Dance, Fools, Dance 1931 Directed by Harry Beaumont MGM B/W

Gable and Crawford

This was Gable’s second film for MGM and his first of eight films with Joan Crawford. It would also set off an affair that would last his lifetime.

In the picture Joan is a poor little rich girl turned reporter and Gable is the shady gangster responsible at least a dozen deaths. Joan has him in her sights and plans an expose of his crimes. Lester Vail is the guy she loves but oh, that rogue! Gable got the villain’s role at the last minute after Vail had been signed for the lead and Irving Thalberg ordered it built up with more steamy scenes between Crawford and Gable. Here is what Joan had to say: “In the scene where he grabs me and threatens to kill my brother, I felt such a sensation my knees buckled. He was holding me by the shoulders and I said to myself ’If he lets go, I’ll fall down’”.

Thalberg had decided by that time that Gable could be MGM’s next big star and wanted him for strong action films possibly eight or more in l931 . L. B. Mayer never really appreciated Irving’s tastes but Clark’s fan mail convinced him about Gable.

Off the set:
Ria Gable was excited about Clark working with Crawford because she wanted desperately to be invited to Pickfair, considered a social coup. Joan had eloped with Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. two years before much to the displeasure of Papa and Mama (Mary Pickford) Fairbanks. Clark himself was totally disinterested and the invitation was never sent.

Gable and Shearer

A Free Soul 1931 Directed by Clarence Brown MGM B/W

Once again, Clark was the bad guy, a tough racketeer pursued by a spoiled rich girl (aren’t they all) who liked rough love and got it! It must have been difficult for Gable to play those love scenes. While rumor has it that he bedded all his leading ladies, I doubt that is accurate, especially this one. His co-star was Norma Shearer Thalberg, the boss’s wife! With Irving around the set, Gable would have to mind his Ps and Qs. But to make it worse, there was nothing between Norma and her Adrian gowns! In any case, it was this film that most critics felt made Clark a star! Even though it was Lionel Barrymore who got the Oscar for his performance as defense attorney Stephen Ashe.

Off the set:

There was no love lost between Gable and L. B. Mayer but he admired Thalberg and also made fast friends with Howard Strickling, MGM’s head of publicity and scandal handler. Strickling made the most of Gable’s public image and also joined his hunting and fishing pals.

Susan Lenox ( Her Fall and Rise) 1931 Directed by Robert Z. Leonard MGM B/W

Gable and Garbo

Clark was uneasy doing a film with Greta Garbo because a Garbo film was just that. It appeared he had reason for concern after Garbo walked off the set six times because she didn’t like something in the script. And, no matter how off schedule the shoot was, Garbo ankled out at precisely 5 p.m. every day. But Clark couldn’t fault her on her ability to concentrate on her work while she was there. He got her full attention in the love scenes. As Rodney, he pursued her and then she pursued him. His 5 o’clock shadow, dirty suit and grimy hands on Greta’s half-clad white body gave the ladies goosebumps and the men pangs of envy. “Pop” Leonard got everything he asked from his stars and then some!

Off the set:

The ex-Mrs. Gable was threatening to sell the story of her life with Gable to the many publicity hounds pressuring her. L. B. Mayer caught wind of that and the fact that Clark refused her. He issued an ultimatum..pay up $200 a month or else. Clark paid!

Gable made 12 pictures to be released in 1931. It was a very busy year.

Harlow and Gable

Red Dust 1932 Directed by Victor Fleming MGM B/W

This was the second film with Jean Harlow (they did “The Secret Six” earlier). It was also a film he would do again with variations 21 years later (as “Mogambo”). The Indochinese locale was recreated on MGM’s backlot using the sets from the Tarzan movies. I guess if you see one jungle you’ve seen them all. The original story was beefed up to fit Gable’s image of the rascal with the heart of gold (buried deep but there) and Jean’s sizzling sexpot allure. As the manager of a rubber plantation who falls for the prostitute (Harlow) he is hiding from the police, Gable also manages to get entangled with the sex-starved wife (Mary Astor) of his chief engineer (Gene Raymond). The scriptwriter John Lee Mahin felt Gable was a marvelous foil for Harlow’s wisecracks and showed so much of what he was thinking in his face sometimes dialogue wasn’t necessary. That may be because Harlow was another actress who refused to wear bras and it showed. She also refused to wear a bathing suit for the famous (or infamous if you prefer) rain barrel bath sequence!

