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Bette Davis: A Biography Audiobook
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(3.06) - 77 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
She was the tempestuous, strong-willed woman who ignited the movie screen with her legendary performances in Of Human Bondage, Jezebel, and All About Eve. Off-camera, Bette Davis fought endless contractual battles with studios and survived four disastrous marriages, earning a larger-than-life reputation as an actress to be reckoned with. In this extraordinary biography, fans and film historians will discover a different, darker side of Bette Davis: a woman beset with scarring personal and professional doubts, a daughter whose mother was devoted to her success, and a mother who loved her own daughter to distraction. Obsessive and compulsive, Davis was happy only when she was working, but did not always choose her projects wisely. She fought a lifelong battle with alcohol, and she had an insatiable need to be loved, often at great emotional cost. A legend, a star, a remarkable woman, Bette Davis lived her life as if it were a coveted role she was desperately afraid she might not win.
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"I doubt I'll ever need to read another Bette Davis book ever again. This one pretty much included everything, and in a balanced way too."
— Karla (4 out of 5 stars)
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“Leaming offers a portrait of Bette Davis that is both sympathetic to the actress and frank about her legendary bitchiness…The book is distinguished by its psychological understanding of the subject.”
— Publishers Weekly -
“Strong, honest, vivid biography…A rapid but rich full-dress portrait of a matchlessly magnetic actress whose chains of self-centeredness grew ever heavier as she aged…Excellent especially on Davis’ tics and mannerisms and how they undermined her ferocious energy and greater possibilities.”
— Kirkus Reviews
Bette Davis Listener Reviews
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" Sort of quenched my thirst for all things Bette-related. "
— Allison, 6/19/2013 -
" It provides a few things I didn't knew about Bette beforehand, but as a devoted Bette Davis fan I must say that it seems like the author is sympathizing a bit too much with B.D. Hyman, the ungrateful bastard, who in my opinion needs no sympathy whatsoever. "
— Zelia, 5/26/2013 -
" a very close look at the stars life, very good. "
— Lesley, 2/13/2013 -
" Read it in 2 sittings. Enjoyed it, give me such vivid insight to Davis and who she was to others. "
— A, 11/11/2012
About Barbara Leaming
Barbara Leaming is the author of the New York Times bestseller Katharine Hepburn. She was for many years professor of theater and film at Hunter College. Her articles have appeared in Vanity Fair and the New York Times Magazine. She lives in Connecticut.
About Grace Conlin
Grace Conlin (1962–1997) was the recording name of Grainne Cassidy, an award-winning actress and acclaimed narrator. She was a member of the Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company in Washington, DC, and won a Helen Hayes Award in 1988 for her role in Woolly Mammoth’s production of Savage in Limbo.