When James Dean died at the wheel of his 550 Spyder on September 30, 1955 he and his car, affectionately called “little bastard”, became an infamous part of Porsche’s history and lore. To this day the legend surrounding Dean’s car continues to grow.
Used as a highway safety exhibit for a while, the wrecked shell of what is said to be Dean’s Spyder toured the country before going missing while being transported from Florida to California. Since then, the car, its parts and the resulting wreckage have taken on a life of their own. By many accounts, its parts and wreckage are cursed. There are others, however, who believe the lore is all just part of a story, a marketing ploy if you will, by a great showman (George Barris) and that the real body of Dean’s Spyder was sent to a scrap yard and is never to be found again.
Today, a new twist to the old story came to light. ABC7 in Chicago posted a story about the possibility of a new “lead” in the hunt for James Dean’s wrecked Porsche. Their story goes on to recount a tale from the Volo Auto Museum (the same museum who put up a $1MM reward, in 2005, for the lost wreckage). After reading the story we decided to reach out to the Museum ourselves and hear what they had to say. Here’s what we learned after speaking with Brian Grams, director of the Volo Auto Museum.
Picture taken by taken by Carl von Delius, the PR man for Johnny von Neumann at Competition Motors at 1:45 pm on September 30, 1955
Grams told us that interest in the wreckage has always ebbed and flowed, but gained some traction in the winter of 2014 after an episode of “Brad Meltzer’s Lost History” aired recounting the story of the missing 550 Spyder. One call in particular caught his attention.
“The past 10 years have brought me in contact with a lot of interesting characters. This most recent gentleman approached us.” Specifically, Grams said, “This man told me he was there when his father and others hid the wreckage behind a false wall in Whatcom County, Washington. It was too good of a story, it sounded fabricated.”
Intrigued by the details of the story, Grams said the man volunteered to take a lie detector test, did so, and passed.
As of now, the exact location of the supposed wreckage has not yet been revealed as Grams negotiates with the man for a piece of the reward money. Grams said the museum will only pay the reward if it can get legal possession of the wreckage (it’s current legal ownership status is unclear).
Grams thinks the man, and his story, are believable. Is it true? We have no idea. We do know the legend of Dean’s “little bastard” lives on and continues to grow every time there is a story like this. Will bring you more when we learn more.
For those of you interested in even more details about Dean’s death, the conflicting reports and legend, what’s true and what isn’t, we’re told that “The Death of James Dean” by Warren N. Beath is worth a read as is Lee Raskin’s “James Dean: At Speed“.
View Comments (5)
I do not believe the car on display was the 'death car.' Compare crash site photos with photos of the above 'Safety Council display' car.
It sounds crazy, but I believe him.
It's a HOAX! I have been involved with discussions over past 2 months with the Volo Museum and the attorney for the purported witness to the 'hiding' of the "Little Bastard." In 2005, George Barris and the Volo Museum presented an offer of $1.0 million for information and the location of the missing Porsche 550 Spyder....no takers. It was a scam. Now, on the 60th Anniversary of James Dean's death, a new spin was presented to the media. My conversations with the attorney representing the witness were laughable as he had no clue about the real ownership of #550-0055 from 1955. I do. I have been writing about James Dean and his Porsches since 1977....producing three published books...the most recent was debuted on last week on 9-30-15 -- James Dean: On The Road To Salinas ( http://www.stanceandspeed.com). Fox News is planning a rebuttal this week online. Based on my knowledge and James Dean-related publications...George Barris has not only embellished his relationship with James Dean over the past 60 years, but has made up and lied about events relating to the post-crash years of the Porsche Spyder while the carcass was in his possession and on tour at auto shows into 1960. I think most Porschephiles deserve more credit than the average person with respect to the real facts...rather than the 'factoids' about this "Little Bastard" hoax. Lee Raskin, JD., Baltimore, MD. Porsche historian/author
Where was the authentic wreckage of The Little Bastard last confirmed by absolutely credible sources?
I have a contract signed by George Barris Todd a Bello Al Bello and a witness for an award of 25,000 to whomever finds the Porsche 550 Spyder after the fatal wreck. George Barris claimed to have ownership of the Porsche. I also have three personal photos of George Barris in 1957 and 1958 at the Porsche Factory and Raceway in Pamona Ca. Pretty interesting story.