AGNES_MOOREHEAD AGNES_MOORHEAD ALDRICH BD BETTE DRIVER GEORGE_CUKOR HEDDA_HOPPER INTERVIEWER JEREMY JOAN JOAN_BLONDELL JOSEPH_COTTEN LEONARD MAMACITA MINISTER MIRIAM MONTE NARRATOR OLIVIA PAULINE PROCESS_SERVER PROPMASTER RADIO_VOICE RAY STUDIO_DOCTOR VICTOR JOAN They say places you knew as a child seem smaller when you see them again. It's not true. It's just as I left it. JOAN Keep the change. ALDRICH Cut!Beautiful. Ladies and gentlemen, Miss Joan Crawford, our one take wonder. Okay, next set-up. JOAN Wait. Bob, don't you want me to try it again? ALDRICH No need, Joanie, you nailed it. JOAN Are you sure? ALDRICH Absolutely. BETTE Well done. JOAN There's nothing as exciting as the first day on a set, is there? PROPMASTER It's my fifth day but sure. JOAN They're like bunny rabbits. It's past midnight. They've been at it since we got home from dinner. MAMACITA Miss Joan, you have an early call tomorrow, you must rest. JOAN Well how can I sleep when my director and co-star are engaged in some tawdry bacchanal thirty feet away? MAMACITA Have a nightcap. JOAN I told you Mamacita, I am not drinking on this production. I need a clear head. MAMACITA I could sing a lullaby. JOAN I'll call the front desk. Go to sleep, Mamacita. I don't care what they do in private, but staying up partying like teenagers can only detract from the quality of their work and by extension, mine and that I cannot abide. No no no no, I'll simply go over there and politely ask them to consider the labors that lie ahead and encourage them to make more responsible choices. MAMACITA Should I wait up? JOSEPH COTTEN Give it up, Bette. You'll never be able to do it. BETTE I don't know how she managed to do all that business in one take? VICTOR Oh my goodness, if I didn't know better, I'd think you admire her. JOSEPH COTTEN Well why shouldn't she? It's no accident Joan's been a star since the silents. She's an artist. BETTE Between the sheets. AGNES MOORHEAD Oh my, my, Bette. I thought your rivalry was put on for the press. BETTE I don't know what you're talking about. What rivalry? JOSEPH COTTEN I got to hand it to you Bette. After all you've through, giving Joan the Oscar bait this go-around? That's mighty white of you? BETTE The picture is called Hush Hush, Sweet Charlotte. I play Charlotte. JOSEPH COTTEN Oh. Well then let me congratulate you on your divine work in All About Margot Channing. BETTE VICTOR Joan is playing the villain and villains always have the meatier roles. She's the mastermind. JOSEPH COTTEN That's true, Vic. AGNES MOOREHEAD You guys stop teasing her now. JOSEPH COTTEN Nobody's teasing anyone, Agnes shouldn't you be giving me. JOAN I hope you had a good breakfast. MONTE I do wish you'd give me a good crack at those brows, Joan. JOAN The brows are mind. And the mouth. Let's get started on the lashes. No. No. Yes. JOAN Why wouldn't I tell him that his, his pure darling little girl was having a dirty little affair with a married man. MAMACITA You're a vile sorry little bitch. JOAN Freshen me up mamacita. BETTE Well God bless your heart, here's cousin Miriam all dolled up and tip-top to her toenails. Welcome. JOAN Well I wanted to make sure that my look would survive the humidity. I didn't realize you were in this scene, Bette. BETTE I'm not. JOSEPH COTTEN Often at night, she sits up dressed as if she was still young expecting a beau. JOAN I seem to remember once expecting something like that myself. JOSEPH COTTEN You going to be all right here? I could stay over. JOAN You've been content to let me get by on my own all these years. Another night won't kill me. BETTE You're gonna let her do it that way, are you? ALDRICH Cut! JOAN What? What happened? ALDRICH Nothing nothing. we're gonna go again, straight away, Joanie. BETTE We don't even need the scene, I mean it seems like it may not be necessary. JOAN You have something to say about my performance? Then say it to me! BETTE Alright, this scene isn't really necessary and you're telegraphing that Miriam is up to no good when the audience at this point has to think she's a saint. JOAN This is my performance. I have worked very hard on this. BETTE I'm- ALDRICH Can we just shoot the