Gable and Lombard

GABLE AND LOMBARD is the kind of film that Hollywood history buffs hate, but fans of love stories just eat up. In other words, the truth is often distorted or ignored, but the emotional core is dead-on.

I won't dwell on the many mistakes, but two are glaring, and must be pointed out. While Carole Lombard was a truly gifted actress (particularly in comedies), she was never Hollywood's #1 star (Lombard never achieved the status of Shearer, Garbo, Davis, or Crawford); L.B. Mayer's 'ordering' rising star Gable to 'make nice' with her, so she'd agree to do a picture at Metro with him is pure hokum. Actors had virtually no say in 'loan outs' in the 1930s; studios made all the decisions, based on maximizing their profits, and controlling their stars. A case in point was Gable's participation in Columbia's IT HAPPENED ONE NIGHT. Had he been given the opportunity, he'd have refused to go (he considered it a 'step backward', and it was, in fact, done as punishment against him, on MGM's part), and he would have never have won his only Academy Award!

The other major gaffe is showing Gable as an AAF officer at the time of Lombard's death. He didn't enlist until after she'd died, partially because of the guilt he felt over his lack of involvement in the war effort, a cause Lombard had died supporting. While Brolin, as Gable, looks terrific in uniform, it just wasn't the truth.

The effectiveness of a story like this relies heavily on the actors portraying the stars, and GABLE AND LOMBARD offers an interesting combination. Despite David Janssen's heavy lobbying for the role of Clark Gable (he always felt he was, actually, Gable's son, and he did, in fact, share many of the actor's physical and vocal qualities), the producers felt that, at 46, he was too old for the role, and went, instead, with 36-year-old James Brolin. Brolin, best-known for his stint in the hit TV series, 'Marcus Welby, M.D.' (and later, in another series, 'Hotel'), was an actor who had all the right 'tools', but never quite achieved film stardom. Nearly cast as Roger Moore's replacement as James Bond (despite a terrific screen test, producer Cubby Broccoli decided to stick with United Kingdom actors), Brolin, with a mustache, looked eerily like Gable during the actor's peak years, and could mimic the actor's vocal inflections and physical mannerisms very effectively. The end result of his mimicry, however, was a Gable who lacked depth, and his performance frequently seemed more a caricature than a portrayal.

Jill Clayburgh, as Carole Lombard, faced a different problem. The 32-year-old actress (who would achieve stardom the following year, in SILVER STREAK), had a very well-written role, which was, in fact, quite close to the actress' actual personality (big-hearted yet at times acerbic, Lombard was known for her salty humor and frequent use of four-letter words, in stark contrast with her classic beauty). Clayburgh, however, with her broad features, looked nothing like Carole Lombard. (If you're unfamiliar with Lombard's 'look', her closest contemporary counterpart is Michelle Pfeiffer.) Clayburgh plays the role very well, but, knowing this, I could never 'suspend disbelief' enough to accept her as Lombard.

However, as I said at the beginning, if you are hooked by true love stories (and aren't familiar with the 'real' Carole Lombard), GABLE AND LOMBARD has all the elements you can ask for; antagonism turning to attraction and then 'forbidden' passion, nearly insurmountable obstacles blocking happiness, eventual triumph, then a heartbreaking tragedy that would ultimately immortalize the lovers. Gable 'carried a torch' for his lost love until his death, in 1960, and GABLE AND LOMBARD gives ample evidence of her impact on his life.

The film is a flawed, but moving testament to their love.

I graduated in 1971 , so when this movie came out in 1976 I was 23 and at a time in my life when showing any emotion was something that only women would do.Then I went to see this movie about Clark Gable and Carol Lombard and it absolutely changed my outlook towards what real love should be.James Brolin was great in portaying Clark,they could not have picked a better actor for the part.Jill Clayburgh was also wonderful and held her own.This movie could lift you up with laughter and then make you wish that the end would never come,and to think it was a true story.This movie never got a fare shake from the critics, which has convenced me to never listen to critics on anything anymore and that really the only critic should be yourself and how you feel about something.I highly recommend this movie to anyone who would like to have a heartfelt experience.I give this movie its 4 star rating it deserves.Thank you , Jon Kodi

At first, I could not believe James Brolin was playing Clark Gable, but he is dead on with his portrayal!!! He's a great reason to see this film. I don't know why this film is rated so low. It was sweet, entertaining and the ending was heartbreaking. It was also great to see the implications of not being a "moral" and "upstanding" actor in the film industry during its early years. It shows how much times have changed. It was also fascinating to see if Clark Gable really had a softer side in him, since he was probably the greatest leading man in the history of Hollywood and a symbol of American manhood during his time. In my mind, this film is wonderful.

