Bette Davis | Hollywood Yesterday

Bette Davis, Jezebel (1938) Publicity Still

August 23, 2021 By Joi Leave a Comment

Bette Davis, Jezebel

I have, literally, more things to get done today than I have time in which to do them. What is it with summer anyway? The weather makes you want to sit in the shade, drinking raspberry tea all day but the vegetables and flowers see you sitting there and scream, “Get to work!”

First things first, though, and that means posting this stunningly beautiful picture of Bette Davis from one of my personal favorite movies, Jezebel. She was so deliciously perfect for this role and this film.

You can find Jezebel on dvd (Amazon link) or you can watch it (and mesmerizing Bette Davis) on Prime Video (link to the movie).

And, now I’m off to weed flower beds, water plants, pick tomatoes and cucumbers, and… finally…. sit in the shade with a tall glass of iced raspberry tea!

Bette Davis

Bette Davis, Jezebel (1938)

August 7, 2021 By Joi Leave a Comment

Bette Davis, Jezebel

Bette Davis gives one of the all time GREAT performances as Julie Marsden in Jezebel (1938). She’s mesmerizing in every single scene and even a few she isn’t. The extraordinary movie was directed by the wonderful William Wyler and also stars (among others) Henry Fonda, Bette Davis, Theresa Harris, Spring Byington, Fay Bainter, Richard Cromwell, and Margaret Lindsay.

Superb director, superb cast, superb movie.

This film is one of the ones I often recommend when someone either says they’ve never seen a Bette Davis movie or (even more difficult to comprehend) when someone tells me they don’t like Bette Davis.

Whether someone is new to the great Bette Davis or simply hasn’t seen her in roles they will appreciate, these are the films I automatically recommend:

Jezebel
In This Our Life
Dark Victory
The Bride Came C.O.D.

Now, Voyager, All About Eve, and Dark Victory are also (of course) excellent but the four above often draw people to Bette faster. I can only assume it has to do with the characters she plays in the ones above?

Bette Davis, Jezebel

If you’ve never seen Jezebel, I hope you’ll find it really soon. You can find Jezebel on dvd (Amazon link) or you can watch Jezebel on Prime Video (link to the movie).

Gorgeous Bette Davis Promotional Picture for Jezebel (1938)

June 3, 2021 By Joi Leave a Comment

Bette Davis, Jezebel

Every now and then I can actually remember the moment I first saw a picture of an actor or actress. I absolutely remember the first time I saw the picture above…. I literally said, “WOW!”

Easy to see why, isn’t it?!

I’ve already mentioned multiple times on the blog how much I love the movie Jezebel and its exceptional cast (Bette Davis, Henry Fonda, Theresa Harris, Spring Byington, Margaret Lindsay, George Brent, Fay Bainter…), so I won’t repeat myself. I’ll simply say it’s one of my favorite movies of all time and strongly encourage you to see it if you haven’t already.

If you have seen it, I’d encourage you to see it again!

You can find Jezebel on dvd (Amazon link) or you can watch the wonderful movie Prime Video (link to the movie).

Errol Flynn, Olivia de Havilland, and Bette Davis in The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex

May 21, 2021 By Joi Leave a Comment

Errol Flynn, The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex

In spite of the two making a wonderful film together, Bette Davis had very-much wanted Laurence Olivier for the role of Lord Essex. At the time she didn’t believe Errol Flynn would be right for the role. She was so upset about Flynn being in the role that she and the popular actor didn’t get along and would never work together again.

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Olivia de Havilland and Errol Flynn, The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex

However, according to Bette Davis’ close friend (and, ironically, a frequent co-star of Errol Flynn) Olivia de Havilland, she and Davis watched the film again a short while before Davis suffered four strokes in 1983.

At the end of the film, Davis turned to de Havilland and stated that she had, in fact, been wrong about Flynn, and that he had given a fine performance as Essex.

That he did.

You can find The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex on dvd (Amazon link) or watch the film on Prime Video.

Bette Davis and Errol Flynn in The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex

Henry Fonda and Bette Davis, Jezebel (One of the Truly GREAT Films)

May 6, 2021 By Joi Leave a Comment

Henry Fonda and Bette Davis, Jezebel

One of my favorite movies stars FIVE of my favorite stars… it doesn’t get much sweeter than that! The movie is Jezebel (1938, directed by the wonderful William Wyler) and the four stars are Henry Fonda, Bette Davis, Theresa Harris, Spring Byington, and Margaret Lindsay.

