Loretta Young

Discussion of the actors, directors and film-makers who 'made it all happen'
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dfordoom
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Loretta Young

Post by dfordoom »

So what do you think of Loretta Young? I'm really only familar with her very early films, such as Employees' Entrance (with that delightful cad Warren William) and Midnight Mary. Most recently I saw her in DeMille's The Crusades. Do you think she was any good as an actress?
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Dewey1960
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Post by Dewey1960 »

The beautiful Miss Young is one of my favorites from the Golden Age. Most people tend to think of her as a "goody two shoes" because some of her later roles (THE FARMER'S DAUGHTER, THE BISHOP'S WIFE, etc), but those early pre-codes (MIDNIGHT MARY, EMPLOYEES ENTRANCE) you mentioned in your post would dispel any notions of prudeness. A MAN'S CASTLE from 1933, directed by Frank Borzage, was also quite memorable. Her post-code films offer much to enjoy as well: she's terrific in the madcap comedy-mystery A NIGHT TO REMEMBER (1943) co-starring Brian Ahern and wonderfully effective in the noirish mysteries THE STRANGER (1946), THE ACCUSED (1949), and CAUSE FOR ALARM (1951). In the late 50s she hosted a weekly television anthology series (THE LORETTA YOUNG SHOW) in which she sometimes appeared. What I remember most about that program was the dramatic entrance she would make at the beginning of each episode, cascading down a stairway, her gown swirling about as she descended... What a beauty!
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movieman1957
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Post by movieman1957 »

An early film of interest is "Call of The Wild" with Clark Gable. They were reported to be in love. A woman even claims to be a child of an affair. (I think she is in a documentary on Gable.) I haven't seen it in years but some find the chemistry to almost confirm the affair.

The late, great Alan Sherman sang about Loretta coming through her door at the beginning of her program.
Chris

"Time flies like an arrow, fruit flies like a banana."
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MissGoddess
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Post by MissGoddess »

I really enjoy her early films a lot. She was exceptionally beautiful in those days. I've been hoping to see A Man's Castle for a long time---I wish Fox or TCM would air it. Of her later films, I like The Bishop's Wife, Cause for Alarm, The Accused and The Stranger.

She's not the most "exciting" actress in history, but likable.
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MissGoddess
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Post by MissGoddess »

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jdb1

Post by jdb1 »

Sorry, gang, but I don't share in your delight with this actress. I find her acting only so-so - it seems to consist mainly of widening her eyes and looking like a deer in the headlights.

I think she has a really big face, and it kind of scares me. Not that she's bad looking, but she has the facial features of a person you would expect to be at least seven feet tall.

You know the story about how she had a "curse jar" on the set of her TV show, and anyone who uttered any type of naughty words (or what she considered to be naughty words) was required to put 25 cents in? So one of the grips or somesuch transgressed, and Loretta traipsed up to him with her little jar and a schoolmarmish scolding, which apparently she was very fond of administering. The man dropped a fistful of quarters into the jar and told her to F off. I heard some other actress tell this story on a talk show; maybe it was Bette Davis, I'm not sure-- it could have been Lucille Ball -- but she laughed mighty hard in telling it.
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moira finnie
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Post by moira finnie »

You know the story about how she had a "curse jar" on the set of her TV show, and anyone who uttered any type of naughty words (or what she considered to be naughty words) was required to put 25 cents in? So one of the grips or somesuch transgressed, and Loretta traipsed up to him with her little jar and a schoolmarmish scolding, which apparently she was very fond of administering. The man dropped a fistful of quarters into the jar and told her to F off. I heard some other actress tell this story on a talk show; maybe it was Bette Davis, I'm not sure-- it could have been Lucille Ball -- but she laughed mighty hard in telling it.
Judith,
I've seen that curse jar story attributed to everyone from William Wellman to Robert Mitchum, but truth be told, I still like Loretta. It may be her early work, such as those films already mentioned, (though let's not forget her in Taxi (1932) with Cagney either), or perhaps it's simply the fact that I was brainwashed by seeing Come to the Stable the day before Christmas vacation began at St. Patrick's Convent School, so I really associate her with something good--like getting sprung!
An early film of interest is "Call of The Wild" with Clark Gable. They were reported to be in love. A woman even claims to be a child of an affair. (I think she is in a documentary on Gable.) I haven't seen it in years but some find the chemistry to almost confirm the affair.
Movieman,
I'm pretty convinced of the fact of Loretta Young having a biological child by the then married Clark Gable after appearing together in Call of the Wild. (I think they had a lot of chemistry on screen together too). Usually, I'm pretty skeptical about such claims, but in this case, there are many things that seem to indicate the truth of the matter.

The girl in question was Judy Lewis who was "adopted" by her then single mother, Loretta Young, within two years of her birth, (along with another orphan who, in a bizarre twist, was later 'returned' to the orphanage). Ms. Lewis later took her stepfather's name, and she wrote a book about her origins and her relationship with her mother called Uncommon Knowledge in the '80s. Ms. Lewis first heard that her father might be Gable as a schoolchild when she was teased about having big ears like Mr. G. (her mother had them corrected with cosmetic surgery). She met Gable briefly one afternoon as a teen when she found him sitting alone in her living room after she arrived home from school. He questioned her carefully, without ever explaining his presence, and then left. That was the last time she saw him.

