Welcome! In this series we will explore the legendary actress Bette Davis through an introduction of her life and a selection of her films. By examining her life, we gain a glimpse into understanding her drive to become one of the best actresses on the Hollywood screen. Fans beloved her but the larger-than-life Bette was frequently misunderstood. The brutally honest but hard-working yank has often been characterized by her feuds (ahem, Miriam Hopkins … Joan Crawford…), which were sometimes exaggerated or altogether false, to form the enduring myth of Bette Davis. We’ll untangle her story and delight in a curated selection of her films to discover – and discuss – for ourselves.
On April 5, 1908 Ruth Elizabeth Davis was born to Ruth Augusta Favor and Harlow Morrell Davis in Lowell, Massachusetts. Nine months earlier, on July 1st, 1907, Harlow Davis married “Ruthie” Favor and the two seemed aghast by the biological events that followed with the baby girl’s arrival. In her own memoir, “The Lonely Life,” Bette describes the occasion in a characteristic manner, “The gods were going mad and the earth was holding its head in a panic … I happened between a clap of thunder and a streak of lightning. It almost hit the house and destroyed a tree out front. As a child I fancied that the finger of God was directing the attention of the world at me. Further and divine proof – from the stump of that tree – that one should never point.”*
Ruthie’s initial reaction to becoming a mother for the first time was far from maternal. “Is that what I’ve got? Take it away! It’s horrible!”** Ruthie soon came around, but always with a critical push that a child could always do better. With such high expectations came an ambitious drive on providing only the best in her education and upbringing, too. Harlow, on the other hand, never came around to the idea of children and kept an icy nature in the household. In her memoir, Davis described her father as brilliant, sarcastic, and cruel. He possessed what would be referred to today as ‘obsessive compulsive disorder’. His meticulous nature served him well in his career though. He graduated from Harvard Law school in 1910, and he worked as a patent attorney for the United Shoe Machinery Company of Boston. His rigid, emotionally distant demands in his household and of his relationships never wavered, but was also steeped in the no-fuss, New England culture of the times.
Bette Davis would be a combination of both her parents, in many ways- her mother’s creative talents (which could be found in domestic skills, resourcefulness, and social events) and her father’s intellect. An innate sense of drive could be said of both Ruthie and Harlow, which no doubt had an immense impact in the success and trajectory of Bette’s career.
Eighteen months following baby Betty’s thunderous arrival, with the motivation of not spoiling young Betty (too late), Barbara (called “Bobby”) was born, to the dismay of Betty who had no intentions of sharing any spotlights with a sibling. Poor Bobby would be cast in the shadow of her older sister’s bright spotlight for the rest of her life. Sacrifices would need to be made to keep that focus brightly shining on the one sister, and they were.
With keen emotional intelligence and cunning, Betty manipulated loved ones in her life, namely her mother. “If I could never win my father, I completely conquered Ruthie. I became an absolute despot at the age of two.” Further, “The tantrum got me what I wanted. My demands were frightening and unusual.” Ruthie would react each time with more indulgence. But Betty was also a reflection of her father. “My passion for order and perfection were unheard of in a child so young. An untied lace on a shoe, a wrinkle on a dress, drove me into a fury.” Betty’s combination of emotional manipulation, drive, occasional eruption into hysterics, and partial-OCD led to a lifetime of fame. Bobby’s aims to please, to garner any attention at all from her parents but without any returned, led to lifetime of battling mental illness.
When Betty was seven years old, Ruthie took her and Bobby to a trip to Florida, minus father Davis. At the train station, Ruthie made the announcement that their father’s absence was permanent. Betty responded in seeming relief. Ruthie went to work as she soon realized Harlow’s support was not enough. Later it would be revealed that Harlow left Ruthie for another woman, a nurse named Minnie Stewart, who became the second Mrs. Davis.
Unbeknownst to Ruthie, her parents, the Favor grandparents, enrolled the girls in a boarding school in the Berkshires, Crestalban. Young Betty attended for three years. In her last year, a tragedy occurred that sparked a flame in her dramatic heart as she was on stage for a Christmas Pageant. Covered in heavy flannel and cotton batting, dressed up as Santa, she stepped too close to the traditional Christmas tree, which was adorned in lit candles. She caught on fire.