scene? Let's worry about cutting and changing later on? Can you do it this time as if butter would melt in your mouth? BETTE Good idea. ALDRICH Okay. Reset. JOAN I need to process your note, Bob. In my trailer. JOAN What the hell is she doing on the set during my scene? Running off at the mouth about my performance and you, you just sitting there like a whipped dog? Where the hell are you balls? ALDRICH Bette can say whatever she wants to say, she's a producer. JOAN What? ALDRICH I made her associate producer, it was the only way to get her to sign on. She was holding the picture hostage. JOAN No, I don't want that! Goddamnit! Go on, Mamacita, leave us alone. You made her a producer? ALDRICH Joanie, the title's meaningless. Bette just needs to feel she has authority. JOAN I have been working day and night to prepare for this role. ALDRICH Nothing's changed. You're still going to be great. JOAN You have no idea how much harder I have to work to be taken seriously as an actress. I didn't get my start in the theatre like Miss Bette Davis. I broke in shaking my fringe in nightclubs. I'd come home after a gig with scotch on my dress and I'll always have that stain on me. And I'll always have to prove them wrong and I can't do it on Charlotte because she won't let me! ALDRICH Joanie, you have to let go of that anger. You can't give her the fight! JOAN I am not angry with her! I'm angry with you! I must have been such a fool thinking that you were paying me this great tribute by promising me top billing. And all the while behind my back you were promising her exactly what she deserved; producer. Well, Bob, do you think I deserve it too? ALDRICH Joanie, don't put me on the spot. JOAN You know what I'm going to enjoy? I'm going to enjoy watching you learn just how meaningless Bette thinks this title is. VICTOR Where's Joan? BETTE Oh, she's out catching groundhogs to replenish her wig supply. You have to catch them in the dead of night. VICTOR Why do you keep saying that? It's not nice. It's hard for a woman, losing her hair. Her feminin-- femi-- nininity. BETTE VICTOR You should be nice. BETTE It's a joke, Victor. Oh my God. Stop drinking, it's making you soft. Oh you should have seen how the most beautiful woman that ever lived treated me back when the day and I remember thinking then, beauty fades, just wait. And it did. VICTOR Well I remember seeing her in Humoresque. Shunned by John Garfield, marching into the ocean, every hair in place beauty, dignity and death, all in one exquisite pose. BETTE She marched into the sea to her death and never got her hair wet. VICTOR Well, it meant a lot to me. ALDRICH Turn down service, Miss Davis. BETTE I wish I had known for a single day what it felt like to walk into a room and knock them out without a single word. ALDRICH Bette, you don't even know yourself, you've been too long in this business. BETTE You have no idea what it's like to be a woman in this business with the constant scrutiny and competition. ALDRICH Ah, do we have to go through this melodrama right now? BETTE Fuck you, Bob. ALDRICH Alright, tell me, then tell me. BETTE No, you tell me Mister Director man. Have you ever been rebuffed by a woman because of how you look? I'm betting no. I'm guessing that your success was enough, that they fucked you despite your beer gut and your middle age sag, am I right? ALDRICH I don't make up the rules. BETTE My first screen test with Jack Warner, I stuck around and I hid behind a door because I wanted to hear his reaction. Did he see my talent, my humor, my intelligence, my brave attack on the scene? But he wasn't interested in any of that, guess what he said? ALDRICH What'd he say? BETTE He said, I had zero sex appeal. He said who would want to fuck that. I was 22 and nobody ever had. ALDRICH You should go to bed. Come on. BETTE Guess who he said he wished I looked like? Joan Crawford. JOAN Why wouldn't I tell him that his pure, darling, little girl, was having a dirty little affair with a married man. BETTE You vile, sorry, little bitch. JOAN How did I know it was going to end in murder with John being butchered? ALDRICH Cut! Fantastic, Joanie, fantastic. Okay, turning