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 She died of natural causes at
her home in Paris, where she had lived for more
than 60 years, it said, citing her publicist.
De Havilland's acting career included two
Academy Awards, a victory over Hollywood's
studio system and a long-running feud with
sister Joan Fontaine that was worthy of a
screenplay.
She first drew attention by playing opposite
swashbuckling Errol Flynn in a series of films
starting in the 1930s and made an enduring
impression as the demure Southern belle Melanie
in "Gone With the Wind" in 1939.
Later she would have to fight to get more
challenging roles - a battle that ended up in
court but paid off with Oscars for "To Each His
Own" in 1946 and "The Heiress" in 1949.
De Havilland, a naturalized American who was
born to English parents in Japan, had lived in
Paris since 1953. She made few public
appearances after retiring but returned to
Hollywood in 2003 to take part in the 75th
Academy Awards show.
De Havilland's family moved to California when
she and Joan were children. She began her movie
career after director Max Reinhardt saw her in a
California production of "A Midsummer Night's
Dream" and cast her in his 1935 film version of
the play. Warner Bros. was impressed and, as was
the custom at the time, signed the teenager to a
seven-year contract.
Warners loaned her out to make "Gone With the
Wind" in 1939 and de Havilland's gentle but
willful personality helped make the role of
Melanie one of the movie's most intriguing
parts. The role earned her the first of her five
Oscar nominations.
"I felt very drawn to Melanie," de Havilland
later said. "She was a complex personality
compared to the heroines I'd been playing over
and over."
"Gone With the Wind," which also starred Clark
Gable and Vivien Leigh, won eight Academy
Awards, including best picture.
STUDIO BATTLES
The prestige of the Oscar nomination and the
popularity of "Gone With the Wind" did not get
de Havilland the types of roles she wanted. She
often refused the parts Warner Bros. offered,
which resulted in the studio suspending her
several times.
In 1943 de Havilland declared that her
seven-year deal with Warners had expired but the
studio said she still owed them the six months
that she spent on suspension.
De Havilland won in court, weakening the major
studios' dominance over actors by limiting
actors' contracts to seven years, regardless of
suspension time. But challenging a powerful
studio had been a risky career move and she did
not make a movie for three years.
De Havilland made a triumphant return to the
screen in 1946 with the Oscar-winning role of an
unwed mother in "To Each His Own." Three years
later her portrayal of a spinster brought
another Academy Award for "The Heiress."
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 SIBLING RIVALRY
The Oscars provided fodder and a venue for de
Havilland's rivalry with Fontaine, who was one
year younger. Their relationship had been testy
since childhood and the acrimony reached a new
level in 1942 when the sisters were both
Oscar-nominated - de Havilland for "Hold Back
the Dawn" and Fontaine for Alfred Hitchcock's
"Suspicion." Fontaine was the winner.
Four years later when de Havilland won for "To
Each His Own," Fontaine extended a
congratulatory hand at the ceremony but de
Havilland did not acknowledge her - a moment
captured by photographers. De Havilland
reportedly was upset about a catty remark by
Fontaine about her husband, writer Marcus
Goodrich. The sisters stopped
speaking altogether in 1975 after their mother
died. Fontaine said de Havilland had not invited
her to the memorial service but de Havilland
claimed Fontaine had said she was too busy to
attend.
When Fontaine died at age 96 in December 2013,
de Havilland issued a statement saying she was
"shocked and saddened."
In an interview marking her 100th birthday in
2016, de Havilland told the Associated Press she
called Fontaine "Dragon Lady."
"I cannot think of a single instance wherein I
initiated hostile behavior," de Havilland said.
"But I can think of many occasions where my
reaction to deliberately inconsiderate behavior
was defensive."
De Havilland made 50 movies in her career and
nine were with Flynn, including "Captain Blood,"
"The Charge of the Light Brigade," "The
Adventures of Robin Hood" and "They Died With
Their Boots On." She told LA Weekly she had a
crush on Flynn but never acted on it.
Other memorable roles included playing both a
sweet and evil twin in "The Dark Mirror" in 1946
and a mental patient in "The Snake Pit," which
earned her an Oscar nomination, in 1948. Later
she starred in two well-received suspense films,
"Lady in a Cage" and "Hush ... Hush, Sweet
Charlotte" with Bette Davis (both 1964).
De Havilland did not like the way she was
portrayed in the 2017 film television miniseries
"Feud: Bette and Joan" about Davis and Joan
Crawford. She sued the producers, claiming she
was made to look like a gossip and hypocrite,
and the case went to the U.S. Supreme Court,
which let stand a ruling that dismissed De
Havilland's suit.
De Havilland had a son, Benjamin, with Goodrich
and a daughter, Giselle, with her second
husband, journalist Pierre Galante.
(Reporting and writing by Bill Trott; Editing by
Diane Craft and Frances Kerry)
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