User Reviews

This was probably an hour long episode when it aired on October 18th, 1973, but the copy I watched came in at just about thirty minutes. Bette Davis was honored as 'Woman of the Week' at a time when these roasts wound up being a weekly affair in the early Seventies, losing some of the uniqueness they had when shown as occasional specials. The guest list was somewhat weak with actors like Pat Buttram and Kay Medford on the dais, while celebrity columnist Army Archerd showed up doing some inside Hollywood type of stuff, so if you weren't around back then it would probably be meaningless to most viewers today.

However there were a couple of good presenters on hand like Nipsey Russell with his poetic tributes and self deprecating humor that was good for some laughs, and horror icon Vincent Price got in a few good shots at Miss Davis as well. As usual, the guest of honor took it all in stride with good humor, while offering a pretty good parting shot herself - "...looking at this dais, I can only quote a line from one of my movies - 'What a dump!'"

When Bette Davis laughs, the world laughs with her, or at least the audience at this Dean Martin roast where celebrities who have had nothing to do with her career gather together to poke fun at her long career. Some of the jokes flung at Bette at her expense are either dated or not funny, and when they are funny (even if biting), Bette laughs hysterically. She's a good sport, not at all the stoic listener as portrayed by Susan Sarandon in "Feud". At certain points, she's even smacking the table, obviously enjoying the verbal insults at her expense, and a great sport about it all. Why they didn't try to get some of Bette's co-stars (other than Vincent Price and Henry Fonda) is a real mystery, as the wisecracks would have been more poignant and had more bite, even if all in fun. But for TV comic Pat Buttram ("Green Acres") and stand-up comedian Nipsey Russell to be there, simply as part of Dean Martin's ensemble, is awkward, because I couldn't imagine them having any connection to Bette outside their appearance in this roast.

Of course, where there's Bette and a bunch of apparent drunken men, there's also got to be mentions of Joan Crawford and a few impersonators as well. Bette's so-called twin sister and childhood best friend are Bette look-alikes who thrive too much on "Peta', Peta', Peta'", a line Bette never said. ("What I said was "Judy, Judy, Judy", James Cagney once said to the comic mimics doing "You dirty rat!", a response I would have loved Bette to have made.) Bette shows her real personality when she gets up to respond to all the cracks, and it is obvious that as a person, she only knew she had truly made it when her screen image began to be spoofed and a slight camp image created because of her sometimes over dramatic work. She is the true star here, the only real reason to tune in. So for those who thought that she was a raving bitch on wheels (or the benevolent volcano as a British documentary indicated), here she shows what a down to earth person she was, not taking herself way too seriously beyond her dedication to her work. Save the lame comics for the rat pack group, and give us Olivia de Havilland, Price, Fonda, Anne Baxter, Joan Blondell and other celebrities then living who really knew her. There's a reason why long dead film actors remain stars, and Bette shows here why she is on the top of the list.