The Call of the Wild

The last time Clark Gable got loaned out for a film was the year before and he won an Academy Award. This time Louis B. Mayer got a good price for him from Fox for Call of the Wild.

Fox also did something unusual in that the film was shot on location with the mountains of Washington state serving as the Canadian Rockies. Some really stunning cinematography is done for this film, especially in the river scenes. Too bad color was not in use back then.

Watching Gable, Loretta Young, and Jack Oakie on a raft pulling it to shore in what must have been freezing water reminded me so much of the stunts Gable did for The Misfits. Of course back then he had the youth and vim and vigor to do such things.

The film served as the meeting place for Gable and Young they carried on a torrid affair that resulted in Loretta Young giving birth. Back then it would have been a career death sentence for a star to give birth to an out of wedlock daughter, especially for the very Catholic Ms. Young. A whole elaborate charade was concocted with Loretta adopting her own daughter as a single mom.

No Oscars this time for Gable, but a good strong performance as a rugged prospector up in the Klondike during the gold rush. Of course being involved with Loretta sure helped in the love scenes. Young plays a woman apparently abandoned in the snow by her husband who's presumed dead.

Jack Oakie as Gable's sidekick and Reginald Owen as the English villain engaged in some claim jumping are the best two of the supporting actors. Of the human variety.

Then there's Buck, Gable's trusty St. Bernard who he rescues from Reginald Owen. In that rugged country good sled dogs can come in mighty handy and Buck sure proves his worth. Up there, they are indeed man's best friend.

The Yukon Gold Rush: A savage dog and a lonely man each respond to THE CALL OF THE WILD, that primordial release of primitive urges, in their own way.

It should be understood immediately that this movie only borrows the title and a few incidents from Jack London's classic novel. And at that point the comparison between the two should end. This film, rousing & adventurous, is able to stand on its own merits. An excellent cast, fine production values (notice particularly the care with which Skagway & Dawson are depicted) and location shooting in Washington State are the film's strongest assets. The plot, meant solely for entertainment, is pure hokum...

Clark Gable brings his trademark masculinity to a role that didn't require a lot of stretching of his thespian muscles. But in essentially playing himself he is perfectly cast. One cannot overcome the suspicion that London's original story was reworked for the star. Gable had been through this before - remote setting, forces of nature, beautiful woman, adultery. Think RED DUST in the snow.

Loretta Young is the beautiful woman. From scene to scene, no matter what the hardship, she remains living proof that a first class Hollywood makeup job can withstand the worst ravages of the Klondike. This is perhaps too harsh. Like Gable, little more is required of her than to exude physicality. She is indeed a treat to the eyes, even if her inclusion in the plot is patently ludicrous. (The on screen attraction between Gable & Young wasn't faked. A daughter, ostensibly 'adopted' by Young in France, would be the result.)

As Gable's sidekick, comic Jack Oakie has one of his best screen roles. Getting to play most of his scenes strictly for laughs, he adds chuckles to the story which, one assumes, would have outraged London.

Twisting his usual pomposity to a sinister bent, English character actor Reginald Owen is memorable as the film's villain. Dangerously wicked, he makes us want to know more about this man called Smith, with money to burn and a raging temper. The screenplay, wisely, leaves his biography up to the imagination of the viewer.

Sidney Toler & Herman Bing are very good in small roles. Movie mavens will recognize Arthur Housman, veteran of many Laurel & Hardy comedy shorts, as a Skagway drunk with a surprisingly mean punch.

The affection between Gable and Buck, the great St. Bernard with whom he shares so many scenes, is obvious.

Wiliam Wellman is the director at the helm of this version of Jack London's immensely popular novel. As an adventure, this movie offers a lot of fun because of the enormous appeal of its star, Clark Gable. He is a man's man. Mr. Gable projected such an aura about himself that he carried from film to film, making him one of the favorites of all audiences. The gold rush is presented as it should have been for the people that went in search of riches in the inhospitable confines of Alaska.

In this version, Loretta Young plays Claire Blake, the woman who conquered Jack Thornton's heart. The rumored affair between Ms. Young and Mr. Gable is fun to look at. What's real, and what not? It's up to the stars to know and for us, the viewers, to guess. Ms. Young and Mr. Gable were appealing players, as they prove in this film.

