Bette Davis (1908-1989) was the great actress of the Golden Age of Cinema. Known for her bullish temper and incomparable candor, she began life as the favorite daughter of a lonely, unfulfilled single mother. Convinced that she lacked beauty, Davis devoted everything to her acting. In classic films such as Jezebel, All About Eve, Dark Victory and Now, Voyager, she distorted herself into grotesque, shocking characters -- always, she insisted, for the good of the role. Off-stage she never achieved the same success, becoming a serial divorcee. By the end of her life, her repertoire had narrowed into excruciating self-imitation. This book unearths the complex, self-destructive woman beneath the steely public persona.