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The Curse Of James Dean's “Little Bastard”

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Gilian
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« on: December 17, 2010, 09:38:12 am »

The Curse Of James Dean's “Little Bastard”




When we think of the Porsche 550 Spyder, the first thing that comes to mind is James Dean. We suggest you stop thinking about it if you enjoy your health.

Since James Dean’s death in 1955, the Porsche 550 Spyder has become infamous as the car that killed him. As young Jalops we watched an Unsolved Mysteries episode on the curse of the James Dean Porsche. These stories not only made the famous car seem more like Christine than Porsche, they downright scared us. We decided to share some of the stories with you. Read on if you dare.

While filming Rebel Without A Cause, James Dean had upgraded from the 356 to the 550 Spyder and decided that he wanted to make it uniquely his. Dean called upon George Barris, of movie car fame, to customize the Porsche. He gave it tartan seats, two red stripes over the rear wheels and plastered the number ‘130’ on its doors, hood and engine cover. The name “Little Bastard” was given by Dean language coach, Bill Hickman, and was later painted on the car by master pin striper, Dean Jeffries. On September 23 of 1955, Dean met actor Alec Guinness (Obi-Wan Kebobi) outside of a restaurant and had him take a look at the Spyder. Guinness told Dean that the car had a “sinister” appearance and then told Dean: “If you get in that car, you will be found dead in it by this time next week.” Seven days later, Dean would be killed in his beloved “Little Bastard.” Cue the Unsolved Mysteries theme song.

That “Little Bastard” not only killed James Dean, but killed and maimed others who came in contact with it causing many to say that the damn thing was cursed. George Barris, who customized the 550 originally, bought the wrecked carcass of “Little Bastard” for $2500 and soon after it slipped off its trailer and broke a mechanics leg. Not long after Barris sold the engine and drivetrain to Troy McHenry and William Eschrid. While the two were both racing against one another in cars that had parts from the “Little Bastard,” McHenry lost control and hit a tree, killing him instantly and Eschrid was seriously injured when his car suddenly locked up and rolled over while going into a turn. Barris still had two tires from the 550 which were untouched in Dean’s accident. He sold them and not long after, both blew out simultaneously causing the new owner’s car to run off the road. Barris had kept the car in his possession sans the sold parts and it caught the attention of two would-be thieves. One of the thieves arms was torn open trying to steal the steering wheel while the other was injured trying to remove the bloodstained tartan seat.

Due to all the incidents involving “Little Bastard,” Barris decided to hide the car but was convinced by the California Highway Patrol to lend the cursed heap to a highway safety exhibit. The first exhibit was unsuccessful as the garage that housed the car caught fire and burned to the ground. Mysteriously the car suffered virtually no damage from the fire. The next exhibition at a local high school ended abruptly when the car fell off its display and broke a nearby student’s hip.

The curse continued when the “Little Bastard” was being transported when the truck carrying the car lost control which caused the driver to fall out and somehow get crushed by the car after it fell off the back. The car fell off of two more transport trucks while travelling on the freeway fortunately not injuring anyone. The CHP decided that it had had enough of the “Little Bastard” and while transporting the car to Barris, the car mysteriously vanished and has not been seen since.

There are stories of a single piece of “Little Bastard” residing at the Historic Auto Attractions museum in Illinois, but we’re not brave enough to find out.



http://jalopnik.com/5113390/the-curse-of-james-deans-little-bastard
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Gilian
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« Reply #1 on: December 17, 2010, 09:40:56 am »

The Curse of James Dean's Porsche


James Dean driving his new Porsche with his mechanic Rolf Wutherich on the day of his death.


James Dean's Porsche

Friends told James Dean that the car was trouble when they saw it - a rare Silver Porsche Spyder, one of only 90 in 1955. Nicknamed "The Little Bastard," the car carried the iconic screen rebel to his grave on September 30, 1955.

After the accident, many fans refused to believe Dean was dead. A story circulated that he was still alive although terribly disfigured, and in true urban legend fashion this tale took on a life of its own.

