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资源来自Dear Mr Gable.com
The story of Clark Gable and Loretta Young’s brief romance on the set of Call of the Wild and subsequent pregnancy is a sad one. Nowadays it is nothing at all, merely the typical day’s news, to read that an unwed celebrity is pregnant. Nobody bats an eye. In 1935, it was exactly the opposite. Clark was married, albeit in name only, to Ria at the time. So not only was unwed Loretta pregnant, she was pregnant with a married man’s baby.
I probably get more emails and comments on the site, Facebook and Instagram about this Loretta Young situation than any other Gable topic. “He abandoned his child with Loretta” “He would never acknowledge his own child” “He turned his back on Loretta” Frankly it’s so tiring that I don’t often post pictures from Call of the Wild or Key to the City. I even delayed having these two films being Movie of the Week until now, because I knew featuring them meant the whole week would revolve around Loretta’s pregnancy and Clark’s “abandonment” of his child.
The story of Clark Gable and Loretta Young’s brief romance on the set of Call of the Wild and subsequent pregnancy is a sad one. Nowadays it is nothing at all, merely the typical day’s news, to read that an unwed celebrity is pregnant. Nobody bats an eye. In 1935, it was exactly the opposite. Clark was married, albeit in name only, to Ria at the time. So not only was unwed Loretta pregnant, she was pregnant with a married man’s baby.
I probably get more emails and comments on the site, Facebook and Instagram about this Loretta Young situation than any other Gable topic. “He abandoned his child with Loretta” “He would never acknowledge his own child” “He turned his back on Loretta” Frankly it’s so tiring that I don’t often post pictures from Call of the Wild or Key to the City. I even delayed having these two films being Movie of the Week until now, because I knew featuring them meant the whole week would revolve around Loretta’s pregnancy and Clark’s “abandonment” of his child.
None of that is fair. What was he supposed to do? Up and admit it? Loretta sure wasn’t going to. They both had morality clauses in their contracts; they both would have been swiftly terminated, publicly scorned and ostracized. Loretta ends up with the short end of the stick, certainly, because she is the woman. She had to put her career on hold, be pregnant and give birth, all in secret, while Clark got to go on making movies, dating, living his life. But he couldn’t physically carry the baby and that’s not his fault. I have no doubt that if he had been single he would have married Loretta upon finding out she was pregnant. Heck, he married Kay when she got pregnant in 1955, even though he had publicly declared for years he’d never get married again. Alas, he couldn’t marry Loretta; his wife Ria would have dug her heels in, as she did a few years later when he wanted a divorce to marry Carole Lombard. At that time it took her two years (and a hefty settlement) to agree to a divorce. Loretta and Clark didn’t have two years to wait with that baby coming.
There’s been stories spread among tabloids in the past decade or so that Clark “date raped” Loretta, which really seems far-fetched. I believe these reports are all an attempt to vilify Clark and to protect Loretta’s image, that of course “womanizer” Clark would “prey” upon innocent, Catholic girl Loretta. The truth is, “innocent” Loretta was depressed during the Call of the Wild shoot because she had recently ended a lengthy affair with the married Spencer Tracy and was a bit nervous being around director William Wellman, since she’d had an affair with him years prior. And though only 22, she had already been married and divorced, having eloped at 17. Clark may have had an earned reputation as a ladies’ man, but Loretta was no naïve schoolgirl.
There’s been stories spread among tabloids in the past decade or so that Clark “date raped” Loretta, which really seems far-fetched. I believe these reports are all an attempt to vilify Clark and to protect Loretta’s image, that of course “womanizer” Clark would “prey” upon innocent, Catholic girl Loretta. The truth is, “innocent” Loretta was depressed during the Call of the Wild shoot because she had recently ended a lengthy affair with the married Spencer Tracy and was a bit nervous being around director William Wellman, since she’d had an affair with him years prior. And though only 22, she had already been married and divorced, having eloped at 17. Clark may have had an earned reputation as a ladies’ man, but Loretta was no naïve schoolgirl.
Production on Call of the Wild began in early 1935 and was long and tedious. The outdoor shoot in northern Washington state stretched on for weeks. A blizzard kept the cast and crew trapped in their cabins and sub-zero temperatures froze film in the cameras. Clark and Loretta apparently found another way to occupy their time. Director William Wellman complained that Clark “is more interested in monkey business than business” and said he came close to punching Clark out for causing delays but “I needed that handsome mug for the picture.”
