The film argues that Clift was actually comfortable enough in his own skin to be openly affectionate with other men, and he allegedly wasn't overly concerned with his sexuality at all. In the book James Dean: The Biography, author Val Holley claimed Brackett 'took in when almost no one else believed in him' and felt their relationship was the real deal, as noted by Real James Dean.īut in the documentary, Making Montgomery Clift, a different picture of the A Place in the Sun star emerged (via The Advocate).

Talking to Ronald Martinetti for his biography, The James Dean Story, advertising exec Rogers Brackett claimed, 'I loved him, and Jimmy loved me' (via Salon). Composer Alec Wilder claimed 'they were definitely a couple,' adding, 'Of course, the words 'sexual fidelity' would be unknown in each of their vocabularies.'īrando wasn't Dean's only alleged same-sex conquest. He'd reportedly wait outside Brando's apartment like a 'puppy dog,' and ask Brando to burn him with cigarettes during sex (per the Daily Mail). In the biography James Dean: Tomorrow Never Comes, authors Darwin Porter and Danforth Prince alleged that Dean enjoyed 'kinky sado-masochistic sex' with actor Marlon Brando (via Express). Judging by other reports, Dean may have occasionally enjoyed going through life with both hands tied behind his back.