Bette Davis
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.
Photos
Movies (184)
This Is Joan Collins
2022 · Self (Archive Footage)
Madonna: Madame X
2021 · Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Morceaux de Cannes
2021 · Self (archive footage)
Mike Wallace Is Here
2019 · (archive footage)
Scotty and the Secret History of Hollywood
2018 · Self (archive footage)
Bette Davis: Larger Than Life
2017 · Self (archive footage)
The Fabulous Allan Carr
2017 · Self (archive footage)
Bette and Joan
2017 · Self (archive footage)
Leslie Howard: The Man Who Gave a Damn
2015 · Self (archive footage)
Listen to Me Marlon
2015 · Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Marlon Brando: An Actor Named Desire
2014 · Self - Actress (archive footage)
Classic Movie Bloopers: Uncensored
2013 · Self (archive footage)
Footsteps on the Ceiling
2013 · Margo Channing (archive footage)
Vito
2011 · Self (archive footage)
Marilyn at the Movies
2011 · Self (archive footage)
The Travels of Kinuyo Tanaka
2009 · Self (archive footage)
Queer Icon: The Cult of Bette Davis
2009 · Self (archive footage)
1939: Hollywood's Greatest Year
2009 · Self (archive footage)
Why Be Good?: Sexuality & Censorship in Early Cinema
2007 · Self (archive footage)
Bette and Joan: Blind Ambition
2006 · Self (archive footage)
Jezebel: Legend of the South
2006 · Self (archive footage)
Stardust: The Bette Davis Story
2006 · Self (archive footage)
The Petrified Forest: Menace in the Desert
2005 · Self (archive footage)
The Adventures of Errol Flynn
2005 · Queen Elizabeth (archive footage)
How Real is 'The Star'?
2005 · Self (archive footage)
Complicated Women
2003 · Self (archive footage)
Smothered: The Censorship Struggles of the Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour
2002 · Self (archive footage)
Goldwyn: The Man and His Movies
2001 · Self (archive footage)
Bride of Trailer Camp
2001 · (archive footage)
Backstory: 'All About Eve'
2000 · Self (archive footage)
All About My Mother
1999 · In Memory Of
The Silver Screen: Color Me Lavender
1997 · Self (archive footage)
Frank Capra's American Dream
1997 · Self (archive footage)
Joan Crawford: Always the Star
1996 · Self (archive footage)
Intimate Portrait: Bette Davis
1996 · Self (archive footage)
The First 100 Years: A Celebration of American Movies
1995 · Self (archive footage)
Legends in Light: The Photography of George Hurrell
1995 · Self (archive footage)
Biography: Bette Davis — If Looks Could Kill
1994 · Self (archive footage)
All About Bette
1994 · Self
Wicked Stepmother
1989 · Miranda Pierpoint
Hairway to the Stars
1989 · Self [Archive Footage]
The Making of a Legend: Gone with the Wind
1988 · Self (archive footage)
South of Reno
1988
The Whales of August
1987 · Libby Strong
Hammer: The Studio That Dripped Blood
1987 · (archive footage)
As Summers Die
1986 · Hannah Loftin
Directed by William Wyler
1986 · Self
Marilyn Monroe: Beyond the Legend
1986 · archive footage
Bette Davis at the Cinémathèque Française
1986 · Self
Murder with Mirrors
1985 · Carrie Louise Serrocold
Hollywood's Funniest All-Star Bloopers
1985 · Self (archive footage)
Going Hollywood: The '30s
1984 · (archive footage)
Right of Way
1983 · Miniature Dwyer
Bette Davis: The Benevolent Volcano
1983 · Self
Hollywood Out-takes and Rare Footage
1983 · Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Showbiz Goes to War
1982 · (archive footage)
Natalie - A Tribute to a Very Special Lady
1982 · Self
Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid
1982 · (in "Deception") (archive footage)
Showbiz Ballyhoo
1982 · Self (archive footage)
Night of 100 Stars
1982 · Self
A Piano for Mrs. Cimino
1982 · Esther McDonald Cimino
Oops, Those Hollywood Bloopers!