around on Bette. BETTE You alright? JOAN No, I'm fine. It's just so hot. BETTE It's a little different out here than the freezing cold sound stages. JOAN Bob. Bob. Where do you want me for Bette's off-camera? BETTE You know, I don't think I need you as tight, I can have the script girl give me your lines. JOAN But it's our scene, I mean, don't you want me here to give you something to build on? BETTE You already have, why don't you find a dark air conditioned spot and lie down? JOAN Ooh. Oh. JOAN Hello? Hello? BETTE Lucille? JOAN This entire production is an elaborate opportunity for you to humiliate me, isn't it? BETTE What are you talking about? JOAN You, Bob, the whole fucking crew abandoned me out at that plantation. Mamacita had to find a phone and call a city cab to bring us back! BETTE Jesus, Joan, I had no idea. JOAN No, I don't believe you! The proclaimed alliance back in Los Angeles. You never had any intention of honoring. BETTE That is not true. JOAN Christ, what a fool I was to sign up for this picture and a bigger fool to think I could ever trust you. BETTE I need you to be brilliant. I'm just trying to help you get there. JOAN Oh, you're giving me a hand up? Because you're the superior talent? Well I don't want your help. You've always been overrated. BETTE I guess that explains my 11 Oscar nominations. JOAN The academy doesn't reward you for you talent, for chrissakes, Bette. They reward you because they see how hard you sweat. They don't see the character, they see the acting. BETTE And they don't see you at all because of all your glamour make-up. JOAN Well let me give you a tip. The answer to feeling unattractive isn't to make yourself even uglier! BETTE I'm a character actress. JOAN Well I said what I came to say. I'm going to bed. BETTE Joan. How did it feel to be the most beautiful girl in the world? JOAN It was wonderful. The most joyous thing you could ever imagine and it was never enough. What about you? How did it feel to be the most talented girl in the world? BETTE Great. And it was never enough. DRIVER From Mr. Aldrich. JOAN Thank you, driver. Well, at least he remembered to send a car this time. MAMACITA Maybe now that we are back in Los Angeles things will go more smooth. Call sheet for Monday. JOAN Let me see. Report to 20th Century Fox, stage 7, scene 42, 6 A.M. Scene 42...oh, that's my scene with Mister Cutter. The seduction scene, it's a wonderful scene. And Bette's not in it? What's this? Script revisions? For what? Where's my monologue? What? It's all been cut. This is her doing. And Bob is colluding with her. That's why he sent the car, to soften the blow. Driver, I'm not going to Brentwood, take me to Cedar Sinai hospital. I'm suddenlyfeeling very very ill. ALDRICH Well, according to her doctors, it's respiratory. BETTE Respiratory? What a load of shit. She's faking it. She's mad because we trimmed a few of her lines so she's holding up production. I used to play the same tricks when I was at Warner's under contract. We can't let her get away with it. BD Mother, Jeremy and I need to speak to you. BETTE Say hello to Mister Aldrich, B.D. BD Hello, Mister Aldrich. BETTE And this is her elderly playmate, Jerome. JEREMY It's Jeremy, actually. BETTE He's got an accent. What is it B.D.? I'm managing a crisis. BD You're whole life ismanaging a crisis. I just need you to sign these consent forms. BETTE Consent for what? BD For Jeremy and I to get married. BETTE Don't be ridiculous you're 16 years old. JEREMY And wise quite beyond her years, and that's a credit to you as a mother. BETTE Ah, don't sweet talk me, bub. That English accent might thrill the little girls but it does nothing for me, I played Elizabeth the first, twice. You're not marrying a 40-year-old man. JEREMY I'm 29 actually. BETTE You're twice her age. JEREMY Old enough to give your daughter everything she deserves. Protection, affection, and financial stability. BETTE I give her all that. BD We're in love, mother. And we're getting married, whether it's now or 2 years from now when we won't need your permission. BETTE You don't want my permission, you want my attention, now you have it and the answer is no. B