James Dean in East of Eden (1955)

Vitals

James Dean as Caleb “Cal” Trask, angsty and entrepreneurial farmer’s son

Monterey to Salinas, California, Spring 1917

Film: East of Eden
Release Date: March 9, 1955
Director: Elia Kazan
Costume Designer: Anna Hill Johnstone

Background

Despite his profoundly lasting cultural impact as a 1950s screen and style icon, James Dean only starred in three credited films before his death 71 years ago today on September 30, 1955. Of these, Elia Kazan’s adaptation of John Steinbeck’s epic novel East of Eden was the only to actually be released during his lifetime.

Steinbeck took inspiration from the biblical story of Cain and Abel, graphed onto the moody Cal Trask (Dean) and his brother Aron (Richard Davalos), who both vie to impress their devout father Adam (Raymond Massey) as well as Aron’s girlfriend Abra (Julie Harris).

The novel follows the Trask family settling in California’s Salinas Valley during the 1860s through Cal and Aron’s drama through the end of World War I. The 1955 film was entirely set during these later years, though the new 2026 miniseries (releasing on Netflix tomorrow!) likely follows the family saga across Steinbeck’s full timeline.

What’d He Wear?

Costume designer Anna Hill Johnstone dressed James Dean primarily in layered neutrals as Cal Trask, perhaps signaling his impartial vulnerability while also allowing him to be both literally and mentally stripped down over the course of his emotional journey. His open-neck shirts and sweaters may seem surprisingly contemporary to modern viewers—and Johnstone surely wanted younger audiences to relate to Cal by not making him look inaccessibly old-fashioned—but historical photography and catalogs depict younger men increasingly embracing casual sportswear throughout the 1910s.

Cal’s pale-stone popover short-sleeved shirt has a large, sporty collar with a small extended throat-latch tab on the left that connects to a single button under the right side of the collar. The wide placket extends down to Dean’s upper chest, with only that top button to close. There are two open-top chest pockets, and he self-cuffs the ends of his elbow-length sleeves over his biceps. The shirt’s lean, structured fit flatters Dean’s frame but would be uncommon for the era, especially given the more structured fit than other popover shirts with longer button-up plackets or even more modern polo shirts made from stretchier fabric than the structured cotton of Dean’s screen-worn sport shirt.

Cal typically layers a warmer oatmeal-shaded tan fuzzy wool sweater over the shirt, keeping the shirt’s substantial collar outside the sweater’s gently shaped V-neck. The neckline, hem, and the cuffs at the end of the set-in sleeves are all narrowly ribbed for a more structured contrast against the plain-woven body.

Cal maintains tonality with his muted beige gabardine wool trousers that rise to Dean’s natural waist, where he holds them up with one of a nearly matching beige belt that closes through a small silver-toned single-prong buckle. These flat-front trousers have side pockets, a button-through back-right pocket, and flat-felled seams along the sides down to the turn-ups (cuffs).

With its gold chain and fob visibly hanging from a slit pocket on the front right side of the trousers, Dean wore his own vintage gold-filled pocket-watch on screen over the initial protestations of Elia Kazan despite it clearly fitting the 1917 setting. Made by Standward Watch Co., this pocket watch has a full-hunter cover, which Dean swapped out for the film so his personal monogrammed cover wouldn’t be on screen. As described by Stephen Pulvirent for Hodinkee: “Dean’s solid gold pocket watch is signed “Standard USA” and was made circa 1889 in bassine et filets style with an engine-turned back. The front cover is engraved with the initials ‘JD’ and the dial is simple white enamel, decorated with a sunken sub-seconds counter that lives below the blued steel hands. The coin-edged case contains an Elgin movement composed of a three quarter plate, five jewels, a straight line lever escapement, and a cut-bimetallic compensation balance.”

With all due respect to Timothy Carey, Joe’s dark blue cardigan over a white undershirt with neutral corduroys is what most men look like when trying to emulate Steve McQueen’s famous Carmel look.

Cal’s shoes are a variation on “white bucks”, an informal casual shoe style that grew popular over the early 20th century, so named for their typically white or off-white nubuck leather uppers. Finished in a beige suede that’s been further tanned by the Salinas Valley dust, Cal’s low-profile plain-toe shoes are oxford-laced through five sets of eyelets. His socks are a mid-gray.

Is it truly a James Dean movie if he’s not angsty?

How to Get the Look

James Dean in East of Eden (1955)

East of Eden‘s costume design is an exercise in blending period fashions with contemporary relevance, clad in timeless styles like an open-neck shirt under a sweater and slacks—in all neutral tones—that allowed living legend James Dean to maintain his youthful accessibility with 1950s audiences and continues modeling tasteful transitional season style more than seventy years later.

• Light-stone cotton popover sport shirt with large collar, throat-latch button tab, broad quarter-length placket, two open-top chest pockets, and elbow-length sleeves
• Tan fuzzy wool V-neck sweater
• Beige wool gabardine flat-front trousers with belt loops, side pockets, front-right slit pocket, button-through back-left pocket, and turn-ups/cuffs
• Beige belt with small silver-toned single-prong buckle
• Beige suede plain-toe oxford shoes
• Gray socks
• Gold full-hunter pocket watch with white enamel dial (with radial Roman numeral hour markers and 6:00 register) on a short chain with round fob

Shop the shirt:

While a qualified shirtmaker would be best to try to replicate the fit and details of James Dean's screen-worn shirt, any budget-minded readers curious about adapting this look for themselves may look to Old Navy for inspiration:

Old Navy Loose Popover Work Shirt in "elbow grease" (Old Navy, $15.99)

Price and availability current as of Sept. 25, 2026.

Do Yourself a Favor and…

Check out the movie and read John Steinbeck’s novel.