Gossip
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Gossip Friday: Out of Shirts
From February 1937: Clark Gable no longer sends his shirts to a laundry. Employees were keeping them as souvenirs.
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Gossip Friday: An Unfortunate Shrine
From October 1947 (Louella Parsons): Say what you will, there’s nobody like Clark Gable. With his charm, it will be a long time before the King is displaced. Younger men have come along to dazzle the gals, but none has yet hit with the force of a Gable. Oh, sure–there have been times when Clark has miffed me, and long periods would go by when we didn’t see one another. But it is impossible to be in his company more than a split second, and not fall under his fascinating spell again. Not long ago, he came to see me and we had a grand time drinking coffee in the…
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Gossip Friday: Popular Birthday Boy
From 1955: Susan Hayward broke right out in front of everyone on the “Soldier of Fortune” set and planted a big birthday kiss on Clark Gable. But not a single newshound found out that Grace Kelly gifted the King with a real live miniature burro for his ranch. While she was in Hollywood long enough to turn down her next picture, Grace called Clark constantly. And sometimes the calls came in when Kay Williams Spreckels was sitting a few feet away with an amused smile on her beautiful face!
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Gossip Friday: Punished
From July 1934: Clark Gable was punished by a Santa Barbara newspaper the other morning. Clark, it appears, was dining in a hotel when a reporter sent over a note urging an interview. The actor made a “Humpfh–a reporter” noise, which was heard by the scribe. Gable also refused the interview, and the reporter got even, by golly. He put Gable on the front page, center, with a teasing tale of remembering the old days when Gable would have been glad to get publicity. Alongside the story was space for one-column photograph of the actor, but no likeness was used. Instead it said: “This space reserved for picture of Clark…
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Gossip Friday: Coming in Third
From December 1940: Mickey Rooney, the cigar smoking toughie of Mickey McGuire two-reelers 15 years ago, has been voted the nation’s foremost box office attraction for the second consecutive year, the Motion Picture Herald reported yesterday. The tousled, 20-year-old Rooney won the Herald theater poll by an overwhelming vote over 200 actors and actresses–the handsomest leading men and the prettiest girls of the motion picture industry. This year he carried young Judy Garland with him from relative obscurity in 1939 to the No. 10 moneymaker. The Garland parade began early in 1940, when she and Rooney were cast in “Babes in Arms.” The film was such a smash hit countrywide…
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Gossip Friday: New Aunt and Uncle
From December 1940: Proudest couple in Hollywood are Clark Gable and Carole Lombard who now answer to Uncle and Aunt. Miss Lombard’s brother and sister-in-law, Mr. and Mrs. Fred Peters, have just become parents of a seven-pound baby boy. Funniest incident at the hospital, where the Gables kept vigil with Peters and another brother of Carole, Stuart Peters, was that when Stuart heard the stork had arrived, he promptly collapsed. Gable had to leave the new father to look out for himself while he carried the overcome uncle to the adjoining room for treatment.
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Gossip Friday: It’s a Wonderful Party
From March 1947 (Louella Parsons): There was something very heartwarming in the dinner given by Frank Capra, George Stevenson, Sam Briskin and William Wyler to launch their hit, “It’s a Wonderful Life,” and bring Jimmy Stewart back to his fans and friends. I say “heartwarming” because the famous hosts had invited all the actors who have EVER appeared in any of their pictures to be present along with the top-notchers of today, and so the whole charming affair at the Ambassador Hotel was a sentimental reunion of old and new stars and old and new friends. At one table, I saw Viola Dana (she was the darling of her day),…
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Gossip Friday: For Clark From Carole
From December 1938: How would you like to know what Carole Lombard gave Clark Gable [for Christmas?], what Claudette Colbert bought for her husband, Barbara Stanwyck’s gift to Bob Taylor, and vice versa? Well, here goes. Claudette today gave her doctor husband a magnificent new desk set and cuff links. Carole added to the handsome Cabonshon ruby we told you about with a new camera and an outboard motor for Clark. ___ Okay, it says it would tell you what Barbara Stanwyck bought Robert Taylor, and then it doesn’t say. Huh.
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Gossip Friday: A Quiet Holiday
From December 1941: The quietest Christmas celebration in its history was observed in a Hollywood accustomed in the past to tossing around presents of diamonds and minks and sables like confetti. There were some valuable presents to be sure–but most of these were United States defense bonds. Few parties were given, with most of the stars and lesser lights celebrating only with their families and intimates. Only the families with children made the usual fuss. On this score the two busiest homes were those of Mr. and Mrs. Bing Crosby and Mr. and Mrs. Don Ameche. They each have four sons. Almost as busy were Margaret Sullavan and her husband,…
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Gossip Friday: Teacher’s Pets
From December 1939: You can bet your bottom dollar that the dramatic students at Christian College, Columbia, Mo., are going to do a lot of hanging around after class to ask questions of their new coach. Because the new coach is Josephine Dillon Gable–first wife of Clark Gable. And Mrs. Gable isn’t going to answer any questions about him in class. But afterwards she’ll be glad to. And she thinks she knows just about what they will ask. “People always ask the same things about Clark,” she told me… “Are his teeth false?” “Yes.” “Are his ears pinned back?” “Yes.” “What does he like best to eat?” “Cheese and crackers…
