High powered, well educated intellectual lesbian in an artistic field with a vice grip on her fiery passion who is overly self-controlled and occasionally controlling who nurses a secretly longing to be naughty. Yeah, Bette was so obviously based at least in part of Foster. It was amazing how immediately she came to everyone's mind.
Porter/Kennard, Foster/Bernard. Yeah I always thought so. Plus the addition of Marlee Matlin (good friend of Beals) as deaf girlfriend Jodie always seemed like a hint. Foster wears a hearing aid and I recall Matlin saying in an interview that it was her idea to name the character Jodie.