Her skin was blistered as teachers rushed to extinguish the flames with blankets. She instinctively kept her eyes closed as they removed the blankets … “I heard one of the teachers wail, ‘She’s blind! Oh God, she’s blind!’ I didn’t know whether I was blind or not. But I do remember feeling with thrills and chills of morbid pleasure that this was my moment, my big dramatic moment. And I deliberately kept my eyes tight closed and groped helplessly about with my hands until the full savor of that moment was extracted.” Her dramatic talents were just awakening.
In the Autumn of 1921, Ruthie pulled the girls out of boarding school and enrolled herself in photography school. In New York City, the girls adapted quickly to city life and public schooling, at PS 186. Ruthie’s creative talents would flourish and with her new career as a photographer, she could earn enough to support the girls.
By now, you may be wondering, why on earth do you keep spelling her name both with a “Y” and an “E”?? At this point in her life, Betty became friends with a fellow NYC student, Myrtis Genthner. Her friend was reading a French novel by Balzac, “Cousin Bette,” and suggested the more sophisticated spelling change. Davis didn’t discover until later when she read the novel herself that the novel’s characterization was less than flattering. But no matter, the new name stuck. On occasion when Bette would write to her father, she signed with her new spelling. Unsurprisingly, Harlow was less than pleased and remarked as such. According to biographer Ed Sikov, “Harlow mocked the change, of course, and by dismissing it, he hammered it into permanence.”
The Davis girls spent their summers at camp in Maine, where Bobby was discovered to have a natural talent as a pianist. At the end of the summer, Ruthie was convinced to move them to New Jersey, to continue formal piano lessons for Bobby. Finally, Bobby was receiving attention on her own merits without the unyielding focus solely on Bette. Of course, Bette was miserable by this notion and let Ruthie know it, at every possible turn. However, Bobby’s brief moment to shine was very short-lived indeed. Soon, Bobby’s NJ piano lessons were cut short and Ruthie moved them yet again- this time to a suburb of Boston, Newton, to live with her sister, Mildred. Ruthie had acquired a debilitating and painful illness, osteomyelitis, with swelling of the jaw and could no longer work as a photographer. So, the move was necessary, but Bette’s unrelenting jealousy over any attention towards Bobby was likely a factor, as well.
Bette experienced her first school dance at Newton High School, where she began to receive attention from boys as she blossomed into her teen years. Which she found perplexing with her sheltered, puritanical upbringing. Shortly thereafter, in the Autumn of 1924, Ruthie enrolled them into yet another boarding school, Northfield Seminary for Young Girls. This was a miserable choice and by the next semester, they moved yet again to another boarding school, Cushing Academy. Ruthie herself had attended Cushing in her youth but relied upon Bette working in the dining hall to help cover costs. Bette was indignant initially at the suggestion of manual labor hindering her ambitious ascent and social status, but she pressed on with Yankee grit.
At Cushing, she continued remaining active in school activities, most notably in school plays. Ruthie supported Bette’s education by whatever means necessary, including the summers at dramatic arts and dance schools. In some cases, the only way they could afford for Bette to be enrolled in these specialized programs was for little sister Bobby to provide her piano skills for performances and practices. Eventually, Bobby lived with her aunt and placed back in public schooling to afford Bette’s private education and training. Working for her older sister and/or forced to be the sacrificial lamb, would be the role younger sister Bobby would play repeatedly for the rest of her life.
Bette’s work and training paid off and she made her to the theatrical stage after high school graduation, including Broadway and off-Broadway productions. As she continued to hone her acting skills, her hopes to someday become the grand dame of the Broadway stage would be cut short when Hollywood came to call.
Bette and Ruthie made their way to Hollywood in 1930. A three-month contract with Universal Pictures turned into six months, only because famed photographer Karl Freund defended her potential, thanks to those marvelous saucer eyes. Otherwise, Universal thought she looked too odd of a beauty and lacked all sex appeal (which wasn’t exactly off the mark, as the sexually inexperienced and Puritanical Bette was indeed not only a virgin but too busy for such distractions). So, they only placed her in every undeserving, unmemorable role possible. She made a total of six pictures in six months before getting the boot.
