In 1947, at the age of 39, Davis gave birth to daughter Barbara Davis Sherry (known as B.D.), and later wrote in her memoir that she became absorbed in motherhood and considered ending her career.
Davis's net worth at the time of her death was $2 Million after adjusting for taxes and inflation. According to her last will and testament, Bette's estate was worth $1 Million. The bulk of the estate was left to her adopted son, Michael Merrill. The other beneficiary was her close friend and assistant Kathryn Sermack.
Michael and Margo Merrill were adopted while Davis was married to actor Gary Merrill. Kathryn Sermack, a friend and secretary who lived with Davis in her Los Angeles apartment, also gets about half her estate.
Bette Davis, longtime rival of Crawford, denounced the book, stating, "I was not Miss Crawford's biggest fan, but, wisecracks to the contrary, I did and still do respect her talent. What she did not deserve was that detestable book written by her daughter. I've forgotten her name. Horrible."
Did Bette Davis do her own makeup in what ever happened to Baby Jane?
Early on, Bette Davis made the decision to create her own makeup for Jane. "What I had in mind no professional makeup man would have dared to put on me," said Davis.
Here's Who Inherited Bette Davis' Fortune After Her Death
Why did Bette Davis paint her face white?
Bette Davis had legendary make-up artist Perc Westmore devise a white mask-like effect for her face to emphasize Regina's coldness. William Wyler hated it, likening it to a Kabuki mask. Teresa Wright's debut and her first Oscar nomination.
Christina has repeatedly stated that the film is highly inaccurate, and that the portrayal of her mother in the film is nothing like the real Joan Crawford, emphasizing that she never wrote in her book that Joan chopped down a tree with an axe, or beat her with a wire hanger as depicted in the film.
What did Bette Davis daughter say about her in her book?
My Mother's Keeper is a 1985 memoir by B. D. Hyman, the daughter of actress Bette Davis, in which she alleges that Davis was a bullying, alcoholic mother.
Some suggest Davis's eyes were the result of the autoimmune thyroid condition, Graves' disease. Swelling the muscles around the eyes and surrounding tissues, the condition pushes the eyeballs forward, causing them to protrude, limiting their movement.
To fulfill a dream, to be allowed to sweat over lonely labor, to be given a chance to create, is the meat and potatoes of life. The money is the gravy.
Mother and daughter remained estranged through 1989, when Davis was told her breast cancer, in remission for five years, had “exploded,” and she had just days to live. “Miss D accepted it,” Sermak writes of hearing the prognosis. “She told me to call her son Michael and then Harold.
Michael Merrill, Bette's son, and Kathryn Sermak, Bette's personal assistant and friend, are now the executors of her estate. In her memory, they have created The Bette Davis Foundation, which provides financial assistance to promising young actors and actresses.
Crawford had a heart attack on May 10, 1977, and died in her apartment in Lenox Hill, New York City. Her age was reported as 69. On May 6, 1977, Crawford had given away her Shih Tzu, Princess Lotus Blossom, because she was too weak to continue to care for her.
Notable personalities who used Tann's services included actress Joan Crawford (twin daughters, Cathy and Cynthia were adopted through the agency while daughter Christina Crawford and son Christopher were adopted through other agencies).
How many biological children did Joan Crawford have?
As Charlotte Chandler writes in her biography of Crawford, Not the Girl Next Door, Crawford was unable to have kids, so she adopted five: a girl, Christina, in 1940; a boy, Christopher, in 1942, who was reclaimed by his birth mother soon after; a second boy, also named Christopher, in 1943; and twin girls, Catherine ( ...
Among those who attend are: Joan's adopted children, Christina, Cathy and Cindy, and son, Christopher; Joan's secretaries, Betty Barker and Florence Walsh and Joan's Christian Science practitioner, Marque Campbell.
The actress' peppers were so stunning and prominent they inspired the classic 1981 Kim Carnes song “Bette Davis Eyes”. And while the song still resonates so too does the envy of Davis' big, beautiful eyes.
They were accentuated by blue eye shadow and layers of false lashes with brown, not black, mascara. I was to learn later that Bette customarily took this kind of care with her appearance when meeting someone for the first time.
"Bette Davis Eyes" is a song written and composed by Donna Weiss and Jackie DeShannon in 1974. It was recorded by DeShannon that year but made popular by American singer Kim Carnes in 1981 when it spent nine non-consecutive weeks at the top of the U.S. Billboard Hot 100.
