“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.”

What is Bette Davis most known for?

Davis was known for her forceful and intense style of acting. She could be combative and confrontational with studio executives and film directors, as well as with her co-stars. Her forthright manner, idiosyncratic speech, and ubiquitous cigarette contributed to a public persona that has been often imitated.

What did Bette Davis say about Joan Crawford when she died?

On May 10, 1977, Joan Crawford died from a heart attack at her New York City apartment. At the time, outlets reported Bette's response to her colleague's death as they quoted her: "You should never say bad things about the dead, only good… Joan Crawford is dead? Good."

Who was with Bette Davis when she died?

Davis died on October 6, 1989, and Sermak was by her side. And Davis had made Sermak promise to make sure her looks remained, even after she died.

Why was Bette Davis important?

– In 1977, Bette was the first woman to receive the American Film Institute's Lifetime Achievement Award. – In 1980, she was awarded the Distinguished Civilian Service Medal, the Defense Department's highest civilian award, for founding and running the Hollywood Canteen during World War II.

Bette Davis: Words of Wisdom - Famous Quotes - Women in Classic Film - All About Eve - Jezebel

What disease did Bette Davis have?

That is the iconic Bette Davis, star of memorable movies such as “Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?” and “All About Eve”. She had been diagnosed with breast cancer in 1983, and after undergoing a mastectomy, suffered four strokes.

What was special about Bette Davis eyes?

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.

What color were Bette Davis eyes?

Bette Davis, the actress known for playing strong, independent women, had deep blue eyes. Her signature eyes made her famous. However, during the era of black and white cinematography, those blue eyes often tended to be photograph in black and white and appeared brown or hazel.

What did Bette Davis think of Mommie Dearest?

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."

What was Joan Crawford's last words?

Don't you dare ask God to help me”….. to her housekeeper who began to pray aloud.

Did Bette Davis turn down Mildred Pierce?

Cain's “Mildred Pierce” — and that Bette Davis was the studio's first choice but eventually turned it down. Director Michael Curtiz did not want Crawford for the part and preferred Barbara Stanwyck.

How many times did Betty Davis marry?

Married four times, Davis eloquently conveyed the vicissitudes of stardom in her autobiographies, The Lonely Life (1962) and This 'n' That (1987). She also provided running commentary for Whitney Stine's account of her film career, Mother Goddam: The Story of the Career of Bette Davis (1974).

Did Bette Davis have friends?

Davis could be remarkably kind about other actors: She admired her friends Joan Blondell and Olivia de Havilland, worshiped Italian actor Anna Magnani, and admitted to being jealous of Katharine Hepburn (both were staunch, driven Yankees, and both would have affairs with Howard Hughes).

What was Bette Davis real hair color?

Bette Davis

Though she made her name while her hair was bleached a soft platinum blonde, Davis wasn't always a golden girl — she originally rocked this soft medium brown shade.

Why did Bette Davis wear white makeup?

Bette wanted her character to be extremely white with her eyes and mouth outlined dramatically and a little beauty mark on her cheek. As Davis said, “I wanted to look outrageous, like Mary Pickford in decay.”

Did Bette Davis wear false eyelashes?

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.

Why did Bette Davis change her name?

Betty was inspired to become an actress after seeing Rudolph Valentino in The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse and Mary Pickford in Little Lord Fauntleroy, and changed the spelling of her name to “Bette” after Honoré de Balzac's La Cousine Bette.

Is Bette Davis a feminist?

In the 1930s and 1940s, she lived and worked as a feminist, a fact she disavowed and nevertheless embodied decades before the movement's Second Wave.

Who first sang Bette Davis Eyes?

"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.

Did Bette Davis have a stroke before she died?

Davis had a mastectomy in the summer of 1983, followed by a stroke just days later. Not long after that, she suffered a broken hip.