Stuff in the Basement: Influences of James Dean

This book is, intended for all of you that have dreams. It is my sincere hope that you can make your dreams become a reality. The inspiration for writing this book was visiting Fairmount, Indiana on a whim in September of 2016. I had wanted to visit James Dean's hometown ever since becoming a fan in 1983. While visiting my sister Anne over the 2016 United States Thanksgiving holiday weekend, my oldest sister Mary saw my passion in discussing my visits to Fairmount, Indiana. She saw in me a passion for acting years earlier. She suggested I follow through on that passion. On January 9, 2017, I retired from the Air Force Reserve. This freed up my weekends. My daughters were also getting self-sufficient. Courtney was sixteen and Heidi was eleven. I used this new found, independence to act in Community Theater. It suddenly dawned on me that I was FINALLY doing what I desired to do for the past 34 years. To become an actor. That desire started after seeing James Dean act in the film, East of Eden. It was as if everything had gone full circle. Upon completion of my roles in that first musical, Beauty and the Beast, I was motivated to write an article for The Deanzine, the official magazine of the James Dean Remembered Fan Club. I showed the article to Debbie, my significant other, who said I had enough material to expand the article (which appeared in two separate issues of the magazine), into a book. So I wrote it out in long hand first and refined it by adding photographs in the final typed version. I have written this for not only James Dean fans, but also for those who have been, told their dreams would be impossible. It is a book essentially about the trials and tribulations of life. There are obstacles that stand in our way that we must hurdle over or punch our way through. Overcoming the burdens of the deaths of family members, divorce, lost loves, etc. Life is not a flat plane of existence. It has peaks and valleys. So enjoy those peaks and pull yourselves out of the valleys. Enjoy!