Off the set:

Gable and Harlow had a brief affair but settled into a closer sibling-like friendship. Gable adored her little girl attitudes and vulnerability. He also became pals with her stepfather, Marino Bello .Harlow married Paul Bern in July, 1932. On Labor Day weekend, Gable and Bello came back from a fishing trip to learn that Bern had been shot to death and Harlow was suspected in the shooting. Then suddenly the death became a suicide in police reports. Murder or suicide, it remains a mystery to this day.

Gable made 4 pictures in 1932.

It Happened One Night 1934 Directed by Frank Capra Columbia B/W

Gable and Colbert

Mayer decided to punish Clark for his loyalty to Thalberg. He loaned him out to Harry Cohn to do “Night Bus’ a script Thalberg liked but Mayer had discarded. Capra had taken it to Cohn who didn’t like it either but couldn’t resist the chance to get Gable. Robert Montgomery was slated for the romantic comedy but Cohn felt Gable may give it a whole new glow! The name of the picture was changed and now all that was needed was a leading lady. But three stars turned it down before he got Claudette Colbert to sign for double the money. She also wanted the film to wrap in four weeks. It came in on schedule but Gable hated doing it and Colbert thought it was “the worst picture in the world”. They were all terribly wrong. That little “bad” picture opened at the Radio Music Hall to rave reviews and swept the Academy Awards for all five major Oscars. Clark Gable won for Best Actor, the only one he would ever get.

Off the set:

The retail sales of undershirts dropped 75% because Gable didn’t wear one in the film. However, single-breasted jackets, V-neck sweaters, felt fedoras and trench coats became a fashion statement because screen magazines showed Gable wearing them around town.

Gable made 5 films in 1934.

Gable and Young

The Call of the Wild 1935 Directed by William Wellman 20th Century Fox B/W

Clark threw a fit when he heard he would loaned out again to a production company that didn’t even have a studio. Mayer and his boss, Nicholas Schenck were secret backers of 20th Century Fox and made covert deals to loan the new company MGM stars and talent until they were on their feet. Wallace Beery went over to do “The Bowery” and now Gable was on the docket to do Jack London’s “Call of the Wild”. His leading lady would be beautiful Loretta Young. Of course, great liberties were taken with the story since it originally favored the sled dog! But the scriptwriters were gracious and left the dog in the picture!
The plot now revolved around a prospector (Gable) and a woman (Young) searching for her husband lost on an expedition to find a gold mine. Jack Oakie was cast as Gable’s trusty sidekick. Now back to the dog! Gable had to spend two weeks rehearsing with Buck, a 225 pound mongrel St, Bernard. The problem was that the dog fell in love with Gable and wouldn’t leave his side at command. The handler finally had to bring in a female in heat to break up the affair, keeping the female just out of Buck’s reach. I hope they paid that poor dog well.
In case you wondered, Loretta’s fur coats and parkas were all specially designed for her by Omar Kiam, a protégé of MGM’s Adrian.

Off the set:

Gable was dividing his spare time on location between romancing Loretta and partying with the rest of the crew. Director William Wellman felt Gable was spending too much time with monkey business and told him so. The helmer was a bit too late. Weeks later Gable learned Loretta was pregnant. On November 6th, 1935 he received the following telegram: “Beautiful blue-eyed blonde baby girl born 8:15 this morning”. He shredded it and flushed it down the toilet. Loretta would later “adopt” that beautiful little girl.

 

San Francisco 1936 Directed by W. S. Van Dyke II MGM B/W

Gable and MacDonald

Jeanette wanted Gable for this film but beau Nelson Eddy, a Gable buddy, wouldn’t plead her case. Gable didn’t like musicals or prima donnas either. He didn’t want to sit around being sung to by anyone. And he heard Jeanette had Mayer’s ear which provoked him. But Gable couldn’t risk suspension while making maintenance payments to estranged wife Ria. In fact, while the leads were Gable and MacDonald, the star of the picture was definitely the earthquake. Even Spencer Tracy played a supporting role.

