Vintage glossy 8 x 10 photo of Dean in a handsome studio portrait pose from circa 1953, signed and inscribed in green ink, "To Sondra, James Dean.” Lower portion bears a facsimile signature inherent to the original photograph. In very good to fine condition, with scattered creasing (and a heavier crease to the lower right), old tape residue in the borders, and a missing lower right corner tip. Accompanied by a vintage glossy 3.5 x 3.5 candid photo of Dean wearing sunglasses and smoking a cigarette at the time of signing, which the consignor dates to late August 1955, approximately one month before his untimely death. A brilliant signed photo of the iconic actor made all the more desirable by its unique visual provenance and its close proximity to Dean's tragic end.
Accompanied by a copy of a letter of provenance from the original recipient, Sondra McLean, who as a teenager traveled by train from her hometown in Canada to Los Angeles, California, where she spent two-month-long vacations in the summers of 1954, 1955, and 1956. While staying with her cousin, whose residence was within walking distance from MGM Studios, McLean used the majority of her weekdays staking out the studio parking lot for the arrival and departure of Hollywood celebrities.
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