Fine, force your daughter into a life of sin if that's what you want. BETTE It is what I want, in fact, march yourself up those stairs to my bedroom and grab my copy of the feminine mystique and read it before you ruin your life. BD What life? I have no life. Come on Jeremy. JEREMY A pleasure to have met you. BETTE Christ, I thought we had reached some kind of detente. But it's always a battle. But she's not going to win. Not this time, Bob. ALDRICH Jesus, Bette. It's not a competition. She's your daughter. BETTE No, I meant Crawford. She's not going to shut down production. Not for one single day. HEDDA HOPPER Dateline: Hollywood, California. Production on 20th Centruy Fox's lavish Gothic drama, Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte- continues despite rumblings that the back of a stand-in is doing the work of a star. ALDRICH Action! JOSEPH COTTEN Miriam! I just can't believe it! You look marvelous! MIRIAM What is it you can't believe, Drew? That I'm here or that I look the way I do? JOSEPH COTTEN Oh, come on Miriam, don't make fun of an old man. ALDRICH Cut! HEDDA HOPPER Whispers of a production shut down have been dogging the project in recent weeks as, not far away, one of the picture's star's, Joan Crawford, recovers from what her doctors are calling a mystery ailment. Insiders say, that Joan may just have a case of the B.D.'s. As in, Bette Davis. Rumors are that Bette's new role as a producer on the picture have made her even more demanding than ever and after a string of lackluster follow upsto the triumph of Baby Jane, Bette really needs this one to work. Nobody should be praying more harder for Joan's speedy recovery than Bette Davis. JOAN Hedda, darling, tell your readers this, I'm bedded here with the script, making notes and coming up with all sorts of wonderful ideas for improvements. And as a result of my convalescence, Charlotte is sure to be a much better picture once I recover. JOAN Well Bob, what a lovely surprise. Mamacita turn that off. ALDRICH Um, could you give us a few moments, please? JOAN Seeing you is a tonic. Has it really been 12 days? ALDRICH I would have come sooner, Joanie, but I've been busy trying to keep a train on-track. JOAN Well I'm touched you could find a spare moment. ALDRICH I have nothing but spare moments. I've run out of material to shoot. If I don't roll cameras on you tomorrow morning the studio is threatening to close us down. I need you to come back to work, Joanie. JOAN Bob, you know that's all I want. ALDRICH Great, now Bette's agreed to behave herself. So tomorrow, 7 A.M. on set. Otherwise the show is off. Or is that what you want? JOAN Perhaps now would be a good time to discuss some of my thoughts about the script. I've given it a very close read and I have a few suggestions that I think could make all the difference. First of all, Bob, we know so little about Miriam, wouldn't it be wonderful to see her in the bloom of her youth? Is it really believable that Miriam only has one suitor? Shouldn't she have more beaus? ALDRICH How many more beaus? JOAN Two. A politician and an attorney. And really, her entrance into the picture, it's all wrong. A taxi cab, Bob? No. ALDRICH Well how about a flying carpet? JOAN Oh, Bob. No. But it is the south, she should be greeted back home with a big southern ball. Just think of the production value. ALDRICH Think of the money. JOAN But of course, I'm not a producer, I'm only an actress but it would be money well spent. ALDRICH Charlotte's a recluse, she wouldn't be hosting a ball in a decaying mansion. JOAN I'm not suggesting she host it, she can be there of course, in a corner, hidden. Under the stairs, watching. All we see are her big eyes. ALDRICH You know Joan, the last time I let an actor call all the shots, I made “4 for Texas,” I can't afford another bomb. If Charlotte doesn't work, I'm back making crap TV. So I suggest you put down your fucking script and pick up your fucking contract and give that a close fucking read. Tomorrow morning, 7 A.M. and not a minute later. JOAN Oh, Jake, how great to see you. Thank you. Oh, Sonny, nice to see you again. BETTE Christ on a crutch. She thinks we're still