Old Story, New Troubles

“Anything that involves James Dean is cursed. There’s always some skeleton in the closet.”

Those are the words of Andy Vorzimer--and he’s close enough to know. He’s the attorney for producer-director Mardi Rustam, whose film “James Dean: A Race With Destiny” deals with the final year of the actor’s brief life. It stars “Starship Troopers’ ” Casper Van Diem and features the final screen performance of the late actor Robert Mitchum.

“Race” has been plagued by bad luck and lawsuits since production was completed in mid-1996. The star-crossed film is yet to be released.

But then, that’s nothing new when it comes to movies involving Dean. Except for a documentary made by Robert Altman in 1957, the iconographic actor’s life has stubbornly resisted screen treatment. And that rocky road continues today in local courtrooms.

Warner Bros.--which released Dean’s three movies, “Rebel Without a Cause,” “East of Eden” and “Giant” (“Rebel” and “Giant” after his death in a car accident on Sept. 30, 1955, at the age of 24)--had been planning a treatment of Dean’s life with such names as director Michael Mann and actor Leonardo DiCaprio mentioned at various times.

That project is now in limbo. Warners also was hit by a suit from the James Dean Foundation, headed by a cousin of the late actor. It concerned Dean’s likeness and merchandising. Warner Bros. came to an understanding with the foundation in 1990, according to corporate spokeswoman Barbara Brogliatti, who would not specify the terms of the agreement.

In 1995, The Times reported that another filmmaker, Alan Hauge, was planning a $25-million film called “James Dean: An American Legend.” At the time, Hauge claimed his was the only film sanctioned by Dean’s family. “He came to us and said that he was the only one who had the rights to do a movie on James Dean, and we said, ‘No, you don’t,’ ” Brogliatti says. “We haven’t heard from him since.”

Hauge’s project never materialized and sparked legal action by at least one financier. So far, Rustam’s is the only Dean biopic to actually make it before the cameras. The low-budget “Race” stars Van Diem as Dean and Mitchum as “Giant” director George Stevens.

Mitchum’s granddaughter Carrie Mitchum plays Dean’s love interest, actress Pier Angeli, who also died tragically young in 1971 from an overdose of barbiturates. Connie Stevens, Diane Ladd and Mike Connors also appear in the film.

Although Rustam refuses to pin down a budget, other sources report that the film cost somewhere around $2 million. But no one can say when “Race With Destiny” will hit theaters. Shortly after production was completed, Susanna Groves, who had worked in various capacities for Rustam, filed suit over a job-related injury she claimed was suffered on a job not related to the Dean film, and subsequently, over a dispute regarding her credit as line producer on Rustam’s film.

Groves says that Rustam promised her a line producer credit, and that at an early cast and crew screening, the credit appeared on the finished film as well as on screening cassettes sent to distributors. It was subsequently removed, she says, in retaliation for her injury lawsuit against Rustam, which is pending.

In January, a Superior Court judge in Van Nuys ruled that Groves was the sole line producer on the film and blocked the film’s release until the credit was reinstated. Rustam is appealing the decision.

“My understanding is that [Groves] had an oral contract with Rustam and by virtue of that deserves sole credit as line producer,” says Groves’ attorney, Brian Corber. “In exchange, she gave up the right to a raise and the overtime she had earned. But she didn’t get the money or the credit.”

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In Hollywood, oral contracts for certain crew credits are not uncommon and are as often honored as not. In this case, the court ruled in favor of Groves, partly because Rustam’s lawyer at the time had stopped pursuing the case and had been suspended from practicing law.

“We dispute the allegations [from Groves] that she served as a line producer,” says Vorzimer, Rustam’s current attorney.

Vorzimer, who had recently represented a financier in the “James Dean: An American Legend” project, finds it ironic that he is now involved in yet another litigious matter involving the legendary actor.

Neither Rustam nor Vorzimer disputed Groves’ claim that she had originally received a line producer credit based on an oral promise from Rustam or that it was later removed from the film. But Rustam and Vorzimer say Groves functioned as a secretary or executive assistant and the final credits reflected that.

Rustam dismisses the idea that the credit was removed in retaliation for Groves’ injury lawsuit. The credit was removed because it violated credit guidelines, Vorzimer says. The viewing copy of the movie lists Angela Schapiro as line producer.

Rustam and Vorzimer both say the film has a distributor. “But I can’t name them at this time,” Rustam says. “I don’t want to jeopardize them because of the litigation.”

Neither would venture a guess as to when “James Dean: A Race With Destiny” would be released.