-
Gossip Friday: Signed by Carole Gable
From January 1940: After a preview the other evening, a boy asked Carole Lombard for her autograph. The actress obligingly signed “Carole Gable”. The boy looked at it and then said, “Shucks, I can sell your Carole Lombard autograph for two bits to a pal of mine, but this ain’t worth nothing!” New this week: Articles: Will the Gable-Lombard Romance Last? written right before they married and the foreword that Clark wrote for Adolphe Menjou’s autobiography
-
From Glamour Girl to Mud Lover
Clark often gets blamed for changing Carole to his liking. After all, before they got serious, she was a lounge lizard, a party animal, the go-to girl for a good time in Hollywood. After falling for Clark, she started hunting, fishing, skeet shooting, gardening and farming with the best of them. She always said, “Whatever makes my Pappy happy!” I don’t see Clark forcing her to do these things—really, do you think Carole was the type that could be forced to do anything?!–I think she wanted to be the ideal woman for Clark and she really wanted him to be happy. And every once in a while he did put…
-
Gossip Friday: On the set of Mr. and Mrs. Smith
Want some candids and behind the scenes scoop from Carole’s film “Mr. and Mrs. Smith”? Happy to oblige. Both from February 1941: Just for good luck Alfred Hitchcock always appears in one brief scene in his pictures. Just to show that he was a good sport he let Carole Lombard, the star of his picture “Mr. and Mrs. Smith” direct the scene in which he appeared. That was a big mistake, as he discovered later. Miss Lombard, the director, sat in the director’s chair, neatly placed in the shade, and for half an hour or more made Mr. Hitchcock go through his one line. The sun became hotter and hotter on…
-
Movie of the Month: No Man of Her Own
No surprise, since we’re having Carole Lombard month, that this month’s movie is the only Clark and Carole film, No Man of Her Own, from 1932. Thanks to the legendary romance of Clark and Carole that would begin about four years later, this film has now become a fan favorite, whereas maybe if Clark’s co-star hadn’t been Carole it would be dismissed as another soapy melodrama. But actually there is some substance in it, and even overlooking the Clark and Carole legend, it’s a good little pre-code. Clark is Babe Stewart, a womanizing card cheat. As he says to a pining Dorothy Mackaill early on, “You know I’m a hit…
-
Gossip Friday: Fred and Carole
Here’s some Carole scoop from September 1941: Proving there is an attraction between opposites, Fred [MacMurray]’s favorite femme fatale is Carole Lombard. He’d rather play a small part with her than co-star with her contemporaries. When an agent called to offer a radio engagement, Lily [his wife] explained that Fred was down in San Diego on location. She was sure he would like to do it. Perhaps another time. “I understand,” said the agent, “I’m sure we can find someone this time to play opposite Carole Lombard. “ Did he say Lombard? Lily was ure Fred would fly back if there was a chance to work with Carole. They were…
-
“Happy Birthday Dear Ma…”
Today is Carole Lombard’s 102nd birthday! To celebrate, here’s an interesting item printed in January 1941: When bigger and better pranks are played in Hollywood, you can be sure of one thing–Gable and Lombard will play ’em. When Lombard’s birthday rolled around, Gable had made an enormous cake carefully iced on top–“To Ma–on her 75th Birthday”. When Carole cut the cake, imagine her surprise to hear coming from the cake’s innards a conversation between Clark and a friend. “Now Clark, the gag is for you to sing ‘Happy Birthday’ to Carole.” “What? Me sing? Nothing doing,” said Gable’s voice. “Next thing you know the studio will have me in singing films.”…
-
Crazy for Carole
This month marks Carole Lombard’s 102nd birthday and so here at DearMrGable.com we are dedicating the month to her. Clark and Carole pictures are the most popular by far in the gallery—there is just something majestic about those two, even despite the tragedy. So this month, they’ll be Carole gossip items and I’ll do some posts featuring some Carole articles and rare Carole candids. To start, here’s a blurb from December 1940: Carole Lombard hasn’t been to a party in over a year; the Gables not being the party type. But when Lillian MacMurray threw a birthday party for Fred recently, Clark said all right, they’d get dressed up and…
-
Gossip Friday: Mr. Popularity
From November 1940: Whenever Clark Gable makes a picture his portable dressing room becomes a second Grand Central Station. All the publicity boys, the newspaper boys, his stand-in, make-up boy, and as many of the cast and crew as possible gather in his dressing room for bits of food and gossip. Poor Clark has to go out in the back alley to learn his lines. When Carole Lombard arrived at the studio the other day to visit her popular spouse, she found the gang making coffee and passing around cookies in his dressing room. She had a cup of coffee and a cookie herself, then made the boys clean up…
-
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…
-
Gossip Friday: Summer Entertaining with Clark and Carole
From August 1941: Informality’s the role on the Gable farm. Clark and Carole love to have company drift in around dinner time and stay for a feed-providing they help prepare it themselves. And if it’s a July night, hot and breathless, you’ll find the Gables out beneath the stars. Supper is served picnic style on the porch. The makings are spread out colorfully, lavsihly. From then on each guest is his own chef with no food combinations barred. Count on Clark to set the mood with a superman three-decker: alternate layers of sliced tomatoes mixed with thin crisp bacon, sliced breast of chicken and slices of roast beef–mounted on toasted…