I won't go into all the James Dean as a cult idol stuff except to say his mystique has staying power. For example, his tombstone was stolen twice in 1983, and in 1985 had to be replaced because of damage done to it by fans. Seems he was still the popular fellow despite having been dead for three decades.

After the tragedy, master car customizer George Barris bought the wreck for $2,500. When the wreck arrived at Barris' garage, the Porsche slipped and fell on one of the mechanics unloading it. The accident broke both of the mechanic's legs.

While Barris had bad feelings about the car when he first saw it, his suspicions were confirmed during a race at the Pomona Fair Grounds on October 24, 1956. Two physicians, Troy McHenry and William Eschrid, were both racing cars that had parts from the "Little Bastard." McHenry died when his car, which had the Porsche's engine installed, went out of control and hit a tree. Eschrid's car flipped over. Eschrid, who survived despite serious injuries, later said that the car suddenly locked up when he went into a curve.

The car's malevolent influence continued after the race: one kid trying to steal the Porsche's steering wheel slipped and gashed his arm. Barris reluctantly sold two of the car's tires to a young man; within a week, the man was nearly involved in a wreck when the two tires blew out simultaneously.

Feeling that the Porsche could be put to good use, Barris loaned the wrecked car to the California Highway Patrol for a touring display to illustrate the importance of automobile safety. Within days, the garage housing the Spyder burnt to the ground. With the exception of the "Little Bastard," every vehicle parked inside the garage was destroyed. When the car was put on exhibit in Sacramento, it fell from its display and broke a teenager's hip. George Barkuis, who was hauling the Spyder on a flatbed truck, was killed instantly when the Porsche fell on him after he was thrown from his truck in an accident.

The mishaps surrounding the car continued until 1960, when the Porsche was loaned out for a safety exhibit in Miami, Florida. When the exhibit was over, the wreckage, en route to Los Angeles on a truck, mysteriously vanished. To this day, the "Little Bastard's" whereabouts are unknown.

Sources:

AMC's Hollywood Ghost Stories television special

Winer, Richard and Nancy Osborn. Haunted Houses.

http://www.qsl.net/w5www/dean.html
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Gilian
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« Reply #2 on: December 17, 2010, 09:42:12 am »

James Dean and the curse of the Little Bastard.

    * By Tracy Morris
    * Published 04/26/2008
    * The Paranormal
    * Rating: ratingfullratingfullratingfullratingfullratingempty

Was the star's race car a real-life Christine?
It was like a silver bullet: Shiny, fast and rare. James Dean's Porsche 550 Spyder was only one of 90 made. And on September 30, 1955, with Dean behind the wheel, the customized racing machine that he named Little Bastard proved to be just as deadly when it carried Dean into a collision that took the movie star's life.

Then, inexplicably, the wreckage went on to cause property damage, injury, and even death wherever it went, before disappearing altogether.

Dean acquired the Porsche 550 during filming of Rebel Without a Cause for use when he raced. The car was a temporary solution. He'd purchased a Lotus Mk. X, but it wouldn't be delivered in time for an upcoming race in Salinas that he planned to compete in. (A few months prior, he blew the engine out of a Porsche 356 Super Speedster while racing in Santa Monica.)

Immediately, Dean hired legendary car customizer George Barris, the “King of Kustomizers”, to work on the car. Barris is known for his design of the Batmobile for the 60's era Batman TV show. The customizer painted Dean's racing number 130 on the front, sides and back. Along with red racing stripes and the name Little Bastard on the back. The car's name had been taken from a nickname that Dean had been given while filming the move Giant.

Though Dean had been contractually unable to race while filming Giant, once he had finished the movie, he started making plans to race again.

And while the actor was excited to show off his newest race car, his friends weren't happy about the purchase. In the time leading up to Dean's death, friends of the actor - including Barris, Eartha Kitt and Dean's former girlfriend Ursula Andress - said that they felt that the vehicle had a malevolent presence about it.

“James, I don't like this car; it's going to kill you,” Kitt is reported to have said to Dean while the two were out for a drive the week before Dean's crash.