Struggling in the mid-seventies just before the blockbuster era settled in, Hollywood looked back to its history for material, and this was one of the results. Based on a pretty good book by Warren G. Harris, the problem with "Gable & Lombard" isn't so much the acting (Brolin does what he can in a no-win situation, and Clayburgh's halfway decent, though it's nearly impossible to suspend disbelief and believe she's Lombard), but the script. It's awful, and worse, historically inaccurate in so many ways (unlike the book).

First of all, Clark and Carole initially met filming "No Man Of Her Own" when Gable was loaned to Paramount in late 1932, while Lombard was married to William Powell; they got along well on the set, but no sparks flew and from all accounts they didn't keep in touch.

Second, Lombard was never a bigger star than Gable (although at the peak of her career, she was the highest-salaried star in the industry thanks to her shrewd business sense). Both elevated their rank in 1934, ironically through films at Columbia -- "It Happened One Night" for Clark, "Twentieth Century" for Carole. Her only film at MGM also came that year, but it wasn't with Gable; it was a gangster comedy called "The Gay Bride," sort of a thirties "Married To The Mob" (in fact, that phrase is actually used in the film). Carole always called it the worst film of her career (although, personally, I deem it far superior to her lone foray at Warners, "Fools For Scandal" in 1938).

Third, and perhaps most inexcusable to me, was having Gable in uniform at the time of Carole's death in a 1942 plane crash returning from a war bond rally in her native Indiana. Lombard was far more interested in world affairs than Gable, and many believe Clark enlisted out of guilt for what had happened to his wife -- something that would have been far more poignant than what was shown on screen. (There's also been conjecture that Gable and Lana Turner, who were making "Somewhere I'll Find You," were having an affair at the time of Carole's death, and that Lombard decided to fly home because of her suspicions. Since Turner was alive in 1976, one can understand why the script didn't touch this issue.) All in all, a mediocre film about two personalities who deserve far better treatment, especially since both were, by all accounts, generally good people and acknowledged as such by those who worked with them. Lombard in particular deserves a decent biopic, as her timeless, iconoclastic qualities still resonate today.

Highly fictional movie about the love affair between Clark Gable (James Brolin) and Carole Lombard (Jill Clayburgh). It chronicles how they first meet and hate each other but eventually fall in love. The problem is Gable's first wife won't give him a divorce and their studios are threatening to drop them.

There are so many factual errors here it's pointless to try and discuss them all. The biggest one for me was the portrayal of Louis B. Mayer (badly played by Allen Garfield) as a kindly man. He was loud and obnoxious and treated the actors like dirt. Here he comes across as a nice gentle father figure which is wildly inaccurate. Still if you just accept this as a fictional tale it's not too bad. It's pretty obvious they spent a lot of money on this--there's some truly beautiful sets and clothes. Also the script isn't too bad. It mostly consists of Brolin and Clayburgh screaming and arguing with each other or hopping into bed...but it still works.

Brolin is VERY convincing as Gable. He looks like him and sounds like him. Also, from what I've heard, he pretty much gave an accurate portrayal of Gable as he really was. Clayburgh looks nothing like Lombard but her acting is excellent and she does show Lombard as she actually was--strong, funny and independent. Also Red Buttons is excellent as a studio publicist. Beautiful music score too.

There are a few problems. The movie is way too long--it's 131 minutes and should have been shorter. Also there's a truly tacky sequence involving a "c**k soc" that should have been eliminated. But, as a fictional tale, this is pretty good. R rated for swearing and very frank sexual talk.