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"Magnificent and exasperating ..in equal measure." Adults noted an extraordinary drive in the tiny child, Elizabeth Davis, who basically relished any dramatic moment she could manipulate before she could spell "actor". Barbara Stanwyck said, "(Davis) had the kind of creative ruthlessness that made her success inevitable." Ed Sikov, author, is excellent at framing the drive and intensity of this undoubted genius for acting portrayals in a film industry full of creative people who could not see her potential; "unsexy", "bland" and "too pale". She never forgot that -those critics were taken back when she began to radiate from the screen to become the consummate movie star/actress with an unprecedented and never exceeded long list of unforgettable performances. And she remained angry all her life - no one is quite sure why. My admiration for her work stems partly from her obvious & sincere belief that films were just as valid artistically as the stage [ which was her first dramatic experience]- if the creative talent producing the work was on the highest level. When she began her career in Hollywood, as a "Eastern" girl, that was an unusual opinion. This book is a revelation of her life, sympathetic, well written, probably the best biography of Bette Davis to read if you can own only one volume. And I have read all the good bios and all of her own books about her life
