“I was snatched from the jaws of death. Because failure to me is a death. I was now under contract to Warners for one picture and they had the right, at the completion of the film, to take up an option on my services if they wished. I knew that after all this time, this was my chance.

Mr. Arliss was too old to play Royale, the pianist, but he was enchanting and you forgave him. Mr. Arliss had a fantastic rapport with his audience. He seemed to share a secret that the rest of the cast were not in on. This became very flattering to them. A most successful device for box-office returns.

Mr. Arliss personally augmented my direction, supervised my makeup and wardrobe, and showed me every conceivable consideration. He was turning the little brown wren into a bluebird. For the first time care was taken with me by the makeup man, the hairdresser and the wardrobe department. What a difference this can make.”—Bette Davis in her autobiography, "The Lonely Life".

Está en la lista de pendientes, aunque me tira un poco para atrás la diferencia de edad... La que sí he visto es "The Working Man", en la que Arliss y Davis volvieron a coincidir en pantalla. Sin embargo, guardo un recuerdo bastante difuso de ella, por lo que no debí de encontrarle nada destacable.

Me acuerdo más, por ejemplo, de "The rich are always with us", sin ser nada del otro mundo, Bette se ve fresca y natural interpretando a una especie de benefactora de la pareja protagonista:



Bette Davis in “The Rich Are Always With Us”, 1932. Photographer: Elmer Fryer