1982 · Self (archive footage)
Family Reunion
1981 · Elizabeth Winfield
Skyward
1980 · Billie Dupree
The Watcher in the Woods
1980 · Mrs. Aylwood
White Mama
1980 · Estelle Malone
Strangers: The Story of a Mother and Daughter
1979 · Lucy Mason
The Horror Show
1979 · (archive footage)
Mickey's 50
1978 · Self
Death on the Nile
1978 · Marie Van Schuyler
Death on the Nile: Making of Featurette
1978 · Marie Van Schuyler
Return from Witch Mountain
1978 · Letha Wedge
The Disappearance of Aimee
1976 · Minnie Kennedy
Burnt Offerings
1976 · Aunt Elizabeth
Miss Moffat
1974 · Miss Moffat
Hello Mother, Goodbye!
1974 · Mother
Scream, Pretty Peggy
1973 · Mrs. Elliott
The Men Who Made the Movies: King Vidor
1973 · Self (archive footage)
Bette Davis
1972 · Self
The Judge and Jake Wyler
1972 · Judge Meredith
The Scopone Game
1972 · 'A vecchia
Madame Sin
1972 · Madame Sin
Bunny O'Hare
1971 · Bunny O'Hare
Connecting Rooms
1970 · Wanda Fleming
The Anniversary
1968 · Mrs. Taggart
The Nanny
1965 · Nanny
The Decorator
1965 · Liz
Hush... Hush, Sweet Charlotte
1964 · Charlotte Hollis
Where Love Has Gone
1964 · Mrs. Gerald Hayden
Dead Ringer
1964 · Margaret DeLorca / Edith Phillips
The Empty Canvas
1963 · Dino's Mother
What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?
1962 · Baby Jane Hudson
Pocketful of Miracles
1961 · Apple Annie
The Scapegoat
1959 · Countess
John Paul Jones
1959 · Empress Catherine the Great
Storm Center
1956 · Alicia Hull
The Catered Affair
1956 · Agnes Hurley
The Virgin Queen
1955 · Queen Elizabeth I
The Star
1952 · Margaret Elliot
Phone Call from a Stranger
1952 · Marie Hoke
Another Man's Poison
1951 · Janet Frobisher
Payment on Demand
1951 · Joyce Ramsey (nee Jackson)
All About Eve
1950 · Margo Channing
Breakdowns of 1949
1949 · Self
Beyond the Forest
1949 · Rosa Moline
June Bride
1948 · Linda Gilman
Winter Meeting
1948 · Susan Grieve
Deception
1946 · Christine Radcliffe
A Stolen Life
1946 · Kate Bosworth / Patricia Bosworth, Producer
The Corn Is Green
1945 · Miss Lilly Christabel Moffat
Breakdowns of 1944
1944 · Self
Hollywood Canteen
1944 · Self
Mr. Skeffington
1944 · Fanny Trellis
A Present with a Future
1943 · Mother
Old Acquaintance
1943 · Kit Marlowe
The Voice That Thrilled the World
1943 · Self (segment 'Dangerous') (archive footage)
Thank Your Lucky Stars
1943 · Self
Watch on the Rhine
1943 · Sara Müller
Show-Business at War
1943 · Self
Stars on Horseback
1943
Breakdowns of 1942
1942 · Self
Now, Voyager
1942 · Charlotte Vale
In This Our Life
1942 · Stanley Timberlake Kingsmill
The Man Who Came to Dinner
1941 · Maggie Cutler
Breakdowns of 1941
1941 · Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
The Little Foxes
1941 · Regina Hubbard Giddens
The Bride Came C.O.D.