Around the same time, Dean introduced himself to Alec Guinness and asked the actor's opinion of the car. Upon seeing it, Guinness stated that the car was sinister, and said that if Dean got in it, he would be dead within the week.

Perhaps Dean himself sensed that he was headed for destruction. Prior to his death, he gave away a kitten that Liz Taylor gave to him on the set of Giant. His reasoning for doing so was that “some day I may go out and not come back.”

And while filming a commercial for the National Safety Council, Dean ad-libbed the words of the script from “Please Drive Safely. The life you save may your own,” to “The life you save may be mine.”
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Gilian
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« Reply #3 on: December 17, 2010, 09:42:39 am »

The anticipated road race was to take place on October 1. On September 30, Dean and his entourage consisting of his mechanic Rolf Wütherich and stunt driver Bill Hickman, both of whom would serve as Dean's racing crew. Also traveling with the group was Life magazine photographer Stanford Rolf, who planned on doing a photo story of Dean at the races.

Dean originally planned to trailer the Porsche behind his station wagon, but at the last minute decided to drive the car to the race in order to familiarize himself with it. Wütherich would ride with Dean while Hickman and Rolf would take the station wagon.

During one of the stops along the way, Hickman cautioned Dean to watch his speed (both drivers had already received tickets that day, Dean for going 10 miles over the speed limit. Since Hickman was pulling a trailer, his ticket was for 20 over.) Hickman cautioned that Dean was still getting used to the car. He said that Dean's silver Porsche was difficult to see, thanks to its low profile and silver color. He was concerned that it might blend too easily into the pavement.

At approximately 5:30, Dean was driving west on U.S. Route 466 near Cholame, California, when a 1950 black and white Ford Tudor cut across his path. The driver of the Ford was a college student named Donald Turnupseed, who was on the way home to visit his family. Turnupseed had been driving in the oncoming lane and was attempting to make a left-hand turn on to Highway 41.

The sun had just dipped below the nearby hills, and dusk was quickly falling. Just as Hickman predicted, Turnupseed failed to see Dean.

Though legends say that Dean was driving in excess of 100 miles per hour when his vehicle struck Turnupseed's, responding officers say that Dean was in all likelihood only driving 55 miles per hour when the accident happened. According to Wütherich, Dean's last words were: “That guy's gotta stop. . . He'll see us.”

Neither Dean nor Wütherich were wearing their seat belts a the time of the accident. The mechanic was thrown from the automobile, and suffered a broken jaw and leg. Dean remained trapped in the vehicle, which was crushed like a piece of used tinfoil. He was taken by ambulance to nearby Paso Robles War Memorial Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 5:59 PM. Cause of death: broken neck, multiple fractures of the upper and lower jaw, severe head trauma and massive internal bleeding.

What happened next fueled speculation that Dean's car was cursed, or at the very least, led a cursed afterlife.

Barris immediately paid $2,500 for the wreckage with the intent of parting it out. However, a string of bizarre tragedies immediately struck.
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Gilian
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« Reply #4 on: December 17, 2010, 09:43:15 am »

    *

      As soon as the vehicle was delivered to Barris' garage, it slipped off its trailer and broke a mechanic's leg.
    *

      Shortly thereafter, Barris sold the engine to Troy McHenry and the drive train to William Eschrid. Both were physicians and racing hobbyists. While racing at the Pomona fairgrounds on October 24, 1956, McHenry was killed when his vehicle spun out of control and crashed into a tree. Eschrid's race car rolled several times while taking a curve, seriously injuring him. He later said that the vehicle 'just locked up' on him.
    *

      Two tires that Barris sold malfunctioned simultaneously, causing the car they were on to go off the road.
    *

      A young man who was attempting to steal the steering wheel had his arm gashed open on a piece of jagged metal.
    *

      Another man was hurt while trying to steal one of the bloodstained seats.

At this point, Barris decided that the car would be safer in storage. But before long, the California Highway Patrol persuaded him to loan them the car for a traveling exhibition.


