William Bast, the Edgar-winning TV screenwriter, was the first biographer of cinema icon James Dean, his close friend and lover. Bast and Dean met and became friends and roommates while drama students at U.C.L.A., and later roomed together in New York City. Bast first wrote about Dean a year after his death, in "James Dean: A Biography", which was published in 1956. The biography was the basis of the 1976 TV movie James Dean (1976), produced and written by Bast, which portrayed Dean as a straight-skewed bisexual. In the TV movie, Bast -- a character in the teleplay who narrates the movie -- says that Dean's closest relationship had been with a woman, Liz Sheridan. Thirty years later, Bast published a franker memoir of his relationship with cinema's iconic teenage rebel, "Surviving James Dean", in which he portrayed the late actor as a homosexual who likely would have entered into a committed, gay relationship with Bast if he had not been killed in a car crash on September 30, 1955. Bast refuted "Dizzy" Sheridan's contention that the couple were in love and briefly engaged, claiming he himself helped make up the myths of Dean as a bicurious straight due to the uptight 1950s. The 1976 telefilm has Dean encouraging Bast to go cruising for gay sex in the bar of New York's Astor Hotel in the name of gaining experience. In addition to his 1956 biography, 2006 memoir and the 1976 TV movie, Bast also wrote a screenplay based on Dean's funeral for a 1958 British TV teleplay, "The Myth Makers" (1958). "The Myth Makers" was later adapted for American television as "The Movie Star" (1962).
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Biography from IMDb.
- April 3, 1931 (95)
- Wauwatosa, Wisconsin, USA
- Writer and producer, also actor
- 15 on MovieCove · 38 credits in all
Known for
What are William Bast's films like?
Across their 11 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Bonds and Power.
Genres
Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.
Themes
What they feel like to watch
Ironic 0 · Wry 1 · Earnest 10
Light 4 · Serious 4 · Dark 3
A split, not a type: Grounded 6 · Stylized 3 · Heightened 2
Gentle 3 · Charged 5 · Intense 3
Steady 5 · Shifting 5 · Whiplash 1
Straight-faced 10 · Some laughs 1 · Funny 0
Slow burn 6 · Even-paced 5 · Relentless 0
Casual 6 · Engaged 5 · Full focus 0
Easy watch 3 · Affecting 6 · Heavy 2
Resolved 8 · Open-ended 2 · Ambiguous 1
Moods and endings
- Happy1
- Bittersweet8
- Ambiguous2
AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.
Where can I watch William Bast's films?
As of October 24, 2026, 10 of their 15 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Prime Video (5).
Subscription and free streaming for William Bast's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.
Filmography
38 credits, 15 with a MovieCove page; 3 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.
Midcredits score: 43rd percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)
Power and Beauty(2002)
Midcredits score: 29th percentile of all films
The Fury Within (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1998)
Midcredits score: 9th percentile of all films
Secrets (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1992)
Midcredits score: 46th percentile of all films
Twist of Fate (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1989)
The Colbys (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1985)
The Master of Ballantrae(1984)
Midcredits score: 71st percentile of all films
The Hamptons (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1983)
The Scarlet Pimpernel(1982)
Midcredits score: 93rd percentile of all films
Tucker's Witch (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1982)
Mistress of Paradise (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1981)
The Star Maker (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1981)
The Betsy(1978)
Midcredits score: 18th percentile of all films
The Man in the Iron Mask(1977)
Midcredits score: 68th percentile of all films
James Dean(1976)
Midcredits score: 33rd percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 83rd percentile of all films
Apple's Way (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1974)
Ghost Story (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1972)
The Valley of Gwangi(1969)
Midcredits score: 56th percentile of all films
Hawaii Five-O(1968)
Midcredits score: 69th percentile of all shows
Danger Has Two Faces (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1968)
Hammerhead (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1968)
The Man Who Never Was (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1966)
Thirty-Minute Theatre (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1965)
Honey West (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1965)
The Rogues (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1964)
The Fugitive (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1963)
The Outer Limits(1963)
Midcredits score: 92nd percentile of all shows
Combat!(1962)
Midcredits score: 96th percentile of all shows
Ben Casey (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1961)
National Velvet (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1960)
On Trial (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1960)
Perry Mason(1957)
Midcredits score: 95th percentile of all shows
Hallmark Hall of Fame (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1951)
The Hamptons (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
Willie and Jimmy Dean (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
Career shape
A full career of 38 titles, 36 of them dated from 1951 to 2005.
Highest rated
The Scarlet Pimpernel (1982)
Most popular right now
The Great Los Angeles Earthquake (1990)
Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.
How do William Bast's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 46th percentile, the median of all 11; across their 11 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 62nd percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up5
- 50th to 74th4
- 25th to 49th4
- Below 25th2
Shape of the crowd
6 of their 15 titles are Mixed.
- Universally Loved5
- Crowd Pleaser4
- Mixed6
Reviewers score the dialogue 48/100 and the plot and story 47/100 in their films, across 10 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a writer.
Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.
Who does William Bast work with?
People who share at least 2 of William Bast's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Paul Huson shares the most, 3.
Writers
- Paul HusonShared titles: Power and Beauty (2002), Deadly Invasion: The Killer Bee Nightmare (1995), The Great Los Angeles Earthquake (1990)See all 3 shared titles with Paul Huson
Actors
- Bonnie BartlettShared titles: The Great Los Angeles Earthquake (1990), The Legend of Lizzie Borden (1975)See all 2 shared titles with Bonnie Bartlett
- Katherine HelmondShared titles: James Dean (1976), The Legend of Lizzie Borden (1975)See all 2 shared titles with Katherine Helmond
Composers, cinematographers and editors
- Stephen AdriansonShared titles: Deadly Invasion: The Killer Bee Nightmare (1995), The Great Los Angeles Earthquake (1990)See all 2 shared titles with Stephen Adrianson
- Dennis C. LewistonShared titles: The Great Los Angeles Earthquake (1990), The Scarlet Pimpernel (1982)See all 2 shared titles with Dennis C. Lewiston
- Billy GoldenbergShared titles: James Dean (1976), The Legend of Lizzie Borden (1975)See all 2 shared titles with Billy Goldenberg
- John A. MartinelliShared titles: James Dean (1976), The Legend of Lizzie Borden (1975)See all 2 shared titles with John A. Martinelli
Producers
- Frank von ZerneckShared titles: Deadly Invasion: The Killer Bee Nightmare (1995), The Great Los Angeles Earthquake (1990)See all 2 shared titles with Frank von Zerneck
- Robert M. SertnerShared titles: Deadly Invasion: The Killer Bee Nightmare (1995), The Great Los Angeles Earthquake (1990)See all 2 shared titles with Robert M. Sertner