1941 · Joan Winfield
Shining Victory
1941
The Great Lie
1941 · Maggie Patterson Van Allen
The Letter
1940 · Leslie Crosbie
Cavalcade of the Academy Awards
1940 · Self
All This, and Heaven Too
1940 · Henriette Deluzy-Desportes
If I Forget You
1940 · Bette Davis
Breakdowns of 1939
1939 · Self
The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex
1939 · Queen Elizabeth
The Old Maid
1939 · Charlotte Lovell
Juarez
1939 · Empress Carlotta von Hapsburg
Dark Victory
1939 · Judith Traherne
Breakdowns of 1938
1938 · Self (archive footage)
The Sisters
1938 · Louise Elliott Medlin
Jezebel
1938 · Julie Marsden
Breakdowns of 1937
1937 · Self
It's Love I'm After
1937 · Joyce Arden
That Certain Woman
1937 · Mary Donnell
Kid Galahad
1937 · Louise 'Fluff' Phillips
A Day at Santa Anita
1937 · Bette Davis (uncredited)
Marked Woman
1937 · Mary Dwight Strauber
Breakdowns of 1936
1936 · Self
Screen Snapshots (Series 16, No. 1)
1936 · Self
Satan Met a Lady
1936 · Valerie Purvis
The Golden Arrow
1936 · Daisy Appleby
The Petrified Forest
1936 · Gabrielle "Gabby" Maple
Dick Powell and Joan Blondell home movies: "No. 1, From beginning"
1936
A Dream Comes True
1935
Dangerous
1935 · Joyce Heath
Special Agent
1935 · Julie Gardner
Front Page Woman
1935 · Ellen Garfield
The Girl from 10th Avenue
1935 · Miriam A. Brady
Bordertown
1935 · Mrs. Marie Roark
Housewife
1934 · Patricia Berkeley
Of Human Bondage
1934 · Mildred Rogers
Fog Over Frisco
1934 · Arlene Bradford
Jimmy the Gent
1934 · Joan Martin
Fashions of 1934
1934 · Lynn Mason
The Big Shakedown
1934 · Norma Nelson
Bureau of Missing Persons
1933 · Norma Roberts
Ex-Lady
1933 · Helen Bauer
The Working Man
1933 · Jenny Hartland alias Jane Grey
The 42nd Street Special
1933 · Self (uncredited)
Parachute Jumper
1933 · Patricia 'Alabama' Brent
Just Around the Corner
1933 · Ginger
20,000 Years in Sing Sing
1932 · Fay Wilson
Three on a Match
1932 · Ruth Westcott
The Cabin in the Cotton
1932 · Madge Norwood
The Dark Horse
1932 · Kay Russell
The Rich Are Always with Us
1932 · Malbro
So Big!
1932 · Miss Dallas O'Mara
The Man Who Played God
1932 · Grace Blair
Hell's House
1932 · Peggy Gardner
The Menace
1932 · Peggy Lowell
Way Back Home
1931 · Mary Lucy Duffy
Waterloo Bridge
1931 · Janet Cronin
Seed
1931 · Margaret Carter
The Bad Sister
1931 · Laura Madison
TV shows (42)
1939: Secrets of Hollywood's Golden Year
2023
Talking Pictures
2013 · Self (archive footage)
The World of Hammer
1994 · Self (archive footage)
Intimate Portrait
1993 · Self (archive footage)
Little Gloria... Happy at Last
1982 · Alice Gwynne Vanderbilt
Hotel
1982 · Laura Trent
Late Night with David Letterman
1982 · Self - Guest
Family Reunion
1981 · Elizabeth Winfield
The Kennedy Center Honors
1978 · Self
The Dark Secret of Harvest Home
1978 · Widow Fortune
Laugh-In
1977 · Guest Performer
Dinah!
1974 · Self
Hello Mother, Goodbye!
1974 · Mother
The American Film Institute Salute to ...
1973 · Self
Film '72
1971 · Self
V.I.P. Schaukel
1971 · Self
The Dick Cavett Show
1968 · Self - Guest
It Takes a Thief
1968 · Bessie Grindel
The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour
1967 · Self
The Hollywood Palace
1964 · Self
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
1962 · Self
The Merv Griffin Show
1962 · Self
The Virginian
1962 · Celia Miller
The Mike Douglas Show
1961 · Self - Co-Host
The DuPont Show with June Allyson
1959 · Sarah Whitney
Suspicion
1957 · Mrs. Wilfred Ellis
Perry Mason
1957 · Constant Doyle
Wagon Train
1957 · Ella Lindstrom, Madame Elizabeth McQueeny
The Dinah Shore Chevy Show
1956 · Self
Telephone Time
1956
Tony Awards
1956 · Self - Presenter
The 20th Century Fox Hour
1955 · Marie Hoke
Alfred Hitchcock Presents
1955 · Miss Fox
Gunsmoke
1955 · Etta Stone
Reflets de Cannes
1954 · Self
The Oscars
1953 · Self
General Electric Theater
1953 · Miss Burrows, Christine Marlowe
The Ford Television Theatre
1952 · Dolley Madison
Hallmark Hall of Fame
1951 · Mrs. Minnie Kennedy, Aimee's mother
Schlitz Playhouse of Stars
1951 · Irene Van Buren
What's My Line?
1950 · Self
Golden Globe Awards
1944 · Self - Presenter