zooty127 Posted July 22, 2005 Share Posted July 22, 2005 My ALL-TIME fave is Bette Davis. Link to post Share on other sites
ThinMan15 Posted December 22, 2005 Share Posted December 22, 2005 I would say Bette had more talent, but Kate was more fascinating. Bette had more range, but Kate made her diologue brilliant. Bette could go over the top more easily than Kate. Kate could be annoying in her own right. Both made their characters unforgettable. All this means I love 'em both and can't decide! Link to post Share on other sites
Iscovescu Posted December 23, 2005 Share Posted December 23, 2005 I think the poster's reference to flogging column inches, since Ms Hepburn is long dead, points to the use of her name by others to trade on it's recognizability. She herself, as you point out, was careful with the media. Link to post Share on other sites
jackpickford1 Posted December 23, 2005 Share Posted December 23, 2005 There is no doubt about it... Bette rules! Link to post Share on other sites
MattHelm Posted December 24, 2005 Share Posted December 24, 2005 They were both great in their own right ... but while I think Bette was a better actress, Hepburn had one thing she didn't ... Spencer Tracy. If it were to come down to choosing between any Bette Davis movie and a Spencer/Hepburn movie, the latter would win all the time. Kate also had a more wholesome quality about her than Bette, that makes movies like Little Women so enjoyable. Bette was better at the darker characters/topics. I couldn't imagine either one of them in the other's roles. Can you imagine Bette in The Philadelphia Story or Kate as Baby Jane? Link to post Share on other sites
HepKat Posted December 24, 2005 Share Posted December 24, 2005 I would pick a Davis movie over most movies , but not over Kate Hepburn unless The movie was JEZEBEL.I am a sucker for civil war era movies. Link to post Share on other sites
shearerchic04 Posted December 25, 2005 Share Posted December 25, 2005 i would definately have to pick bette davis. in my opinion, i think that bette should've had four oscars instead of katharine. kate is one my fave actresses also, but she didn't have the depth and range that bette did. bette wasn't afraid to get ugly or transform herself for a role. they both had wonderful new england accents and it is quite ashame that they never got to do a movie together. i think the only reason, kate got no.1 on the AFI top female stars is because she had the four oscars. my gosh though, bette acted her butt off in all about eve, the star, now voyager, and the letter. Link to post Share on other sites
Smithus Posted December 25, 2005 Share Posted December 25, 2005 Bette was a great actress but I think that Katharine's ability to collaborate with people throughout her life meant that she she able to grow more as an actress . By that I mean that Katharine knew how to work with people and build relationships over a long period of time . I think that Bette didn't help her career in that way. Being an actor is more than about talent although you have to have talent. Its also about making decisions, handling your career and dealing with her your professional and personal life . Bette was super talented . Link to post Share on other sites
movieman1957 Posted December 27, 2005 Share Posted December 27, 2005 It might be a personal preference but I think Hepburn was better. That's not to say Davis didn't have her moments but I just liked watching Hepburn more than Davis. This was especially true as they got older. I agree in that Hepburn didn't really ever make herself look ugly for a part but she could play a nasty enough role. "Suddenly Last Summer" comes to mind. Having said that I don't think Kate could have played "Baby Jane." Link to post Share on other sites
Lilly Posted January 5, 2006 Share Posted January 5, 2006 BOTH BETTE AND KATHARINE, THE VERY BEST THE MOVIE SCREEN CAN OFFER.....BETTE DAVIS, IN NOW VOYAGER, ONE OF MY OLD TIME FAVORITES...AND KATHARINE HEPBURN, IN WHO'S COMING TO DINNER, WITH MY FAVORITE OLD TIME ACTOR, NONE OTHER THAN SPENCER TRACEY.....ABSOLUTE BEST ON THE MOVE LIST FOR ALL TO SEE, YOUNG AND OLD.....AND LETS NOT FORGET PAUL NEWMAN, BURT LANCASTER AND ALL THOSE GREAT MALE STARS TOO.....A DEFINITE MOVIE FAN OF ALL OUR OLD STARS....CAN GO ON AND ON....NICE TO REPLY....HAVE A GREAT NEW YEAR! Link to post Share on other sites
RKOFAN Posted March 11, 2006 Share Posted March 11, 2006 There is no contest here.... Kate wins by a landslide.... In "A Bill of Divorcement", it was Kate's charm and inner warmth that kept Sydney Fairfield from becoming a half-crazed, self-absorbed so-and so like the script demands... she provides real warmth to John Barrymore In "Morning Glory", Kate's natural gifts and personal star-lit experience keep Eva Lovelace from being seen as nothing more than a stage-struck ninny.... "Little Women" - KATE HEPBURN IS JO MARCH... While she did make some films that weren't exactly great (SPITFIRE... what was she thinking... and don't forget DRAGON SEED... my God... I barely made it through this one once... OLLY, OLLY, OLLY OXEN FREE... well, not quite the most interesting of features, but Kate is at least amusing in this), she was never afraid to stick her neck out and tackle something new... to giver her credit, Bette Davis did the same... Bette Davis is a good actress.. quite good... better than most that we are watching in modern film... but the fact is, Kate was better... She kept going for 6 decades with rarely a break and 12 oscar nominations, four wins and a row of films, each provding a ittle morsal of loveliness: A Bill of Divorcement Christopher Strong Morning Glory Little Women The Little Minister Break of Hearts Alice Adams Sylvia Scarlett Mary of Scotland A Woman Rebels Quality Street Stage Door Bringing Up Baby Holiday The Philadelphia Story Woman of the Year Keeper