Gable played Blackie Norton, a saloon keeper with political aspirations and Jeanette was Mary Blake, an opera singer wannabe who offered to sing to his barroom denizens in order to make needed money. Tracy was the priest who grew up with Blackie and tried to be his conscience. Gable had more trouble with the crying scene in the finale than he had making love to Jeanette (although once he ate spaghetti with garlic just before a love scene to tick off his leading lady). So “Woody “ Van Dyke compromised by letting Clark cry with his back turned.
Gable and Tracy passed free time drinking and telling off-color jokes while Jeanette sat alone. She was trying to get over a break-up with Eddy. Gable would apologize years later for his boorish behavior.
Joseph Basevi’s earthquake sequences were so realistic that later they would be used in documentaries. Unfortunately the powers-that-be didn’t think it important enough to list him in the credits.

Off the set:

Carole Lombard was getting under Clark’s skin and the romance was heating up. However, it didn’t stop him from having a raging affair with Merle Oberon that lasted several months.

Gable and Harlow

Saratoga 1937 Directed by Jack Conway MGM B/W

Jean Harlow plays a snooty socialite whose papa has lost everything from the horse farm to his garters gambling. Naturally daughter dearest blames it all on the racetrack bookie played so well by Clark Gable. Since this is a romantic comedy you can bet your bottom dollar (maybe a bad choice of words) that all will be hugs and kisses in the end.

But something was very wrong on the set. Harlow had been in poor health for months and it took an extra hour in the make-up chair to make her ready for the cameras. She tired easily and usually couldn’t work past early afternoon. Then one day during a boudoir scene she collapsed in Gable’s arms. The studio called a car and Harlow was taken home while the rest of the crew filmed around her. But the next day Jean failed to return and her absence continued into a week. Calls to the house brought reassuring replies from her mother, Mama Jean, that Harlow was feeling better and would be back to work soon. Finally Gable was sure something was terribly wrong and went to the house to check on her. Despite Mama Jean’s protests, he barged into the house to find Jean almost unconscious and swollen twice her size. By the time the actress got to the hospital, it was too late. Jean Harlow died of acute uremic poisoning. She was 26.

The movie was finished with some scenes rewritten, many using Mary Dees who looked enough like Jean to be her twin. But her voice didn’t match so Paula Winslow dubbed the dialogue.

Off the set:

Gable took Carole Lombard to Harlow’s funeral. 250 guests inside the chapel at Forest Lawn heard Jeanette MacDonald begin with one of Jean’s favorite songs “Indian Love Call”. After the service, Jeanette and Nelson Eddy joined in “Ah, Sweet Mystery of Life” but Jeanette broke down in tears half way through and Nelson had to go on alone.

Gone With The Wind 1939 Directed by Victor Fleming Selznick/MGM Color

Gable and Leigh

Margaret Mitchell had sold the movie rights to her best-seller to David O. Selznick for $50,000 but it was the thousands of letters to MGM that claimed the role of Rhett Butler for Gable that forced MGM to be a prime factor. Selznick had to plead with L. B. Mayer because he needed Gable. Forced to the wall by fans, MGM agreed to distribute GWTW for half the profits and pay half the costs. Gable didn’t want to be Rhett Butler but again couldn’t risk suspension. However he did refuse to fake a southern accent.

A search was begun for someone to play Scarlett while Gable fumed over the selection of directors. George Cukor was set for the job but Gable regarded him as a “woman’s director” and since the role of Scarlett was already predominant, Cukor was obviously a threat to him. Vivien Leigh finally won the part she wanted desperately (her married boyfriend Laurence Olivier was in the US making Wuthering Heights). She liked George Cukor so battle lines were drawn between the two stars. Gable won and Victor Fleming, his good buddy on a lot of hunting trips, replaced Cukor but the tension on the set became palpable and continued during the entire shoot!

The film was finished six months after the cast was first assembled. Selznick had to pay a $5000 fine for Rhett’s “damn” but it was worth it. GWTW won 10 of 1939’s Oscars but Gable lost out to Robert Donat (“Goodbye, Mr. Chips”) for Best Actor Award.

