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A Star Is Born (1954)

PG | | Drama, Musical, Romance | 16 October 1954 (USA)
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A film star helps a young singer and actress find fame, even as age and alcoholism send his own career on a downward spiral.

Director:

Writers:

(screen play by), (based on the 1937 screen play by) | 4 more credits »

Stars:

, , | See full cast & crew »
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Nominated for 6 Oscars. Another 5 wins & 5 nominations. See more awards »

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Cast

Complete credited cast:
... Vicki Lester
... Norman Maine
... Matt Libby
... Oliver Niles
... Danny McGuire (as Tom Noonan)
... Lola Lavery
... Susan Ettinger
... Graves
Hazel Shermet ... Libby's Secretary
... Glenn Williams
See full cast »
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Storyline

Norman Maine, a movie star whose career is on the wane, meets showgirl Esther Blodgett when he drunkenly stumbles into her act one night. A friendship develops, then blossoms into romance before tensions increase as Esther's career takes off while Norman's continues to plummet. Written by Col Needham <col@imdb.com>

Plot Summary | Add Synopsis

Plot Keywords:

remake | bare chested male | hairy chest | wilhelm scream | national film registry | See All (77) »

Taglines:

"IT IS SOMETHING TO SEE THIS 'STAR IS BORN'! STUNNING!" N.Y. Times (original ad - mostly caps) See more »

Genres:

Drama | Musical | Romance

Certificate:

PG | See all certifications »

Parents Guide:

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Details

Country:

Language:

Release Date:

16 October 1954 (USA)  »

Also Known As:

Une étoile est née  »

Filming Locations:

 »
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Box Office

Budget:

$5,019,770 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$14,933,000
See more on IMDbPro »

Company Credits

Production Co:

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Technical Specs

Runtime:

(premiere) | (restored) | (DVD) | (cut)

Sound Mix:

(RCA Sound System) (magnetic prints)| (optical prints)

Color:

(Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.55 : 1
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Did You Know?

Trivia

The church for the funeral scene is the Church of the Good Shepherd in Beverly Hills, California. Real-life celebrity funerals there have included Rudolph Valentino (1926), Carmen Miranda (1955), Gary Cooper (1961), William Frawley (1966), Pier Angeli (1971), Jack Haley (1979), Alfred Hitchcock (1980), Vincente Minnelli (1986), Rita Hayworth (1987), Danny Thomas (1991), Eva Gabor (1995), Mary Frann (1998), Frank Sinatra (1998), Don Adams (2005), Merv Griffin (2007) and Zsa Zsa Gabor (2016). See more »

Goofs

At the Sneak Preview at the Marcopia Theatre, the first sequence of the Born in a Trunk number, which Garland and Mason are apparently watching from the balcony, is projected in 16:9 ratio, but the rest of the number, as viewed by members of the film audience, in the film itself, is in CinemaScope in the much wider 2.55:1 wide screen ratio. See more »

Quotes

Oliver Niles: You know Libby you missed a lot not knowing Norman Maine.
Matt Libby: Not knowing him? I spent my life knowing him. I knew what he was going to do before he did it. I knew him backwards.
Oliver Niles: You didn't know him at all. He was quite a guy.
See more »

Connections

Referenced in Super 8-1/2, une biographie édifiante (1994) See more »

Soundtracks

Gotta Have Me Go with You
(uncredited)
Music by Harold Arlen
Lyrics by Ira Gershwin
Performed by Judy Garland with Jack Harmon & Don McKay
See more »

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: How does the movie end?
Q: What is Norman Maine's real name?
Q: Is "A Star Is Born" based on a book?
See more »

User Reviews

 
Michael Arick or Tommy Will You Ever Turn Over Your Print?
22 January 2018 | by – See all my reviews

This is a great film. Yes it is long. Yes some of the songs should have been cut but they weren't but we get a masterpiece anyway.

In this film Esther Blodgett is a talented aspiring singer with a band, and Norman Maine is a former matinee idol with a career in the early stages of decline. When he arrives intoxicated at a function at the Shrine Auditorium, the studio publicist attempts to keep him away from reporters. After an angry exchange, Norman rushes away and bursts onto a stage where an orchestra is performing. Esther takes him by the hand and pretends he is part of the act, thereby turning a potentially embarrassing and disruptive moment into an opportunity for the audience to greet Norman with applause.

Norman then takes Esther under his wing and gets her a screen test at the studio in which he works. She ends up homecoming a major star and his drinking escalates!

After the film was released Warner Brothers recalled the prints. 30 minutes were edited out. In 1983 Ron Haver was able to restore most of the film. Where he could not find footage for the missing scenes he used productions stills. People claim this halts the picture. It doesn't! Besides it only last a total of 7 minutes. It is not 7 minutes all at once!

Now in 2010 it was reported that film restorer Michael Arick had a print of this film. He will not let Warner Brothers use the print. Some people claim that he doesn't have a print however "He has never publicly denied it".

It is also Rumored that Tommy from Beverly Hills has hours of the films outtakes on VHS however it is silent footage. Maybe it might include the missing 7 minutes.
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