# List of awards and nominations received by Bette Davis

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This is a list of Bette Davis's accolades for both her cinematic and television performances. Her career spans over six decades, from the beginning of the 1930s until the end of the 1980s, shortly before her death.
Her first acting "award" was being cited, alongside Joan Blondell and Ginger Rogers, as one of the "Stars of Tomorrow" in 1932. But it was two years later, when she had her breakthrough performance as Mildred Rogers in Of Human Bondage (1934), when she received her first major awards notice, or lack thereof. When the Academy Award nominations were announced and Davis's name was omitted, there was an uproar. The Academy was inundated with write-in votes demanding that she be nominated. Due to that popular demand, they permitted Davis's name to remain a write-in candidate, even though she was not an official nominee. She finished third in the votes. (They allowed this relaxed rule for the following year as well, wherein Paul Muni was a write-in nominee for Black Fury (1935). Despite being unofficial, he finished second in the votes. The academy discontinued this option as of 1936.)
When Muni receive his write-in, Davis received her first Oscar for Best Actress, for the film Dangerous (1935). Three years later, she would win again for Jezebel (1938). Beginning with this film, she next set a record for the most consecutive nominations, receiving five in a row from 1938 through 1942. These succeeding four films were Dark Victory (1939), The Letter (1940), The Little Foxes (1941), and Now, Voyager (1942). Her longstanding record would shortly be tied by Greer Garson, whose span went from 1941 to 1945 (with a win for 1942's Mrs. Miniver). She and Davis had two overlapping years, plus a third year where they were simultaneously nominated when Davis received her next nomination for Mr. Skeffington (1944).
Aside from Academy Awards, Davis also acquired a Volpi Cup for Best Actress in 1937 for both Marked Woman and Kid Galahad—the only recipient in their history to receive the prize for two performances. In addition to that, she received two Best Actress wins from the National Board of Review: one shared prize for both The Old Maid (1939) & Dark Victory; and another two years later, for The Little Foxes.
At this time, Davis had more acting Oscar nominations than anyone else. This streak continued with All About Eve (1950). She also received several other nominations and wins for this performance, including: Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actress, New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actress, and her first Golden Globe nomination. Her next Oscar nomination was for The Star (1952).
One decade later, Davis continued receiving recognition for a variety of roles. She earned a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Comedy or Musical nomination for Pocketful of Miracles (1961), with adjacent nominations the following year for What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962) from a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama, to a BAFTA for Best Foreign Actress, and finally, an Academy Award for Best Actress—her 10th official of the latter (or 11th, counting the write-in nomination). She thus became the first actress to reach double digits in her nominations tally.
Davis continued receiving several other awards and nominations, including 3rd Place from the Laurel Awards for ...Baby Jane? followed by a win for her performance in Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte (1964).
In her later years, she set her sights more often on television. She received four Primetime Emmy nominations, for an episode of ABC's Wide World of Entertainment retroactive special; plus Little Gloria...Happy at Last (1983); White Mama (1980); and Strangers: The Story of a Mother and Daughter (1979), for which she won an Emmy opposite Gena Rowlands.
She was also bestowed an honorary Cecil B. DeMille Award at the Golden Globes ceremony in 1974; an AFI Life Achievement Award in 1977; and a Kennedy Center Honors in 1987. These are just a few of the vast assortment of honorary awards she has received in addition to the aforementioned major accolades above.

## Major awards

The years listed in the columns are the corresponding years that the ceremonies occurred in which the awards were presented to the recipients. These are seldom the same years of the films' release dates.

