The attraction between Angeli and Dean was immediate. Maybe they completed each other, for while he was wild and rebellious, she was peaceful and conformist. She could bring him the stability he didn’t have, and he could bring fun and excitement to her life. They began to date and were soon inseparable. Little by little, Dean became more gentle and easygoing under Angeli’s influence. Friends say he even wore a tuxedo for the first time to accompany her to a première. Apparently, the made each other very happy.
But it was not all a bed of roses for the handsome Hollywood couple. There was Angeli’s controlling mother, who did not consider Dean suitable for her daughter and forbade her to see him. She even tried to make the studio keep them apart. When Pier threatened to leave home, however, Mrs. Pier Angeli desisted. Angeli wanted to marry Dean, but he was reluctant. Though he thought she was “the marrying kind”, he was afraid of having his freedom restrained and of not being ready or able to take care of her properly. His indecision and insecurities hurt Angeli, who believed if he had such doubts, it was because he did not love her. All this pressure began to take a toll on the relationship.
One day Dean travelled to New York for two weeks to do a TV show, while Angeli stayed in L.A. . When he returned, their relationship had changed. Though he and Angeli would still date, their romance had cooled considerably.
Angeli began dating a young singer she had met while making a movie in Germany, three years before. His name was Vic Damone. He was charming and had a magnificent voice. But most importantly he came from a Catholic Italian family and, unlike Dean, was not a rebellious type. He possessed a clean cut image. In other words, Damone was the son-in-law of Mrs. Pier Angeli’s dreams.
After a few months, to Dean’s bewilderment, Pier announced she and Damone were engaged.
They had a big church wedding in Beverly Hills , on November 24, 1954. Legend has it that on this day, Dean sat on his motorcycle outside the church, with his red jacket, worn-out jeans, boots and leather cap, waiting for the bride and groom to come out. When they did, he hit the gas and sped noisily away at full speed.
After their break-up, Dean was desolate and broken-hearted. Though he would have other affairs until his death in 1955, there would never be another Pier Angeli in his life. No other woman would ever be so romantically linked to him.
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