Loretta described Clark to Judy later as “Darling…sweet and very gentle. He had a good sense of humor, he made me laugh. He was a real man. Everybody loved him.” She later insisted that she had only “given into temptation” with Clark once. Her posthumous authorized biography states:
She had been wildly infatuated with [Clark Gable]–even more in “love” than she usually was, and no doubt more vulnerable, due to her recent breakup with Spencer [Tracy.] It was obvious by looking at their love scenes in the movie, that Clark returned her interest. The fact that he had been baptized a Catholic, despite his current illicit marriage, attracted her too. Perhaps she would be the one to place him–permanently–on a spiritual path.
However, as always, Loretta had maintained her moral principles. There had been no affair, as gossip mongers assume, instead, only one night when her iron will slipped. It would have been a casual event to many, especially in Hollywood, but she was ashamed…she had again failed to live up to her own principles. She vowed not to let it happen again.
She had been wildly infatuated with [Clark Gable]–even more in “love” than she usually was, and no doubt more vulnerable, due to her recent breakup with Spencer [Tracy.] It was obvious by looking at their love scenes in the movie, that Clark returned her interest. The fact that he had been baptized a Catholic, despite his current illicit marriage, attracted her too. Perhaps she would be the one to place him–permanently–on a spiritual path.
However, as always, Loretta had maintained her moral principles. There had been no affair, as gossip mongers assume, instead, only one night when her iron will slipped. It would have been a casual event to many, especially in Hollywood, but she was ashamed…she had again failed to live up to her own principles. She vowed not to let it happen again.
One must understand that unlike nowadays, when TMZ, bloggers and tabloids follow celebrities around and dig for their dirty secrets, in the 1930’s stars were completely protected by their studios. Any bad news was spun by the studio publicity department. The gossip columnists and the magazine writers may have known the truth, but they fed the public the clean, sanitized version of their favorite stars as they were supposed to. Read pretty much any autobiography of a classic film star and they will relay how their drunken mishaps, bad marriages, homosexuality, abortions, etc. were all covered up by their studio press agents. And so, much was reported through 1935 about Loretta and her “mystery illness.”
Some snippets about Loretta starting in April 1935:
April 1, 1935:
Loretta Young’s new romantic lead, that is, off the screen, is Ralph Jester, the costume designer. Jester was formerly costume designer for Cecil B. DeMille until they had a quarrel recently. However, he is a frequent visitor to the DeMille set of “The Crusaders”—where Miss Young is emoting.
April 5, 1935:
When the sad tidings were conveyed to lovely Loretta Young that Spencer Tracy was returning to his wife Loretta sort of dropped for awhile. She became more or less dead on her feet outside the studio, but plunged into work on the set with so much energy each day that night found her dizzily tired. Loretta was merely trying to forget the charms of Spencer and she certainly needed someone to shake her loose from herself. Sooooo, along comes that silent wooer, Ronald Colman, and looks upon this gorgeous damsel with melting eyes, and presto, change, Loretta changes from a demure sad lady to a very happy and excited one. Now I am expecting fireworks of some sort, for ’tis said that George Brent is becoming another heart disturber in Loretta’s young life. And is Ronald jealous? He feels like bidding the handsome Irishman a touching goodbye. Whewie, is Ronald furious.
April 1, 1935:
Loretta Young’s new romantic lead, that is, off the screen, is Ralph Jester, the costume designer. Jester was formerly costume designer for Cecil B. DeMille until they had a quarrel recently. However, he is a frequent visitor to the DeMille set of “The Crusaders”—where Miss Young is emoting.
April 5, 1935:
When the sad tidings were conveyed to lovely Loretta Young that Spencer Tracy was returning to his wife Loretta sort of dropped for awhile. She became more or less dead on her feet outside the studio, but plunged into work on the set with so much energy each day that night found her dizzily tired. Loretta was merely trying to forget the charms of Spencer and she certainly needed someone to shake her loose from herself. Sooooo, along comes that silent wooer, Ronald Colman, and looks upon this gorgeous damsel with melting eyes, and presto, change, Loretta changes from a demure sad lady to a very happy and excited one. Now I am expecting fireworks of some sort, for ’tis said that George Brent is becoming another heart disturber in Loretta’s young life. And is Ronald jealous? He feels like bidding the handsome Irishman a touching goodbye. Whewie, is Ronald furious.