### Academy Awards

| Year | Category | Nominated work | Character | Result |
| 1935 | Best Actress | Of Human Bondage (Write-in) | Mildred Rogers | Nominated |
| 1936 | Best Actress | Dangerous | Joyce Heath | Won |
| 1939 | Best Actress | Jezebel | Julie Marsden | Won |
| 1940 | Best Actress | Dark Victory | Judith Traherne | Nominated |
| 1941 | Best Actress | The Letter | Leslie Crosbie | Nominated |
| 1942 | Best Actress | The Little Foxes | Regina Giddens | Nominated |
| 1943 | Best Actress | Now, Voyager | Charlotte Vale | Nominated |
| 1945 | Best Actress | Mr. Skeffington | Frances Beatrice "Fanny" Trellis Skeffington | Nominated |
| 1951 | Best Actress | All About Eve | Margo Channing | Nominated |
| 1953 | Best Actress | The Star | Margaret "Maggie" Elliot | Nominated |
| 1963 | Best Actress | What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? | Baby Jane Hudson | Nominated |

### British Academy Film Awards

| Year | Category | Nominated work | Character | Result | Ref. |
| 1964 | Best Foreign Actress | What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? | Baby Jane Hudson | Nominated |

### Golden Globe Awards

| Year | Category | Nominated work | Character | Result |
| 1951 | Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama | All About Eve | Margo Channing | Nominated |
| 1962 | Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Comedy or Musical | Pocketful of Miracles | Apple Annie | Nominated |
| 1963 | Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama | What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? | Baby Jane Hudson | Nominated |
| 1974 | Cecil B. DeMille Award | — | — | Recipient |

### Primetime Emmy Awards

| Year | Category | Nominated work | Character | Result |
| 1974 | Special Classification of Outstanding Program and Individual Achievement | ABC's Wide World of Entertainment: Warner Bros. Movies — A 50-Year Salute | Hostess | Nominated |
| 1979 | Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series or Movie | Strangers: The Story of a Mother and Daughter | Lucy Mason | Won |
| 1980 | Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series or Movie | White Mama | Adele Malone | Nominated |
| 1983 | Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or a Special | Little Gloria...Happy at Last | Alice Gwynne Vanderbilt | Nominated |

## Industry awards

| Year | Awards ceremony | Category | Nominated work | Character | Result | Ref. |
| 1937 | Venice Film Festival | Volpi Cup for Best Actress | Kid Galahad | Louise "Fluff" Phillips | Won | |
| 1937 | Venice Film Festival | Volpi Cup for Best Actress | Marked Woman | Mary Strauber | Won | |
| 1939 | New York Film Critics Circle | Best Actress | Dark Victory | Judith Traherne | Runner-Up | |
| 1939 | National Board of Review | Best Acting | Dark Victory | Judith Traherne | Won | both |
| 1939 | National Board of Review | Best Acting | The Old Maid | Charlotte Lovell | Won | both |
| 1941 | National Board of Review | Best Acting | The Little Foxes | Regina Giddens | Won | |
| 1950 | New York Film Critics Circle | Best Actress | All About Eve | Margo Channing | Won | |
| 1951 | Cannes Film Festival | Best Actress | All About Eve | Margo Channing | Won | |
| 1952 | Nastro d'Argento | Silver Ribbon for Best Foreign Actress | All About Eve | Margo Channing | Won | |
| 1963 | Laurel Awards | Top Female Dramatic Performance | What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? | Baby Jane Hudson | 3rd Place | [16] [17] |
| 1965 | Laurel Awards | Top Female Dramatic Performance | Hush…Hush, Sweet Charlotte | Charlotte Hollis | Won | |
| 1977 | Saturn Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Burnt Offerings | Aunt Elizabeth Rolf | Won | |
| 1983 | Monte-Carlo Television Festival | Golden Nymph - Actress | A Piano for Mrs. Cimino | Mrs. Esther Cimino | Won | |
| 1984 | CableACE Awards | Actress in a Dramatic or Theatrical Program | Right of Way | Mini Dwyer | Nominated | |
| 1987 | CableACE Awards | Actress in a Dramatic or Theatrical Program | As Summers Die | Hannah Loftin | Nominated | |