In other roles, Jack Oakie, Reginald Owen, Frank Conroy, and other old faces from films of the era make wonderful appearances. Above all, Buck, the great St. Bernard dog in the film is amazing. It's a joy to watch Mr. Gable's scenes with Buck as they compliment one another in that frigid background.

Jack London's novel The Call Of The Wild is pretty much ignored in this 1935 adaptation. The title remains the same and there IS a dog named Buck involved in parts of the action, but apart from that the similarities are virtually non-existent. Far greater emphasis is placed on the human characters in the film than in the book. One has to assume that the film was written as a vehicle for Clark Gable, a big outdoor adventure yarn in which the star could get in to and out of a variety of hair-raising escapades in the frozen wilderness. The fact that London's novel is essentially an animal story with a few human characters passing through the narrative is of little significance to scripter Gene Fowler and director William Wellman. That's not to say The Call Of The Wild is a disposable film; the unusual and expensive decision to film on genuinely cold, mountainous locations (Washington state standing in for Yukon) shows that this was envisaged as a serious box office winner.

Struggling gold prospector Jack Thornton (Gable) and his goofy sidekick Shorty Hooliham (Jack Oakie) travel around the Yukon in the 19th Century, searching for an elusive gold strike that will make them richer than rich. They are helped in their adventures by a St Bernard dog named Buck. Also busily scouring the land for gold is the sinister English-man Smith (Reginald Owen), a cruel rival who has a mysterious past and even a little history with Thornton's dog. During their wanderings, Jack and Shorty come across a woman called Claire Blake (Loretta Young) whose husband has gone missing in the snowfields and could be dead. Claire teams up with Jack, Shorty and Buck, but it isn't long before she finds herself falling for Thornton's roguish charm, even though she cannot be sure if her husband is dead or alive.

The movie is very enjoyable in its old-fashioned way. I'm a believer in the theory that films should try to be faithful to their source material, at least to a reasonable extent, so in some ways I felt dismayed at the lack of respect towards London's original story. However, once I'd got that small irritation out of my system I found The Call Of The Wild a perfectly likable star vehicle. Gable is solid in a role that asks little of him other than to appear rugged and fearless. Owen is very good as the villain of the piece, while Young shares a good chemistry with the hero (in real-life, she and Gable were lovers). Jack Oakie is the least impressive of the key actors, mugging rather embarrassingly as the inevitable comical sidekick. The location work in Washington state adds a sense of authenticity to the film that is very uncommon for a movie made in the studio-bound '30s. On the negative side, though, the film settles for a very convenient ending which ditches plausibility so that the course of true love and personal success can run smoothly (indeed, IMPROBABLY smoothly) for the main protagonists. Of its type and era, however, The Call Of The Wild is watchable and entertaining fare.

Gable has it all for a short while: easy pickings gold nuggets, a gorgeous girlfriend he found in the wilderness, a half-wild soul mate lead dog and a bashful wisecracking partner. But, his grasp on all of these is slippery, as the plot develops. I don't fault Hollywood for departing so flagrantly from London's story, which too was just a yarn. I found this version much more entertaining and profound, despite the stereotypical boss-sidekick relationship between Gable and Jack Oakie.

Gable seems to represent sort of an ideal adventurous entrepreneur: a riverboat gambler at heart, who is willing to take big risks and to work for his fortune when necessary, but who tries to grab all he can and beat out the competition. The chief villain is a stereotypical pretentious cutthroat tycoon: the worst kind of capitalist. In contrast, Gable recognizes certain limits in gaining his fortune and honors his commitments to his partners, be they human or animal. Loretta's creed is yet more tempered: You will get what you want only if you deserve it. See the movie to find out how these various creeds interact to determine the outcome.

This is perhaps Gable's most enjoyable role, along with those in "Mutiny on the Bounty" and "Boom Town". As in most of his best roles, Gable comes across as rakish: part hero, part scoundrel, but never dull. Like Gable, Loretta is at her physical peak at this time, making for a very romantic-looking couple.