There's more to the feud than meets the eye
Ryan Murphy's new anthology series, "Feud", kicked off with "Bette and Joan". The story revolved around the filming of "Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?", with the camera focused on the decades-long feud between Bette Davis and Joan Crawford. Reality TV fans would enjoy this limited series, as these two legendary stars could be the Real Housewives of the studio stays. It doesn't mean that Murphy was more interested in shallow entertainment.
There was more to this psychological thriller, about Blanche (Crawford), a wheelchair-bound actress, and Jane (Davis), her kid sister. The latter was a vaudevillian child star who was unable to make a successful transition to adult stardom. It turned her into a bitter, irritable woman. The description would make fans guess that Bette Davis managed to nab the more challenging role, and they were right. The casting turned Crawford into an envious costar, even far from the supportive peer during the awards season (leading to the 35th Academy Awards). Davis received her tenth Oscar nomination (for Best Actress), but Anne Bancroft was named the winner in that category (for "The Miracle Worker"). Crawford accepted the statuette in Bancroft's behalf. (Mrs. Mel Brooks wasn't expecting to go up the stage and say her thank-you speech. She was doing a Broadway play during awards night.)
Jessica Lange and Susan Sarandon, who played Crawford and Davis respectively, were praised for their portrayal of these stars. The stellar supporting cast included Catherine Zeta-Jones (as Olivia de Havilland) and Sarah Paulson (as Geraldine Page). But let's get pass the casting. What would viewers learn from this series? They might be surprised that there would be more to the mind-playing catfight between the costars. Hold your breath:
The big studios benefited from the feuds between female stars. Olivia de Havilland could relate to it, as her relationship with Joan Fontaine, her younger sister, took a turn for the worst after the siblings achieved Hollywood stardom. The big bosses could have taken the high road (and thought about reconciling the sisters). Then again, the high road might result in box-office losses. These on-screen, off-screen feuds were surefire ways to generate public interest.
Bette Davis was a shrewd actress. Davis was a huge star during the 1930s but offers dwindled two decades later. Hollywood's treatment of older actresses during the studio era wasn't different from the modern times. She could have retired without a fuss, even settled for supporting roles. It was uncharacteristic of her if she did. The only way to be in the limelight was to play the disturbed, if not unpleasant, characters. Baby Jane was one of those roles, which happened to fall on her lap. And who would have done a generous deed?
What was the real deal about "Mommie Dearest"? Faye Dunaway played Crawford in the celluloid version of "Mommie Dearest", Christina Crawford's unflattering memoir about her stepmother. Joan Crawford's friends and associates rushed to her defense while the book left a bitter taste to Crawford's fans. There may be some truth behind the possibility that Dunaway's career wasn't the same after the release of this biographical picture. After all, Hollywood movers don't tend to recognize the actors that they least like. (Ask Kevin Costner.) If Crawford was really that bad, then her talent must have saved her from oblivion.
Why the studio system worked back then? It wouldn't be remote to suspect the likes of Louis B. Mayer to be dictatorial on the set. They wanted an empire, which translated into a lifelong career. In Mayer's case, he didn't hesitate about it. Mayer and his team have no idea about what they did. If these films became classics, then Mayer knew which screenwriters to work for him. There would also be an MGM stable of stars, and Mayer did a great job on this one. It had something do with damage control.
"Whatever Happened to Baby Jame?" became a classic. Davis and Crawford rather talked about trivial matters. It was their show, their feud.