## Other accolades
### Honorary

| Year | Award | Category |
| 1950 | Grauman's Chinese Theatre | Handprint and Footprint Ceremony |
| 1960 | Hollywood Walk of Fame | Motion pictures (Location: 6225 Hollywood Blvd.) |
| 1960 | Hollywood Walk of Fame | Television (Location: 6233 Hollywood Blvd.) |
| 1969 | San Francisco International Film Festival | The Craft of Cinema Award |
| 1973 | Sarah Siddons Awards | Special 20th Anniversary Award for All About Eve |
| 1977 | American Film Institute | AFI Life Achievement Award |
| 1982 | Film Advisory Board | Award of Excellence |
| 1982 | Rudolph Valentino Award | Actress of the Year |
| 1982 | National Film Society Artistry in Cinema Awards | Golden Reel Award for her contribution to cinema. |
| 1982 | American Theater Arts | Life Achievement Award |
| 1983 | Charles Chaplin Award | Awarded by UCLA Film and Television Archive |
| 1983 | Women in Film Crystal + Lucy Awards | Crystal Award |
| 1983 | Boston Theater District | Life Achievement Award |
| 1983 | Golden Apple Awards | Louella Parsons Life Achievement Award |
| 1986 | César Awards | Honorary César |
| 1986 | Ordre des Arts et des Lettres | Appointed commander of this order. It was awarded by the French Government for her contribution to film. |
| 1987 | British Film Institute Fellowship | In recognition of her outstanding contribution to film culture. |
| 1987 | Legion of Honour | Awarded at the Deauville American Film Festival for her contribution to film. |
| 1987 | Kennedy Center Honors | Honoree |
| 1988 | Campione d'Italia | Merit of Achievement Award |
| 1989 | American Cinema Awards | Life Achievement Award |
| 1989 | Film Society of Lincoln Center | Gala Tribute |
| 1989 | San Sebastián International Film Festival | Donostia Award |

### Miscellaneous

| Year | Award | Category | Notes |
| 1932 | N/A | Stars of Tomorrow | A group of theater exhibitors named Joan Blondell, Bette Davis, and Ginger Rogers "Stars of Tomorrow". The ceremony was held at the Ambassador Hotel in Hollywood, and broadcast live on radio. This was Bette's first acting award. |
| 1939 | Photoplay Awards | Best Performances (July) | Tied with Paul Muni |
| 1941 | Golden Apple Awards | Most Cooperative Actress | |
| 1945 | Photoplay Awards | Favorite Female Star | Gold Medal Nominee |
| 1946 | Meritorious Civilian Service Award | United States Department of War presented this accolade to Davis on behalf of her efforts in coordinating the foundation of the Hollywood Canteen. | The first thespian to receive such an award. |
| 1950 | Photoplay Awards | Best Performances (December) | Tied with Anne Baxter |
| 1951 | Photoplay Awards | Most Popular Female Star | Nominee for All About Eve |
| 1963 | Photoplay Awards | Most Popular Female Star | Nominee for What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? |
| 1963 | Golden Apple Awards | Most Cooperative Actress | |
| 1965 | Laurel Awards | Golden Laurel - Female Star | 11th Place |
| 1966 | Photoplay Awards | Most Popular Female Star | Gold Medal Nominee |
| 1972 | Photoplay Awards | Favorite Female Star | |
| 1975 | Photoplay Awards | Favorite Female Star | |
| 1976 | Photoplay Awards | Favorite Female Star | |
| 1978 | Photoplay Awards | Hall of Fame: Actress | |
| 1980 | Outstanding Mother of the Year Award | Awarded by Woman's Day magazine | |
| 1983 | Distinguished Civilian Service Medal | Awarded by the Defense Department of USA (the highest civilian award given by the United States Department of Defense) for founding the Hollywood Canteen (which operated at 1451 Cahuenga Boulevard in Hollywood, California, between October 3, 1942, and November 22, 1945). | The award ceremony took place on June 11, 1983. |