It’s a thought experiment that’s consistent with the meta-quality of A Star Is Born itself, which asks us to reflect on Hollywood and its stars while celebrating both of them. Each version is defined by the female star who headlines it. (By some strange coincidence, Gaynor, Garland, Streisand and Gaga will all have played this memorable part at the age of 32 .) It’s the supreme irony, given that the driving conflict that emerges between Esther and Norman centers around the idea that a man cannot stand by and watch his wife be more successful than he is, to the point that would have to be willing to sacrifice her career for him to go on living. In both the 1937 and 1954 films, the scene that clinches Norman’s downfall is when he accepts a package meant for Vicki Lester, and is asked to “sign here Mr. Lester.” His identity has been subsumed into hers. It doesn’t matter that that’s something that’s par for the course for women. He is the man.