A Dash of Daring, a Cup of Cool

What makes a Star?

Repeatedly throughout this tribute to William Holden, I have called him a star… No, I have called him a Star. Somehow, not capitalizing it seemed wrong. And I know that I am correct. William Holden was and is one of the truly monumental Stars of the last century and of the history of the Silver Screen. Why is that, I ask myself. It can’t just be talent, as many talented people don’t Make It. It can’t just be looks. So why is William Holden a Star?

It helps to think of an anecdote once offered by a Paramount exec, when asked about William Holden’s charisma. He said that, when they tested him with audiences, they watched the people not the screen. Every blasted time Holden smiled, every single member of the audience (male, female, young, old) smiled right back at him. That was the pull of the young Star; he made the audience feel what he wanted them to feel. In fact, he withheld their right to control their own feelings. He was a Star because of his effects.

He was also a Star because of his qualities. William Holden was one of the last members of a dying breed. He was boyish, manly, healthy and sexy all at once, but he always appeared gentle, and radiated a gallantry. William Holden was one of the last American knights. When he acted, you felt honesty. Sometimes it hurt he seemed so honest.

William Holden is a Star of his own. There is no (and nor is there likely to be) a "new William Holden." He was All-American in the mode of Denzel Washington. He had the cynicism of Kevin Spacey. He had the box office staying power of Harrison Ford. He had the corruptible innocence of Joaquin Phoenix. William Holden was all of these things, and, yes, he was attractive. But, it is in his unique and astounding mix that his Star power resides.

He is all things, so he both reflects us and is the stick by which we measure ourselves. William Holden was a Star not merely because of his essence, but also because of his function.

William Holden is a Star because he was born one. Further, he was a Star because he burned too bright, because, in the end, isn’t a Star also defined by the rate at which it burns up its resources? And Holden burned bright. This no one can deny.


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