In August 1935, Motion Picture magazine decided to focus on Loretta’s single life with an article titled “No Wedding Bells for Loretta Young?”, which details how she works hard and cares for her siblings so has no time for marriage:
Today, Loretta Young looks at you with those steady blue-gray eyes, and–her lips unsmiling–she says: “I have no thought for the future except to live in peace and security. That is enough.”
…
“One thing I have always dreaded,” she told me quite honestly, “is loneliness. It’s like insomnia, harassing and fatiguing. I have experienced both. I know. And, strangely enough, the only time I was lonely was when I was married. To know what marriage could be; the close companionship, the perfect harmony and understanding, and not to achieve it–that is to know loneliness. But all that is behind me now. A family, especially a large one like mine, prevents one from becoming too self-centered. And it is only when a girl becomes wrapped up in herself that she begins to suffer.”
Interesting enough, in the same issue, they point out:
The days of dizzy diets are gone in Hollywood. The stars are eating and how! Del Rio goes for chops, green vegetables, pie, salad and tea at lunch. Clark Gable mangles steaks. Even Loretta Young, who usually eats like a sick bird, has developed a country appetite.
Well that may have something to do with the fact that she’s pregnant.
Today, Loretta Young looks at you with those steady blue-gray eyes, and–her lips unsmiling–she says: “I have no thought for the future except to live in peace and security. That is enough.”
…
“One thing I have always dreaded,” she told me quite honestly, “is loneliness. It’s like insomnia, harassing and fatiguing. I have experienced both. I know. And, strangely enough, the only time I was lonely was when I was married. To know what marriage could be; the close companionship, the perfect harmony and understanding, and not to achieve it–that is to know loneliness. But all that is behind me now. A family, especially a large one like mine, prevents one from becoming too self-centered. And it is only when a girl becomes wrapped up in herself that she begins to suffer.”
Interesting enough, in the same issue, they point out:
The days of dizzy diets are gone in Hollywood. The stars are eating and how! Del Rio goes for chops, green vegetables, pie, salad and tea at lunch. Clark Gable mangles steaks. Even Loretta Young, who usually eats like a sick bird, has developed a country appetite.
Well that may have something to do with the fact that she’s pregnant.
Judy was born in November 1935, but the fan magazines back then ran about three months behind so Loretta was being painted as gravely ill into the first part of 1936.
In a desperate attempt to quell the rumors that Loretta was pregnant or dying in some fashion, her studio Twentieth Century Fox agreed for Photoplay magazine reporter Dorothy Manners to visit Loretta for an exclusive interview. The article appeared in the January 1936 issue and was called “Fame and Fatigue: The real truth about the mysterious illness of Loretta Young.” Some excerpts:
Loretta Young is not suffering from an incurable illness that will keep her from the screen for a year or more! Her beauty has not been marred in a serious “secret” accident! She is not the secret bride of a secret marriage in retirement to have a secret child!
In a desperate attempt to quell the rumors that Loretta was pregnant or dying in some fashion, her studio Twentieth Century Fox agreed for Photoplay magazine reporter Dorothy Manners to visit Loretta for an exclusive interview. The article appeared in the January 1936 issue and was called “Fame and Fatigue: The real truth about the mysterious illness of Loretta Young.” Some excerpts:
Loretta Young is not suffering from an incurable illness that will keep her from the screen for a year or more! Her beauty has not been marred in a serious “secret” accident! She is not the secret bride of a secret marriage in retirement to have a secret child!
Well, no, she wasn’t a secret bride, but as far as the secret child thing goes…
Nor is she penniless, fundless, existing on the financial help of influential friends in a “pathetic” condition!
…
She is being very gay and gallant, this girl who is lying in the rose room with its glowing fireplace in her Bel Air home, saving herself, conserving her strength for the major operation she must eventually face.