Warner Brothers was more visionary in seeing Bette’s potential and snatched her up. It was actor George Arliss who fought for her. They co-starred in THE MAN WHO PLAYED GOD (1932), a Warner Brothers Vitaphone film. She spent nearly eighteen years at Warners, where she created some of her most iconic performances in cinema’s most outstanding films. She never shied away from doing whatever necessary to authentically portray a role. Bette wowed audiences in her groundbreaking role in OF HUMAN BONDAGE (1934), when she was loaned out to RKO. This was a turning point in Bette’s career, as better scripts and better directors started to come her way.
The next year’s film, DANGEROUS (1935) would earn Bette the first of her two Oscars. She felt that this Academy Award was given to make up for not winning it for OF HUMAN BONDAGE. Altering her appearance, often in unflattering ways, to perfect a role would become one of Bette’s trademarks. While that may seem commonplace today, it was very rare for a Hollywood female star in the 30s, 40s, and 50s- where glamour, both on and off screen, was the high standard of expectation. Some examples include: THE PRIVATE LIVES of ELIZABETH and ESSEX (1939), NOW VOYAGER (1942), and WHATEVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE? (1962).
But it wasn’t just the physically unflattering roles Bette Davis triumphed, she delighted audiences in taking on some villainous or morally complex characters, too. Just a few examples include THE LETTER (1940), JEZEBEL (1938)- her 2nd Oscar, and MR SKEFFINGTON (1944).
In 1936, early in her long relationship with Warner Brothers, with an Oscar to her name, Bette could see her roles were already growing into a series of mediocrity, so she walked out of her contract and went to England to make films there. Shortly, a legal suit followed, and she lost the case. However, the rebellious stint got their attention and better roles picked up as a result.
Noteworthy was Bette Davis’s contributions to the war efforts during WW2. Along with John Garfield, she co-founded the famed Hollywood Canteen, which opened its doors on October 3, 1942 and closed on Thanksgiving day, 1945. Free of charge to any enlisted men or women, a uniform was the only ticket required to get free food, dancing, and entertainment- while Hollywood’s biggest stars served as dance partners, waiters, and dishwashers, and of course entertained the troops, too. Bette served as Hollywood Canteen President until 1966 and was credited for the organization’s racial integration policy. It remained as one of the proudest accomplishments of Bette’s life.
After her long and successful career with Warner Brothers, BEYOND THE FOREST (1949) was her last film with the studio. She feared her hey days were over. But her work lull was relatively short-lived when she got a call from Darryl Zanuck of 20th Century Fox studios. Joseph Mankiewicz had the perfect script, just for her. It would go on to become one of her most beloved films, and by her own admission likely the most literate to her own true persona … ALL ABOUT EVE (1950), where she met her 4th and last husband, Gary Merrill.
The loves of Bette…
Harmon Oscar Nelson, Jr. (1932 – 1938)
After arriving in Hollywood, Bette’s high school beau, “Ham” had never forgotten about her. He followed her west and pursued courtship again. Despite Bette’s priorities to her work, with Ham’s dogged determination, Bette eventually agreed to marry him. In interviews (“Dick Cavett Show,” 1971) she admitted that she was a virgin when she married Ham, and the age of 24 years old (although she always stated age 26 in interviews). Ham was a musician and in 1940 copyrighted the jingle for “J-E-L-L-O!” Bette is responsible for nicknaming of the Academy Award statuette, “Oscar,” after Ham’s middle name.
Arthur Farnsworth (1940 – 1943)
Only married a few years, aircraft expert Farnsworth exited the Brown Derby restaurant and became overcome by dizziness, yelling out in agony before collapsing in the street, hitting the back of his head and fatally fracturing his skull. Autopsy and an inquest revealed later that he had a blood clot from a recent head injury. Bette said he had fallen down the stairs at their home two months prior but not treated by a physician. He was 35 years old.
