The

Death Drive 

September 30, 1955

WARNING:

WARNING:

 Use caution. Neither Tim Black  nor WARREN BEATH TAKE ANY RESPONSIBILITY FOR ANYTHING THAT HAPPENS TO ANY INDIVIDUALS OR HIS VEHICLE while  TAKING THE ORIGINAL JAMES DEAN ROUTE IN ITS CURRENT CONDITION. THIS ROAD WAS OLD US HIGHWAY 99 FROM 1952 UNTIL 1964 AND HAS NOT BEEN IN FULL USE SINCE 1967. MANY AREAS HAVE BEEN DAMAGED OVER THE YEARS BY FLOOD AND EARTHQUAKE. USE EXTREME CAUTION IF YOU DECIDE TO RETRACE JAMES DEAN'S SEPTEMBER 30, 1955 ROUTE. WE HOPE YOU HAD BETTER LUCK THAN HE DID.

This research may not represent actual circumstances that have affected the road in recent months. It is only a guide post. 

DID HE KNOW HE WAS IN DANGER?

At left Dean fusses over his race ready Porsche, eager to get on the road to Salinas.

Below, he sits finally ready to leave for Salinas at 1:30pm September 30, 1955 in front of Johnnie Von Neumann's Competition Motors. His 1955 Ford Country Squire, driven by his friend and racing mentor Bill Hickman, shadows him up the road all the way towing a custom dual-axle racing trailer. Dean wants to improve his driving skills and get some miles on the car to loosen it up for the race at Salinas. His Hollywood buddy, stunt-driver Bill Hickman spent some time with him the day before showing him. His mechanic Rolf Wutherich, Von Nuemann's employee,is part of the deal. He is to accompany Dean at every race, keeping the complex Ernst Fuhrman designed 547 1500cc motor in tune. Dean's photographer, Sanford Roth, tags along in the wagon as part of an assignment with Colliers to document the race and subsequent San Francisco vacation.  

Above is Johnnie Von Neumann's Competition Motors, a Volkswagen and Porsche dealership that catered to Hollywood stars enamored with the powerful and sporty new Porsche imports.

James Dean buys his first Porsche, a white 356

 Speedster  and enters races at Pacific Palisades and Pasadena where he wins. 

Dean sits in the 356 smoking a Chesterfield.

Dean, now a race car driver living his dream.

  His next race with the Speedster is a two-day meet at Palm Springs Airport in early March just days before his first major film, East of Eden, opens.

 He does not show up for the opening. Marilyn Monroe is an honorary "usherette" at the Astor, New York where he appeared only on the silver screen.

 . 
A beautiful Marilyn-Dean Romance is only fantasy. Marilyn is friends with both Dean idols, Marlon Brando and Montgomery Clift, but a Marilyn-Dean connection was not likely. Dean was often intimidated by the Hollywood establishment and Marilyn is already a Twentth Century Fox superstar by the time Eden Opens.

 Dean begins filming Rebel Without a Cause March 28th.

 Dean gets along well with Maverick director Nicholas Ray who often allows him to direct scenes.The cast is carefully chosen and the chemistry is evident.

 At Minter Field north of Bakersfield during the weekend of April 29-may 1st, Dean sees his first 550 Spyder. It is owned by the owner of the above car dealership Johnnie Von Neumann.

Above is Minter Field in Bakersfield 

 Later that month Dean blows a piston in his 356 Speedster at the Santa Barbara races.

 This sidelines him for the rest of the race. Not one to waste time, Dean observes the faster running cars and introduces himself to the owner of the 169 car, a 550 Spyder.

 In the ensuing months,Jimmy's final film, Giant, takes up most of his time.

 Contractually banned from racing during the shoot, Dean asks Von Neumann to let him know when his dealership takes delivery of another 550 Spyder. the car is famous for winning at LeMans and Nurburgring. Von Neumann's response is disappointing. None is available before the fall.

 Jimmy does not want to wait, so he settles on a car he has spotted in a June Road and Track--The Lotus MK IX, another fast racer that is racking up trophies.

