Bette Davis theatrical actress Margo Channing in "All About Eve" (1950). Davis read the script, described it as the best she had ever read, and accepted the role. Within days, she joined the cast in San Francisco to begin filming. During production, she established what would become a life-long friendship with her co-star Anne Baxter and a romantic relationship with her leading man Gary Merrill, which led to marriage. The film's director, Joseph L. Mankiewicz, later remarked: "Bette was letter perfect. She was syllable-perfect. The director's dream: the prepared actress." Critics responded positively to Davis' performance, and several of her lines became
Bette and Joan: The Divine Feud Bette Davis, notorious for refusing to bow to the studio bosses, were two of the biggest Hollywood stars of their time. Their rivalry exploded during their work together on the horror film "What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?" and became a public feud that lasted the rest of their lives. Based on interviews the author conducted with both actresses and more than a decade of research, the book shows the hard-drinking, hard-fighting, and fading stars at their best and worst. The Crawford-Davis rivalry is the inspiration for the 2017 Ryan Murphy TV series "Feud." Crawford is played by Jessica Lange