The King of Hollywood Clark Gable was married five times.
The first two were marriages of convenience, the fourth was out of grief, and the fifth...
in hopes of finding solace.
But it was his love for his third wife that he cherished throughout his life.
Learn more about the love story of Clark Gable and Carole Lombard.
They were both in relationships when they first met on the set of No Man of Her Own.
The actors absolutely disliked each other from the very first sight.
Clark’s arrogance and narcissism drew Carole crazy.
In turn, Lombard’s habit to curse infuriated Gable.
On the last day on set, Clark presented Carole with ballerina slippers and a card saying:
‘To a true primadonna”.
Carole didn’t wait long and responded with a gift of a large ham decorated with his photo.
Their next encounter was at the White Mayfair Ball six years later.
Clark was holding hands with a rising singer, Edie Adams,
while Carole, who just survived a harsh divorce, came with her close friend.
Lombard was the queen of showy attires.
That’s why she chose a Snow White silk dress.
It hugged her perfect body so much that the only thing men could think of was weather
she was wearing any underwear.
By the end of the night, Carole and Clark were infatuated with each other.
They completely forgot about their dates and left the party together in Gable’s shiny new Duesenberg.
For years, Gable searched for the ideal woman who would accept him the way he was.
And he finally found his icon in Carole Lombard.
But there was a small darkness in their happiness: Clark was still married to Ria Langham.
Despite living separately, the actor wasn’t rushing to divorce, otherwise he had to split
his immense net worth with his ex.
For Carole, the most desired woman of Hollywood, it was a low blow.
Unexpectedly, Ria Langham was the one to fix the situation.
She claimed she was done reading about her husband’s affairs with that randy - Carole,
so she filed for divorce.
Gable was publicly humiliated but got everything he wished for - a divorce from Ria and his
beloved woman by his side.
Despite living in the spotlight, Clark and Carole dreamed of living on a ranch.
They wanted a calm, rural life, breeding horses and enjoying the tranquillity.
Who would believe, but they almost managed to escape the cameras and make their dream come true.
But another problem popped up right away: the divorce cost Clark too much and hit hard on his finances.
So Carole had to pay for a 65-thousand dollar dream house.
Gable and Lombard bred horses and often went hunting together.
Clark used to send fresh eggs and chickens to his friends in the morning with great pleasure.
Carole enjoyed the new dwelling a lot.
But as time went by, she felt empty without children running around and laughing.
The couple tried in vain to get pregnant for a long time.
And suddenly, the news Carole was so long waiting for surprised the whole family.
She learned about her pregnancy on the way to Atlanta for the premiere of Gone with the Wind.
Unfortunately, Lombard had a miscarriage when she was riding a horse.
She suffered prolonged treatment and doctor's visits and finally had to go through another miscarriage.
Lombard abandoned her dreams for a big family.
Gable’s biographer claim that marriage didn’t make him a perfect husband.
Though his heart belonged to Carole, the Hollywood darling could not resist the attention from his fans.
When Carole was on a tour all the way across the country, the rumors about Clark’s love
affair with a 21-year-old Lana Turner reached her.
She rushed home, determined to save her marriage.
Instead of a long train ride, she took a flight on a bumpy commercial aeroplane with an unpressurized cabin.
But the flight never made it to its destination, it smashed into rocks on the way…
When Clark found out about the tragedy, he flew to Nevada to see the wreckage himself.
In the wreckage, he found Carole’s earring that he gave to her for Christmas.
He was never the same person again.
Heavy drinking, smoking and reckless motorcycle riding became common things.
In 1942 he signed up to the U.S. Army Air Corps.
Clark said he didn’t care anymore whether he was dead or alive.
Lombard was his only true love.
He was buried next to her when he passed away.
You don’t know what you have until it’s gone.
Can Clark be blamed in Carole’s death?
Well, we are surely not the ones to judge.
They illuminated Hollywood as the most beautiful and bright couples and will forever remain so.
Thanks for watching.
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