Bette Davis of Margo Channing in the film as fifth on their list of 100 Greatest Performances of All Time, commenting: "There is something deliciously audacious about her gleeful willingness to play such unattractive emotions as jealousy, bitterness, and neediness." While reviewing "What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?" (1962) in 2008, Ebert asserted that, "No one who has seen the film will ever forget her." A few months before her death in 1989, Davis was one of several actors featured on the cover of "Life" magazine. In a film retrospective that celebrated the films and stars of 1939, "Life" concluded that Davis
Bette Davis Giddens, a role originally played on Broadway by Tallulah Bankhead (Davis had portrayed in film roles initiated by Bankhead on the stage twice before - in "Dark Victory", and "Jezebel)". Wyler encouraged Davis to emulate Bankhead's interpretation of the role, but Davis wanted to make the role her own. She received another Academy Award nomination for her performance, and never worked with Wyler again. Following the attack on Pearl Harbor, Davis spent the early months of 1942 selling war bonds. After Jack Warner criticized her tendency to cajole crowds into buying, she reminded him that her audiences responded most strongly