This is the truth about Loretta Young’s mysterious illness:
Hard work, her great popularity that put her to the physical strain of making one picture immediately following another, capped by the climax of two strenuous roles in “The Call of the Wild” and “The Crusades,” has aggravated an internal condition from which Loretta has suffered from maturity. It has weakened her, sapped her strength in the great loss of energy; and an eventual operation is the only remedy. In her present rundown condition she is not ready for that operation. She may not be for months, perhaps a year! But as her strength returns, she will be permitted by her physician to return to the studio for one picture right after the first of the year! In fact, not-too-strenuous work is believed to be a good thing for her, far more beneficial than the weakening process of lying in bed too long. And by this argument she expects to report for work no later than the first of February! These truths about the condition of Loretta are directly from the girl herself to me, and to you, in the first interview she has been permitted since her illness.
“Of course,” she said, indicating the enormous bed with the rose satin cover in which she lay, “this becomes a little monotonous lying here so long, without seeing anyone. That’s the really bad part of the whole thing. I love having people about so much. And I’ve missed such exciting things like Sally’s wedding. But,” she laughed in mock-movie star tones, “I have my books, my thoughts and my cigarettes!”
Nor is she penniless, fundless, existing on the financial help of influential friends in a “pathetic” condition!
…
She is being very gay and gallant, this girl who is lying in the rose room with its glowing fireplace in her Bel Air home, saving herself, conserving her strength for the major operation she must eventually face.
This is the truth about Loretta Young’s mysterious illness:
Hard work, her great popularity that put her to the physical strain of making one picture immediately following another, capped by the climax of two strenuous roles in “The Call of the Wild” and “The Crusades,” has aggravated an internal condition from which Loretta has suffered from maturity. It has weakened her, sapped her strength in the great loss of energy; and an eventual operation is the only remedy. In her present rundown condition she is not ready for that operation. She may not be for months, perhaps a year! But as her strength returns, she will be permitted by her physician to return to the studio for one picture right after the first of the year! In fact, not-too-strenuous work is believed to be a good thing for her, far more beneficial than the weakening process of lying in bed too long. And by this argument she expects to report for work no later than the first of February! These truths about the condition of Loretta are directly from the girl herself to me, and to you, in the first interview she has been permitted since her illness.
“Of course,” she said, indicating the enormous bed with the rose satin cover in which she lay, “this becomes a little monotonous lying here so long, without seeing anyone. That’s the really bad part of the whole thing. I love having people about so much. And I’ve missed such exciting things like Sally’s wedding. But,” she laughed in mock-movie star tones, “I have my books, my thoughts and my cigarettes!”
How silly this is. The article states it’s telling “the truth” then never even says what her illness is! “An internal condition from which Loretta has suffered from maturity.” What does that even mean? She did indeed even miss her own sister Sally’s wedding. Sally got married downstairs in the living room, while Loretta was laying in an upstairs bedroom, with the door cracked so she could at least listen in.
She looked very small lying there, head almost buried in the big pillows. But she does not look worn or exhausted. She has been surprisingly lucky in not losing too much of her preciously acquired poundage put on during her vacation trip to Europe, “that wasn’t a vacation at all, but a mad tear from place to place and party to party!” She wore no make-up and the freckles across her nose looked cute and healthy! Near her bed, a table was stacked with the new magazines. A radio was at close reach.
…
We know that she is suffering the fatigue which her fame and fortune have cost her–but we know, too, that her spirit is alive and alert and will carry her out of her sick room, again glowing with health.
Hmmm….I doubt she looked “very small lying there.” There are no real answers in this article that claims it tells the truth. Looking back on this, it is hard to imagine that any fan fell for this tomfoolery!
She looked very small lying there, head almost buried in the big pillows. But she does not look worn or exhausted. She has been surprisingly lucky in not losing too much of her preciously acquired poundage put on during her vacation trip to Europe, “that wasn’t a vacation at all, but a mad tear from place to place and party to party!” She wore no make-up and the freckles across her nose looked cute and healthy! Near her bed, a table was stacked with the new magazines. A radio was at close reach.
…
We know that she is suffering the fatigue which her fame and fortune have cost her–but we know, too, that her spirit is alive and alert and will carry her out of her sick room, again glowing with health.
Hmmm….I doubt she looked “very small lying there.” There are no real answers in this article that claims it tells the truth. Looking back on this, it is hard to imagine that any fan fell for this tomfoolery!
