Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1957-05-21


~ The King and his kingdom /,
survived the parting but it see
has come out of it the more il
Preachers Pet" he is his old
kolid. monarchial self. At the
head of a make-believe news
paper city desk in the Perlberg-
Seaton comedy, he is pleasantly
authoritative.
e In his middle sos. or slightly
beyond, Gable still has that
nculptured look: the appearance
If a man who chose to make a
truce with time rather than
night 1t. The time-worn egg
heads Of the same age. or some
what younger, who surround him
might well envy his gift Of ap-
parent immutability.
\ i \ =
As q matter of fact among the
professional newsp q perm n
extras playing themselves in the
picture, they do precisely this.
Yet. the feeling toward Gable is
more one Of wonder than of
envy. He is an agreeable sort. al
together pleasant to work with.
He is also. they agree. damned
brave actor to be playing q city
editor to a staff that, in this
case. is composed Of sharp-eyed.
unsentimental professional news
men.
To do this takes two qualities,
stature and confidence.
At 6 fet, / inch and 100 pounds.
Gable has the former. More than
so starring roles, including his
award-winning reporter in 1T
Happened One Night" have CIV
en- him the latter.
Working on the set Of Teach
er's Pet" with Gable is to learn
that ony kingliness in him is
more a matter Of reserve than
q pose of regality.
This correspondent has known
Gable a long time and shared
briefly with him one Of those
experiences alien enough to both
to be memorable. This was
when they were in the Air Force
IN Miami Beach in 1912 and
worked together on a project
which exposed them to that null
titude of official "superiors" who
untranked Cpl. Gable and Pvt.
Carmody.
Both, now, are much more at
home in what they are doing.
At their first meeting the first
day on the set. they talk Of
this. Of golf. Of the Perlberg-
Seaton decision to use news
paper pros as extras in Teach
er's Pet" Between takes, as
the picture progresses. there are
to be many other light sides.
But it is also to be revealed that
acting is Cables business and
that it is a deadly serious busi-
ness with him.
He is on the set as early as
Director Seaton asks, between 8
and 9 am, in makeup Oight)
and city editors costume. This
Ii to say he is coatless. with his
tie loosened and collar unbut-
toned. ready to rasp out his i'm
pressions of a day as seen by a
tough, illusionless news executive
Seeing his character closeup and
in embryo like this, a critic re-
acts with the cliche: Tailored
for Gable"
Gable, himself, Is the FIRST to
admit the truth Of this. His job
Is to play the role to the hilt fol-
the comedy. the hooking irony.
the poignance and other qualities
which Director Seaton finds In
the script.
Teachers Pet" in its simplest
terms, is a chase picture. In it
Gable is being chased by Mamie
Van Doren who is a platinum
projectile type while he. in turn
Is stalking lady like Doris Day
who teaches college Journalism
Her academic journalism is a
concept that Gables finds revolt
ing and that he cannot find Miss
Day to be the same jars his
convictions about the natural
order Of things.
Having a part in q Gable pic.
ture Is like watching a Gable
picture. but with one big differ
ence. The former reveals what he
does while the latter shows how
he does it.
This is full Of surprises, largely
because one has given 1t nc
previous thought.
The character he is playing
Jim Cannon by name. is agrees
sive. Cannon is hostile to ideas
particularly to the one Of edu-
Gated. college-shaped newsmen
Gable, the man as distinct from
the actor, is neither aggressive
nor hostile. Each represents q
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