B.D. Hyman

 In 1985, B.D. Hyman, the only biological child of Bette Davis, published a memoir called My Mother’s Keeper. At the time, Davis was recovering from breast cancer and a series of strokes. The book painted her not as the legendary Hollywood star, but as a bitter and controlling mother. The attack shocked Davis, especially because she had supported her daughter throughout her life, attending her wedding and helping her during illnesses.

Bette Davis had raised B.D. largely on her own. Her first marriage ended before B.D. was born in 1947. While she loved her daughter, her busy career and perfectionist nature created pressure. She expected B.D. to meet high standards, and that sometimes caused tension.

When the book came out, the private difficulties between mother and daughter became public. Hyman accused Davis of narcissism, alcoholism, and cruelty. Davis was blindsided. In an interview with Barbara Walters, she refused to name her daughter and called the book “a knife in the back from my own child.” She said, “You can survive a lot in this business. But this… this is a betrayal of blood.”

Friends and colleagues of Davis, like her assistant Kathryn Sermak and actor George Hamilton, were shocked. Sermak said Davis had been loving and generous, though strict, and had given B.D. everything emotionally and financially. Davis had even changed her will to leave everything to B.D., but after the book, she rewrote it to exclude her daughter.

The deepest pain for Davis was not public opinion, but personal betrayal. At 77, weakened by illness and needing help for the first time in her independent life, she felt vulnerable. She never saw her daughter again and refused to reconcile.

The rift remained until Davis’s death in 1989. B.D. did not attend the funeral. Later, Hyman said she wrote the book for her own healing, but many critics felt she had exploited her mother’s weakness. The memoir sparked debate about the line between personal healing and public betrayal.

Bette Davis, famous for playing strong women on screen, faced one of her hardest battles off camera. She continued to act and appear in public, but those who knew her said the warmth in her interviews faded. She once told a friend, “You expect the wolves outside the door, not inside your own home.”