by Mary Clark

Created on: January 20, 2009

"She did it the hard way," reads the headstone of the immortal Bette Davis who rose to the top of the movie industry while commanding the respect of her male counterparts both on screen and behind closed doors in a male dominated industry.

The legendary Davis was a woman who knew what she wanted and how to get it. She had no trouble going toe-to-toe with the corporate magnates of the times and had the sexy legs above those open-toed pumps to use as weapons too. In an era when an actress became the property of the movie studio they contracted with, Bette Davis did the unthinkable. She sued her studio, Warners, over the inferior scripts she received. Although she lost the lawsuit, the roles she received afterwards were starring roles.

Oddly enough, the role that catapulted this five foot three inch spitfire to stardom was not a Warner Brothers film. Warner loaned Davis to RKO so that she could film the movie Of Human Bondage. At RKO Bette immersed herself into the role of Mildred Rogers, the flirtatious waitress who used and ruined the life of Phillip Carey, the man who loved her. RKO tag ads for the film read: The Love That Lifted a Man to Paradise and Hurled Him Back to Earth Again. (imdb)

Bette Davis' callous delivery of the lines that revealed she was only using Phillip Carey are some of her most memorable.

"You cad! You dirty swine! I never cared for you, not once! I was always making a fool of ya. Ya bored me stiff. I hated ya. It made me sick when I had to let ya kiss me. I only did it because you begged me, ya hounded me and drove me crazy! And after you kissed me, I always used to wipe my mouth. Wipe my mouth! (Mildred Rogers, Of Human Bondage, RKO 1934)

Davis went on to film Jezebel, the sensational movie that marked the pinnacle of her career. Her role as Julie Marsden is a close as Davis would come to portraying Scarlet O'Hara in Gone With the Wind, the only role Davis really wanted but could not land.

Throughout the 1940's Davis remained a box office draw for Warner although each new release saw fewer fans rushing to the theaters to see her.

Rumor had it that Bette Davis was difficult to work with personally and professionally and did not fear making enemies along the way. Being an independent woman who knew her mind brought hardships for Davis, who willingly paid the price in order to retain her liberties. When asked if it was wise to make enemies Davis replied, "I do not regret one professional enemy I have made. Any actor who doesn't dare to make an enemy should get out of the business."

Bette's open and on-going rival with actress Joan Crawford which had celebrity gossip buzzing during the filming of What Ever Happened to Baby Jane is one example of how Davis stood up for herself. Both actresses employed a wide array of childish antics on the set, each igniting an angry flame under the skin of the other. Davis, who knew Crawford was in big with Pepsi, had a Coke machine installed on the set to get a dig in on Crawford. In turn, Crawford weighted down her pockets with heavy rocks while filming a scene where Bette had to drag her across the floor. Later Davis reported that the best time she ever had with Joan Crawford was when she pushed her down the stairs in a scene from What Ever Happened to Baby Jane.

Kim Carnes immortalized the starlet in the hearts of a new and younger generation with her hit song She's Got Bette Davis Eyes. Whether you view Bette Davis as a goddess of the silver screen or a bitchy diva who managed to make it big in Hollywood, Bette Davis and her accomplishments endure the passing of time. She survives because in her own words, "she was tougher than anybody else."

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