doing the last picture. JOAN This is good here, dear. Oh yes, thank you. Oh thank you, thank you all so much. I can't tell you what it means to me to be back here. I guess this old work horse is only really happy when she's out on the field. BETTE Welcome back, Lucille. I removed the thorns. ALDRICH And, action! JOSEPH COTTEN Oh, come on, Miriam. Don't make fun of an old man. You know I was never any good at expressin' myself. JOAN Well that's not so at all, Drew. You were always very quick with you compliments. It was your intentions that were sometimes a little vague. We used to slide down this bannister, ther 3 of us and I was always the champion. JOSEPH COTTEN Oh, we just let you win because you were the youngest. BETTE Stop it. ALDRICH Cut. JOAN What? BETTE I'm sorry, it's too long. I mean, she's here to see Charlotte, she should just get on with it. JOAN No, I have another page of dialogue with Mr. Cotten. BETTE Yes, we should cut that. ALDRICH You okay, Joan? JOAN No, I just felt a little dizzy, I'm sorry. I had a rather light breakfast. Oh I can't breathe. BETTE I can't believe you let her get away with it. You know I was right about the scene. ALDRICH You what, Bette? Being right doesn't mean shit if you're driving talent off the stage. You wanna be a producer, well a producer gets results. You want to be a lion tamer, great! Go tame the goddamn lion! That's a wrap! BETTE Fine! You can get married, but I'm in charge of everything. LEONARD Better, Joan? JOAN Thank you. LEONARD Ray, is there some reason we're not getting started? It's very taxing for Miss Crawford to be out of bed in her condition. BETTE Bed is the last place that woman gets any rest. Gentlemen. RAY Miss Davis, please remember what we discussed. Gentlemen, there's now been 29 days since Miss Crawford has completed a full day's work on Charlotte, resulting in expensive delays and cost over-runs for this studio. Our insurer has, to this point covered those losses on the basis of Miss Crawford's diagnosis of a "rare form of pneumonia." But her health does not seem to be improving. BETTE That's because her condition is mental. LEONARD Is Miss Davis' presence in this meeting constructive or necessary? BETTE I'm a producer on this picture. I'm in all the meetings, whether you client likes it or not. JOAN According to Bob, it's a vanity title. BETTE It was, and that was my fault. But not anymore. From here on, my stamp is on everything. RAY As I was saying, given that Miss Crawford's condition does not seem to be improving, the studio would like to give her the freedom to devote all her energy to getting well again. In the spirit, we're offering to release her form all contractual obligations. PAULINE Mr. Aldrich is ready to start looking for somebody else to play Miriam. LEONARD Ray, we all know there is no “Hush Hush, Sweet Charlotte” without the reteaming of Crawford and Davis. BETTE Wrong. This is not a sequel to Baby Jane. LEONARD And there will be no need to resort to a poor substitute. Miss Crawford is following all her doctor's instructions to the letter, with the genuine intention of returning to work as soon as possible. RAY Well, Leonard, I'll be candid. Our insurer is having doubts about how genuine those intentions are. They insist your client submit to an independent medical exam. BETTE Tiny Tim over there isn't going to let your doctors get anywhere near her. She's gassing us all with her VapoRub for show. She's not sick. She's on strike - until Bob accepts all her looney script changes, and makes her the star of Charlotte. RAY Miss Davis, if you're incapable of restraining yourself, I'll have to ask you to leave. JOAN I would be perfectly happy to submit to an independent exam. RAY Very well. But before you reject our initial offer, know that if our doctor clears Miss Crawford to return to work and she fails to do so, we will sue her to recoup every cent of our losses. BETTE Splendid. And I want chimes to ring the moment they become man and wife. Just as their lips touch. Can that be arranged? MINISTER We have bells at the church. They toll. BETTE Oh, I don't want a funeral bell. I want a brilliant joyful chime. What do you