How much do I love this particular movie? Well, I’ll let you in on a little secret I haven’t told anyone before (besides my cats, of course, we keep nothing from each other)…. I actually like Jezebel even better than Gone With the Wind.. and this is really saying something because I adore that one.

There’s just something about the magic in this particular film and Henry Fonda and Bette Davis simply cannot be topped. When they’re on top of their game (which they always were), there were no two stars any better.

If you’ve never seen Jezebel, I hope you’ll find it really soon. You can find Jezebel on dvd (Amazon link) or you can watch Jezebel on Prime Video (link to the movie).

Henry Fonda and Bette Davis

BOTD: The LEGEND, Herself, Bette Davis

April 5, 2021 By Joi Leave a Comment

Bette Davis, All About Eve

Ruth Elizabeth Davis was born April 5, 1908, in Lowell, Massachusetts and would go on, one day, to take Hollywood and the world by storm! Bette Davis is one of those stars who I am convinced was born with “it.” She had acting and star quality in her blood and boy did she ever know what to do with it!

If you aren’t familiar with Bette Davis’ movies, I hope you’ll spend some time going through her filmography.

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Bette Davis, Dark Victory

Though I love all (except one!) of the Bette Davis movies I’ve seen, my top six personal favorites, and what I’d call “essential Bette Davis films” are….

Jezebel (1938)

Dark Victory (1939)

In This Our Life (1942)

Now, Voyager (1942)

All About Eve (1950)

The Star (1952)

Just please don’t let “Whatever Happened to Baby Jane” be the first (or second, or third, or fourth…) Bette Davis movie you watch. You’ll never guess which of her films is the one I don’t like!

Henry Fonda and Bette Davis, Jezebel (1938)

January 3, 2021 By Joi Leave a Comment

Henry Fonda and Bette Davis

I have a bit of a confession to make. When I first saw Jezebel (years ago), I only watched it because Henry Fonda (one of the ones who ties for my top 3 favorite actors) was in it. This was before I had seen many Bette Davis movies. In fact, at the time I had only seen two and hated one of them a great, great deal (What Ever Happened to Baby Jane…. still hate it to this day!).

Before Jezebel was even half over, however, I knew that Bette Davis had become one of my favorite actresses and that I’d spend the rest of my life watching and rewatching her films AND trying to get everyone who thinks they don’t like her to give her more of a chance.

Since then, I’ve seen too many of her films to even count, and she is absolutely one of my favorites. Never, ever let one, two, or even just three films decide the fate of an actor or actress in your heart – give them a fair chance, you’re the one who stands to win big!

If you’ve never seen Jezebel, by all means see it as soon as possible. It is outstanding and the cast is as good as it gets. Bette Davis, Henry Fonda, Theresa Harris, Spring Byington, George Brent, Margaret Lindsay, Fay Bainter, Donald Crisp, Richard Cromwell… one outstanding performance after another.

You can find Jezebel on dvd (Amazon link) or you can watch the wonderful movie Prime Video (link to the movie).

Henry Fonda and Bette Davis

Picture of the Day: Theresa Harris and Bette Davis, Jezebel

November 4, 2020 By Joi Leave a Comment

Theresa Harris and Bette Davis, Jezebel

Like most old Hollywood lovers, I have my own, personal regrets:

… that the film Bette Davis and Joan Crawford made together wasn’t better (massive apologies to those who love Whatever Happened to Baby Jane – I dislike it… a lot).
… that Dorothy Dandridge didn’t win the Best Lead Actress for Carmen Jones – she absolutely should have.
… that Barbara Stanwyck wasn’t recognized by the Academy for her outstanding acting. Where were their heads?!
… that Irene Dunne wasn’t, at the very least, given a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Academy.
… that Lena Horne wasn’t given the role of Julie LaVerne in Showboat (1951). Blame this one on the horrifying, idiotic racism that existed at the time.
… that Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz ever got a divorce! Seriously, this one breaks my heart.
… that Marilyn Monroe didn’t realize her own talent and worth. Her contributions to Hollywood simply cannot be overstated.
… that Theresa Harris was never given a role worthy of her beauty, talent, and extra special screen presence.

It always makes me sick to my stomach that, when I want a picture to post or tweet of Theresa Harris, I have to look for her co-stars. Find them, and you’ll find her… supporting them in their starring role. Before anyone points it out, I am, of course, very aware that many actors and actresses made entire careers from being character actors and actresses. I also will be the first to acknowledge the GREAT worth of these supporting stars. Many, many, many “good” films were made “great” based upon the character stars.

