Book Review: In Print

Dark Victory: The Life of Bette Davis

Film historian Ed Sikov (On Sunset Boulevard: The Life and Times of Billy Wilder) has compiled a slavishly and meticulously researched and loving profile of one of the 20th century's most memorable film icons. Beginning at the very beginning – with Ruth Elizabeth Davis' baby book – Sikov draws a precise, reverent but honest portrait of the firebrand, who once held a bread knife to a houseguest's chest after he stupidly praised Joan Crawford's glamour. Sikov doesn't spend too much time on Davis' early years, except to establish her as a girl with daddy issues. Instead he expends his narrative energy on the real marrow of the story: Davis' life in Hollywood and the personal struggles that went on behind the scenes. For example, Davis was so sexually sheltered as a young woman that a naked baby boy on a set early in her career made for some embarrassing moments; her gay following also fascinated her, and she often proposed marriage to her gay male friends. Davis was also a diva, allegedly faking sunstroke after failing to be officially released by Warner Bros. in the musical farce Hollywood Hotel. It may also be news to some that Davis was the front-runner for the role of Scarlett O'Hara in Gone With the Wind; the part went to Vivien Leigh because the Warners wouldn't release Davis for an MGM film unless they could send Errol Flynn in for the part of Rhett Butler. All this research has privileged the author, as Sikov is at times glib, relying a bit too heavily on an insiderish tone. However, Sikov's writing is endearing for its sharp humor (a group of gay men is a "shriek of queens") and its tenderness toward Davis and her family, even the daughter who betrayed her with a Mommie Dearest-style tell-all. This is a must-have for film buffs and drag impersonators alike.