 On July 8th, Jimmy places an order for one and then leaves for Marfa,Texas, to begin location shoots.

 returning to Hollywood from Texas,Dean's scenes in Giant wrap in late September, and he prepares for his race at Salinas. He had nearly missed entering the race before the registration cutoff.

Wednesday September 28th after purchase and a custom number and lettering job, a race-ready 550 Spyder sits in Jimmy's driveway at 14611 Sutton. 

  Three new Porsche Spyder 550s arrive at Competition Motors earlier than expected in mid-September, and Dean cancels the order on the Lotus. He arranges to trade in his 356 Super Speedster plus $3,000 for a new 550 at Competition Motors.

 He then takes the car to a customizer to have the number "130" painted on the doors and hoods and the words "Little Bastard", a monicker Bill Hickman gives him, and he begins driving the new car around Hollywood to get accustomed to its handling. He asks his buddy Bill Hickman to ride with him giving him driving tips.  

Cockpit of a new 550 Spyder

oTwo 550 Spyders at a European race. The Spyders were designed to win.

 An emblem like the one below is Wutherich's gift to Dean on race day. It is an prestigious award the German has won earlier that year. The mechanic attaches it to the lower right front fender of the 550.

 Not quite an equal trade for the cheap airline ring Dean removes from his pinky and gives Rolf at Tip's (See "Death Drive" ). 

James Dean on the lot at Competition Motors September 30, 1955. Nurburgring medallion is attached to lower front fender.

Vintage gold plastic child's Airline ring (not the actual ring Dean gave Rolf). These are given to children by airlines as keepsakes.

James Dean, with his passenger and mechanic Rolf Wutherich, leaves Competition motors at 1:30pm. Friends Bill Hickman and Sanford Roth follow in the station wagon towing the racing trailer. Bill Hickman is a stunt car driver and had taught Dean to drive the Porsche. Roth is his photographer going along to shoot photos for a Colliers spread on Dean's race and subsequent vacation in San Francisco.

 They travel up Vine and take a left onto Sunset. They travel Sunset to Cahuenga and made a right turn toward the 101 freeway where they enter the first leg of their trip. They exit at Beverly Glen, minutes from Dean's Home at 14611 Sutton Street, Sherman Oaks (seen below).

The service station off Beverly Glen still exists today.After refueling, Dean has this photo snapped.Later that after noon at 5:45pm Dean would be killed on a rural highway several hundred miles to the north of this spot.

Read the whole story of the day James Dean Died in Warren Beath's

THE DEATH OF JAMES DEAN

  If you want the truth about what happened the day James Dean died, this is the hour-by-hour story based on the actual transcript of the accident inquest and interviews with eyewitnesses.

If you've never read the story of the day James Dean died, this is your book. This is the book that started it all for me.

Tim Black

The official inquest verdict

Dean's first important film East of Eden was a Warner Brothers adaptation of John Steinbeck's book.

 It had opened March 10th at the Astor in New York, and was the only film in which he starred to be released prior to his death.

 Director Elia Kazan told his cast "You are going to meet a boy, and he's going to be very strange to you and he's going to be different; no matter what you see or what you think of him, when you see him on the screen he's going to be pure gold.

Fools gold, the starchy Raymond Massey would decide before the picture was in the can.

James Dean had just completed his last scenes in Giant

A Warner film directed by his least favorite, but most respected director George Stevens who gives Jimmy no room to excercise his "Method" acting skills.

Also Stevens forbids Dean to race during the shooting of the epic adapted from Edna Ferber's book that take months of painstaking filming on location in Marfa, Texas during the hottest time of the year.

Dean was never more ready to race his new Spyder and September 30, 1955 should be a day filled with freedom and promise.

With one successful film already making millions, a second promising to top the first, this last epic that paired him with the finest of Hollywood, a 10 million dollar deal, ink still wet on the contract at Warners, James Dean died at a time when he should have been on top of the world.

Humphrey Bogart said his death was "A great career move". A sarcastic, but perhaps so true an assessment.

Hop in the seat of Dean's Porsche 550

To go on a virtual James Dean death drive as it appears today, simply keep scrolling down and viewing left.

