Clark Gable

	Born: February 1, 1901
	Born as: William Clark Gable
	Died: November 16, 1960

Biography:

Clark was born in Cadiz, Ohio. When he was 16 he dropped out of school and worked at many odd jobs before joining a traveling theater company. While he was in Hollywood he got extra work in White man (1924).

Gable's first big break came when he was cast in the lead of the Broadway play Machinal (1928). His Hollywood breakthrough came when he appeared as a gangster in the Joan Crawford vehicle Dance , Fools , Dance (1931). Gable's popularity continued to rise throughout the 30s with movies like Red dust (1932), It happened one night (1934) and Mutiny on the Bounty (1935). By the end of the decade he was known as the King.

Wary of period films after flopping in the costume drama Parnell (1937) Gable at first declined the role of Rhett Butler in the Margaret Mitchell best-seller, Gone with the Wind (1939).

When his wife died in 1942, Clark joined the airforce and received several medals for flying bombing missions over Germany. Gable returned to the screen in 1945 but he never regained the box-office standing he'd enjoyed before the war.

He gave a memorable performance in his last motion picture, The Misfits (1961) (also the final film for Marilyn Monroe) but by then he was exhausted on doing his own stunts and he died of a heart attack within a few days of the film's completion.

Academy awards:

1940 Nominated Best Actor for: Gone with the Wind (1939)
1936 Nominated Best Actor for: Mutiny on the Bounty (1935)
1935 Won Best Actor for: It Happened One Night (1934)

Selected Movies:

• It Happened One Night (1934)
• Gone with the Wind (1939)
• Mutiny on the Bounty (1935)
• San Francisco (1936)
• Red Dust (1932)
• Show Business at War (1943)

Bibliography » Books:

Bibliography » Web:

- It’s a boy
New Scientist -
Seeing-stars.com -