The Making of Rebel Without a Cause

In 1954, troubled director Nicholas Ray chatted at a dinner party about his controversial plan for a film about middle-class juvenile delinquents. He was told of a book, written by a prison psychologist and owned by Warner Bros., called Rebel Without a Cause. Though he was initially unimpressed, Ray adapted the book into his own screenplay and Warner Bros. hired him to direct what would become a classic. From the backgrounds of the many players to the pre-production, production, and post-production of the film, this complete history recounts every aspect of Rebel Without a Cause from its rudiments to the 1955 Academy Awards: the selection of cast and crew, legal fights, changing screenwriters and the many variations of the story, location scouting, auditions, script readings, difficulties with the censors, romances and fights, the editing, test screenings, and, of course, the death of its star. Dozens of intimate anecdotes, from wardrobe decisions to James Dean’s pranks, add rich detail. An epilogue discusses the possible sequels, rights conflicts, documentaries, musicals, and spin-off attempts, and offers concluding words on the cast and crew.

Novelist and reference librarian Douglas L. Rathgeb has published in The Journal of Popular Film and Television, Literature/Film Quarterly, Post Script and the Steinbeck Newsletter. He lives and works in Davis, California.

• “meticulously detailed…inspired…well organized…thoughtful”—Classic Images
• “a detailed look…Rathgeb has done film history a service”—Film & History

Douglas L. Rathgeb

Foreword by Stewart Stern
Format: softcover (7 x 10)
Pages: 246
Bibliographic Info: photos, appendix, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2011 [2004]
pISBN: 978-0-7864-6115-8
eISBN: 978-0-7864-8750-9
Imprint: McFarland

Acknowledgments      vii
Foreword by Stewart Stern      1
Preface      3
Prologue      5

Part I: Preliminaries
1. Nicholas Ray      11
2. “The Blind Run”      16
3. James Dean      20
4. Weisbart and Uris      23
5. Story into Script      28
6. Lindner and Shulman      32
7. Changes      34
8. Stewart Stern      40
9. Dead End      42
10. A Critique      46
11. Los Angeles and New York      48

Part II: Pre-Production
12. A Private Hell      53
13. Screenplay by Stewart Stern      55
14. Start Notice      58
15. Casting      63
16. Mr. Warner      67
17. Free-for-All      70
18. Locations      74
19. Mr. Warner Returns      77
20. Majors and Minors      79
21. The Excitement Gathers      81
22. Cold Feet      84
23. Rehearsals      87
24. Blackboard Jungle      92
25. Exit Stern      99

Part III: Production
26. On Location      105
27. Transformation      111
28. Red Channels      114
29. Hard Work, Hard Feelings      117
30. Lost Time      120
31. The Mansion      124
32. Fury and Sound      127
33. Looping and Ad-Libbing      130
34. Stern’s Argument      135
35. Lonely Street      138
36. Night Work      141
37. Reckless Violence      144
38. Two Endings and an Argument      147

Part IV: Post-Production and Beyond
39. Two Assignments      155
40. Inquisition      158
41. Rough Cut      161
42. Final Preparations      165
43. Previews      169
44. Death in the Afternoon      173
45. Damage Control      178
46. Reaping the Whirlwind      181
47. Premiere      185
48. Box Office      188
49. Shulman Strikes Back      193
50. Oscar and Beyond      195

Epilogue: After Rebel      197
Appendix      203
Notes      209
Bibliography      227
Index      229