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70 Years Ago Today, Clark Gable Joins the Army
Within weeks of Carole Lombard’s untimely death in January 1942, rumors swirled that Clark Gable was going to give up Hollywood for good and take off for the Armed Forces like so many other stars had. Carole had wanted her “Pappy” to join while she was alive; in fact her last telegram to him urged him to “join this man’s [Roosevelt’s] army!” Not surprisingly, MGM was desperate to hold on to him, after having lost so many male stars to the service already and tried to dissuade him. Clark made no public statements one way or the other, so the public was left to speculate what was next for their…
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Gossip Friday: Gable’s Beauty Salon
From February 1932: Gable’s Beauty Salon across from the Paramount Studio has doubled its business since the sudden popularity of Clark Gable. Somehow the impression has circulated throughout the neighborhood that the shop is operated or financed by “What-A-Man” Gable and that he may drop in any minute. There is a large framed picture of Clark, placed in the shop by the shrewd owner of the establishment, who incidentally has never seen the Great Moment.
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{New Article} 1931: Why Women Go Crazy About Clark Gable
This article was published in Photoplay magazine the month after this one I posted this weekend. The second feature article on Clark Gable, this one is a bit dull as it is just speculation on why women suddenly are nuts about him. Clark Gable is the male sensation of the screen today because in every role he has played the part of a man who fears neither Jack Dempsey nor Peggy Joyce. He is a caveman with a club in one hand and a book of poetry in the other. Here is no tender lover, strumming sweet love songs; no smitten cavalier throwing his mantle over a puddle to save the…
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August Movie of the Month: Command Decision (1948)
I am going to be perfectly blunt. Here’s the thing about this movie: I don’t like it. I don’t like it and I wish that I did like it. But having just viewed it for probably the sixth or seventh time, it’s confirmed–not my cup of tea. Gable is K.C. Dennis, an American General in England during World War II. His duty is to plan bombing missions over Germany, at the loss of hundreds of men. Despite objections from fellow soldiers and Congressmen, he continues his mission because he believes it is key to the U.S. victory over Germany. Clark is supported by a great male cast, including Walter Pidgeon,…
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{New Article} 1931: What a Man–Clark Gable
As I mentioned earlier this week, this article is the first one on Clark Gable to appear in Photoplay magazine. Clark’s ascend to fame wasn’t very gradual–one month he was completely off the radar and the next the fan magazines were frantically scrambling to find out his backstory so they could put together an article. Well, every time a group of Hollywood’s prettiest get together these days, they say it’s a Gable Club. They’re all gabbling about Gable. It seems the lad has captured the fancy, not alone the screen fannettes, but also of the loveliest of the screen stars themselves. It is a remarkable thing, but typical of Hollywood,…
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Gossip Friday: Spotting the Widower
Some gossip about Clark from the August after Carole Lombard’s death… From August 1942: Our most pleasant experience in many weeks: spotting Clark Gable dining out for the first time since his loss, accompanied by friends at the Vine Street Brown Derby. Later we saw him shaking hands with young soldiers who clustered around him. Gable looks more fit than he has in a long time, lean and tanned from riding to and from work on his motorcycle. Remember that old Ford that Carole Lombard dolled with fancy paint and gave to Clark Gable for a Valentine years ago? It was so much a part of their happy love story…
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In 1931, Clark Gable was “On the Up and Up”
This week I have been digging through Photoplay magazines from 1931–the earliest year of fan magazines my Gable-hunting self would dig through, because before 1931 Clark Gable didn’t exist in Hollywood. He was a nobody and not worth mentioning. In fact, that is the case for most of 1931. He is not even mentioned at all in film reviews for films like Night Nurse and The Easiest Way. It is not until A Free Soul comes along in the summer that his name starts popping up. In September, the Questions & Answer section of Photoplay, where readers write in and ask random questions about their favorite stars, noted this: Hundreds…
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Gossip Friday: Carole Lombard vs. a Bee
From November 1940: Carole Lombard reported on the “Mr. and Mrs. Smith” set with a huge bump on the nose and a lump on the ear, result of a Mr. and Mrs. fishing trip (Gable’s the Mr.) with two bees practically eating her up. Gable sends her a pound of honey a day, as a gag.
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{New Article} 1940: I Was Afraid of Rhett Butler
It’s no secret that Clark didn’t want the role of Rhett Butler in Gone with the Wind. Nowadays, if people do know his name, it is for that role alone–unless they are TCM fans. This article is one of many that appeared around the time GWTW was released, in which Clark tells why he didn’t want the role–too much pressure–and tries to dispel the rumor that Margaret Mitchell wrote the character of Rhett specifically with him in mind. This one’s short, so here it is in its entirety: I Was Afraid of Rhett Butler By Clark Gable Liberty magazine, February 1940 Rhett Butler really put me on a spot, a…
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Gossip Friday: Clark Pranks Spencer
From January 1941: You won’t find two greater pranksters in all of Hollywood than Clark Gable and Spencer Tracy. So when Spencer returned to town from a trip to New York and found an invitation to dine with the Gables, he knew there was something up. Accompanied by Mrs. Tracy, he arrived at the Gable ranch, fully expecting some gag. All during dinner, he was on pins and needles waiting for the joke to pop. Up until the moment he and Mrs. Tracy were at the door ready to leave, he looked furtively about, expecting something to happen. But all had gone divinely well. Finally,Spencer mopped his brow nervously and…