The movie:
Once upon a time in 1934 there was a director with a script seeking to make a movie. The director, Frank Capra, approached various actors and actresses to star in his movie but without any luck:
- Robert Montgomery: worst script I have ever read, no, thanks;
- Myrna Loy - a recent film set on a bus failed and so will this one, no, thanks;
- Margaret Sullavan - no, thanks;
- Miriam Hopkins - no, thanks;
- Constance Bennett - I’ll do it if I can also be the producer (Columbia Pictures: no, thanks);
- Bette Davis - I’ll do it if Warners will lend me to you (Warner Brothers: no, thanks);
- Carole Lombard - I can’t, I’m tied up filming Bolero;
- Loretta Young - no, thanks.
Ultimately Claudette Colbert and Clark Gable were cast in the main roles.
Colbert was less than enthusiastic. She had once made a movie with Capra that bombed and had sworn to never work with him again. She was persuaded by her salary being doubled to $50,000 and the promise that filming would be completed in 4 weeks so that she could take the holiday that she had booked. Apparently she remained grumpy during filming and at the end of shooting stated “I just finished the worst picture in the world.”
