Thursday, June 07, 2018

Today's Blind Items - He Died Again

One of the longest held secrets in Hollywood was known by a handful of people. I was never one of those people. Even as the secret was passed down to a second and then a third generation, I still never knew. It was not until the last week of April that I was told the secret and that it was OK to talk about it now because the subject of the secret had been killed in an auto accident. That was kind of fitting considering that is how he "died," the first time. He was A+ list that first time. The entire world loved him and adored him and he hated every second of it. He wanted no part of it. So, with the help of a police chief who thought the world of him and a rival studio head who was willing to do anything to not watch those big box office numbers he put up, they got to work. The studio chief got some set designers and stunt people and they created a car wreck. The police chief donated a body from the morgue no one was going to claim, so they could bury a body and it was all set. The studio chief signed a contract with the actor and it basically paid him about $1500 a week for his entire life. And boy did he live a long life. When he was killed north of the border in an auto accident in April he was 95 or 96 depending on whether you used his Canadian or American birth certificate. For much of the past 60 some odd years he had lived in a remote section of that northern country, but in the past few years moved to a much larger city so he and his wife could be closer to medical care. Being 95/96 didn't stop his love of driving though and his wife loved being with him when he did. She was with him in the car when they were hit by a tractor trailer. His wife is expected to make a full recovery.


189 comments:

MontanaMarriott said...

Can't be James Dean since he's not Canadian?

MIssBliss said...

James Dean

Lunchpaillefty said...

Yeah right, and Elvis and Tupac were in the tractor trailer

Lunchpaillefty said...

And I doubt he had a wife

sandybrook said...

The Info Wars idiots who migrated to this site ought to love this one.

Ice7177 said...

No way.

AJ said...

James Dean would've been 87 this year. This blind must be about someone else. Or it's just complete BS.

Newbomb said...

Falco.

MIssBliss said...

I just read that the James Dean crash had a witness who saw him in the wreckage, so there's that...

sandybrook said...

AJ got it right!

Do Tell said...

Ernie Kovacs, just to be different.

canroadrunner said...

http://calgarysun.com/news/provincial/95-year-old-killed-in-crash-with-semi-near-three-hills This is obviously the crash. So who is the victim?

KaySea said...

Here’s the accident: https://globalnews.ca/news/4166128/crash-alberta-rcmp-three-hills-fatal/

PapayaSF said...

Here's a news item that fits the details:

http://calgarysun.com/news/provincial/95-year-old-killed-in-crash-with-semi-near-three-hills

No names mentioned, either in this one or the others I could find.

Guesser said...

Can't find anyone that famous that age who died in a car crash. The closest is James Dean,too young. There must be a point to the age.

Brayson87 said...

I wish it was Dean, but think we're looking for more of a fiery accident where the body would be DOA and hard to identify.

"As the group traveled to the event via U.S. Route 466, (currently SR 46) at approximately 5:45 p.m.[74] a 1950 Ford Tudor was passing through an intersection while turning,[75] ahead of the Porsche.[71] Dean, unable to stop in time, slammed into the driver's side of the Ford resulting in Dean's car bouncing across the pavement onto the side of the highway. Dean's passenger, Wütherich, was thrown from the Porsche, while Dean was trapped in the car and sustained numerous fatal injuries, including a broken neck.[76] The driver of the Ford, Donald Turnupseed, exited his damaged vehicle with minor injuries. The accident was witnessed by a number of passersby who stopped to help. A woman with nursing experience attended to Dean and detected a weak pulse, but "death appeared to have been instantaneous".[76] Dean was pronounced dead on arrival shortly after he arrived by ambulance at the Paso Robles War Memorial Hospital at 6:20 p.m.[77]"

Nurk said...

Dean would not have been 87, not 95 or 96.

Unknown said...

Presumably the Canadian birth certificate would have been faked as part of his new identity, which is why it varies by a year. Still, seems like an A-list actor born in 1922-3 who died in a crash around the age of 30 would be easy for film buffs to recall.

Do Tell said...

Kovacs would have been 98 this year, so a bit off. That's all I got.

J said...

Lawrence of Arabia.

Casting Girl said...

This has to be James Dean. I'm sure he did hate it and am happy he got out. If they can make him disappear, fudging the age is no problem.

pkelly491 said...

I think this is supposed to be James Dean but I don't know if I buy that it's real.

totaji said...

With a few tiny facts fudged, this is clearly about Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Tanzi said...

Do Tell has it I think. Ernie Kovacs would be in his 90s now. He seemed to love being a celebrity but he had a lot of problems with the IRS and per Wikipedia had some sham Canadian corporations to avoid paying taxes. Photos of his dead body at the accident scene conveniently appeared in the press and he seemed like the kind of guy who would do something like this. It sounds like his wife at the time wasn't in on it though, kind of a shitty thing to do to her.

Tuesdi said...

@Sandybrook your first comment made me laugh so hard. Thank you.

Randyman said...

Hank Williams maybe

Cole said...

Bonar Colleano, 35, was killed when his car crashed through fencing and onto an embankment at the junction of Corporation Road and Lansdowne Road on August 18, 1958.

J said...

So Princess Diana lived long enough to see her love child's wedding.

Randyman said...

That is the wreck for sure.

Zebra Seasoning said...

Was thinking Ernie Kovacs too.

However, Theo Marcuse could fit the age bill. Was he considered to be A+ list? Doubtful.

Guesser said...

The Kovacs guess is good though. I suppose someone could be in a witness protection type program. In those days it was easy to get a new identity. Funny how the ID is hard to find on the Canadian accident.

