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NEED TO KNOW
Golden age star Clark Gable was married five times
His most famous wife was Carole Lombard, and their relationship inspired both books and a movie
Gable was married to Kay Williams when he died at age 59 in 1960
As one of Old Hollywood's biggest leading men,Gone with the Windstar Clark Gable was rarely without a leading lady.
Married five times in his 59 years, Gable was a husband for nearly half of his life. "I consider women a real and vital part of my life," the actor reportedly toldModern Screenin 1931.
Gable first tied the knot in 1924 with drama coach Josephine Dillon, to whom he was wed until 1930. Shortly after their divorce was finalized, Gable remarried, this time to Maria "Ria" Franklin.
Though Gable remained with his second wife for eight years, making it his longest marriage, the star was reportedly unfaithful: Loretta Young's authorized autobiography,Forever Young: The Life, Loves, and Enduring Faith of a Hollywood Legend, alleged that herCall of the Wildcostar secretly fathered her daughter, Judy Lewis, who was born on Nov. 6, 1935. The actor never publicly claimed Judy as his child.
Gable's most famous love affair was with his third wife, Carole Lombard. Theywed in 1939, shortly after he and Franklin finalized their divorce. Tragically, their marriage was cut short in January 1942, when theMade for Each Otheractress died in a plane crash.
Gable remained single for seven years before tying the knot again, this time with Sylvia Ashley. The split in 1952, and three years later, Gable married the woman he would remain with until his 1960 death: Kay Williams. The pairshared one child, John Clark Gable.
Keep reading to find out more about Clark Gable's wives and the relationships they shared with the "King of Hollywood."
Josephine Dillon
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Gable's first wife, actress and drama coach Dillon, was 17 years his senior. According toThe New York Times, the couple met when he was performing with a Portland, Ore., theater troupe, and Gable was also her pupil.
He spoke of settling down at the age of 23 in a 1931 interview withModern Screen. "She gave me something that I had never had before ... a constant love and inspiration," Gable reportedly said.
According to theGlendale News-Press, Dillon played a big role in launching the actor's career, coaching her future husband after they both moved to Los Angeles in 1924.
The couple, who married in Hollywood that same year, perThe New York Times, were wed for five years before calling it quits. Though Gable and Dillon's divorce was not finalized until April 1, 1930, court papers fromHeritage Auctionsshow an interlocutory divorce judgment was reached in March 1929.
Gable reportedly toldModern Screenthat he didn't believe their age gap had a role in their split. "Some are quick to say that it was the difference in our ages that made the marriage impossible," he said. "I am not sure whether they mean to imply that I was too young ... or that Josephine was older than I. I don't think age has anything to do with the duration of marriage. It has a much deeper foundation."
While Gable didn't elaborate further on his and Dillon's breakup, he reportedly told the publication that he would "take most of the blame" for it.
Dillon was also tight-lipped about their divorce, though she once described Gable as "moody, thoughtful and gloomy," perThe New York Times.
Maria "Ria" Franklin
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Like Dillon, Gable's second wife was also an actress who was his senior by more than a decade.
There are conflicting reports about how and when the two met, but by June 19, 1931, Gable and Franklin had exchanged vows, according toThe New York Times.
Gable described similarities between Franklin and Dillon toModern Screen, reportedly telling the outlet, "In both cases I married women who come up to the standards I have set for what I call my ideal woman."
While the Ohio-born actor's career took off during their marriage — he won an Oscar in 1935 forIt Happened One Night —their love hit a skid soon after:The New York Timesreported that Franklin and Gable separated around the same time.
That same year, Gable's alleged first child, daughter Judy, was born to hisCall of the Wildcostar Young. According to Franklin's separation filing, however, the split was not caused by alleged infidelity, but rather "Mr. Gable's temperament."
AsThe New York Timesreported, Gable announced his plans to ask Franklin for a divorce in December 1938. She officially filed on March 4, 1939, on the grounds of desertion.
