"A Star Is Born" (1954), Part 2 Quiz

Answer: through his office window

Norman finally wrangles to have Niles hear Esther reprise "Man That Got Away" through his open office window. When he catches on at last, he is impressed with what he hears and will give Esther her shot. Bickford was in many a 50's film.

Answer: an oil derrick

Esther is so scared her picture will flop she must stop someplace, perhaps to vomit in fear. When Norman asks if she's all right, she replies, "Fine. I wish I was dead." This scene is obviously designed to show the ugly underbelly of Hollywood. But Esther's debut is a smash and her career starts off with flying colors.

Answer: Pocatello, Idaho

"I was Born In A Trunk at the Princess Theatre in Pocatello, Idaho..." Leonard Gershe's song must have brought back memories of her early vaudeville days for Garland, who was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan herself. George M. Cohan was born in Providence, R.I.

Answer: a recording studio

At first, Norman rejects Esther's love, saying he will ruin her. But later, he repents and proposes to her on the studio where she's recording "Here's What I'm Here For". Two sound technicians impishly record their conversation and Esther laughingly says, "That's too public a proposal to reject. I accept!" Another funny gem of a scene!

Answer: a jail

The two wed in a small jail outside Los Angeles. Ironically, Norman will wind up IN a jail for drunk driving, after his career is washed up. Agent Matt Libby (Jack Carson), furious at being double-crossed in his plans for an absurd overblown ceremony for them, vows revenge on Norman and later is delighted in Norman's downfall.

Answer: Lazy Acres

The song "It's A New World" must have had particular resonance for Garland; she must have dreamt of a "new world" of her own, that the film could provide for her, one of new-found fame, perhaps free of studio pressures. Alas, it wasn't to be.

Answer: race track

Smugly satisfied at Norman's dire straits, Libby, not forgetting how Norman and Esther ruined his grandiose wedding plans for them, now needles Norman further. Still resentful over having to endure Norman's drunken sprees over the years, Libby sneers about Norman's dependency on his wife.

The "fight" is over in a second, as Libby knocks Norman out. This is the turning point for Norman, as he descends into total alcoholism.

Answer: T.S. Eliot

Perhaps Gray's line "The paths of glory lead but to the grave" (from his "Elegy") and Milton's "...sunk tho he may be to the watery floor..." (from "Lycidias") would be too pompous. Libby quote from Eliot's "The Hollow Man": "This is the way the world ends/not with a bang but a whimper". Libby was obviously letting a rare flash of sympathy for Norman show though.

Answer: A World For Two

"Happiness Ahead" is the title of one of Esther's early films, "Cavalier" is the name of the film in "Singin' In The Rain". "Happy Endings" is the film done by Judy's daughter, Liza Minelli, in Scorsese's "New York, New York", patterned after the "Born In A Trunk" sequence.

In the original, Frederic March's Norman gives a drunken, sour harangue of the Oscars, turning us further against him, but Mason's Norman humbly asks the producers for a job, grabbing our hearts!

Answer: Grace Kelly

Kelly was awarded the Oscar for "The Country Girl", a melodrama with a similar theme as "Star": wife watches washed-up hubby become drunk. It was decidedly inferior to "Star" to boot! But today, Kelly's role is largely forgotten, while Garland and her film are regarded as classics, thanks in large part to the film's 1983 restoration. Hope you enjoyed the quizzes!