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October Movie of the Month: The Easiest Way (1931)
This month is an eighth-billed, mustache-less Clark Gable as a noble laundryman in The Easiest Way. In this scandalous pre-code, Laura Murdock (Constance Bennett) is a young woman anxious to escape her impoverished family. She quickly realizes that the easiest way to do that is by being “kept” by rich men. She begins an affair with afluent businessman William (Adolphe Menjou), who keeps her in furs and expensive jewels. Although this brings her the riches and lifestyle she has always dreamed of, it alienates her from the man she really loves (Robert Montgomery) and her family. Especially her sister, Peg (Anita Page), who married hard-working blue collar Nick (Clark Gable), who…
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At Separate Tables…
About a year before Cupid struck, Clark and Carole were having a grand time one night at the Trocadero Club—just at different tables. Carole seemed to only have eyes for her date, screenwriter Robert Riskin (he penned It Happened One Night). Meanwhile Clark and Ria were double-dating with Constance Bennett and her beau, Gilbert Roland. One wonders if they stopped by each other’s tables to say hello! While Clark left Ria very soon after this picture was taken, Connie and Gilbert were married in 1941, after being called out for “acting married while being unmarried” in the infamous article that called out Clark and Carole for the same offense: “Hollywood’s Unmarried Husbands and…
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Scandalously Unmarried!
If you’ve read any biography of Clark or Carole, you’ll come across a mention of a certain Photoplay Magazine article titled “Hollywood’s Unmarried Husbands and Wives”. This seemingly innocent article caused quite an earthquake among the studios. It lists Hollywood couples who conduct themselves as if they are married—but they aren’t! The article scolds: And that, it seems, would point a lesson to the unique coterie of Hollywood’s unwed couples—Bob Taylor and Barbara Stanwyck, who could get married if they really wanted to; George Raft and Virginia Pine, Carole Lombard and Clark Gable and the other steady company couples who might swing it if they tried a little harder. You…