Carole Lombard
Many considered Gable's third wife, Lombard, to be the great love of his life, with their romance serving as the basis for several works of art, including the 1976 filmGable and Lombard.
The lovebirds starred together in 1932'sNo Man of Her Own, but according toGable & Lombardauthor Warren G. Harris, it would be years before sparks flew between them.
PerVanity Fair, Harris wrote in his book that Gable and Lombard actively disliked each other on set, with Gable reportedly being annoyed by his costar's boisterousness and Lombard dismissing his "stoic reserve."
Things didn't go much better when they met years later for Lombard's White Mayfair ball, which she hosted in Beverly Hills, Calif., in 1936. According to Harris, Gable asked Lombard for a dance before driving her to his hotel. When she reportedly rebuffed his advances, Gable drove her back to the ball and later gave her a ride home.
Harris wrote inGable & Lombardthat Lombard offended the actor when she asked about Young. Lombard made her amends the next morning, though: "She called up a pet shop and had them send over a pair of doves as a peace offering," wrote Harris. "She then bribed one of the hotel clerks to release the doves in Gable's apartment while he was still asleep. Then he found a card attached to the leg of one of the birds, with the words 'How about it? Carole.' "
The pair began a relationship, but didn't marry until Gable's divorce from Franklin was finalized in 1939. They tied the knot on March 29, 1939, in Kingman, Ariz.The New York Timesreported that the nuptials were extremely intimate, with only the reverend, his wife and one other guest in attendance.
The newlyweds retreated to a 20-acre ranch in the San Fernando Valley, where they had fields of oats, alfalfa and a barn, as detailed byArchitectural Digest.
According toGable & Lombard, the couple wanted a child, but struggled to conceive. Harris also claimed that the pair fought over Gable's alleged infidelity, including on the night of Jan. 12, 1942, when Lombard flew to Indiana on a tour to sell war bonds.
Tragically, Gable never saw her again. The actress died in a plane crash on Jan. 16 when the aircraft she was on with her mother and Gable's publicity manager, Otto Winkler, collided with a mountain due to what Harris reportedly called a "pilot error."
According to her obituary in theSt. Louis Post-Dispatch, Lombard, who had been on her way home, was given a joint funeral with her mother, Elizabeth K. Peters, on Jan. 21.
Though Gable rarely spoke of his loss, he reportedly told theSaturday Evening Postin October 1957: "I have great respect for Carole and the place she had in my life. I want to keep that to myself."
Lady Sylvia Ashley
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Gable remained single for seven years after Lombard's death. Reports suggest that he met his fourth wife, Lady Sylvia Ashley, known for her marriage to actor Douglas Fairbanks Jr., at a party of his agent's in 1949.
On Dec. 20, 1949, Gable married the model near Santa Barbara, Calif., as reported byThe New York Times.
While there are few details about their married life, which they shared for the next two years, Ashley was the one to call it quits. On April 21, 1952, the Associated Press, viaThe New York Times,reported that she was granted a divorce from Gable.
In court, Ashley quoted her husband in his apparent wishes to be single, claiming he told her, "I wish to get free. I don't want to be married to you or anyone else."
Ashley said she had been unaware there was trouble in their marriage until that point.
Kay Williams
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Gable's last marriage was toThirty Seconds Over Tokyostar Williams. According to her 1961 memoir about their love,Clark Gable: A Personal Portrait,the two were never formally introduced. "Clark simply called me on the phone," she revealed.
It wasn't love at first sight for the duo, who started off as friends. "After a few months, I think we were both aware that under our gentle cultivation, the old friendship had blossomed into a truly beautiful courtship," Williams wrote.
They were married in a private ceremony in Minden, Nev., on July 12, 1955, perThe New York Times.
Thoughthe publicationreported that Williams had a heart health scare one year into their five-year marriage, it was Gable who would eventually die of a cardiac ailment.
The actor's death came just four months before the birth of their first child on March 20, 1961. As theLos Angeles Timesreported, Gable died on Nov. 16, 1960, while Williams was asleep across the hall.
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