| Photos (See all 29 | slideshow) |
| Janet Gaynor | ... | Esther Victoria Blodgett, aka Vicki Lester | |
| Fredric March | ... | Norman Maine | |
| Adolphe Menjou | ... | Oliver Niles | |
| May Robson | ... | Grandmother Lettie Blodgett | |
| Andy Devine | ... | Danny McGuire | |
| Lionel Stander | ... | Matt Libby | |
| Owen Moore | ... | Casey Burke - Director | |
| Peggy Wood | ... | Miss Phillips - Central Casting Clerk | |
| Elizabeth Jenns | ... | Anita Regis | |
| Edgar Kennedy | ... | Pop Randall - Landlord | |
| J.C. Nugent | ... | Mr. Blodgett | |
| Guinn 'Big Boy' Williams | ... | Posture Coach (as Guinn Williams) | |
| rest of cast listed alphabetically: | |||
| Janice Hood | |||
| Jean Acker | ... | Woman at Preview (uncredited) | |
| Eric Alden | ... | Niles' Assistant (uncredited) | |
| Irving Bacon | ... | Station Agent (uncredited) | |
| Jane Barnes | ... | Waitress #1 (uncredited) | |
| Vince Barnett | ... | Otto (uncredited) | |
| Clara Blandick | ... | Aunt Mattie (uncredited) | |
| Wade Boteler | ... | Santa Anita Cop (uncredited) | |
| Sidney Bracey | ... | Burke's Butler (uncredited) | |
| Harry C. Bradley | ... | Niles' Assistant (uncredited) | |
| Lynton Brent | ... | Reporter (uncredited) | |
| Blanche Bush | ... | (uncredited) | |
| Helene Chadwick | ... | Woman at Preview (uncredited) | |
| George Chandler | ... | Deliveryman (uncredited) | |
| Billy Coe | ... | Bartender (uncredited) | |
| Virginia Dabney | ... | (uncredited) | |
| Billy Dooley | ... | Film Crewman with Spray Gun (uncredited) | |
| Dora Early | ... | (uncredited) | |
| Herbert Evans | ... | Burke's Bartender (uncredited) | |
| Rex Evans | ... | (uncredited) | |
| Pat Flaherty | ... | Cuddles (uncredited) | |
| Francis Ford | ... | William Gregory (uncredited) | |
| Trixie Friganza | ... | Mabel (uncredited) | |
| Jean Gale | ... | (uncredited) | |
| Joe Gray | ... | Garcia (uncredited) | |
| Harrison Greene | ... | Chubby Previewer (uncredited) | |
| Carlton Griffin | ... | Cameraman (uncredited) | |
| Jonathan Hale | ... | Judge George J. Parris (uncredited) | |
| Sherry Hall | ... | Court Clerk (uncredited) | |
| Chuck Hamilton | ... | Cop Outside Courtroom (uncredited) | |
| Lillian Harmer | ... | Wardrobe Woman (uncredited) | |
| Grace Hayle | ... | Woman in Funeral Mob (uncredited) | |
| Edward Hearn | ... | Sanitarium Attendant (uncredited) | |
| Leon Holmes | ... | (uncredited) | |
| Robert Homans | ... | Bailiff (uncredited) | |
| Kenneth Howell | ... | Milton Rails (uncredited) | |
| Olin Howland | ... | Judd Baker (uncredited) | |
| Arthur Hoyt | ... | Assistant Makeup Artist (uncredited) | |
| Mary Jane Irving | ... | (uncredited) | |
| I. Stanford Jolley | ... | Boxing Ringside Spectator (uncredited) | |
| Armand Kaliz | ... | (uncredited) | |
| Eddie Kane | ... | Burke's Party Guest (uncredited) | |
| Matty Kemp | ... | Preview Reporter (uncredited) | |
| Claude King | ... | John (uncredited) | |
| Carole Landis | ... | Girl in Beret at Santa Anita Bar (uncredited) | |
| Myra Marsh | ... | John's Assistant (uncredited) | |
| Chris-Pin Martin | ... | José Rodriguez (uncredited) | |
| Edwin Maxwell | ... | Vocal Coach (uncredited) | |
| Buddy Messinger | ... | Boy Delivering Fan Mail (uncredited) | |
| Willy Morris | ... | Niles' Secretary (uncredited) | |
| Ferdinand Munier | ... | Burke's Waiter (uncredited) | |
| Marshall Neilan | ... | Bert (uncredited) | |
| David Newell | ... | Sam (uncredited) | |
| Robert Emmett O'Connor | ... | Santa Anita Clubhouse Bartender (uncredited) | |
| Dennis O'Keefe | ... | Burke's Party Guest (uncredited) | |
| Ted Oliver | ... | Santa Anita Cop #2 (uncredited) | |
| Renee Orsell | ... | (uncredited) | |
| Franklin Pangborn | ... | Billy Moon (uncredited) | |
| Harvey Parry | ... | Boxer (uncredited) | |
| Bob Perry | ... | Boxing Referee (uncredited) | |
| Lee Phelps | ... | Bailiff #1 (uncredited) | |
| Jed Prouty | ... | Artie Carver (uncredited) | |
| Sally Raynor | ... | (uncredited) | |
| Tom Ricketts | ... | Ray (uncredited) | |
| Adrian Rosley | ... | Makeup Artist (uncredited) | |
| Kathryn Sheldon | ... | Funeral Spectator (uncredited) | |
| Marla Shelton | ... | (uncredited) | |
| Paul Stanton | ... | Academy Award Presenter (uncredited) | |
| Vera Steadman | ... | (uncredited) | |
| Kay Sutton | ... | (uncredited) | |
| A.W. Sweatt | ... | Aleck Blodgett (uncredited) | |
| Margaret Tallichet | ... | Marion (uncredited) | |
| Fred 'Snowflake' Toones | ... | Black Witness (uncredited) | |
| Leonard Walker | ... | Hollywood Bowl Orchestra Leader (uncredited) | |
| Luana Walters | ... | (uncredited) | |
| Cynthia Westlake | ... | (uncredited) | |
| Gayne Whitman | ... | Grauman's Chinese Theater Radio Announcer (uncredited) | |
