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For Us, The King Will Never Die
Clark Gable died 62 years ago today at Hollywood Presbyterian Hospital in Los Angeles. A heart attack claimed The King of Hollywood at age 59. This pictorial layout appeared in Modern Screen magazine after his death: Clark Gable 1901-1960 For us the King will never die A poor boy…a nobody…with big ears and a magnetic charm, a he-man ruggedness…Clark lived his life, said little, and we loved him. lovers: In Clark’s life there were five wives and no scandals. But on the screen his amours were messy–and with the greats of filmland’s Golden Days. Shown in his arms are Norma Shearer, Greta Garbo, Jean Harlow and Vivien Leigh, the lovely…
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Movie of the Week: Red Dust (1932) and Mogambo (1953)
This week, we’ve got Clark Gable in the original and the remake of the story about a man in a foreign land torn between a prim married lady and a good-times girl in Red Dust (1932) and Mogambo (1953). In both films, Clark is an American living in a foreign land with a job to do, who gets distracted when a fun-loving gal shows up. After a brief dalliance with her (she falls in love, he thinks it just a fling), a dignified couple show up to work/do research. Clark soon falls for the wife, bad girl gets jealous, love triangle ensues. Setting: RD: Set on a rubber plantation in…
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Movie of the Week: The Secret Six (1931) and Hold Your Man (1933)
This week, we’ve got a double dose of Clark Gable and Jean Harlow in The Secret Six (1931)and Hold Your Man (1933). The Secret Six is really only known today for being Clark Gable and Jean Harlow’s first film together. Both of them had not quite reached star status. Jean, who had recently made a big splash in Howard Hughes’ Hell’s Angels, was borrowed from Warner Brothers by MGM for her small role here. Clark was billed seventh–lagging behind Wallace Beery, Johnny Mack Brown and Lewis Stone for screen time. Not for long, mind you, as the release of A Free Soul a few months later would cement Clark’s name…
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{New Article} 1936: Clark Gable Warns Stenos What Happens When Husbands Get Caught in a Triangle
This article (and yes that is actually the long, rambling title) is quite obviously just a piece to promote Clark Gable’s latest film, Wife vs. Secretary. Clark, who never worked in an office, is asked about husbands having affairs with their secretaries. “The office husband problem is a tougher subject to talk on than politics—unless you stick to the fence, and I don’t like people who do that. Anyway, I’ve never worked in an office so I wouldn’t know much about that, but, just from the way you have to figure these things out for a picture, I’d say that office wives have to be as careful as office husbands—and…
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Gossip Friday: Carole Out, Jean In
From October 1936: Carole Lombard in a screen romance with Clark Gable–would that spell box office? I am asking you. Either one of these two alone is sufficient to lure the customers into the theater, but the two of them together would bring in enough shekels to pay the rent and keep the wolf far, far away. That is why, come next year, Carole will be co-starred with Clark in “Saratoga.” Yes, I know it was intended for Joan Crawford, but I am told there are other plans for La Crawford. When Carole finishes “Morning, Noon and Night” for Paramount she’ll move to Metro for this one picture. And that…
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Movie of the Week: Saratoga (1937)
This week is Jean Harlow’s final film, Saratoga (1937). Clark 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 (Walter Pidgeon) to place bets with him. This film is infamous for being Jean’s final film. She died quite suddenly of renal failure when the film was 90% complete. After collapsing on set while filming…
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Movie of the Week: China Seas (1935)
This week’s film is Clark Gable the disgruntled sea captain and Jean Harlow the hooker he tried to leave behind in China Seas. Gable is Alan Gaskell, a roguish captain of a ship that sails between Hong Kong and Shanghai. It’s established pretty early on that he’s been having some adult fun ashore with a Shanghai harlot, Dolly, who goes by the name China Doll (Harlow). So imagine his surprise when setting his ship off to sea that she is on board as a passenger! She confesses she is madly in love with him; he is weary of her and rejects her advances. She is green with jealousy upon the…
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Movie of the Week: Wife vs. Secretary (1936)
This week, Clark’s torn between Jean Harlow and Myrna Loy (poor guy) in Wife vs. Secretary. Clark is the dashing editor-in-chief of a magazine in this one. Myrna is his delightful wife, who seems to spend her days lounging around their spacious two-story New York apartment in glamorous gowns, throwing lavish parties, assisted by a full-time cook, maid, driver and butler. No kids underfoot either. Ah, to be a rich 1930’s housewife! Jean is Clark’s loyal secretary, who says how high when he says jump. A youthful Jimmy Stewart is Jean’s neglected fiancé, who is constantly snubbed by Jean’s work commitments and is growing quite tired of it. Despite the…
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{New Article} 1935: What I Think About Clark Gable by Jean Harlow
Here is the continuation of yesterday’s article, where Clark Gable wrote what he thought of Jean Harlow. Now it’s Jean’s turn to gush about Clark–and gush she does indeed! I can’t imagine anyone I’d rather have for a friend than Clark Gable. He embodies all qualities which are necessary for true friendship. Not more than half a dozen people in Hollywood, I believe, know Clark as he really is. He is so much deeper than people think. He won’t talk about himself—he doesn’t even seem to think much about himself. It’s not that he’s a Garbo. But he is always so interested in finding out about you that he never…
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{New Article} 1935: What I Think About Jean Harlow by Clark Gable
This is article appeared in Hollywood magazine in 1935, as publicity for the upcoming China Seas. Clark Gable and Jean Harlow were buddies, and the publicity team at MGM liked to circle that around. Here on the site we’ve got this article about them on the set of Wife vs. Secretary. And This one behind the scenes of Hold Your Man is fun too. The endearing way he talks about Jean is so sweet. So difficult to wrap your head around the fact that she would be dead in two years, at the age of 26. Here is what Clark had to say about his buddy Jean in 1935 (Jean’s part about…