MichaelM said...

Hank Williams

Born September 17, 1923 in Georgiana, Alabama, USA
Died January 1, 1953 in Oak Hill, West Virginia, USA

"On the early morning hours on New Year's Day 1953, while traveling through West Virginia on the way to a show in Canton, Ohio, Hank Williams died in his sleep in the back seat of his Cadillac limousine at the age of 29."

Jackie said...

Wikipedia says Kovacs body was photographed after the crash. Doubt it's him if he was recognisable.

Unknown said...

@Randyman, Hank Williams is the only man who turned up in a search of people who fit the years and were A-list (enough for me to recognize them, at least), and he did die in a car, sort of. Enty could be fudging the definition of "auto accident" there, but I don't know if he fits otherwise. Did he do anything to get "big box office numbers," though?

Do Tell said...

Was Hank Williams a box office star, though? Kovacs was mainly TV, so that threw me also.

IanPhlegming said...

If it is Ernie Kovacs, I wish my father hadn't passed away a decade ago. Kovacs was his favorite comedian and when he died it really stuck with my father. His death was before I was born but my father still spoke of Ernie Kovacs up through my teens and even beyond. He thought he was a comic genius.

But was Ernie Kovacs A+ list? Did "the entire world love and adore him?" I never really got that impression from my dad. He was more the intellectual iconoclast, like a Bill Hicks--strong cult following. But maybe I'm wrong? I wasn't around at the time of his career peak.

My guess is that this is fake, but who even knows anymore? Isn't everything a lie? "You can tell it's real because it looks so fake," as one of our most famous fakes said recently.

If it's James Dean, that would be incredible. Maybe Marilyn isn't dead either? Or JFK? Or Lennon? Or Tupac? Paging Miles Mathis!

s.s. said...

Kovacs was never A+ list, and he was not universally loved...

Unknown said...

@Do Tell, yeah, as far as I can tell, Hank Williams never did any films at all. I could see a rival music studio head wanting to get him out of the business, but it doesn't work unless "box office numbers" is code for "record sales." And if the whole point of the blind is that the story can be told now that he's dead, there's no reason to put that in code.

s.s. said...

Hank Williams one attacked a fan in the front row of a club with a steel guitar stand---made of razor-sharp sheet metal.
He split open the man's belly, disemboweling him, and his intestines came out all over the floor.
In the ER they stuffed his entrails back into his abdominal cavity, sewed him up and sent him home.

Brayson87 said...

Kovac's death sounds more interesting, a photographer managed to get there right after it happened. All the car loving stuff sounds more like Dean though.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ernie_Kovacs#Death

Someone Said said...

This is nonsense but it is odd that no names were realeased. Unable to find any obit.

Itttt said...

What in the actual F*CK. First thought obviously immediately jumped to James Dean however as previously noted, the age would be off by roughly 10 years and he wasn't Canadian.

Given the April timeframe and this supposed accident happening in America Junior, I thought of the Saskatchewan Broncos Hockey team bus crash, however can't find any victim old enough to match.

kswheels said...

Not only did Hank Williams not die in an auto accident, he had a son. A son who was forced by Hank's ex-wife to become side show performing perfect renditions of his father's songs. I highly, highly doubt he would hang around in Canada while his ex-wife was using his child to bank off of his name.

Also he wasn't known in Hollywood.

Randyman said...

Hank Williams is close but too much of a stretch I think. Take out music and plug in actor and its him though.

kswheels said...

s. s. - What on Earth are you talking about?

Jackie said...

I think this is meant to be Dean but I don't believe it.

Someone Said said...

kswheels - Odd that the RMCP or media never released the name of the accident victim, and that there may not be any obituary/funeral notice for a 95 year old Alberta man who died in a car crash in late April.

c dan run said...

So we're supposed to believe that a handful of Hollywooders, gossip capital of the world, not only kept this kind of earth-shattering secret, but they passed it down through the generations, who also kept this jawdropper out of the newspapers and off the internet. Riiiiight.

Anyhoo, I can't see this being James Dean. He only made 3 films, successful for sure but it's not like movie box office take is a zero sum game. The movie biz was not going to collapse because one new star was just too, too popular.

I doubt Ernie Kovas could fit the description either, and Hank Williams drank himself to death.

Although a tantalizing tale, it's hardly believable, even if you stretch the details to the ends of the earth.

oh, and Sandy, you're supposed to wait for the setup "Bill Clinton is a rapist" before plugging InfoWars.com :-)

Unknown said...

Can’t be Lawrence of Arabia... he would be 130 yrs old this year!

Lunchpaillefty said...

James Dean was gay, and if he went through the trouble of faking his own death, he wouldn’t bother having a beard.

Maggie T said...

Montgomery Clift, born 1920, bisexual.

Erin said...

I like this guess.

Itttt said...

OK, after reading the BI a couple more times, I think it IS referring to James Dean, who is the ONLY person that fits outside of the "95/96 years old" and "Canadian/American birth certificate", which I believe are meant to be inferred as FRAUDULENT as part of the fake identity that was crafted by the police chief and rival studio head et al. Meaning, they added 10 years to the actor's actual age on the ID docs/birth certs etc. as well as crafted both Canadian and American fake papers/birth certificates for his new identity.

No one else fits the description of A+ superstar "that first time" (first death), although James Dean only had "East of Eden" released at the time of his "death"; his other 2 films wouldn't be out until post-death. But I think he was already exploding in popularity, Elvis/Beatles invasion level zeitgeist.

