Bette Davis

Acting

Born Apr 05, 1908

From Lowell, Massachusetts, USA

Died Oct 06, 1989

Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis (April 5, 1908 – October 6, 1989) was an American actress of film, television and theater. Noted for her willingness to play unsympathetic characters, she was highly regarded for her performances in a range of film genres; from contemporary crime melodramas to historical and period films and occasional comedies, though her greatest successes were her roles in romantic dramas. After appearing in Broadway plays, Davis moved to Hollywood in 1930, but her early films for Universal Studios were unsuccessful. She joined Warner Bros. in 1932 and established her career with several critically acclaimed performances. In 1937, she attempted to free herself from her contract and although she lost a well-publicized legal case, it marked the beginning of the most successful period of her career. Until the late 1940s, she was one of American cinema's most celebrated leading ladies, known for her forceful and intense style. Davis gained a reputation as a perfectionist who could be highly combative, and confrontations with studio executives, film directors and costars were often reported. Her forthright manner, clipped vocal style and ubiquitous cigarette contributed to a public persona which has often been imitated and satirized. Davis was the co-founder of the Hollywood Canteen, and was the first female president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. She won the Academy Award for Best Actress twice, was the first person to accrue 10 Academy Award nominations for acting, and was the first woman to receive a Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Film Institute. Her career went through several periods of eclipse, and she admitted that her success had often been at the expense of her personal relationships. Married four times, she was once widowed and thrice divorced, and raised her children as a single parent. Her final years were marred by a long period of ill health, but she continued acting until shortly before her death from breast cancer, with more than 100 films, television and theater roles to her credit. In 1999, Davis was placed second, after Katharine Hepburn, on the American Film Institute's list of the greatest female stars of all time.

Bette Davis

Known For

Death on the Nile

What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?

All About Eve

Now, Voyager

The Nanny

Burnt Offerings

Pocketful of Miracles

Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid

Night of 100 Stars

Jezebel

Filmography — Acting

Death on the Nile

What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?

All About Eve

Now, Voyager

The Nanny

Burnt Offerings

Pocketful of Miracles

Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid

Night of 100 Stars

Jezebel

Mr. Skeffington

Dangerous

Mike Wallace Is Here

The Little Foxes

Marked Woman

Hush... Hush, Sweet Charlotte

Deception

Return from Witch Mountain

Dark Victory

All This, and Heaven Too

1939: Hollywood's Greatest Year

Fashions of 1934

Hollywood Canteen

Kid Galahad

Dead Ringer

Of Human Bondage

Why Be Good?: Sexuality & Censorship in Early Cinema

It's Love I'm After

Waterloo Bridge

The Letter

The Watcher in the Woods

In This Our Life

A Stolen Life

Frank Capra's American Dream

Wicked Stepmother

Listen to Me Marlon

Hollywood Out-takes and Rare Footage

Scotty and the Secret History of Hollywood

The Virgin Queen

The Corn Is Green

The Travels of Kinuyo Tanaka

The Horror Show

20,000 Years in Sing Sing

The Making of a Legend: Gone with the Wind

The Great Lie

The Petrified Forest

Watch on the Rhine

Mickey's 50

Thank Your Lucky Stars

The Adventures of Errol Flynn

Marilyn Monroe: Beyond the Legend

Skyward

Showbiz Goes to War

Juarez

White Mama

Hammer: The Studio That Dripped Blood

Oops, Those Hollywood Bloopers!

Winter Meeting

The Scapegoat

The Old Maid

Satan Met a Lady

Three on a Match

Going Hollywood: The '30s

Cavalcade of the Academy Awards

Another Man's Poison

The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex

So Big!