TERRY
You don’t understand.  I coulda had class.
I coulda been a contender.
I could have been somebody, instead of a bum,
Which is what I am.

Delivered by Marlon Brando in ON THE WATERFRONT
Written by Budd Schulberg
 

We who came to Hollywood were looking to be somebody.

To be a “somebody”: a distinctively American expression. 

Not an anybody and certainly not a nobody.

A somebody meant somebody important, somebody successful.  Somebody who was loved or feared, somebody rich and respected, somebody glamorous and desirable.  To be powerful and famous, -- it was called after all, this stretch with the stars under our feet, “The Walk of Fame” – and there were still plenty of empty stars to fill.

--- From the introduction of HOLLYWOOD BOULEVARD – AVENUE OF THE STARS – 1969-1972