Only one man has ever been crowned King of Hollywood and that was in the 1930s. The recipient was Clark Gable, whom I guess young readers may not have heard of. He was a big star from the 1930s to the 1950s and made three films in Borehamwood. His most famous role was that of Rhett Butler in Blown away by the wind, although he lost the Oscar for best actor to Robert Donat for his film Goodbye Mr. Chips in 1939. Ironically, Clark had won the Oscar five years earlier for another film he didn’t want to be called It happened one night.
Clark married five times, but the true love of his life was his third wife, Hollywood star Carole Lombard. Tragically, she was killed in a plane crash just a few years after their marriage and he never made a full recovery. It was during World War II and, lost in grief, Clark enrolled as an artillery instructor in the United States Air Force and was posted to England where he served on combat missions in the United States. over Germany. Upon his release he returned to the theater but had aged noticeably and although he remained a star something was different about his image on screen.
Clark came to film three times at the former MGM studios in Borehamwood in the 1950s and had an affair with Grace Kelly while doing Mogambo – but then again, Grace tended to have relationships with her co-stars before marrying. the Prince of Monaco. His cameraman, three-time Oscar winner Freddie Young, told me it was easy to work with Clark, but in close-up you had to watch him because he was developing a slight head shake.
His last MGM film, which was made in Borehamwood, was also his last MGM film after nearly 20 years under contract. He spent his last day in their Culver City studio having portraits taken, then left without any farewell ceremony.
Clark made his last film in 1960. It was with Marilyn Monroe and called The Misfits. Right after filming was over, he had a heart attack while changing wheels at home. After 10 days in the hospital he seemed to be improving but one night he was reading a magazine and then passed away suddenly at the age of 59. His wife at the time blamed Marilyn for the stress she was causing on the set of The Misfits but his heart was reportedly weakened by his heavy drinking and consuming 60 cigarettes a day.
His widow gave birth to their only child, a son named John, just months after his death. Junior tried to play on screen but is very wealthy due to his father’s legacy. Sadly, Clark’s grandson died at the age of 30 from a drug overdose in 2019.
Clark had another child born in the 1930s after an affair with Hollywood granny Loretta Young. She was a strict Catholic and they both knew the scandal would have ruined their careers, unlike today. Loretta claimed that she adopted the little girl, and Clark took no part in her upbringing. Indeed, the girl only discovered it when she was an adult and is unfortunately no longer with us.
Clark’s widow realized that her true love was Carole Lombard and she allowed him to be buried next to her. Well until next time stay safe and happy watching movies and if anything bothers you remember those immortal words from Rhett Butler: “Frankly my dear, I don’t care.”
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Source: www.times-series.co.uk
This notice was published: 2021-04-11 17:00:00