Holy fucking shit, everything else fits. EVERYTHING. Easy enough to use actors/actresses or inside peeps such as the "nurse" who took his "weak pulse" and stated "death appeared to have been instantaneous" (yet he had a weak pulse?) per the wiki page on the accident. Dean loaded into ambulance, at which point either the ambulance or the switched body with severe facial damage and broken neck among other injuries, either from its own death or post-mortem, is delivered to the hospital where DOA is pronounced by doctor (in on it or otherwise).

Interestingly enough, the guy driving the Ford was named Donald Turnupseed.

Unknown said...

Clift had a serious car accident, but recovered and died in his bed a decade later, according to the bio I'm looking at.

InCatNeto said...

I decided to work on finding out who the victim in the crash was. I believe this is the obituary:

https://www.myalternatives.ca/acme/obituaries/2018-stoness-william-jabez

Someone Said said...

InCatNeto, nice find

https://www.geni.com/people/William-Jabez-Stoness/1075717

Itttt said...

James Dean death = 1955, which is 63 years ago. Fits the "for the past 60 some odd years". Dean was probably bi, or of the "old school" that had that closeted "marry a gal pal"/lavender wedding types, so sure, why not. Would like to see photos of this 95 year old dead guy over the course of his life.

Ghost said...

A photo of the 95 year old. http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/mountainviewgazette/obituary.aspx?n=william-jabez-stoness&pid=188944636

Cat said...

WJS's wife also has an obituary stating that she died in April 2018, so if they are the couple Enty is talking about then he's sorely mistaken about her "recovery".

Maggie T said...

Crikey. I read about him as a kid and always thought he died! James Dean then 3 big hits and decided Hwood wasn't for him and got a Canadian identity.

Unknown said...

@Itttt, good point. I was assuming the Canadian birth cerificate was faked to give him a new identity, but they both could have been. I don't know why you'd create *two* fake birth certificates, but this was before computerized records, so who knows. Maybe having both made it easier to travel to both countries.

Why are people assuming anything about the man's sexuality, by the way? The blind says nothing about that -- except that he had a wife when he died -- and there are lots of other reasons a man might want to get out of the spotlight.

Someone Said said...

His wife died two days later?

http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/mountainviewgazette/obituary.aspx?n=reta-winnifred-stoness-orr&pid=188944643

Randyman said...

InCatNeto great sleuthing. That is him for sure. The bikes make it even sound more like Dean.

Itttt said...

GREAT find, Someone Said. No idea how many individuals on that site are marked "Private" / "Private User", but there seem to be quite a few in that person's family structure. Could be his parents were actually an aunt/uncle that were used as part of the coverup. The 95 year old's wife and child are both Private, and both of his maternal grandparents are "private". Seems odd.

exit81 said...

Can’t be James Dean. The age doesn’t fit, and he actually was not a big Hollywood Star when he died. Only one of his three major movies even came out before he died (East of Eden came out in April of 1955), so no “rival studio executives” would want him dead yet. Dean only hit it big after he died and Rebel and Giant came out.


But this blind is probably supposed to be Dean, but it’s b.s. and poorly researched b.s. at that.

modsquad said...

@ Ghost

...that nose and those cheekbones, oh my.

Randyman said...

Cant be them, wife is too young.

ramble said...

https://www.facebook.com/barbara.mcmillan.148

The wife has since died. Here is a daughters fb. Not sure about this one.

Planktonic said...

http://www.threehillscapital.com/obituaries/8238-schlereth-joseph-don
Could be?
https://www.google.co.uk/search?client=safari&hl=en-gb&q=ernie+kovacs&spell=1&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiNs8HhmcLbAhVsL8AKHWVhDg0QBQggKAA&biw=375&bih=635&dpr=3#imgrc=8CeNkJnruStcdM:

Andrea said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Unknown said...

No one we've suggested fits all the details, and I really doubt there's an A+lister from that era who died tragically young that this crowd wouldn't have thought of by now. So I'd say at least one or two of the details are wrong, intentionally or otherwise. It's anyone's guess as to which ones.

Ice7177 said...

The guy definitely looks like Dean. Cheekbones, lips, smile and the ears and earlobes definitely match a little.

You definitely couldn't disregard his face as NOT being James Dean.

Even the eyebrows on the daughter's Facebook match.

ladybugmo1 said...

That obit has them married in 1949. If any of their children were born before the 1960’s, that really throws the whole thing off.

Planktonic said...

I just can’t see JD settling down with a wife and family. Escaping fame yes, but I’d see him drifting and travelling the world. It’s too conventional a future to visualise for someone with his past.

La-Juice said...

Are we really shilling a story that James Dean faked his death?

Itttt said...

& InCatNeto (sorry for leaving you out as you really broke it open with that story).

"Bill was very active, enjoyed farming, hunting, fishing, construction, and mechanics. Bill owned several Harley’s, an Indian & a BSA, on which he drove his mother to church."

The comment about the bikes seals it for me as to who this is supposed to be...did anyone find out what he was driving at the time of the wreck?

Randyman said...

well this is interesting

https://www.quora.com/What-would-James-Dean-have-looked-like-as-an-old-man

InCatNeto said...

Thanks everyone! @Planktonic - I found the Schlereth obit first thinking it could be it, but then I found the funeral homes fb page listed he died in his home on April 22 and the crash happened on April 24.

Layla said...

I did a quick internet search and JD looks a lot older than 24. He probably lied about his age back in the day to get the younger acting gigs. I'm sure it was a lot easier to do back then. I also came upon this quote of his, which adds more fuel to the fire: "If a man can bridge the gap between life and death, if he can live on after he's dead, then maybe he was a great man."

