Articles
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{New Article} 1956: The Great Gable
This 1956 article, written by Joe Hyams, was serialized over several weeks in newspapers around the country. It rehashes a lot of the same stuff any Gable fan has heard over and over, but there are some good nuggets, as it seems Joe did actually interview Clark, so it isn’t just a puff piece. During the years he was at MGM Gable was considered inaccessible. The studio built a wall around him. Would-be interviewers were told, “He’s impossible” or “Even if he does talk to you it will be about hunting and fishing and you can’t print that.” For this series Gable agreed to open up. He said, “It’s time…
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{New Article} 1942: Heart of a He-Man
This article, from October 1942, deals with the recently widowed Clark Gable returning to the set of Somewhere I’ll Find You. The film halted production for several weeks after the untimely death of Clark’s wife, Carole Lombard. The picture began again after weeks of many misgivings and many hopes, and the director called the crew together. “Boys, Gable will be back this afternoon—he’s coming in to get the feel again—just sit around—and let’s not say anything—I mean—oh, hell—you know what I mean!” His eyes were misty as he talked quietly and stumbled around for more words, because he didn’t want the boys to misunderstand. Neither did he want Mr. Gable…
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{New Article} 1946: Are You The Girl For Clark Gable?
This article is run-of-the-mill for the period. After Carole Lombard died and Clark was home from the war, every article was about who would be the next Mrs. Gable and what kind of women he likes. Hey but this one included a quiz! (and yes, it’s quite sexist) Take this test to see if you’re the girl for Gable. Are you mature in your manner? Do you have a quick mind? Do you possess a quality or knowledge which would make you interesting to Clark? Are you honest, frank, direct? Do you have a sense of humor? Are you good at gay small talk? Can you intelligently discuss engines, hunting,…
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{New Article} 1931: Tongue in His Cheek
So. The world shut down for months and of course, I, like everyone else, thought of all the time I would finally have to do things. I will finally type the stack of twenty-five articles on my desk! They will finally be done! Well, here we are three months later and they have not been touched. BUT I painted the hall closet and organized the pantry. More important than typing articles? Probably not but now the Honey Nut Cheerios have their own airtight container. Honey Nut Cheerios aside, here is a 1931 Clark Gable article that is run-of-the-mill for that period, but hey, I typed it! Ramon Navarro says: “I…
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Happy Birthday, Clark Gable
William Clark Gable was born 119 years ago today, February 1, 1901. He was born at 5:30am to Adeline “Addie” Hershelman Gable and William Gable in their second floor apartment in Cadiz, Ohio. To celebrate this year, I’m doing fan requests on our Instagram and Facebook pages, followed by a complete bio on Clark that will come out in increments over several days. Here on the website, there are four new articles: First off, we have a bit of a dud from Clark’s early career, What the Future Holds for Clark Gable, written in 1932 by Modern Screen magazine’s in-house astrologer. This article is completely showing its age. Can you…
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{New Article} 1952: The Inside Story Behind Clark Gable’s Feuds
This article, published while Clark Gable was in the midst of divorcing his fourth wife, Sylvia Ashley, promises some kind of inside information about juicy feuds involving the King of Hollywood. Not really though. These “feuds” are just between him and his soon-to-be-ex-wife, no big surprise there, and MGM, his home studio of 30+ years. Oh and he also doesn’t like Greer Garson. Not really juicy. The amount of the financial settlement Sylvia Gable is to receive, however, was not decided upon. Certainly, it will be much less than $500,000. The chances are she will settle for $50,000 and legal expenses amounting perhaps to $25,000 more. When Clark was asked…
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{New Article} 1952: Gable’s Divorce Problem
Well, in a quick turnaround from the article I posted a few days ago, What’s Wrong with the Clark Gables?, it turns out a lot was wrong with the Clark Gables because here they are less than a year later, battling it out in divorce court. On October 4th, Clark Gable filed a divorce complaint against Sylvia Gable in Nevada, charging that, “the defendant has treated the plaintiff with extreme cruelty and has caused him great grievous mental suffering and pain without cause or provocation, and plaintiff’s health was and is thereby and therefrom impaired.” When Lady Sylvia was served with a copy of the complaint she was enraged.…
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{New Article} 1951: What’s Wrong with the Clark Gables?
This 1951 article is all about how there is indeed nothing wrong with Clark Gable and Sylvia Ashley’s marriage. Okay, sure. Clark and Sylvia had been married just a little over a year and were at this point spending more and more time apart. That Clark is trying to make this marriage his last is very obvious. I nearly fainted when I saw him all dressed up with Sylvia the first night of the Sadler’s Wells Ballet. Clark doesn’t know one end of a ballet shoe from the other. He went to please Sylvia, of course. And the fashion shows! It’s fascinating to see Clark at Sylvia’s side, hob-nobbing with…
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{New Article} 1940: Mrs. Goldilocks and The Bears
Here is one of these articles that I had in a pile for years and I swore I had already typed and posted it, but turns out I didn’t. So here it is. It’s about Clark Gable and Carole Lombard and their friends in Encino–Andy Devine, Phil Harris and Lum and Abner. It all started months ago when Andy Devine, Lum and Abner, Clark and Carole, and Phil Harris kind of struck up a close friendship over hunting and fishing. Sunday mornings, or whenever they had a free dawn, they’d get up at the crack of it, and rig up duck blinds in a marsh some forty miles from town.…
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{New Article} World’s No.1 Honeymooners: The Clark Gables!
This article, by Ed Sullivan, appeared in newspapers on October 15,1939. So, here it is exactly 80 years later! It promises that “Sullivan takes you into the Hollywood home of the newlyweds to tell you for the first time the true story of their elopement,” but don’t get too excited because there is no interview with Clark Gable or Carole Lombard here, nor are there really any earth-shattering revelations. On the road maps it is route 101, the Los Angeles natives refer to it more familiarly as Ventura boulevard, the ribbon of concrete which meanders north to San Francisco thru the hot and fertile valleys and foothills of California. I…
