Starring in only 3 films in his brief career, actor James Dean left a lasting impact on fans. Five decades on Dean is still as compelling to watch as he was 50 years ago.

Below is a list of his film roles, and also his appearances on Broadway, complete with links to external further information.
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East of Eden (1955) as Cal Trask
Directed by Elia Kazan
In the Salinas Valley, in and around World War I, Cal Trask feels he must compete against overwhelming odds with his brother Aron for the love of their father Adam. Cal is frustrated at every turn, from his reaction to the war, to how to get ahead in business and in life, to how to relate to estranged mother.
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Related Links:
[ Internet Movie Database ]
[ FilmSite ]
[ Resource Guide ]
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Rebel Without a Cause (1955) as Jim Stark
Directed by Nicholas Ray
Jim Stark is the new kid in town. He has been in trouble elsewhere; that's why his family has had to move before. Here he hopes to find the love he doesn't get from his middle-class family. Though he finds some of this in his relation with Judy, and a form of it in both Plato's adulation and Ray's real concern for him, Jim must still prove himself to his peers in switchblade knife fights and "chickie" games in which cars race toward a seaside cliff.
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Related Links:
[ Internet Movie Database ]
[ FilmSite ]
[ A Psychoanalytic Study of ]
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Giant (1956) as Jett Rink
Directed by George Stevens
Texan rancher Bick Benedict visits a Maryland farm to buy a prize horse. Whilst there he meets and falls in love with the owner's daughter Leslie, they are married immediately and return to his ranch. The story of their family and its rivalry with cowboy and (later oil tycoon) Jett Rink unfolds across two generations.
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Related Links:
[ Internet Movie Database ]
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Small Film Roles:

Sailor Beware (1951) Dean had a bit part
Directed by Hal Walker
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Fixed Bayonets (1951) Dean's one line ended up on the cutting room floor
Directed by Samuel Fuller
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Has Anybody Seen My Gal? Dean plays a customer in an ice cream parlor
Directed by Douglas Sirk
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Theatrical Appearances on Broadway



See The Jaguar (1952) as Wally Wilkins
Directed by Michael Gordon
Cort Theatre
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The Immoralist (1954) as Bachir
Directed by Daniel Mann
Royal Theatre
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Dean also starred in many television shows in the 1950's details of which can be found in the 'TV Appearances' section.