Itttt said...

Who is to say they actually married in 1949? Or that the wife is/was 96, that could be BS as well. All of that could have been faked as well. As to the comment about the wife being expected to make a full recovery, "expected" =/= did make a full recovery. The wife in the story was noted to have been airlifted to a regional hospital with serious injuries.

Interesting blind, regardless of whether it's a BS Hollywood backlot campfire tale or not.

Planktonic said...

Ahhh! I think I got carried away by the physical similarity.

I’m just not quite buying James Dean. Maybe Enty’s flipped gender and it’s Jayne Mansfield.

Planktonic said...

It’s one of the very few I’ve commented on after about eight years of lurking.

Unknown said...

@La-Juice, it's a fun puzzle, and in this case we don't even have to get our hopes of justice dashed later. I'll take this over "guess which rapper cheated today" and "that time I almost met a celebrity" stories any day.

tinydancer61 said...

That picture doesn't resemble Dean at all. Unless he had some major facial reconstruction.

MeliticusBee said...

I think James Dean lied about his age.
Here is an obit, no decent pic but talks about man being a “bridge builder”.
http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/calgaryherald/obituary.aspx?n=norman-reid&pid=189053142

bumble bee said...

Re: obit for William Jabez Stoness, his wife passed two days later as well RETA WINNIFRED (ORR) STONESS.

There last place of residence is not as stated "but in the past few years moved to a much larger city so he and his wife could be closer to medical care" and has a population of 1058 people. So I don't think this is the person.

fionafab said...

This is either FAKE NEWS or someone has a vivid imagination. As someone who was the biggest James Dean fan, ever, this is definitely, absolutely NOT James Dean.

Dean had just finished shooting "Giant" a couple of days before the accident. He was already being talked about as winning the Academy Award the next year. He was at his peak, acting-wise. He was on top of the world.

I remember his death being announced on the radio like it was yesterday. My friend, Lillian Ingrasano and I were sitting on my bed reading movie magazines. We were listening to a rock & roll station. They broke into the song to announce his death. Lillian and I both screamed like a Pitbull had a hold of our boobs and wouldn't let go. Hearing the shrieks and hysterical crying, my mother raced upstairs to find out what the hell was going on. We were so emotional we couldn't talk. I pointed to the radio. Mom listened, heard the news and hugged us both. She called Lillian's dad (at Hunter Air Force Base) and asked him to come get her and explained what had happened. It took me years to get over his death. I just worshiped him. Hollywood wouldn't have allowed a fake death. He was their #1 money maker at the time. No way it's him.

Randyman said...

Good stuff Layla. I bet he lied about his age when he was acting OR lied about it when he disappeared.

Randyman said...

Boo your post really doesn't rule out James Dean. Hollywood has always and still does allow fake everything.

Owlette said...

There was something sorta similar to this on blind gossip. Maybe related or maybe another secretly alive legend (i know, I know).
https://blindgossip.com/?p=90251

IanPhlegming said...

If pretty much everybody's dead, why wouldn't they go public now? To keep the masses from beginning to think everything is a lie, I guess?

Or maybe everything IS about to go public, and this is CDAN's makeup call for whiffing on Don Henley and (presumably) Gavin Newsom?

This blind is up there with the Marvin Gaye and Heather O'Rourke ones for sheer jaw dropping craziness, but not nearly as distressing as either.

Anonymous said...

Get some new writers. Seriously.
What studio head would be stupid enough to ensure someone all that money for life? Sixty years of payments?
Why wouldn't the studio head use that money to coax the star over to his studio?
Not only is this fiction....it's really, really stupid fiction.

Itttt said...

"This blind is up there with the Marvin Gaye and Heather O'Rourke ones for sheer jaw dropping craziness, but not nearly as distressing as either."

Agreed, this would be earth shattering if true...key word being IF.

Shytlerj said...

😁

plot said...

"What studio head would be stupid enough to ensure someone all that money for life? Sixty years of payments?"

In the world of this blind, no one expected him to live 60 more years. Dean wanted out, hated the game (in the world of this blind) and the studios knew that he had two films about to be released that were going to be epically successful (Rebel and Giant.) So they set up his death to allow him to escape, thinking that $1500 a month was peanuts to pay at the time.

Great story. Would make a hellava film idea.

SDaly said...

Not buying the story the guy was Dean, but the obit from the Canadian guy makes no mention of his profession - which is very unusual - and ends with this: "Real love stories never have endings." Which seems like a dig a fictional love stories, i.e., Hollywood.

Randyman said...

They could set up an annuity without much effort and forget it .

Original Unknown skeptic said...

Sorry but that man looks nothing like James Dean. Even with what aging does to you there is no way that’s him. The nose isn’t even close. You can change a nose and sure if you break it it may look different but to go from James Dean’s nose to that man’s nose would be impossible. Your nose may continue to grow with age but not like that. This is why people have such a hard time correcting botched nose jobs, you can take away but adding back what you've removed is incredibly difficult. Unlesss that man is wearing a prosthetic nose and stage makeup in that photo that is not James Dean and oh this whole story is bullshit anyway.

Btw, James Dean was a much bigger star after he died, because he died. He had no reason to fake his death at the time due to fame.

fionafab said...

