James Dean in Mendocino

James Dean was the Timothée Chalamet of his generation. If you have somehow missed Timothée’s rising star, think young Brad Pitt or Leonardo DiCaprio. So when the handsome, moody hunk arrived in Mendocino in late May of 1954 to star in Elia Kazan’s production of “East of Eden,” people took notice. It’s good that they did because it was the beginning of his meteoric film career and he was killed in a car accident a little over a year later. When he was cast as Cal Trask, Dean was a 23-year old aspiring actor who had recently gained admission to the prestigious Actors Studio in New York, where some of his fellow thespians were Marlon Brando, Eli Wallach, and Julie Harris. He had landed a few bit parts in movies and TV shows like General Electric Theatre, but this was his first starring role.

James Dean in Mendocino: The Filming of East of Eden, originally published in 1994, was recently reprinted by the Kelley House due to popular demand. Compiled and edited by local historian Bruce Levene, the book gives a behind-the-scenes look at the filming, the actors, the local extras, and the many Mendocino scenes preserved on celluloid. The movie was adapted from the final part of John Steinbeck‘s epic 1952 novel and tells the story of a wayward young man seeking his own identity even as he vies for the affection of his religious and controlling father against his favored brother. That he takes up with his brother’s girlfriend does nothing to improve the complex dynamics in the dysfunctional family.

This retelling of the Cain and Abel story was set in Monterey and Salinas, but Warner Brothers couldn’t film it there because those towns no longer looked like they had in 1917. Mendocino did and, furthermore, there were almost no TV antennas that had to be taken down during the shooting. Dr. Preston’s imposing house [which stood where the Mendocino Art Center is now] was featured prominently in the film, even as the town’s beloved Dr. Preston himself lay on his death bed in an upstairs room. Many of the cast members stayed in the Little River Inn, which today still boasts a James Dean Suite.

Not that Dean evinced any fondness for the place while he was a guest there; he mostly kept to himself, affecting an unsociable demeanor like his role model, Brando. Refreshingly different was his co-star, Julie Harris, already a Tony-award winning actress on the New York stage, who loved the inn, got to know all the staff members there, and even helped out in the restaurant on occasion. She mingled with the extras during shootings and was friendly with Mendocino shopkeepers, gaining a popularity with the locals that foreshadowed that of Angela Lansbury 30 years later.

Many of the local folks who were cast as extras are no longer whinnying with us, but their reminiscences about that fun chapter in their lives are preserved in the book. As are many action photos of all the players, both stars and the local talent. Understandably, the Hollywood presence was obsessively covered and commented upon in the local media—in those days the Beacon, the Advocate-News, the Paul Bunyan News, and the Santa Rosa Press Democrat—and every snippet is included. Ron Silva’s piece, “JD and JC,” is reprinted from his The Mendocino Stories.

The Warner Brothers crew left Mendocino on June 2^nd and headed for Burbank to film the interior scenes of “East of Eden,” which were completed by the end of August. In early 1955, the movie premiered in New York City, not Mendocino, perhaps because there was no venue sufficiently large here. Celebrities galore were present, as were all the film’s stars except Dean, who was off in Los Angeles steaming up the camera lens in “Rebel Without a Cause” with Natalie Woods. John Steinbeck was also at the premiere, and his favorable response was quoted in the New York Times: “I was overwhelmed with what they have done. I think it might be the best film I ever saw. I think it’ll be a classic.” Indeed it is a classic and you can read all about it in James Dean in Mendocino. Purchase it at the Kelley House for $20.

The museum is open from 11AM to 3PM Friday through Sunday. “Northern Pomo: Mendocino’s First People” is on exhibit through the end of March; in early April, a new exhibit will open to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Corners of the Mouth collective.  Walking Tours of Mendocino are available throughout the week; the cost is $25. Visit the Kelley House Event Calendar for a Walking Tour schedule.