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{New Article} 1934: Why I Like To Be Alone
Here is another article from 1934. This one is a typical “Clark Gable isn’t into the glamour and glitz of Hollywood! He is an outdoorsy, simple man just like you!” piece. “Hollywood is over-civilized! A man could go soft in this place in a month. I had to fight like the devil during the first year or so to keep my perspective. Too much chatter. Too many parties. Too much bunk! That’s why I took to going off the backwoods by myself. I had to do that or go crazy…” This was Clark Gable—the last of Hollywood’s Great Untamed—speaking. “The Last of Hollywood’s Great Untamed”—oh brother. He looks you…
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{New Article} 1934: Clark Gable’s Real Family Life!
Over the next few days, I’ll be sharing new-to-the-site articles from the year 1934. We’ll start out with this one, which proclaims with an exclamation point that it’s about Clark Gable’s Real Family Life! A rather deceptive title. Clark at this time was a superstar; 1934 saw him win national acclaim for his performance in It Happened One Night, and his films with Joan Crawford that year had been hits. His studio, MGM, was not too pleased that their manly man star that had women falling at his feet came with a much older, matronly wife with two kids in tow. But that’s what they had to work with, so…
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Gossip Friday: Update on Clark
From January 1945: The delay in Clark Gable’s return to the screen is due to his refusal to do service pictures. “I turned down several scripts,” Clark tells me, “because they can’t help from making a hero out of you and I wouldn’t feel good about that considering the people who really are doing something about the war.” Clark wants to come back in something that is straight entertainment. Either “Strange Adventure” or “Lucky Baldwin” is okay with him. And now about those persistent rumors that Gable will wed Dolly O’Brien, widow of Jay O’Brien. Clark is close-mouthed about this sort of thing but I don’t believe these two good…
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Gossip Friday: No Castles
From August 1936 (Jimmy Fidler): I laughed myself ill over Clark Gable’s attempts to rent a modest five-room bungalow. After his separation from Mrs. Rhea Gable, Clark headquartered at the Beverly Wilshire hotel, much to the delight of autograph hunters who greeted his every appearance in so central a spot. For weeks he sought a small house with sufficient grounds to accommodate his dogs, but real estate agents had other ideas; they insisted on leading Clark to country estates and town castles. So one morning he said, “T’hell with hit” and turned the house-hunting job over to a friend who proved successful.
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Gossip Friday: April Fool!
From April 1, 1939: Clark Gable and Carole Lombard today denied any marriage plans and said that they are “just good friends.” “It was merely a publicity stunt from the beginning,” chuckled Miss Lombard. “Why, I am young enough to be Mr. Gable’s sister! He is really engaged to May Robson, and I have consented to marry Mr. Jasper Jitterwhisk, a tap drummer. Mr. Gable is returning all my presents except Bessie, the mule, which he needs for his spring plowing.” APRIL FOOL! ___ That was really printed in the paper as an April Fools joke, along with other gems like “After changing his director, scene artist, cameraman and several…
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Happy Anniversary, Clark Gable and Carole Lombard
Clark Gable and Carole Lombard were married 79 years ago today, on March 29, 1939, eloping to Kingman, Arizona on the spur of the moment. You can read Clark’s description of their wedding day here. Because they managed to slink away and marry with no fanfare, they dutifully obliged to an early morning press conference on the front lawn of Carole’s home on St. Cloud Rd. There is newsreel footage of this press conference, with Clark and Carole in their wedding attire, beaming and laughing and constantly touching each other. But it is silent. There are dozens and dozens of pictures of them; every time I think I’ve seen every…
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Gossip Friday: Slightly Hurt
From March 1945: Clark Gable, slightly hurt in a traffic accident, required hospital treatment of a laceration on the right leg and chest injuries, his studio reported. The studio said the movie actor drove his automobile over a curb and into a tree to avoid striking another machine going in the wrong direction. Gable was jammed against the steering wheel. He was resting easily today.
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Gossip Friday: Well Guarded
From February 1934: Baltimore–Clark Gable, film hero, had a police guard today. No, he hasn’t been threatened with kidnapping or anything as dire as that. It’s his feminine admirers that he’s seeking protection from. Arriving here last night to fill a stage engagement, Gable found 1,000 women waiting for him at the railroad station. They almost mobbed him, and it was necessary for him to summon police to disperse the crowd. One girl, police said, hung onto the actor’s neck as he dashed from the station to a waiting automobile.
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Gossip Friday: Goodbye, Uncle Charlie
From March 1945: Aged Uncle of Clark Gable Dies The 85-year old uncle of Clark Gable–Charles Gable, died at his home in Sharpsville, Pa. He was a veteran motion picture theatre operator. Gable frequently visited his famous nephew in Hollywood and became a personal friend of many film stars. He opened the first movie house in Sharon and later operated a theatre in Sharpsville. He is survived by three sons–Ward of Pittsburgh, Roy of Cleveland, and Carl of Detroit.
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Gossip Friday: Hook, Line and Sinker
From January 1934: Now it’s going to be Clark Gable, horseman. With his latest picture finished, Gable is spending all his time looking over prospective racing horses. He has gone for horse racing hook, line and sinker, and is going to buy several horses to race on various western tracks this winter.