RANDYMAN: I agree with you. I was fairly young at the time. I did always wonder how the German companion in the sports car survived such a wreck. Did he survive or am I remembering it wrong? I hear there are 'death photos' of Dean on-line. I would never look at stuff like that. I just remember he was the biggest star in Hollywood at the time. So was Natalie Wood and Sal Mineo. Both had violent deaths. I did get a chance to sit with Sal when he was in Savannah to make a film. I don't remember if I brought up Dean's death or not. At that juncture, all I was thinking about was, "I am going to wake up any minute This CAN'T be happening!"

Serenity said...

Well, I for one hope it is true and that he lived a happy life! Either way, it is an incredible story, true or not.

Kate k said...

If true, I'm happy for him. He lived a nice, long life.

sweetnothings9 said...

Albertan here. Trochu/Three Hills are about an hour away from Calgary. The facts could be skewed, saying he moved to a larger city, but really meant moved somewhere remote to be closer to a large city. If he lived up in Northern Alberta, or up in the Territories, since there is shit all up there, if you needed decent medical care, you most certainly would have to move down here. However, it seems that since that couple met in Red Deer, which is close to Trochu/Three Hills, if this is true, they would have then left and come back at the end of their lives? I don't know, it doesn't seem to add up.

Also, its not uncommon for RCMP to not release names after tragedies such as a car accident. I don't know how often I've read about a car accident matching the description of someone I know, only to never have the name released and always wonder if I knew them.

Bill Philly said...

This is James Dean. The Entern just fucked up the math. They did 1931 instead of 1921. Idiots.

KittensRUs said...

That was my first thought. They all lie about their age!

Alice H. said...

@BooHearn - I really enjoyed your first post up there. I felt like I was in the room with you!

Guesser said...

I'm not saying it's true ,but it is laughable people think Hollywood wouldn't do such a thing! They covered up rapes,child molesters,money laundering, affairs,anyone who is gay,etc.,etc., etc. But fake a death? No way! My take,while probably a rumor,if true,maybe they thought the trouble making Dean was worth more dead than alive. They never cared for those that left Hollywood.

plot said...

"it is laughable people think Hollywood wouldn't do such a thing!"

Who has said that? No one. Go find your fantasy enemies elsewhere.

VikingSong said...

It is James Dean....whether the blind is true or not is another matter.

bubbles65 said...

Sorry, no way is this Ernie Kovacs, I know his extended family. Interesting guess though! :))

Land Manatee said...

Interesting read. Somewhat supports the cover up/body switching aspect of the blind.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.express.co.uk/showbiz/tv-radio/952680/james-dean-death-documentary-porsche-accident/amp?source=images

Land Manatee said...

From the article I’m referencing: “One unresolved mystery is how an experienced driver like Dean crashed on a straight road in near-perfect conditions. No drugs or alcohol were found in the star’s system and Dr. Hunter said, ‘This is a question that has perplexed experts for more than 60 years.’ “

Ouiser B. said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Ouiser B. said...

Great resource, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_people_who_died_in_traffic_collision

VERY few people come close to meeting the requirements. Dean is the only one even close.

Anonymous said...

If it's ok to talk about it now, then why not reveal?

riffer73 said...

James Dean - I don't remember the details, but the intersection had an unusual geometry that made it confusing to figure out who had the right of way.

James said...

James Dean's mechanic Rolf died in 1981. Assuming it's not a flim flam fantasy it wouldn't have been difficult to do. How well did EOE do at the box office at the time of it's release. find a body double have false paperwork made up both US and Canadian new name new dob new life disappear numbers can fudged 31 can become 21 what if JD knocked off a few years off his age during his short career he could be a few years older than the given year of 1931 actors have been known to tweek certain details about themselves

BeaBorges said...

The Alberta man looks nothing like James Dean - he has no lips and James Dean had a very thick bottom lip that would not have gone away with age!

Bill Beard said...

This is definatley supposed to be Dean, I guess I could kind of believe it, even if the numbers are seemingly out a little.Maybe he wanted no part of Pedowood once he got to know about it.Real or not it's kind of a cool story with a real crash decades after the fake one.

andrea said...

I went to one of the obituary links posted here. I was very saddened to see that someone posted a comment saying “RIP to the Rebel without a Cause” by a James Dean in LA. Absolutely inappropriate. For all we know this is fake and you’re insulting the family of the man who passed away.

Pink Champagne On Ice said...

Same!

Pink Champagne On Ice said...

What if the studio started that rumor so that no one would ever suspect a married guy married to a woman....

Pink Champagne On Ice said...

Totally agree

Unknown said...

Can't be James Dean. Not only is the age wrong but the article says 'wife'. He was gay and known to haunt the scene in L.A.

Unknown said...

Well since Hollywood hides pedowood that really shouldn’t be hard to believe! I’m not saying I believe it but Hollywood is full of secrets......oh and Clinton is a pedo rapist

Unknown said...

Damn! I wish it could be Tim Horton - it is Stanley Cup night and all, eh?

https://www.ranker.com/list/famous-people-who-died-of-car-accident/reference

It's either Kovacs or Dean

SteveD said...

And everybody say, "Is he all right?"
And everybody say, "What's he like?"
And everybody say, "He sure look funny"
That's Montgomery Clift, honey!

emeraldcity said...

Interesting blind but if this was an A list actor who everyone knew and loved it's very problematic. It's not as if the actor went to live in Europe or an island in the South Pacific he would have been recognized very easily in his new life. 'Gee...you look just like James Dean' it would be very hard to disguise the voice and mannerisms for 60years and frankly faking his death would be silly why do it, just walk away. A singer might get away with it but a highly visual film actor no. Too many holes in this sock so I'll put it in my BS draw.

Do Tell said...