Years later, Lewis asked her mother point blank if she was really "adopted" as the press said, and was told that she was Miss Young's actual biological child, but because of the morales of the day, acknowledgment as such would've ended her mother's career, (her mother also supported most of her extended family at that time). Though Lewis and Young were estranged for a time after the book publication, they were said to be reconciled prior to the actress' death. Today, Lewis is a psychotherapist and I believe has her own website here
As you can see from the picture, she looks very like her mother physically as well:
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MissGoddess
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Post by MissGoddess »

Judy's eyes are Clark's eyes from what I've seen of her. She is a very pretty lady and has such a "young" face (pun intended).
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moira finnie
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Post by moira finnie »

I see what you mean about her eyes, Miss G. Perhaps I should add that the book that Lewis wrote was not anything like any of the more lurid tomes by the children of Joan Crawford, Bette Davis or Bing Crosby. The author actually seemed to love her mother, but was understandably affected by the mystery of her paternity.

Getting back to movies, I wish that TCM would show The Devil to Pay (1929) sometime with teenager Loretta and Ronald *sigh* Colman as a romantic team. That film is a delightful memory.

I also wouldn't mind seeing the Lon Chaney vehicle Laugh, Clown, Laugh (1928)again. It's one of the Chaney films that really holds up well, imho.
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Post by Vecchiolarry »

Chris, Moira and Judith,

Judy Lewis is Loretta Young's child with Clark Gable. I know Judy quite well and she has told me that Loretta did tell her those facts before the book was written. However, LY would never publically confirm these facts and why should she; it's her business.
This is now a matter of public knowledge, attested to in interviews by Judy Lewis.
I last saw Loretta Young in Palm Springs in 1998, and had read the book but, of course, never mentioned any of this to her.

Many people have claimed to be the one who told Loretta to "Go F--- Yourself" in the swear jar story but I first heard it on a TV interview show when Joan Crawford claimed she'd said it on Loretta's TV show set.
She said that she was visiting and when she said, "s***", Loretta produced the jar and started clanging it at her, telling her she owed 25 cents and Joan pulled out $10.00 and said, "Here's 10 bucks now Go F--- Yourself!!".......

Larry
jdb1

Post by jdb1 »

You know, Larry, it's very possible that many, many people had a similar reaction to LY's rule, and that more than one told her where to get off. IT doesn't sound like something that would have gone over very well in Hollywood (or in many other places, for that matter).

I'm willing to believe all of them.
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moira finnie
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Loretta Young Day 8/27/07

Post by moira finnie »

After taking a more thorough look at the Summer Under the Stars schedule, I see that my wished-for The Devil to Pay is being shown on TCM this August on Loretta Young Day, (albeit at 3am) Maybe I'll also get to see the entirety of Employee's Entrance and Bedtime Story this time around. I'd recommend Life Begins for the mock-serious, highly inaccurate depiction of a maternity ward--though Miss Young was very touching as a mom-to-be who's also a con. Not to be missed: Glenda Farrell as a vaudevillian inmate, er, I mean patient who's about to pop out twins.

Sounds like a day long feast of Young fun! Btw, Larry, thanks so much for contributing your inside knowledge of Judy Lewis' story.

Monday August 27, 2007
3:00 AM
The Devil To Pay (1930)
4:30 AM
Life Begins (1932)
6:00 AM
Employees' Entrance (1933)
7:30 AM
The Life Of Jimmy Dolan (1933)
9:00 AM
The Unguarded Hour (1936)
10:30 AM
The Stranger (1946)
12:15 PM
The Doctor Takes a Wife (1940)
1:45 PM
Bedtime Story (1942)
3:15 PM
Key To The City (1950)
5:00 PM
The Farmer's Daughter (1947)
7:00 PM
The Bishop's Wife (1947)
9:00 PM
Rachel And The Stranger (1948)
10:30 PM
Along Came Jones (1945)
12:15 AM
Paula (1952)
1:45 AM
Cause For Alarm (1951)
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MissGoddess
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Post by MissGoddess »

Thanks Moira for posting the schedule---I haven't seen THE DEVIL TO PAY so I'm sure to get that, as well as the other pre-codes, on tape.
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moira finnie
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The Men in Her Life (1941)

Post by moira finnie »

Has anyone ever seen the 1941 Loretta Young-Conrad Veidt movie, The Men in Her Life? In it, the actress seems to hark back to her early role in Laugh, Clown, Laugh as a circus performer--in this one she hopes to give up the sawdust and apparently wishes to become a ballerina. It has a great cast, but never seems to have been made available on video. You can read more about the film here. Thanks in advance for any info.
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ken123
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Post by ken123 »

I really like RAMONA with co - star Don Ameche, as an American Indian couple who meet many travails along the way. Set in 1800's California. :wink:
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