Bette Davis

Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis (April 5, 1908 – October 6, 1989) was an American actress of film, television, and theater. Regarded as one of the greatest actresses in Hollywood history, she was noted for her willingness to play unsympathetic, sardonic characters. Davis was known for her performances in a range of film genres, from contemporary crime melodramas to historical films and occasional comedies, although her greatest successes were her roles in romantic dramas. She won the Academy Award for Best Actress twice, was the first person to accrue ten Academy Award nominations for acting, and was the first woman to receive a Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Film Institute. Davis moved to Hollywood in 1930, but her early films for Universal Studios were unsuccessful. She joined Warner Bros. in 1932, and had her critical breakthrough playing a vulgar waitress in Of Human Bondage (1934). She won the Academy Award for her performance in Dangerous (1935) and Jezebel (1938).

In the late 1940s her career began to decline, and she moved to the stage and television. Davis experienced a career resurgence in the 1960s, with roles such as the aging Broadway star in All About Eve (1950), and the psychotic former child star Jane Hudson in What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962). Despite her setbacks, Barnaby Conrad wrote in Bette Davis: An Intimate Memoir (1992), 'during her last years ... she remained prouder of her profession than many of her colleagues with less reason for pride—still a star, and acting every inch of it.' She continued to act in movies and on television until shortly before her death from breast cancer at the age of 81.

Her behavior in private did not always match the dignity and sophistication of her public persona. She gained a reputation as a perfectionist who could be highly combative, and confrontations with studio executives, film directors, and co-stars were often reported. Her forthright manner, clipped vocal style, and ubiquitous cigarette contributed to a public persona, which has often been imitated and satirized.