"The entire world loved him and adored him" may have applied to James Dean's fans, but certainly doesn't apply to the people who had to work with him. A great many of them found Dean obnoxious, erratic and immature.

Anyway, true story or not, I really don't think this would be him.

Unknown said...

James Dean was gay so doubtful he would have had a wife.

Do Tell said...

Besides which, Dean didn't really start to gain huge popularity until AFTER he was killed. So not him.

Unknown said...

Hmmmm. Not a bad theory Pink....

emeraldcity said...

@Remie Ross......Dean was bi-sexual (Liz Taylor pretty much said so), he wanted to marry Pia Angeli but her domineering Italian mama wouldn't allow it and made her marry Italian Vic Damone instead. Some think the studio had a hand in persuading Vic and Mama. Dean was said to be heartbroken over it, never the most stable person it sent him further down the spiral of self abuse which included burning himself with cigarettes.

H said...

There are so many different rumours and accounts of James Deans sexuality. He could of been bisexual which gives the opening for him to have a wife and a family later on in life if this is true. Maybe just his homosexual relations were more exposed due to it being a scandal and shocking. When a man is bisexual people gossip more about their homosexual encounters than their heterosexual ones.

J. R. said...

This was James Dean, no doubt in my mind at all.

Unknown said...

Thank you! Lol

Unknown said...

Someone left a comment on William Jabez Stoness' obituary (posted earlier) that says "RIP to the Rebel without a Cause, James Dean, Los Angeles, CA, United States" Wow. This might actually be James Dean.
https://www.myalternatives.ca/acme/obituaries/2018-stoness-william-jabez

Unknown said...

Compare pics of James Dean with William Stoness - the ears and chin are exactly the same.

Randyman said...

I thought it was a great contribution you made Boo. I cant see it being him

Randyman said...

UNTIL I READ THE UPDATES ITS HIM

Do Tell said...

The guy in the photograph looks nothing like Dean. James Dean had a very distinctive shape to his eyes. This is just not him. I also think this story is a fugazi.

Do Tell said...

That is quite an asshole move to leave condolences to someone else on that old man's obituary. How irritating to his family during their fresh grief. I mean, really, if you think it's him, contain your speculation here, don't go taint his memorial with it when there is no proof.

Anonymous said...

Was Elvis there?
What part of DEAD don't people understand?

Southern Man said...

They ALWAYS leave a tell that it's fake/agency involved.

He was hit by "TURNUPSEED".
You can't make this stuff up.
They laugh at you every single day.
And sometimes, the clue openly mocks you...



JL said...

Disagree. Forehead and ears. The ears never lie.

JL said...

Yes. Really good one.

JL said...

Kids

Randyman said...

Ears and nose are cartilage and have been growing for 60 years. May have had plastic surgery. Half of these clues could be bullshit I mean if its true he lied about all kinds of things anyway. I think its him.

Melody the First said...

What is odd is that Mr Stoness looks a bit like Dean's father, Winston Dean.

Melody the First said...

Winton, not Winston. Spellcheck grrr

Bobbi Beausoleil said...

Piecing it all together... someone posted a link to William Jabez Stoness (as the guy who died in the card accident in his 90s, which would be the pseudonym of James Dean - if we believe it's him). Apparently Jabez Stone (damn close) is a character in a 1941 movie called The Devil and Daniel Webster: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Devil_and_Daniel_Webster_(film). It's about a guy who starts out as a simple, kind farmer, but who sells his soul to the devil, becomes rich, etc, a morality tale. Dean was raised in Indiana in farm country and his dad was a farmer (before he became a dentist). Could the story have had an impact on him? Enough for him to base his new name on the main character? In addition, screenwriter William Bast was one of Dean's best friends (William Jabez Stone - ss).

Randyman said...

Bobbi thats incredible stuff.

Bobbi Beausoleil said...

Melody Clark I saw a pic of Dean's dad and thought the same exact thing! Plus in this photo there is a greater resemblance as he's showing his teeth and smiling in a similar way: https://www.rollingstone.com/movies/news/james-deans-rebel-without-a-cause-jacket-goes-to-auction-w517176
*Also interesting that Stoness'obit said he was really into motorcycles and owned a Harley and an Indian. https://necrocanada.com/obituaries-2018/william-jabez-stoness-april-24th-2018/#.WxsMpqkna3U

Halo said...

I posted a comment yesterday, but for some reason I can't see it anywhere (first time poster here!), so I'm posting again.

As a big James Dean fan, I find it difficult to believe. He hated the whole Hollywood game, but acting was one of his biggest passions and he probably would have turned to directing or producing in the future.
I also don't think he had been in the business long enough to be *that* disillusioned either.


Until this is solved and proven beyond doubt, then I don't believe it's James Dean.


5551423 said...

Oh my gosh if this is real and if it is implying James Dean (first thought after Paul Walker since I realized this person was old) then I would lose my fucking mind... I was sooooooo obsessed with him as a teen... oh man, it was bad! He's one of my favorite actors of all time and East of Eden is one of my favorite films of all time... clearly the age and country of citizenship is wrong, but so is a fake death, ya know? A couple of things stuck out to me... why does the entry talk about a love of fast driving? Hmmmm... I really hope this is true because wow.

Melody the First said...

Bobbi, I agree. Once you see it, you can't unsee it.

This seems impossible, but weirdly very plausible.

I always thought it was weird his friend Sandy Roth, the photographer, was riding right behind him. When he came upon the wreck, he just started taking pictures, as if it was an entirely normal thing to do. He claimed to destroy the photos he took of Dean in the wreckage. As a result, the only photos released were of Dean's body covered up.

