Thursday, November 6th: Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962)

Ah, the joys of family. Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? was released in theaters on October 31, 1962, becoming a critical and box office success. The film stars Joan Crawford and Bette Davis, two powerhouse actresses whose off-screen feud was the stuff of Hollywood legend. Their rivalry added fuel to the film’s success and helped revitalize the careers of both actresses. Based on the 1960 novel by Henry Farrell, the film follows aging former child star “Baby Jane” Hudson (Davis) as she torments her paraplegic sister Blanche (Crawford), also a former child star, in their old Hollywood mansion. It is credited with the creation of the “psycho-biddy” subgenre, aka “hagsploitation,’ a genre of film that features a formerly glamorous older woman who becomes increasingly mentally unbalanced as she terrorizes those around her.