Gossip
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Gossip Friday: Swimsuit Shopping
From 1948: That “feud” continues between those good friends, Spencer Tracy and Clark Gable. If plans work out, both are supposed to be in Europe at the same time. Spence hopes to “frame” Clark with a gag cable from Esther Williams. It will request him to personally select for her a dozen of those daring diaper French bathing suits! If Clark falls for it, wouldn’t you love to be in on that shopping tour?
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Gossip Friday: Introducing Clarcarol
From January 1938: Hollywood’s cut-ups and the most mysterious people, when they want to be, are putting up a swell “whodunnit” all of their own. Naturally, I’m speaking of Clark Gable and Carole Lombard. One day, a horse named “Clarcarol” appeared from nowhere on the listings. It only took about half a guess to find out who owned this animal. As yet, the proud hope of Lombard-Gable Inc., hasn’t had a real tryout, but if it has half the spirit of its co-owners, who somehow can’t talk about “Clarcarol,” the little beastie is sure to go places. Of course, Clark is no newcomer to the game, for he had “Beverly…
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Gossip Friday: Congrats to the Bride
From 1949: Iris Bynum may have been publicized as the only starlet never to have made a picture, her fame grew from the fact that she had the most glamorous dates in the film colony. [Fans] recall seeing her pictured at premieres and parties with Orson Welles, Van Johnson and her steadiest beau—Clark Gable. But she bade them all goodbye, just when everyone thought that the Bynum-Gable combination was as serious as the Jimmy Stewart-Gloria McLean deal, to marry an Air Force colonel on comparatively scant notice. None of Iris’ famous beaux showed up [for the wedding], although Clark Gable sent a beautifully worded wire to congratulate the bride, saying…
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Gossip Friday: Unexplained Charm
From 1949: One more name has been added to the long list of leading ladies who think Clark Gable is the absolute tops. She’s Alexis Smith, who works with the king in “Any Number Can Play.” Their first scene together, sans any previous acquaintance and avec only a hasty introduction, involved Mr. G. and Miss S. in six minutes of smooching. But that wasn’t what evoked all the admiration from Alexis—none of the gals, in fact, seem to be able to explain clearly why they find him so charming.
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Gossip Friday: Old Friends
From 1949: There was quite a stir among the guests at the party for the Ernie Byfields in the Beverly Hills Hotels’ Rodeo Room when Joan Crawford and Clark Gable walked in together. They’ve been friends for years but this was their first of a series of dates.
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Gossip Friday: Favorite Snack
From February 1940: For a midnight snack Clark Gable likes nothing better than to open up a can of tomatoes, put salt and pepper on them, and swallow them down. ___ A simple snacker…another favorite: sliced onion all by itself. Or just eating an onion like an apple!
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Gossip Friday: Rhett Butler–A Menace to a Career?
From April 1940: I asked Clark Gable if he felt it dangerous to work so long in a single film such as “Gone with the Wind.” Fans forget easily. Will the role of Rhett Butler, no matter how colorful, be strong enough to hold Clark at the top, to overcome the long months of getting him on celluloid? Gable writes thus: “Rather than being too dangerous to work too long in one picture, I can say from experience that it is of definite value to an actor and makes for a superior film. There is no substitute for adequate and careful preparation. ‘Gone with the Wind’ proves this. From an…
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Gossip Friday: Star Studded Premiere
From 1948: I am sure that no imperial gala ever ordered by the Emperor Franz Josef himself ever surpassed the splendor of the party in the Crystal Room of the Beverly Hills Hotel, following the premiere of “The Emperor Waltz.” The first showing of the film, which was a formal, international affair, drew a record throng of celebrities to the Hollywood Paramount Theatre where they ran the gauntlet of cheers and shouts from thousands of admiring fans… The “cinema-soxers” roared their delight when Clark Gable and Bing Crosby swapped jokes right in the middle of Hollywood Boulevard where their cars were held up by the traffic jam. Incidentally Clark garnered…
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Gossip Friday: The Great Mouse Detective
From 1946: It happened at a beach resort up the coast, where Clark Gable was spending his holiday. In the middle of the night he beard a strange noise in his room. It stopped, then grew even louder. Clark finally called down to the desk and asked them to send up the house detective. They did. And what they found was a mouse caught in a trap that had been hidden under what-a-man Gable;s bed!
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Gossip Friday: Beginner’s Luck
From 1947: While Clark Gable, Cesar Romero, Diana Lewis and the Walter Langs stood speechless, Brian Donlevy brought a 27-pound halibut to gaff aboard a chartered boat. Because Brian insisted he had never fished on the ocean before, Clark took pity on him and arranged the outing. Beginner’s luck, Brian declared. Clark, whose catch weighed only 13 pounds, wasn’t so sure. Amongst all the fisherman, Brian’s catch was pronounced the record of the day. Clark still believes he fell for a “fish” story.