Gossip
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Gossip Friday: No Escape
From October 1934: The other afternoon, Clark Gable motored out to Los Angeles’ Grand Central Airport to see some friends off for New York. Gaining admission to the terminal was easy, but when Clark turned to depart, that was something else again. He was all dolled up in a costly new white flannel suit consisting of double-breasted coat and English slacks. Before he reached his motor, however, women autograph hounds had most of his trousers!
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Gossip Friday: Royal House Divided
From January 1936: The month’s laurels for tact go to the head waiter at the Trocadero, Hollywood’s super supper spot. Douglas Fairbanks sat with an after-theater party including Clark Gable, Richard Barthelmess, Kay Francis and other friends. In came Mary Pickford with another party, including the Johnny Mack Browns and the Charlie Farrells. The head waiter never batted an eye. With perfect calm and poise, he escorted Mary and her entourage to a booth at the other end of the room. And there sat the Royal House–divided, as far as the house would allow–until Doug broke the ice and went over for a friendly chat with Queen Mary. ____ What’s…
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Gossip Friday: No Place for Kids
From December 1949: Clark Gable got the raspberry from kids gathered around Ciro’s when he refused autographs. He’ll tell you so himself. Clark has the courage to say, and stand on it, that thirteen and fourteen year-old kids have no place around a night spot at one or two o’clock in the morning.
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Gossip Friday: No Photos Please
From September 1949: Hyman Fink, longtime Photoplay magazine photographer: “Many a sleepless night I’ve spent scheming up ways to grab a Clark Gable exclusive. Clark has a neat way of stalling. Whenever a cameraman wants a picture of him, he takes away their camera and starts shooting them. Once, on the set of one of his films, he had me posing all over the place. I’ve a sneaking suspicion that Gable has more pictures of Fink than Fink has of Gable. Clark also had a ban about pictures being taken of his home. But I managed to fool him with a telescopic lens. I climbed the hill behind his house…
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Gossip Friday: Mr. and Mrs. Gable in Nashville
From January 1941: Nashville, TN: Gable, Lombard Smilingly Give Autographs in Stopover Here Clark Gable and Carole Lombard smilingly gave autographs and had a cheery greeting for nearly a hundred persons who had gathered to see the movie stars in their brief stopover at Berry Airport last night. The two were en route to Hollywood via American Airlines from Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore where Gable underwent an operation for an abscessed tooth and where Mrs. Gable had taken a room to be near him. They were accompanied by Howard Strickling, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer representative, who said Gable’s next starring vehicle will be “Soapy Smith,” a roistering romance of the Colorado mineral…
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Gossip Friday: Happy New Year
From January 1, 1957: Hollywood Throws $125,000 Party The film colony’s upper crust welcomed the new year with a $125,000 party in Texas style at Mike Romanoff’s restaurant. Texas oilman David (Tex) Feldman picked up the tab and was so exclusive about his guest list that he refused to let Clark Gable and Gable’s wife, the former Kay Spreckels, bring along two friends… A seven course dinner along with seven kinds of wine was served. The entertainment bill, which featured singer Edith Piaf, cost Feldman $7,500. The costume motif was styled in the gay 90s fashion after the musical “My Fair Lady.” The main party room was turned into a…
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Gossip Friday: To Carole from Clark
From November 1936: The Clark Gable-Carole Lombard gift swapping reached a new glittering high the other day. It was from him to her–a gorgeous chromium bag, with Carole’s monogram in rubies like a neon sign!
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Gossip Friday: Closed for the Holidays
From January 1946: Clark Gable will spend the holidays in New York or Florida. The ranch again will be closed. When Carole Lombard was alive the ranch was a festive place at Christmas. The other night the Gable ranch saw its first party in several years with Clark entertaining about twelve of us at a charming buffet supper. Among the guests were Victor Fleming who directed “Adventure,” which brings Clark back to the screen, Diana and Bill Powell and Mrs. Jay (Dolly) O’Brien. We had barbecued lamb that was delicious. I asked Dolly O’Brien–it’s with her and her large family that Clark will spend the holidays–if she and Clark would…
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Gossip Friday: Below Freezing
From March 1947: Clark Gable and Lana Turner are another pair of movie lovers who are not presently what you might call friendly. During “Homecoming,” the atmosphere on the set was below freezing they tell me. And that’s really strange because Lana and Clark are the two sexiest characters in the film business. I mean, if anyone can out-sexy Clark, it’s Lana–and vice versa. I’m told they had an outside date once and something went wrong. However, they’re both too smart to let it show in their movies.
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Gossip Friday: Lunch with Buster
From December 1931: Buster Keaton got generous one day and invited the entire cast of “Possessed” to be his guests for luncheon. Joan Crawford and Clark Gable were the honored guests. Then he served them corned beef with cabbage and onions. And that afternoon Joan and Clark had to do a big love scene. Oh, Buster!