    *

      The mangled remains of Little Bastard were taken to a garage in Fresno, and stored there. Then, in March 1959, a fire broke out in the garage. The garage itself, and everything stored within, were incinerated. All except for the wreckage of James Dean's car.
    *

      Further tragedy followed. At a display at Sacramento High School on the anniversary of Dean's accident, the bolts holding the car in place snapped. The car plowed off its display and broke the hip of a fifteen-year-old boy who had been looking at the wreckage.
    *

      En route to Salinas, the truck hauling the vehicle lost control, causing the driver to fall out of the cab. Although the fall from the vehicle didn't kill him, the Porsche fell off the truck bed and landed on top of him, ending his life.
    *

      Reportedly, while being displayed in New Orleans, the wreckage spontaneously broke apart in five separate pieces.
    *

      The car came off of a truck two other times. Once while on a freeway, and a second time in Oregon.
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Gilian
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« Reply #5 on: December 17, 2010, 09:44:25 am »

In 1960, the car's tour ended. Barris had the vehicle loaded onto a box car in Florida and sealed shut. Then it was transported via train back to California. When the train arrived in L.A., the seal was still intact, yet the car had vanished, and has not been seen since.

So was the car cursed? Did it house a malevolent spirit that thirsted for blood? Or were the string of accidents that touched many who came near Little Bastard just bizarre coincidences?

While some folks believe that there is no curse. Others aren't so sure.

For one thing, many people believe that Dean would die young, no matter what. George Stephens, Dean's director on the movie Giant, told his co-star Liz Taylor that with the way Dean drove, it was no surprise to him that the actor died in a car crash.

It has also been speculated that Dean simply couldn't handle the Little Bastard. The car's specs were different from Dean's 356 Super Speedster. The 356 had a lower center of gravity. Additionally, the 550 had higher pivot angles, so it was easier to oversteer a turn and spin out. The 356 was easily the more forgiving of novice mistakes. In the days leading up to the crash, Little Bastard showed evidence of minor fender benders, including a busted signal light, and a dent on the right rear fender. This is partially why Dean chose to drive the Porsche rather than haul it to the race: to give himself time to learn the car's quirks.  Some fans speculate that, had Dean made it to Salinas, he may have caused himself injury or death while racing.

Others aren't so sure.

Some fans have suggested that Dean himself was the one cursed. And the one who placed the curse? Maila Nurmi, who hosted horror films as television's Vampira. Supposedly Nurmi, who was connected with the occult, was upset when Dean broke off their friendship, and cursed him. Others say that Dean's own interest in the occult lead to the actor bringing a curse down on himself.

If Dean was cursed, some fans speculate that the bad luck may have extended to most of his close friends. Rebel Without a Cause costars Natalie Wood, Sal Mineo and Nick Adams, who Dean once called his only true friends, also died under tragic circumstances. Wütherich, who survived the crash, went on to die in a motor vehicle accident in Germany.

Perhaps all of this is coincidence. Perhaps, as skeptics say, the idea of a curse is simply wishful thinking and our own need to venerate stars like Dean who live fast and die young and pretty. Perhaps the highly-charged atmosphere surrounding the well-publicized accident imbued the wreckage with a residual imprint that continued to follow it. Or perhaps the car was just evil.

In any case, the Little Bastard has not been seen since its disappearance in 1960. Rewards for its return, no questions asked, were posted on the 50th anniversary of Dean's death; however no one came forward to claim them. Unless the car is found, the answer may never be known.

http://firefox.org/news/articles/1435/1/James-Dean-and-the-curse-of-the-Little-Bastard/Page1.html
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Gilian
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« Reply #6 on: December 17, 2010, 09:44:40 am »

Tracy Morris

Tracy S. Morris is the author of the award-winning Tranquility series of Southern paranormal humor mysteries.
http://www.yarddogpress.com/allen&.htm
Morris's story Fish Story will appear in the Baen anthology Strip Mauled

Her new novel Bride of Tranquility Is available now from Yard Dog Press.
Her website is http://www.tracysmorris.com/
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