On 18 September, 2008, the U.S. Postal Service added another collectible postage stamp to its Legends of Hollywood commemorative stamps series with their dedication of the first class 42-cent Bette Davis stamp. Davis appears on the 14th stamp in the Legends of Hollywood stamp series.

The Career of Bette Davis

According to the Bette Davis web site, Davis was born Ruth Elizabeth Davis on 5 April, 1908, in Lowell, Massachusetts.

Davis began her acting career on Broadway in plays such as Broken Dishes (1929) and Solid South (1929). In 1930, she moved to Hollywood and landed small roles in several films for Universal Pictures. In 1932, she signed a contract with Warner Brothers.

Films such as The Man Who Played God (1932) and Of Human Bondage (1934) launched her on the road to stardom. Her role in Dangerous (1935) led to her becoming the first Warner Brothers actress to win an Oscar. After a highly contentious period that saw her in a contract dispute with Warner Brothers, Davis returned to Warner Brothers and won her second Oscar for her role in Jezebel (1938).

Throughout her many years in the entertainment field, Davis frequently suffered downturns in her career, but always bounced back with incredible success in films such as All About Eve (1950) and Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962).

Bette Davis appeared in more than 100 films, served as the first female president of the Motion Picture Academy of Arts and Sciences, and received numerous awards for her incredible acting performances. In 1980, the U.S. Defense Department awarded her its highest civilian award, the Distinguished Civilian Service Medal, for running the Hollywood Canteen, an entertainment facility for World War II soldiers passing through Los Angeles. She considered the Hollywood Canteen to be one of her proudest accomplishments.

On 6 October, 1989, Bette Davis died of cancer at the age of 81 in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France.

USPS Bette Davis Stamp Design

The Bette Davis Legends of Hollywood stamp was designed by Michael J. Deas and based on a photograph from the filming of All About Eve (1950). In keeping with their Legends of Hollywood practice of avoiding social controversy, the U.S. Postal Service requested that Deas modify the fur coat Davis wore in the original photograph to appear as a fabric coat.

The selvage photograph (or the art in the surplus margin around the sheet of stamps), is a black-and-white still from Jezebel (1938).