of the Flame Without Love Undercurrent Sea of Grass Song of Love State of the Union Adam's Rib The African Queen Pat and Mike Summertime The Rainmaker Iron Petticoat Desk Set Suddenly, Last Summer Long Day's Journey Into Night Guess Who's Coming to Dinner? The Lion in Winter Madwoman of Chaillot Trojan Women A Delicate Balance Rooster Cogburn On Golden Pond ..... So many wonderful memories... and she was never afraid of the truth... she never went camp or low-budget, fighting to keep her face within the public eye... she remained an actress, playing parts SHE wanted to play... not parts SHE needed to play... at the same time, there was a bit of Kate Hepburn in every role... and while some may call this a way of "cheating the role", she was never afraid to let parts of herself be shown to the audience... she stayed true to herself... and by the end of her career... Kate Hepburn was not afraid to play... Kate Hepburn For Turner Classic Movies, I'm RKOFAN Link to post Share on other sites
Geniebeanie Posted March 11, 2006 Share Posted March 11, 2006 I love both of them and have almost all of their movies. I would have to pick Kate. Both of them are two great actress but Kate had a special spark that also was in all of her movies. Not taking away from Davis but I feel she was more aproachable. Link to post Share on other sites
najalyn215 Posted March 12, 2006 Share Posted March 12, 2006 I would have to say both. Link to post Share on other sites
filmlover Posted March 13, 2006 Share Posted March 13, 2006 This is a hard question because both had qualities as actresses that were so different from each other. And both came across as themselves onscreen. But if we were to measure pure acting ability on a meter, I would have to go with Hepburn. Link to post Share on other sites
bansi4 Posted March 13, 2006 Share Posted March 13, 2006 For me, it's Bette Davis all the way...puff puff. Link to post Share on other sites
Cyndi Posted March 15, 2006 Share Posted March 15, 2006 I could never choose. I adore them both. Link to post Share on other sites
BestEra Posted March 16, 2006 Share Posted March 16, 2006 Bette Davis. I love her in every one of her films. On the contrary, Katharine's voice starts grating on my nerves in some, although not many, of her films. Link to post Share on other sites
neilelmhr Posted March 16, 2006 Share Posted March 16, 2006 It comes down to a matter of personal mannerisms. I always found Hepburn strident and hard to take for an entire film. (Sorry, all you Hepburn fans). I only genuinely liked her in a few films: "Summertime", "The African Queen" or "Suddenly, Last Summer" where I felt she fit the roles perfectly. Never liked those formula Tracy/Hepburn romantic comedies. Bette, despite all her mannerisms, always fascinated me more with the variety of parts she played, especially in her films of the '40s at Warner Bros. She must have been a really difficult person to know or be with in real life, but she certainly had a certain magnetism and bigger than life style as an actress. Neil Link to post Share on other sites
shearerchic04 Posted March 16, 2006 Share Posted March 16, 2006 i like them noth as well, but i love bette better. i love both of their distinct accents. kate had more of an uppercrest, yankee accent and bette had that clipped almost british like accent. marvelous is all i can say. Link to post Share on other sites
shearerchic04 Posted March 16, 2006 Share Posted March 16, 2006 and in my opinion, i think bette deserved 4 oscars instead of kate. Link to post Share on other sites
MarkMiller Posted May 11, 2006 Share Posted May 11, 2006 Nice one. I think I would vote for Davis. More range. Link to post Share on other sites
michellej Posted May 11, 2006 Share Posted May 11, 2006 WOW,what a question.Well,this is tough:Bette or Kate.Well,they're both great. These too are at the top of the heap.they're both New England,born a year apart,I believe;but Bette is less upper crust,more approachable.Her roles were more colorful,varied,dealing with issues more ordinary folk have to face:An aging star in All about Eve.The family joke in Now ,Voyager.Even putting the ad in the paper for work in the late 50's or early 60's.Bette didn't care.She had kids to feed.Kate was always so different,unique.there was a time when even movie fans tired of her personality.Kate was a little before her time.she was great,though not the typical movie star.There are some rolls that Kate just was not good to play because of her type.I'd better answer the question:I can't...it's a toss up!!! Link to post Share on other sites
TOOMANYNOTES Posted May 11, 2006 Share Posted May 11, 2006 BETTE DAVIS OF COURSE !! LOOK AT ALL THE DIFFERENT ROLES AND MAKE UP SHE USED TO CREATE THESE ROLES !! SHE WAS THE LON CHANEY SR. OF CHARACTERS !!! SHE TOOK MORE OF A CHANCE THAN HEPBURN IN ACCEPTING CHARACTERS THAT DID NOT GET SYMPATHY FROM THE MOVIE-GOERS !!! SHE COULD PLAY A COMEDY THAN A MELO-DRAMA AT THE BLINK OF AN EYE !!! HEPBURN WAS GREAT..BUT SHE WAS NO BETTE DAVIS !! Link to post Share on other sites
shearerchic04 Posted May 11, 2006 Share Posted May 11, 2006 Originally offered to Bette Davis in 1938, The African Queen would have co-starred David Niven as Charlie. It was offered to Bette Davis again in 1947, this time to co-star James Mason, but she had to pull out of the project due to pregnancy. In 1949, Bette Davis tried again to make the film, but by that time plans were under way for Katharine Hepburn to star. I've always heard her mention this is one role she wish she could've played. Link to post Share on other sites
nyoka1 Posted May 11, 2006 Share Posted May 11, 2006 Interesting that a lot of people, especially men, find them both unwatchable ... http://greenbriarpictureshows.blogspot.com/ Link to post Share on other sites
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