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Nutshell Reviews: Adventure (1945), The Hucksters (1947) and Homecoming (1948)
In a Nutshell: Adventure (1945) Directed by: Victor Fleming Co-stars: Greer Garson, Thomas Mitchell Synopsis: Gable is Harry Patterson, a hard-boiled, womanizing sailor. When his ship is destroyed by a Japanese sub and he and his crew–including best pal Mudgin (Mitchell) –are stuck in San Francisco, he meets a stoic spinster librarian, Emily (Garson) and her bubbly roommate, Helen (Blondell). Despite their differences, Harry and Emily fall in love and impulsively decide to get married. They soon realize they made a mistake and Harry heads back out to sea. But he discovers maybe Emily has changed him and the life of a sailor isn’t as appealing as it was before.…
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Nutshell Reviews: Honky Tonk (1941) and Somewhere I’ll Find You (1942)
In a Nutshell: Honky Tonk (1941) Directed by: Jack Conway Co-stars: Lana Turner, Frank Morgan Synopsis: Gable is fugitive con artist Candy Johnson, who stumbles upon the small town of Yellow Creek while on the run. He quickly takes advantage of the town’s lack of law and order. He also steals the heart of Elizabeth (Turner), a Boston-bred girl with a crooked father (Morgan). Although he insists he can’t be tied down, she manipulates him into marrying her and he becomes the most respected man in Yellow Creek. Her father doesn’t trust him, however, and sets out to destroy his reputation in town. Best Gable Quote: “You’ve got a full set of…
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Gossip Friday: Gable and Cagney, Up-and-Comers
From September 1931: Clark Gable and James Cagney are the two lads you want to keep your eyes on. They’re the sensations of 1931. (And doesn’t it seem like old times to have sensations again?) Their reputations have grown like Jack’s beanstalk. Each is slated for stardom in the fall. Women–even the hard-to-please Hollywood kind–are calling Clark Gable the greatest lover since Valentino. And Gable’s career, in part, is suprisingly like Valentino’s. After considerable banging around the world, he finally drifted to Hollywood. After much struggle, he became an extra, finally graduationg to “heavy” parts. But here their records differ. No single picture has pushed Gable ahead the way “The…
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Nutshell Reviews: Comrade X (1940) and They Met in Bombay (1941)
In a Nutshell: Comrade X (1940) Directed by: King Vidor Co-stars: Hedy Lamarr, Felix Bressart, Oskar Homolka, Eve Arden Synopsis: Gable is McKinley Thompson, an American reporter living in Russia who is secretly sending news out of the country as the elusive “Comrade X”. His bumbling valet, Igor (Bressart) discovers who he is and blackmails him to take his headstrong Communist daughter (Lamarr) out of Russia to protect her from prosecution. Everything doesn’t go as planned and soon the three of them are racing out of Russia with the Russian army on their tails. Best Gable Quote: “I don’t talk to ladies that start yelling. It’s a rule I’ve got.”…
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Gone with the Wednesday: Clark Gable Reflects Back on Rhett Butler
Clark Gable didn’t want to play Rhett Butler–mainly because everyone else wanted him to. He often described how, even before he himself had read the book, people would call him “Rhett” and ask him when he was signing on for the film. He thought it was a great role, certainly, but the pressure was too great. In the end, it wasn’t really his decision, as he was traded like cattle to Selznick for MGM to have the distribution rights. Clark remained nonchalant about the film for years afterward. He had done his work, gotten his paycheck, that was the end of it to him. I’ve had people say to me at…
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Nutshell Reviews: Strange Cargo (1940) and Boom Town (1940)
In a Nutshell: Strange Cargo (1940) Directed by: Frank Bozarge Co-stars: Joan Crawford, Peter Lorre, Ian Hunter Synopsis: Gable is Verne, a thief who has been imprisoned for years in a dirty jail on an island in New Guinea. Out on work duty one day, he comes across Julie (Crawford), a cafe singer. She turns him in when he breaks out to try and be with her. She is then banished from the island for harboring a criminal. When Verne manages to escape again along with fellow inmates, Julie joins them on their voyage to the mainland. Both are uneasy by the presence of Cambreau (Hunter), a mysterious Christ-like figure…
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Nutshell Review: Gone with the Wind (1939)
In a Nutshell: Gone with the Wind (1939) Directed by: Victor Fleming (and George Cukor and Sam Wood) Co-stars: Vivien Leigh, Olivia de Havilland, Leslie Howard, Hattie McDaniel Synopsis: Still seventy five years later heralded “the greatest movie ever made”, Gone with the Wind singlehandedly guaranteed Gable’s immortality to movie goers for decades to come. He is the dashing and ruthless Rhett Butler, a blockade runner from Charleston, who falls in love with headstrong southern belle Scarlett O’Hara (Leigh) at first sight. Scarlett only has eyes for her childhood crush, Ashley Wilkes (Howard) despite that he is engaged to his cousin, Melanie Hamilton (De Havilland).Through the Civil War and Sherman’s march…
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Nutshell Reviews: Saratoga (1937), Test Pilot (1938), Too Hot to Handle (1938) and Idiot’s Delight (1939)
In a Nutshell: Saratoga (1937) Directed by: Jack Conway Co-stars: Jean Harlow, Lionel Barrymore, Frank Morgan, Walter Pidgeon, Una Merkel Synopsis: Gable is Duke Bradley, a bookie who acquires the deed to the Brookdale horse ranch because the owner, Mr. Clayton (Jonathan Hale) owes him a lot of money. When Clayton dies, his daughter Carol (Harlow), who dislikes Bradley, is determined to get the horse ranch back in the family by winning horse races to pay Bradley back. Meanwhile, Bradley tries to bait Carol’s rich fiancée (Pidgeon) to place bets with him. Best Gable Quote: “This is more work than I’ve done for a woman since my mother.” Not-So-Fun Fact:…
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Gossip Friday: Lookin’ for a Fight
From August 1934: A fist fight almost marred Sam Goldwyn’s bridge party when Gilbert Roland misunderstood a remark made to his escort, charming Constance Bennett, by Clark Gable. Connie and Clark were playing at the same table when the latter uttered the words that so aroused Gilbert, seated nearby, and caused him to leap from his chair, remove his coat, and shout at Gable, “You quit picking on her and pick on me!” But all’s well that ends well!
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Nutshell Reviews: Cain and Mabel (1936), Love on the Run (1936) and Parnell (1937)
In a Nutshell: Cain and Mabel (1936) Directed by: Lloyd Bacon Co-stars: Marion Davies Synopsis: Gable is Larry Cain, a small time boxer, whose publicity team cooks up a fake romance with Mabel O’Dare (Davies), an aspiring musical star, for publicity. The two loathe each other but begrudgingly agree to play along to help both of their careers. Of course along the way they actually do fall in love and decide to quit boxing and show business to be together. Their publicists won’t hear of it however and set to break them up. Best Gable Quote: “I’m supposed to be a fighter and what am I doing–playing post office all…