the cop who gave him the ticket the day he died said he didn't know who he was
sharetoo bad the cop didn't recognize him and talk to him for a while--then that car would have made the left turn before JD got to that spot on the highway...
"Did you make coffee...? Make it!"--Cheyenne.
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He was famous, but became most famous after his death.
If the cop was older, he may not have seen East Of Eden or paid attention to the reviews in the paper.
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A lot of Dean's fame between East of Eden and Rebel was through the movie magazines which were very numerous at that time. The patrolman who gave him the ticket was a valley guy and a little older which means he had not much interest in those magazines or Hollywood movie stars in general. However, young people were very aware of Dean. But for anyone who read those magazines, there was a story about Dean in almost everyone published at that time. Later he was also featured in Look and Life Magazines about the time he died.
During that last trip, they stopped at a roadside place for lunch. As they were leaving, the young waitress asked one of the people with Dean "Is that James Dean?". He answered the "He sure is." I wonder how she felt being one of the last people to see him alive.
Eden made him very famous, especially around the Hollywood circles and gained him a lot of fans. He became an absolute legend after he died though. Liz Sheridan said that when Rebel was being released everyone couldn't stop talking about the 'East of Eden' star in it who had died. People were fascinated.
"Jimmy, if you keep stabbing me, you're going to kill me." - Chopper