Bridget For Kicks said...

Whomever this William Stoness really was, his wife passed away two days later, from the same accident.

http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/mountainviewgazette/obituary.aspx?n=reta-winnifred-stoness-orr&pid=188944643

IanPhlegming said...

Nice additions by @Bobbi Beausoleil, who I suspect, because of the name, knows even more than s/he is saying.

If this is Dean, I really hope it gets out. Would be just about the story of the year, in the entertainment world at least. Unless the Spielberg thing tops it.

Gylly said...

Always great stories Boo, but it's a compelling blind...

Bridget For Kicks said...

Great find, Bobbi Beausoleil! Clearly whomever this William Jabez Stoness really was, he felt trapped. He felt as if he had sold his soul to the Devil for fame and fortune.
Faking his own death was his only escape from Hollywood.

This blind item reminds me of the 80's film "Eddie and the Cruisers." Eddie was a 50's rock star who faked his own car accident. Eddie Wilson is actually alive! He slipped away from the car crash which supposedly caused his death and began a new life under an assumed name. He was disgusted by the music industry and decided to leave it behind. The newly generated spotlight on his supposed death angers the reclusive rocker, who now resides in Canada as construction worker Joe West.

gauloise said...

Conspiracy theories about Dean not dying have been around for years. I saw a documentary on it not too long ago

https://www.refinery29.com/2016/01/134054/old-hollywood-conspiracy-theories

Bobbi Beausoleil said...

Adding a bit more (highly speculative) fuel to the fire... Is anyone familiar with John Gilmore's book about his intimate friendship with James Dean? Live Fast, Die Young: Remembering the Short Life of James Dean. Gilmore's father was in fact an LAPD police officer. It just made me think that that was one potential (perhaps tenuous) link between Dean and the LAPD chief. Maybe grasping at straws as that would mean Gilmore could have been in on it and I can't imagine him being able to hold back a story like that (he was a writer known for spilling the beans on Hollywood noir) — then again this story did get out 'somehow' as an urban myth before it appeared on CDAN).

Mrs Crab said...

I am not sure how to privately chat with you, but I have done some research as well about the elderly victims of the crash in Alberta.

Ladieu said...

Looking at the pic of William Stoness and pics of Montgomery Clift, they have similar ears , nose and lips...MC was also badly injured in a car accident and it gave him a wonky eye, just like Mr Stoness...

Halo said...

Speaking of John Gilmore, as much as I enjoyed his books on James Dean, I have to say I was a bit wary when he suggested James Dean was the father of a boy born not long before he died (or she was pregnant when he passed away, I can't remember)

This has never been mentioned in any other book or on the web (if anyone can let me know otherwise, that would be appreciated)

wine girl said...

This article is partially inaccurate. He survived the accident (though probably wouldn’t have made it anyway) and only died when the ambulance he was riding in, was in an accident on the way to the hospital. His mechanic, who was in the ambulance with him, saw him breathing prior to the ambulance wreck. The ambulance wreck did him in. (I visit Paso frequently and, ironically, live in Indiana about an hour south of where James Dean was from and is buried. The distance from where his original accident occurred is quite far from Paso Robles Gen Hospital. If the ambulance wreck hadn’t did him in, he probably wouldn’t have made it anyway.)

Southern Man said...

There are many faked deaths. No, not all celebs. But some...
There's plenty of solid stuff out there now on the net.

But you do have to be rigorous in your thinking and vetting of info.

MichiganMama59 said...

At the end of Mr, Stoness's obit, this is written in the comment section:

Messages:

RIP to the Rebel without a Cause
James Dean, Los Angeles, CA, United States

Hotrats80 said...

Sorry but this is not Dean. I looked at the obit picture for William and compared him with a Dean pic. William's lips are very small. Dean's were a decent size. If he had plastic surgery on his lips there would be tell-tale signs.

Sorry but based on the lip size difference im ruling out Dean. Im really starting to question Enty's credibility as his recent blinds reek of fan fiction/conspiracy theory.

Meggie said...

james dean was also gay. wouldn't have had a wife.

plot said...

Lips become thinner as we age. Noses and ears become larger.

For comparison, look at young Val Kilmer's lips compared to when he reached middle age. Another one - John Travolta.

Hotrats80 said...

Heres another hole with Entys story. National Enquirer as sketchy as they are published a story years ago about Dean faking his death.

However,in their story Fean got disfigured in the accident. And the studio fearing the reception of his unreleased movies would have due to him being disfigured, decided to help fake his death.

And he lived in an area of oregon for years. Until he died on April 14th 1962.

If i was going to believe faked his death theories the enquirer's is the most plausible.

And ill bet anything that Enty cribbed this wishful thinking fiction from aspects of Enquirer story as well - https://www.nationalenquirer.com/photos/james-dean-car-crash-survivor

Original Unknown skeptic said...

Faces change and yes lips become thinner and the cartilage in your nose and ears do not actually continue to grow as we age. This is a common misconception. If you look at older people typically their noses will fall and ears will elongate due to gravity. People who drink a lot may develop what are called gin blossoms on their nose which will change the appearance of their nose but that is a skin thing. Of course breaking your nose can also cause changes due to scar tissue buildup. There is no way that man is James Dean. His nose is way too different to be him. Gravity would not change his nose in that way. Unless he broke his nose several times and had other issues I just can’t see it. The nostrils aren’t even close.

