Rebel Without a Cause (1955) – James Dean, Natalie Wood, Sal Mineo

A perennial on TCM – Great director Nicholas Ray’s masterpiece Rebel Without a Cause (1955) is a favorite of mine. Love the performances by James Dean, Oscar nominated here Natalie Wood and Sal Mineo. I cannot forget: 

1. The strong performances by Jim Backus and Ann Doran as Dean’s 50’s suburban parents.
2. The introduction of Nick Adams and Dennis Hooper as young punks.
3. Later TV series stars William Hopper (to be Paul Drake on Perry Mason) as Natalie’s dad and Edward Platt (to be Chief of Control on Get Smart! as an understanding cop.
4. The scenes filmed at the LA Griffith Observatory—Love that touching Sal Mineo line as Plato— “What does he know about man alone?”