerity is clear. And while some of us may not be comfortable with what we read here & assume that Mr. Bast may be putting a different "spin" on things, he's had 50 years to decide just what he's gonna put his signature on. I believe he's carved out a work of honesty for that time period of Dean & I for one am grateful that he penned it. You'll laugh, your jaw will drop & if you love Jimmy Dean, you'll be pleased with the newer, fuller piece of the puzzle of this great man's life. After all, on some level, to love Dean is to want to know him, to become more aware of his great mind, moody soul, and God given singular gifts. James Dean, a Wonder, even with any human warts: the light & shine of his halo is so great, nothing can dim it. He's a Star, The Master.