Off the set:

Ria and Gable were finally divorced and Clark married Carole. They bought their dream house, both had successful movies that year and Carole put her heart and soul into redecorating the ranch house.

 

Gable and Turner

Honky Tonk 1941 Directed by Jack Conway MGM B/W

This was Gable’s first Western since “The Painted Desert” in 1931 but one author describes it as “San Francisco” transported to a small prairie town. Candy Johnson (Gable) is a fugitive con artist who takes over as crime boss in lawless Yellow Creek. Of course, he meets a sweet, innocent yeller-haired gal from Boston (Lana Turner) who wins his heart and sets his feet on the straight and narrow.

Lana was MGM’s new hot star so Carole turned up on the set to protect her interests. She arrived just as they were rehearsing a love scene and Lana got so nervous she ran off to her trailer in tears. In the interest of maintaining set decorum, Gable asked Carole to leave. There were four bedroom scenes in the film where Lana wore negligees designed by Robert Kalloch to raise blood pressures. Gable wore the dressing gown from GWTW that he liked so well.

Off the set;

Carole had taken time off to rest up for Gable baby-making. An early miscarriage was blamed on her workload at least in her mind. But no baby was forthcoming and she was getting depressed. The couple decided together that she should go back to work and they could make babies in their spare time!
But Carole would be dead within the year.

The Hucksters 1947 Directed by Jack Conway MGM B/W

Gable and Kerr

This was the second movie Gable made after his return from the war. He fought bitterly with Mayer to get script changes and stalled until he got his way. Clark was also unsure about his leading lady, Deborah Kerr after bad experiences with Vivien Leigh and Greer Garson who were also imports from England. Kerr was tested for the part because Mayer was punishing Garson for being temperamental. L. B. had a penchant for handing out these disciplinary actions that usually turned out to be beneficial for the actors involved and cost him in the end. Hearing that Ava Gardner was balking at joining the cast, Gable convinced her to take the part so they could watch each other’s back and have fun during the shoot. Ava was Gable’s kind of woman! The film got great critical reviews but only fair box office returns. The New York Tribune Review wrote: "The Gable-Kerr team-up is vital”. But Variety said it best: "Love that picture!” Kerr and Gardner went on to be two of MGM’s most popular leading ladies.

Off the set:

Gable was playing the field but he was still looking for Carole in every lady he dated. Three of the ladies in his circle at the time were Nancy Davis, Anita Colby and Virginia Grey. Virginia had staying power but soon Anita moved on. Nancy was a bit too ambitious for Gable and he suspected she was using him for a entry to MGM. Well, she got that and more. She became the First Lady of the USA!

Gable & Stanwyck

To Please A Lady 1950 Directed by Clarence Brown MGM B/W

Gable took up where he left off in 1931’s “Night Nurse”….he slapped Barbara Stanwyck! Moviegoers loved it! Gable played a racing car driver to Babs as the newspaperwoman who agitated then fascinated him. He hadn’t enjoyed making a picture so much in years. Motion Picture Exhibitor wrote: Gable at his charming best…Gable slaps (Stanwyck’s) face and she comes back for more!”

But at the studio, times they were a-changin’. Dore Schary was now in place as production chief and eyeing Mayer’s throne of power. L. B. was outraged but had to accept Schary or bow out. While Mayer still had final word, Schary was the one who chose projects and the producers and directors to make them. The Golden Age was rehearsing its swan song.

Off the set:

Gable had committed emotional hara-kiri. Almost to the altar with Virginia Grey, a gal-pal of sixteen years, he got drunk one night and woke up engaged to Lady Sylvia Ashley! They eloped in December of 1949 and Sylvia became Mrs. Gable #4.... for 16 whole months.

Mogambo 1953 Directed by John Ford MGM Color

Gable and Kelly

The movie was done on location (unlike its predecessor “Red Dust”) with exteriors done in Africa and interiors in England. MGM actually hacked a landing strip out of the jungle in Kenya to bring in cast, crew and supplies. Tents were put up on the banks of the Kagero River to accommodate living quarters, hospital, screening room and even an entertainment area with a pool table. Gable wisecracked to Grace Kelly that they even had hot and cold running water. “The one propped up over the wood fire is the hot water”.