This blind is of course supposed to be Dean but it’s bullshit just like most of the crap on this site these days. The person who posted the tribute to Dean on the obit is an idiot.
http://themedicinejournal.com/articles/do-your-ears-and-nose-continue-to-grow-as-you-age/

DesertChildAZ said...

Definitely looks more like Montgomery Clift. Only problem is that his death story suggests he died of a heart attack in his bathtub in NY, not in a car accident.....unless they are talking about the first accident in which he was slightly disfigured but didn't die.

WhatsItToYa said...

I agree with the person who guessed Bonar Colleano. Teeth, ears & nose match Stoness. https://www.google.com/search?q=Bonar+Colleano&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwidyNWc9MrbAhVqhlQKHZTLCAIQgowBCDUoAA#imgrc=Q7Zt7gdd0P74-M:

https://www.google.com/search?q=William+Jabez+Stoness&prmd=insv&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&fir=jWAT83su0W810M%253A%252CHK2whC-0t6g1NM%252C_%253BWm_udgxjKoiT8M%253A%252C3sgH9YikvobuHM%252C_%253Bo79Pz0UWidchsM%253A%252CBMrVKObuf75JsM%252C_%253BiK78ED6fqmThRM%253A%252CBMrVKObuf75JsM%252C_%253BcaU_Gujg985QkM%253A%252C4eZutGH4DoXhLM%252C_%253BWy-UrRQ9Ln70wM%253A%252C7krbeaw2uy8jKM%252C_%253BOL4QRrHZV9vP-M%253A%252C6quTEjzxW5Uf3M%252C_%253B1EIlPPX8_bH4MM%253A%252CvDkaHnC5tq1hMM%252C_%253B9plrLFXCJmzvGM%253A%252CBMrVKObuf75JsM%252C_%253BrcgQ3IvWhhux2M%253A%252CDciGhu9VJ3ZCbM%252C_&usg=__shJy-rFMSuLd2I8exN-KD_V4VDM%3D&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiVlIPO2crbAhUqllQKHUEMDwAQsAQIOw&biw=768&bih=981#imgrc=jWAT83su0W810M:

Halo said...

Hmmm... he does look like Bonar Colleano, but was he A+? (I have to admit, I've never heard of him)

Halo said...

I regard to Bonar Colleano, apparently he died with considerable debts...

https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/american-movie-star-who-died-12581389

Les said...

Not him. A family member posted a pic of the younger couple of their Facebook page. Definitely not James Dean. Book closed.

Randyman said...

Thats enough to close the book on it for you Les?

Les said...

Yep. I did some ancestry work going through census and James Dean’s mom would have been fairly young if we alter his age at all and then the pic. Clearly you can see the old couple in that pic. Not James Dean.

Lu said...

Totally Elvis

John Dalton said...

No. "The entire world adored him" is not true. He'd only had one movie released at the time of his death. The movie that made him an worldwide icon, Rebel Without a Cause was released a month after he died. And Giant was released after he died too.

It's bullshit.

Think said...

Anyone ever take a look here?

http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/edmontonjournal/obituary.aspx?n=sabatino-posteraro&pid=188867405&fhid=6003

Citizen S said...

This whole story is made up. That elderly man who died looks nothing like James Dean. Come on, it's nonsense.

Susane said...

I don't buy it at all. I'm a little obsessed with Jimmy, read a lot about him and found people who met/work with him and works in industry since then. About his sexual orientation, I think he was gay, like Elizabeth Taylor and other people in industry said. I'm a straight girl and I'm tired of gay agenda. Like Elizabeth Taylor said: "there is no gay agenda. It’s a human agenda.”

XySusie said...

The grandkids do look like him. But do they know?? Do the kids know? Wife???

Susane said...

@Unknow the pics (and even marry) doesn't prove anything in that time (Rock Hudson, Tab Hunter, Anthony Perkins, Perry Lopez, etc ;). It's funny how people think it's possible fake a death in 50's but hiding that someone was gay no.

Some of his friend said he was straigh (but even these friends admitted he might be "experimented" or had affairs with men to go ahead in his career as if was better than be gay/bi). And many of others said he was gay/bi. They all admitted he was a chamaleon, a differente person to each and he compartmentalized his friends.

I read many books about him and, of course, I know about the romance with Pier and and I never bought it even I think I he was straight, so now that I believe he was gay and I found people of the industry who met/work with him I don't believe in it at all. I can put here links to his accounts and what they have to say about his sexuality and that romance (one worked with Pier).

Elizabeth Taylor was really close to him and she took many of his secrets to his grave. The thing with Debbie - people likes to use that against her - had nothing to do with Dean and her work and proximity with LGBT community.

Bill Bast already had gives clear hint about their relationship in his movie in 1976.

And when I talk in books, I'm not refering to Darwin Porter, Kenneth Anger etc cause they write fiction and they made up stories. In fact, I asked help to a guy who met Jimmy (whom I already refeering) to clean the rumours about Brando and Dean in a facebook group (cause I had a argue with a guy who believes in Darwin Porter) and he did a lovely post and he also talked about Bast (and Landau) in that post (he had already talked about Bast in another post).

That argue is non sense. I will never convice you he was gay/bi and you will never convice me he was straight and doesn't matter.
I have no any self-interest in him being bi, gay, straight, confused, asexual, pansexual.

After all, the post is about his "fake death", not about his sexuality.







Moedoodle said...

Best comment ever

Fotw said...

Clearly James Dean was older than they claimed he was when he was passed off as an early twenties heartthrob yet clearly looked to be in his thirties. That would explain the age difference.

MichiganMama59 said...

Too bad an artist couldn't do one of those age images, like they do with missing kids.

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