To re-trace the route James Dean took on September 30, 1955, start with a donut at Farmer's Market on Third and Fairfax in Hollywood. Jimmy is said to have had a donut here, but it was the old Hollywood Ranch Market.

More on that below.

September 30, 1955 

That morning, James Dean had risen at 7:20 at his home at 14611 Sutton Street in Sherman Oaks.
 He threw on a pair of faded blue jeans and a white T-shirt and, it was a little cool out, put a thin, black pull-over sweater over the T-shirt. He lit a Chesterfield and had a cup of coffee. He packed a suitcase and walked out to his driveway and his Ford Station Wagon hitched to an empty race trailer. His 1955 Porsche 550/1500RS Spyder was being prepped at Competition Motors.

 The Log home seen above was Dean's. He recently rented it from Nicco Romanos, the maitre d' at the Villa Capri, his favorite eatery. The home burned beyond repair many years ago and was replaced by the home seen below.  

Dean drove the wagon to pick-up his friends Bill Hickman and Sanford Roth who would be driving up to Salinas with him. Bill, an Industry Stunt Driver was his also racing mentor and Sanford (Sandy) was his current photographer along to document the race and subsequent San Francisco vacation for a spread in Collier's magazine. The trio then drove to Competition Motors where Rolf Wutherich, a Stuttgart- trained Porsche mechanic, was still working on the Spyder. Dean s met his father Winton, and Uncle, Charles Nolan there, and they walked a half  block to Hollywood Ranch Market for donuts and coffee. Coffee was Jimmy's favorite drink and chocolate devil's food donuts were his favorite.

But the Hollywood Ranch Market no longer exists so the best you can do to duplicate that experience is to get donuts and coffee at Farmer's Market, a faithful substitute. Farmers Market is on 3rd and Fairfax and Competition Motors was at 1219 North Vine. Take the short trip to 1219 North Vine and be disappointed to find the Competition Motors building no longer exists.To see a photo of the building in its final days, refer back to the home page.

From Competition Motors we duplicate Dean's route to the 101.

Take Vine to Sunset and turn left to Cahuenga. Make a right on Cahuenga and catch the 101 freeway north. Taking the Ventura Blvd. exit to Beverly Glen, you will find the service station that can be seen in the photo a little down the page at left where Dean filled up his tanks. Below is a modern view. 

Get back on the 101 and take it to the I-5 north. This was the Sepulveda pass in Jimmy's day. Sanford Roth and Bill Hickman pulled the station wagon up along the left side of the Porsche. Roth took the very last photo of James Dean alive on the 101 just before U.S. 99 (below).

Last photo of Dean alive
 
Today you can only take the 101 to the I-5 and go north. Near the aqueduct old 99 can be picked back up by taking the SR-14 truck route along the right side of the I-5 .
This can be reached by catching old San Fernando Road beyond the intersection with the Sierra Highway. That will take us to Weldon Canyon.

 (Where the 99 and US 6 meet today)

At the top of Weldon Summit we will see the old James Dean- era 99 as it appears from under the I-5. We can catch the old 99 there.

James Dean's view of Weldon Summit and the 99 in 1955. The I-5 crosses over the old James Dean 99 at the bottom of Gavin Canyon. (see below).

You can stay on the old James Dean 99 to just before the I-5 at about Magic Mountain. All you can see of the James Dean route is just to the north of the Calgrove interchange where the lanes go under the freeway. From here until Valencia Avenue, the old 99 is buried under the I-5 freeway.

We exit left at Valencia Avenue and head west until we rejoin the old 99 James Dean drove. Magic Mountain Parkway in James Dean's day was called Saugus Ventura Road, and the intersection here was relocated during the construction of the I-5 in the mid-1960s. We will cross a bridge built over the Santa Clarita River in 1928. The bridge still exists (see below).

Above is a picture of Jimmy's Old Saugus Road. 

We can take the old 99 to the Tip's Diner location where James Dean and his tiny caravan stopped for a snack.

     www.whokilledjamesdean.com