Also, a career in film is highly admirable, rewarding, and glorious whether you are a lead or supporting star. I get every bit of that… trust me.

However, Theresa Harris had all of the qualifications to be both a supporting actress and a lead actress. Again, due to the time in which this beautiful actress lived, she was never given the chance she would have been given had she been born later. As a fan of hers, it simply bothers me, that’s all.

How frustrating it must have been to know you were every bit as talented and beautiful as many stars getting the lead roles (heck, more so than plenty!) – and yet, you were never given your shot.

Argh!

By nature, I’m a very positive person, so I don’t want to spend any more time with this line of thinking. I’d rather focus on the fact that Theresa Harris got to be a movie actress! She worked on some very special films (Jezebel and Baby Face to name just two). She also not only met some of Hollywood’s biggest legends, but worked alongside them. Heck, she even stole scenes from more than a few of them!

Today’s picture of the day is from one of my absolute favorite movies, Jezebel (1938). The movie stars Bette Davis, Henry Fonda, George Brent, Theresa Harris, Spring Boyington, Margaret Lindsay, and Fay Bainter. It was superbly directed by William Wyler and is one of the first movies that comes to my mind when I hear the words, “Perfect film.”

I just wish Theresa Harris’ character had more screen time – it would have made the movie EVEN better.

You can find the excellent film Jezebel (link to the dvd on Amazon) on Amazon.

Death on the Nile Photos in Honor of Agatha Christie’s Birthday

September 15, 2020 By Joi Leave a Comment

David Niven, Peter Ustinov, and Bette Davis in Death on the Nile

I love books. There you have it – an understatement to end all understatements! I love them so much, I collect many different types, so they’re always near me. In fact, it occurred to me recently that (when home) three things are always within my reach…

Raspberry Tea
Coffee
Chocolate
At least one cat
At least one book

Even as I type this out, I have raspberry tea and a cup of coffee to my left, two cats to my right, and Mary Astor’s wonderful autobiography right in front of me. What can I say, I get antsy if any of these four life sources are out of my reach.

Hmmm… maybe that’s why I’m such a homebody. I can take my tea, chocolate, and coffee with me but not my cats and book collections.

One of my favorite authors (tying with Emily Dickinson and my daughter Emily, named in her honor) is the wonderful Agatha Christie. I collect her books and read them again and again. True story: seven or eight years ago, I was making out my New Year’s resolutions and I must have been in a cheeky mood because I wrote down… “Always be in the middle of an Agatha Christie mystery” AND “Eat chocolate every single day.”

I guess I just wanted to MAKE CERTAIN at least two of the resolutions were kept? They were… to the tune of that year and every year since.

Cheeky Kentuckian.

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Agatha Christie Books

There have been numerous films made from Agatha Christie mysteries. While I’ve never seen one that was quite as good as the book, itself, they are always entertaining – especially when they have a cast like Death on the Nile had! Peter Ustinov (as Hercule Poirot), Bette Davis, David Niven, George Kennedy, Maggie Smith, Angela Lansbury, Jack Warden, Simon MacCorkindale, Lois Chiles… outstanding cast and a darn good movie.

How impressive IS this cast? Seven of the cast members account for a total of twenty-eight acting Oscar nominations with eight wins!

Death on the Nile Cast

Death on the Nile marked the first of Sir Peter Ustinov’s six performances as Hercule Poirot.

This film was the first, of three, produced screenplays from novels by Dame Agatha Christie, written by Anthony Shaffer. The others were Evil Under the Sun (1982) and Appointment with Death (1988).

As I said, the books are better, but that’s to be expected… Agatha Christie was a mad genius!… but the movies are always extremely entertaining, especially with this cast.

You can find Death on the Nile (link leads to the dvd on Amazon) on Amazon. I’m not sure which Agatha Christie adaptations are available on Prime, it’d certainly be worth checking for this one… or any of them.

Maggie Smith and Bette Davis in Death on the Nile

Maggie Smith and Bette Davis, Death on the Nile

Bette Davis, Ex Lady (1933)

November 27, 2019 By Joi Leave a Comment

Bette Davis, Ex Lady (1933)

Bette Davis was one of the most incredibly talented stars of all time. She simply gave one breathtaking performance after another. Ex Lady was no exception. While the film isn’t as well known or celebrated as some of her other films, it is certainly more than worth watching. She is, of course, mesmerizing.