Miss Bette Davis and her husband and father to her children Michael and Margo, actor Gary Merrill, made their fourth and final appearance before the cameras together in this rare piece of TV history that was originally conceived as a pilot for a proposed series called Paula. In the semi-autobiography Mother Goddam, written by Whitney Stine with the aid of Miss Davis, Bette dismisses the pilot for Paula as proof that her career had sunk to an unbearable low. But for fans of the palpable onscreen/offscreen chemistry of Miss Davis and Mr. Merrill, who also worked together in Another Mans Poison and Phone Call From A Stranger and would embark on a highly successful touring theatrical production The World of Carl Sandburg, this pilot is a gem. The show that would have been Paula was re-titled The Starmaker before it aired as a onetime special on the anthology series Studio 57 in March of 1958, and in honor of Miss Daviss Centennial, I hope that you will all relive the sparks that flew between The Merrills onscreen and find out how the masterful Bette could elevate seemingly inconsequential material to a relevant and empowering characterization.
VIVA LA BETTE!