The Scoop on “Gable:The Ties that Bind”

As previously mentioned on this blog, Michelle Morgan, the author of the book Marilyn Monroe: Private and Undisclosed , is heading up a new Gable documentary, “Gable: The Ties that Bind”, that features FIVE HOURS of previously unreleased footage! There will also be a companion book penned by Michelle herself. I asked Michelle the questions everybody wants to know: 

How did you get involved with the project?

At the end of summer 2010 I was hanging out my washing one afternoon when an email came through from Tegan Summer, to say that he had acquired some personal home movie footage of Carole Lombard and Clark Gable.  I was absolutely intrigued and suggested that we could come together to make a documentary out of it.  Literally within five days Tegan had put a team in place and wrote to ask me if I’d be interested in working with them all.  I was absolutely over-the-moon!

Where was this rare footage found?

The footage was in the hands of a family friend.  That’s all I can say at this time!

What is in some of the most interesting footage?

For me the most interesting is every single thing.  It’s all just so amazing I couldn’t pinpoint any one thing, although there is some lovely footage of Gable on a boat that I love, and of course stuff with Carole.

What footage of Carole Lombard is there?

There is some footage that we have seen before of the couple on a hunting trip, but there’s other clips too that perhaps aren’t familiar.  For instance we see her on a boat at one point, and there is also some nice news footage of her during the Gone With The Wind premiere trip.

Does any of the footage have sound?

Most of the footage doesn’t have sound unfortunately, but some of the Gone With The Wind footage is with sound, and is really interesting.

Is there footage of Clark with any other celebrities?

Yes there are other celebrities such as Burl Ives and Spencer Tracy.  Then there is a clip of Marilyn Monroe at the christening of Gable’s son, after Gable had passed away.

What will the book entail? Will it be a full biography?

At this point we are still deciding the details.  I would love to see a big, photographic book with lots of memorabilia and photos of Gable-owned items.  However, a publisher may think that there is more of a market for a full biography so we will have to wait and see.  For now I will continue the research and make sure that I have enough to do whatever format book is eventually asked for.

How will the documentary be released? On DVD?

We are hoping for television and DVD.

What is the estimated release date of the book and documentary?

We are hoping to have the documentary released by early 2012 but in all honesty we don’t feel any rush, as we’d it be a quality documentary than a quick one.  Watch this space!

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I will be in constant contact with Michelle about the project and will let everyone know of any developments!

Follow Michelle on her blog and also check out her YouTube page for an exclusive clip of Clark and Sylvia Ashley on their honeymoon!

Well, this blog post wraps up 28 days of new stuff on the site!

By the numbers:

 7 new articles

5 new documents

3 new radio shows

5 new info pages

4 new blog posts

796 new pictures in the gallery

And, to be honest, I probably could do new stuff every day in March too…much more to come!