Country for PR: Japan
Contributor: Kyodo News JBN
Thursday, December 05 2019 - 17:00
AsiaNet
"James Dean Archives Seita Ohnishi Collection" Begins Crowdfunding Blitz for Publication of New Photobook on 65th Anniversary of His Passing
KOBE, Japan, Dec. 5, 2019 /Kyodo JBN-AsiaNet/ --

- Including Some Never-before Seen Images out of 1,600 Photos of Dean from 
Renowned Private Collection -

James Dean Archives Seita Ohnishi Collection (based in Kobe, Japan, 
https://jamesdean.jp/en ) launched a 60-day crowdfunding campaign on November 
29, 2019 (JST 19:00) in an effort to finance the publication of a photobook, to 
be titled "James Dean 1955 - (infinity mark)." If successful, the photobook 
will be published in 2020 upon the 65th anniversary of Dean's passing. The 
crowdfunding site is as follows. 

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/jamesdeanarchives/new-james-dean-photobook-including-1600-images


Image: hardcover. 216 pages, H350mm x W290mm
https://kyodonewsprwire.jp/prwfile/release/M105836/201911294174/_prw_PI1fl_zP3BeXDP.jpg


Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yWOHmGrRHQw&t=3s

This photobook will show 1,600 images, including never-before seen ones, taken 
during the last 85 days of the famed Hollywood actor's life, who died in an 
auto accident at the age of 24 in 1955. The images were all taken in 1955 by 
photographer Sanford Roth (1906 - 1962) and the original negatives are part of 
the world class private collection owned by Seita Ohnishi, a Japanese 
businessman as well as an avid and passionate fan of Dean.

Digital restoration of 1,600 images over a 3 years-period in Japan
"East of Eden," "Rebel Without a Cause" and "Giant" are the three films that 
lifted Dean to global stardom. In 1977, Ohnishi built a steel monument at the 
scene of the accident that killed Dean because, in his words, "there was 
nothing to commemorate his legacy and there should be some." Beulah Roth, the 
wife of the late Sanford, established a friendship with Ohnishi and entrusted 
him with the original negatives as well as their copyrights in 1987, describing 
the decision "like leaving one dear and near friend to another with equal 
degree."

The 1,600 images are from the last 85 days of Dean's life, including those 
taken during the production of the movie "Giant" and the private time spent 
with the Roths. All the images have been digitally restored by experts of James 
Dean Archives Seita Ohnishi Collection since March 2016 in Japan.

"It took us more than 3 years to complete digital restoration processes with 
the speed of only one or two images a day because the negatives were far from 
their ideal conditions for obvious reasons," says Tomofumi Nakano, the project 
manager of James Dean Archives who came up with the idea to publish a 
photobook. "But we believe that, having this photobook out in the public eyes, 
we can present rare opportunities to rediscover details in the context for not 
only fans of Dean but fans of cinema at large, fans of automobiles and 
photography as well."

- Official website
https://jamesdean.jp/en

- For press kits, please visit:
https://kyodonewsprwire.jp/release/201911294174?p=images


Source: James Dean Archives Seita Ohnishi Collection