Gable was painfully aware that his next film would be his swan song at MGM. The studio was jettisoning stars getting higher salaries for newcomers who worked for less. Television was getting more competitive. There were problems on the set, too. Frank Sinatra, on the set visiting wife Ava, left to test for the role of Maggio in “From Here To Eternity”. Immediately Ava asked Huston for time off to fly to England for an abortion. She got it. Grace Kelly began stalking Gable and without Ava to protect him from himself, Clark soon gave in to the inevitable.

Off the set:

Gable, Kelly and the reunited Sinatras (Frank had won the part and flew back) spent time together. But Grace stopped trying to outdrink the other three. She got too sick. As one author wrote: “John Ford may have made an actress out of her (Grace) but Gable made a woman out of her.”
Gable took Kelly to the Academy Awards where “From Here To Eternity” took home the bacon including a Best Supporting Actor Award for Frank Sinatra.

Gable and Lancaster

Run Silent Run Deep 1958 Directed by Robert Wise/Edward L. Beach United Artists B/W

Before starting this film on location in San Diego, Gable asked for some time on a submarine so he could get the feel of it. The picture dealt with underwater warfare and took place mainly on or in the submarine. It was the first time Gable had ever set foot in a seagoing vessel that went down instead of over the water. I It was also the first time his co-worker was his employer since Burt Lancaster, who was playing the role of Gable's executive officer in the film, was part of Hecht-Hill-Lancaster, producers of the movie.

A psychological thriller based on Navy veteran Ed Beach’s bestseller, Gable portrays a sub commander obsessed with tracking down the Japanese ship responsible for sinking his last submarine. Lancaster gets sucked into the plan and takes command after Gable sinks the destroyer and dies a hero (the first time Gable dies onscreen since 1937‘s “Parnell“). The storyline also deprives Gable of any torrid love scenes giving him only a brief encounter with his onshore wife, played by Mary LaRoche.

But it was Gable’s movie all the way. Only one problem arose….. Clark refused to do a scene where his character makes a serious error in judgment forcing 2nd in command Lancaster to take over. It was changed to show an injury incapacitated the commander requiring the takeover saving a blow to Gable’s film image.

Off the set:

A lot had changed in Gable’s life. He had married another old sweetheart, Kay Spreckels . Kay had just recently survived a miscarriage that almost took her life but also pointed up some cardiac problems that needed treated. In the meantime Clark was becoming very close to his two stepchildren. Life was good again.

The Misfits 1961 Directed by John Huston United Artists Color

Gable and Monroe

The studio wanted Gable for this Arthur Miller script but Clark claimed he didn’t understand the story, the character or why Miller was now writing screenplays. He learned that Miller had written the script for his wife, Marilyn Monroe who wanted Gable to play Gay Langland. Langland was an aging cowboy making a few dollars rounding up mustangs for a dog-food factory. Clark held out for 10% of the gross, compensation for overtime (Marilyn’s penchant for screwing up schedules was well-known) and complete control of the script. He also steeled himself to work with Method actors (Monroe, Montgomery Clift and Kevin McCarthy) given his distaste for that technique.

However, both Gable and Clift had to get well before they could come on the set because they couldn’t pass their insurance physicals. Gable had been on a crash diet to lose thirty-five pounds and Clift had been on a diet of booze and pills. Marilyn had another problem…getting over her broken affair with Yves Montand and relying on happy pills to do it. She was also terrified to be working with Gable. But, despite that and the age difference, Marilyn said: “When he kissed me, I wanted it to go on and on…I got goosebumps…I’d have followed him anywhere, done anything..” When things became tenuous, Gable would make her laugh by taking out his false teeth and doing a Gabby Hayes imitation. Later everyone would realize that the tension affected Clark, too, as well as the heat and the back-breaking work. It would contribute greatly to the loss of this Hollywood icon.

Off the set:

But it seemed as though life was treating him to dessert when he found out Kay was pregnant again. He decided when the film wrapped, he would take time off to stay by her side until the baby was born.

Fate had other plans.