Bette and Joan

If equally matched adversaries are bound to create sparks and flames of conflict, then Bette Davis and the late Joan Crawford should offer a good battle. But for three quarters of the book, a series of very brief chapters (each a pastiche of racy quotes from such authorities as Photoplay and gossip columnist Louella Parsons), the two barely make contact. Considine ( Barbra Streisand ) attempts to build a sense of impending, fated enmity between them, but when the screenstars finally meet, it's anticlimactic. The book follows them from birth on divergent paths to glory--Crawford's via the proverbial casting couch, Davis's through hard-nosed talent. Unmistakably alike, they marry many times, receive the backlash of vindictive children and end up as ``reclusive alcoholics.'' Because of the book's reliance on hearsay, gossip overwhelms ``truth''; we understand neither Crawford's desperation to be loved nor Davis's to be despised. This is a dull ``Peeping Tom'' book, lacking in essential sympathy and knowledge. Photos not seen by PW. (Nov.)