| Charles Williams | ... | Hanley (uncredited) | |
| Clarence Wilson | ... | Justice of the Peace (uncredited) | |
Directed by | |||
| William A. Wellman | |||
| Jack Conway | (uncredited) | ||
Writing credits | ||
| William A. Wellman | (story) and | |
| Robert Carson | (story) | |
| Dorothy Parker | (screenplay) & | |
| Alan Campbell | (screenplay) & | |
| Robert Carson | (screenplay) | |
| Ben Hecht | (contributing writer) uncredited and | |
| Ring Lardner Jr. | (contributing writer) uncredited and | |
| John Lee Mahin | (contributing writer) uncredited and | |
| Budd Schulberg | (contributing writer) uncredited and | |
| David O. Selznick | (contributing writer) uncredited | |
| Adela Rogers St. Johns | uncredited | |
Produced by | |||
| David O. Selznick | .... | producer | |
Original Music by | |||
| Max Steiner | |||
Cinematography by | |||
| W. Howard Greene | (photography) | ||
Film Editing by | |||
| James E. Newcom | |||
| Anson Stevenson | (uncredited) | ||
Casting by | |||
| Charles Richards | (uncredited) | ||
Production Design by | |||
| Lansing C. Holden | (as Lansing Holden) | ||
Art Direction by | |||
| Lyle R. Wheeler | (as Lyle Wheeler) | ||
Costume Design by | |||
| Omar Kiam | |||
Makeup Department | |||
| Elizabeth Arden | .... | makeup artist: screen and stage (uncredited) | |
| Paul Stanhope | .... | makeup artist (uncredited) | |
| Eddie Voight | .... | makeup artist (uncredited) | |
Production Management | |||
| Ray Flynn | .... | production manager (uncredited) | |
Second Unit Director or Assistant Director | |||
| Eric Stacey | .... | assistant director | |
Art Department | |||
| Edward G. Boyle | .... | associate art director | |
| Harold Fenton | .... | construction supervisor (uncredited) | |
| Robert Lander | .... | props (uncredited) | |
Sound Department | |||
| Oscar Lagerstrom | .... | sound recordist (as Oscar Lagestrom) | |
Special Effects by | |||
| Jack Cosgrove | .... | special effects | |
Camera and Electrical Department | |||
| James Potevin | .... | chief electrician (uncredited) | |
| Cliff Shirpser | .... | assistant camera: Technicolor (uncredited) | |
| Melbourne Spurr | .... | publicity photographer (uncredited) | |
| Fred Williams | .... | grip (uncredited) | |
Costume and Wardrobe Department | |||
| Eugene Joseff | .... | costume jeweller (uncredited) | |
| Eddie Schmidt | .... | wardrobe designer: Adolphe Menjou (uncredited) | |
| Eddie Schmidt | .... | wardrobe maker: Adolphe Menjou (uncredited) | |
Editorial Department | |||
| Hal C. Kern | .... | supervising film editor | |
| Val Lewton | .... | editing assistant: David O. Selznick (uncredited) | |
Music Department | |||
| Hugo Friedhofer | .... | orchestrator (uncredited) | |
| Bernhard Kaun | .... | orchestrator (uncredited) | |
| George Parrish | .... | orchestrator (uncredited) | |
Other crew | |||
| Natalie Kalmus | .... | technicolor color supervisor | |
| Russell Birdwell | .... | press representative (uncredited) | |
| Barbara Keon | .... | production secretary (uncredited) | |
| Corynn Kiehl | .... | production secretary (uncredited) | |
| Mason N. Litson | .... | location manager (uncredited) | |
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| A Star Is Born | The Bad and the Beautiful | Sunset Blvd. | The Aviator | Inside Daisy Clover |
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| Full cast and crew | Company credits | External reviews |
| News articles | IMDb Drama section | IMDb USA section |
Fredric March gave a magnificent performance, probably the best of his career, as Norman Maine, the actor whose career is in the descendant as that of his wife, Vikki Lester, is in the ascendant in this, the first 'official' version of "A Star is Born", (the 1932 film "What Price Hollywood" roughly told the same story). March displays just the right degree of brashness, of knowingness, and a combination of ego and a real actor's almost complete lack of ego. It's a miraculous piece of work.
As Lester, Janet Gaynor is touchingly blank but the star quality she is meant to display seems conspicuously absent; (in the 1954 musical remake Judy Garland was almost too much a star). It seems inconceivable that she could eclipse March on screen (even with his drinking). If Lester is a star and possibly a great actress Gaynor keeps the secret to herself.
The script for this version was partly written by Dorothy Parker and Alan Campbell and it shows. It's an acerbic and, at times, savage movie about the movies, quite cynical for a major studio picture of it's day. It is very well directed by William Wellman who draws first-rate performances from the supporting cast, in particular Lionel Stander as a heartless, slime-ball studio hack. This remains the best of the three versions to come thus far.