think of that, B.D.? BD Sure. BETTE Do you like it or not? It's your wedding. BD Whatever you think's best. BETTE Could you all please go into the dining room and give us a moment? Thank you. Darling, I want you to answer me truthfully. And don't for a second worry about the consequences. Are you having second thoughts about marrying Jeremy? BD What? No! I just don't see why we have to make such a huge production out of the wedding. BETTE Well, I'll tell you why. A wedding is a big, special party because everything that comes after is hard work and repetition. It's work to keep a house. It's work to fix him the same goddamn glass of scotch every night and feign interest as he rants about this boss. It's work to tolerate his forgetting to ask about your day, your feelings, and your thoughts. And it's work to feel like a staging ground for someone else's ambitions. BD You just described my life with you. BETTE Ha! Well then I've prepared you to be a good wife. And I'm gonna miss you terribly when you're gone. This wedding is something I can give you, and if you want it, I want it to be perfect. Your first wedding is the one that you remember the most. BD My first wedding? Jeremy and I are forever. BETTE Of course, darling, of course. And however long that "forever" lasts, I want you know that you will always have a place to come home to. BD Christ, is that why you agreed to this? Because you thought I'd come running back? BETTE No no no. BD No, mother. I'm leaving. I'm going to be Jeremy's wife- not yours. Oh- and guess what?For your information, my first wedding was perfect. It was Saturday. At City Hall. We did it the moment you signed the consent form. And there were no chimes for our first kiss and it was beautiful. So all of this, you're not doing it for me, you're doing it for you. STUDIO DOCTOR Just a slightly elevated temperature. JOAN Really? I feel so warm. Feverish. Do you suppose it's neurological? STUDIO DOCTOR What other symptoms are you experiencing? JOAN Light-headedness and dizzy spells at the most inopportune moments. STUDIO DOCTOR Breathe in. Deeper please. JOAN Oh. Excuse me. Lately I've only been able to manage the shallowest of breaths. DOCTOR: Bob can call me if he needs but there's not much to it, she's completely clear. PAULINE You've got to be kidding me? DOCTOR: Good luck with her. PAULINE Thank you. PAULINE Well, he says you can come back to work, Joan. Said he'll clear you for a marathon if you want. JOAN He's the studio's doctor, what did you expect him to say? PAULINE He also said you tried to seduce him. JOAN That is ridiculous and offensive. Mamacita take me to the car, this whole experience has been very fatiguing. PAULINE: I'm asking you as a fan do not do this to yourself. JOAN And what is you imagine I'm doing? PAULINE Losing every ally. They are going to sue you, no one is going to stop them. You're ending your career. JOAN How dare you! You're a secretary. Stop following me around, nipping at my heels, impugning my integrity. The moment I get home, I'm calling Bob and demanding you be taken off of Charlotte. PAULINE Don't bother, I've already told Bob that I'm done after this. I came out here to work, that seems the last thing anyone cares about. I don't know if this town attracts narcissists or actually creates them but I have no intention of sticking around to find out. Good luck, Joan. JOAN BLONDELL What do I think of what Joan did? I thought it was pretty great. INTERVIEWER You didn't think it was a undignified? Faking sick? JOAN BLONDELL Let me tell you something. At a certain point, a woman becomes invisible. You get fat or old and people don't even see anymore. Oh come on, think of it this way. You've been eating in a restaurant your whole life. You're a great customer, good tipper, the staff loves you. You spend all your money there. And then one day, they won't serve you. Won't take your money, won't even let you see the menu. Well, who could blame you for wanting to stand up and rip the table cloth off? JOAN Mamacita, will you get the door? Tell them I'm in the bath. Mamacita. Oh. Yes? PROCESS SERVER Good morning, ma'am. Are you Miss Joan Crawford? They make