William Grant Sherry (1945 – 1950)
At a party in the then-art colony of Laguna Beach, Bette met former Marine and artist William Grant Sherry. He was 7 years younger than Bette, but it was the disparity of income and her busy career outside of the home that Bette contributed to his outbursts in their rocky relationship. Despite his physical abuse, Sherry brought Bette her 2nd greatest joy following work, motherhood, when she gave birth to Barbara Davis Sherry (known as “B.D.”). B.D.’s name would change twice – to Merrill when her stepfather Gary Merrill adopted her along with their 2 adopted children, then again when she married Jeremy Hyman. Jeremy and BD met at a BABY JANE screening in 1963. Jeremy was 29 years old, and BD was only 16 years old. They needed Bette’s consent and she gave it happily, including gifting the couple with a lavish wedding. Brother Michael later said older sister BD always possessed an ‘old soul.’
Gary Merrill (1950 – 1960)
On the set as co-stars of ALL ABOUT EVE, the fireworks were lit, and the on-screen chemistry between Gary and Bette continued after production. They adopted a daughter, named Margo (namesake of her famed character from their film together), and a year later they adopted a son, Michael. Bette was thrilled to take time away from Hollywood to embrace the role of motherhood and domesticity in Maine. When Margo was about two years old, she was diagnosed with mental retardation and placed in an institution, based on doctor’s direction. Heartbroken, with increasing episodes of a volatile bouts with Gary, Bette eventually returned to her first love, work. Bette was determined to make her marriage work, and they even did a television project together. But after a decade of struggle, her last marriage ended.
The Final Chapter.
The role of a lifetime in ALL ABOUT EVE assured that Bette Davis would continue to find work as a leading lady for decades to come. A rarity for a woman beyond forty years old in showbiz. She continued a steady line of work in both films and television. Joan Crawford discovered material for a film that she knew was a perfect vehicle for them to co-star, WHAT EVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE? (1962). It was incredibly well received, and Davis was nominated for the Oscar for this performance, for the eleventh time (OF HUMAN BONDAGE was a write-in). While she didn’t win for either EVE or BABY JANE, she continued to work until her last film in 1989, THE WICKED STEPMOTHER. While many films from the 70s and 80s were more camp than ideal material, the hard-working Bette was in her senior years yet refused to retire.
After the devastating loss of their mother Ruthie in 1961, Bobby and Bette grew more apart. By the 1970s, after a lifetime of assisting her older sister in various capacities while being ignored in the shadows, Bobby was living in Arizona with her daughter. Bobby was dying of cancer in Arizona when Bette in Hollywood received word. But they never saw each other again. Bobby died in 1979, at the age of 69.
In 1983, Bette was diagnosed with breast cancer and underwent a mastectomy. Within two weeks of recovering from her surgery, and after a lifetime of heaving smoking, Bette suffered a series of four strokes. From thereafter, she was left partially paralyzed on her left side- affecting her speech and visibly on her face and arm. In 1985, her daughter B.D. dropped a bombshell. Her daughter, whom she had always been close with and supported financially, unexpectedly released a tell-all, scathing book that painted a less than flattering image. BD’s husband Jeremy had a long history of business failures and relied upon Bette for support. After watching the 700 Club after a door-to-door solicitor’s suggestion, BD had grown from agnostic to extremely religious as a Born-Again Christian. She accused her mother of practicing witchcraft when Bette didn’t embrace religion as passionately as her daughter. BD would go on to write two more books, both about faith that she claimed was motivated to help her mother find Jesus. Still recovering from her health battles as BD promoted her book in media, Bette felt blindsided and devastated. Friends described it as the biggest heartbreak of her life. Bette, Michael, and Bette’s friends never spoke to BD again.
Yet she pressed on to the very end, working and giving several interviews. In Spain for a film festival being honored for her career, she spent her final days at an American hospital in Paris, where she died on October 6, 1989. She was 81 years old.
SOURCES:
“The Lonely Life” by: Bette Davis, GP Putnam’s Sons, 1962.
“Uncertain Glory,” by: Bette Davis, July 1941. Ladies’ Home Journal.
“Dark Victory, The Life of Bette Davis.” By: Ed Sikov. Henry Holt and Co, 2007.
IMDB
“The Dick Cavett Show” Bette Davis interviews. 5 episodes, 1969 – 1972.
“This Is Your Life, Bette Davis.” 1971. Ralph Edwards, host.
“AFI Life Achievement Award: A Tribute to Bette Davis.” 1977
