From August 1936: People who are wealthy always have relatives or friends who are willing to share the burden of riches. In the case of married masculine stars, trouble ensues when they separate from their wives. Rudy Vallee discovered this fact when his ex-mate, Fay Webb, attempted to set aside a property agreement. The case was recently settled by the payment to Fay of a fat sum. Clark Gable has asked the Los Angeles coyrts to interpret a settlement recently agreed to by himself and his estranged wife. Gable claims that he understands that his wife intends to enter an action to set aside the agreement, and demand a much…

From February 1936: Clark Gable returned to town from another “duck hunt”—and there is a reason  for those quotes—and is dashing hither and yon in a very handsome new car. Mrs. Rhea Gable gave a very handsome dinner party on a recent evening, and one of the guests was a Mary Taylor. One of Clark’s late rumored romances was with some one of the same name, and that ought to stymie that. ____ Yeah, probably not.

From February 1936: At a party we saw Mrs. Clark Gable chatting with the ex-wife of a famous star. “My husband didn’t play fair about alimony,” said the ex-wife. “I gave him the most dignified divorce Hollywood ever saw. I chaperoned him and his girl friend for months to avoid scandal. Now she has him when he’s on top. I worked for him during the building years.” Mrs. Gable nodded quietly. “I know a little about building myself.”

From December 1931: Can Clark Gable stay married? Clark recently said: “Neither my wife nor I ever expect to be married again. She is my ideal woman. I hope I never fail as her ideal man.” And Hollywood, remembering that Clark has been married before and that he is younger than his wife, sighs: “Ah…” If Clark Gable and Rita [sic] Langham can stay married, it will be a great thing brought to pass between a man, a wife and that most exacting mistress of all, Fame. The only other two men upon whom she has bestowed her hysterical favors so lavishly have been Rudolph Valentino and John Gilbert. And…

From March 1936: All things considered, Clark Gable will probably have the most terrifc year of anybody in Hollywood. Imagine Clark on the semibachelor list! The first announcement of the formal separation of himself from Ria Gable was immediately followed by an onslaught of rumors concerning fair ladies and Clark. He was variously reported engaged or about to be engaged to Elizabeth Allan, Mary Taylor and Loretta Young. It can be wagered that they’ll be no peace or contentment in and about the colony until Clark is married again. The suspense will be pretty terrible, because even after a divorce is filed, it takes a year for the final decree…

From December 1936: YOU know, of course, that Clark Gable and his wife are merely separated—and that, until now at least, there’s been no move toward divorce. They’ve been living under a verbal agreement whereby they have arranged to live “peaceably apart.”  BUT—just the other day, Clark started legal proceedings in open court, asking the California Superior bench to “define, compute and compound” the agreement between himself and his wife—so that there may be no misunderstanding when and if a divorce move is started by either. Wonder if that’s the curtain raiser?

From April 1932: When a crowd at the last opening caught sight of Clark Gable descending from a car, they raised a shout not unlike that which greeted the Trojans after their triumphant return after defeating Notre Dame. Clark, good naturedly, took a bow while his companion waited in the shadow. “We want Mrs. Gable too!” the crowd shouted. It was then that Clark gave the retort courteous. Taking his wife’s hand, he led her out under the blaze of the arc lights. “Let me introduce you all,” said he, “to Mrs. Gable.”