me ask that. Please sign for documents from 20th century fox. JOAN What is it? PROCESS SERVER It's above my pay grade. I just make sure you can't deny receipt in court. Have a happy day, ma'am. JOAN Oh! NARRATOR Wearing a $100,000 sapphire necklace over a hospital gown by Dior, Joan Crawford is the most glamorous and popular patient in the celebrity wing of Cedars Sinai Hospital. Each day doctors and nurses line up for the privilege of taking care of the ailing movie queen. Meanwhile, production on her latest picture, 20th Century Fox's “Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte” has been halted indefinitely. And with cast and crew still on full salary, Charlotte's shaping up to be one of 20th's priciest pictures this year. GEORGE CUKOR What can you possibly hope to gain by delaying production any further? You'll get no concessions. JOAN Concessions. Oh no. We're way beyond that, I don't want concessions. I want blood. I want to shut this picture down. GEORGE CUKOR Joan. JOAN I'll lose hundreds of thousands of dollars- but so will Bette. And I can live happily and frugally just knowing that. And Bob Aldrich can shutter his production company and end his career directing shitty television. Fuck them both. GEORGE CUKOR You were always ambitious. But when did you become so vindictive? JOAN I've always been valued for my beauty. And more times than not, nothing else. But now the only bed I can find any power in is this hospital bed. GEORGE CUKOR Then why don't you free yourself from all this? Tell them you're too ill to continue and let them recast the role. JOAN Oh, they've already tried. I know that. They've gone out to Loretta Young and Stanwyck, both dear friends of mine. There's not an actress in town who would take food out of my mouth. GEORGE CUKOR That's because most of them don't eat. Don't fool yourself, Joanie. JOAN You watch and see, George. Next week at this time, that picture will be cancelled and Joan Crawford will make a sudden and remarkable recovery. BETTE Tell Zanuck no, absolutely not! I am not going to do this slice of Americana with the very British Miss Vivien Leigh! Who'd believe her as a Southern Belle? ALDRICH She played Scarlett O'Hara. BETTE Unconvincingly! ALDRICH Do you want to make this movie, Bette, or don't you? BETTE I don't want to just "make it." I want to make it properly. And it's gotta be someone I can work with. Someone I trust. And someone who's right for the goddamn part. Now call her. OLIVIA: Oh, darlings. I'm so flattered you thought about me. I've only just aired out my Swiss chalet for the season. And besides, I've done my turn at Grand Guignol already- OLIVIA Help! Please help! I'm trapped in a small private elevator. OLIVIA The whole experience just left me feeling humiliated and I'd rather not repeat it. ALDRICH Oh no, Olivia. This is completely different. This time you're not the victim. You'd be the villainess. OLIVIA Oh no, I don't do bitches. They make me so unhappy. You should call my sister. OLIVIA So you can imagine my surprise 2 days later when I opened my door to a very disheveled Mister Robert Aldrich. He had taken 3 planes, a train, a taxi up a goat trail just to get to see me. So of course I heard him out. And what do you know, he had a very different image for cousin Miriam. RADIO VOICE News from Tinseltown! It looks like 20th Century Fox's beleaguered production, “Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte” is back on again. The studio is saying bye bye Joan Crawford and "hello" to Miss Olivia de Havilland! JOAN They can't do that! RADIO VOICE Miss de Havilland, another two-time Academy Award-winning actress, joins her old pal, Bette Davis. JOAN No! No!No!No no. What are you doing? Mamacita? MAMACITA Leaving. I told you the next time you throw something at my head, I leave. Now I leave. JOAN No! No! Wait! No! Mamacita, wait! Please, you can't leave me! No! Not after what they've done to me. MAMACITA You have done this to yourself. JOAN No! No. BETTE Livy! Oh, my darling, Livy Livy Livy. INTERVIEWER And do you feel guilty at all about ending Joan Crawford's career? OLIVIA Time did that all on its own. As it does to us all.