|
Post by Shaun on Aug 3, 2005 10:06:06 GMT -5
Lately Bette Davis has started to interest me (but not more than KH ;D) and was just wondering what KH thought of her. Did she think she was a good actress? I've heard some say she didn't use her abilities to their full potential and that she used easy shortcuts to convey a character (i.e. eye-bulging). That's probably why her career opportunities started to diminish as early as the 1950s and KH's continued to soar.
|
|
|
Post by karina on Aug 3, 2005 12:34:34 GMT -5
My 2 favourite classic Hollywood actresses. I think they had a mutual respect for one another, Bette letting her feelings of admiration be fairly widely known whereas Katharine tended to acknowledge Bette's talent from a distance. Bette was very keen to work with Kate, but Kate didn't relish the idea of sharing co-star status, especially not one with Bette's famed temperament!
|
|
|
Post by Judy on Aug 3, 2005 22:22:51 GMT -5
I am a big Davis fan and so I have to disagree that she squandered her talent. She had an amazing run of extraordinary performances.
On the Cavett interview, he tried to get Kate to talk about her a bit, but she always went off on another tangent - and I don't think purposely.
He asked her what she thought of her and she said: I think she's awfully good.
He asked her if she ever lost a part to her and she said: I don't think so, but I mean I might have.
I have often gotten the feeling from reading things here and there, that Davis was a tad envious of Kate. She certainly has been quoted as saying that she loved the way she looked. But I don't think it was the same type of rivalry and ill-will that developed between her and Joan Crawford. I think it was more Davis realizing that she had an equal in Kate.
And I'm sure there must have been some envy as Kate seemed to soar into the stratosphere in the 50's when not just Davis, but many others of their generation of female star was having a hard time getting the caliber of work they did when they were bound to the studios.
But, then, Davis did get a crack on Broadway at a play written for Kate - Night of the Iguana - albeit not in the same role written for Kate.
But, then, Davis's musical debut onstage - MISS MOFFAT - died a quick death, while Kate was welcomed with lavish praise (if her show, COCO, was not).
So who knows.
I'm one of those who refuses to put Davis down for the later work she did. I always come down on the side of the actor and always think about her - and even Bankhead or Crawford - that they just did the best they could. They were actors. That's what they did. And for the most part, they were actors without a stage. Or the parts had passed them by. So they just employed all the craft and talent in their arsenal and gave those later roles as much stature as they could.
Katharine Hepburn - as we all know - was the pretty exceptional exception that proved the rule.
JS
|
|
|
Post by Judy on Aug 3, 2005 22:35:34 GMT -5
Oh. One more thing. I know you didn't ask for recommendations, but I'll just pretend that you did and say that, off the top of my head, Davis must-sees are (in no particular order):
The Letter All About Eve Jezebel The Little Foxes (bet Tallulah hated to lose that part to her. I sort of think it's a shame she didn't get to play it cause her stage performance is so legendary, but Davis soars in it, too.) Mr. Skeffington Now Voyager Of Human Bondage Marked Woman The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex The Old Maid Whatever Happened to Baby Jane Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte (don't groan; give this one a try cause she's quite good in it) The Whales of August (with another favorite of mine: Lilian Gish)
She was also excellent in a TV movie she made with Gena Rowlands: Strangers: The Story of a Mother and Daughter (I think that was the name).
Okay. End of Davis film fest.
Judy
|
|
|
Post by Shaun on Aug 4, 2005 9:02:20 GMT -5
The only Davis film I've seen from your list (and her entire career) is 'Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?' and I thought it was phenomenal. Maybe I'll start paying more attention to Bette Davis...
"But you are Blanche, you are in the chair!"
|
|
|
Post by Richard on Aug 6, 2005 20:42:09 GMT -5
The best Bette Davis film I've seen is Dark Victory.
I've also seen All About Eve and The Petrified Forest. She's pretty good. Maybe one day she'll be one of my favorites.
|
|