Wife vs. Secretary [Blu-ray]

Overview

Magazine publisher Clark Gable is happily married to Myrna Loy. Clark's devoted, super-efficient secretary Jean Harlow may have once harbored a secret desire for her boss, but she's perfectly content with boyfriend James Stewart. Accompanying Gable on a crucial business trip, Jean answers the phone in her boss' suite. Myrna, on the other end of the line, misunderstands, thereby setting the stage for a series of subsequent misunderstandings. As one can see, nothing much really happens in Wife vs. Secretary. The film is a vehicle in every sense of the word, totally reliant on the appeal of its stars. But it works beautifully, and remains as entertaining now as it did sixty years ago. One film historian has wondered what Wife vs. Secretary would have looked like had it been made before the imposition of the production code: would Jean have really had an affair with Clark, thereby giving Myrna something to really worry about? No matter; while it may have been racier, it's not likely the film could have been any more entertaining than it already is.

Product Details

Release Date:	01/24/2023
UPC:	0810103687141
Original Release:	1936
Rating:	NR
Source:	Warner Archives
Language:	English
Time:	1:27:00
Sales rank:	24,871

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Jean Harlow	Whitey
Clark Gable	Van
Myrna Loy	Linda
James Stewart	Dave
May Robson	Mimi
Hobart Cavanaugh	Joe
George Barbier	Underwood
Gilbert Emery	Simpson
Margaret Irving	Edna Wilson
William 'Billy' Newell	Tom Wilson
Marjorie Gateson	Eve Merritt
Leonard Carey	Taggart
Charles Trowbridge	Hal Harrington
John Qualen	Mr. Jenkins
Hilda Howe	Mary Connors
Mary MacGregor	Ellen
Gloria Holden	Joan Carstairs
Tom Dugan	Finney
Jack Mulhall	Howard
Frank Elliott	Mr. Barker
Greta Meyer	German Cook
Aileen Pringle	Mrs. Barker
Frank Puglia	Hotel Clerk
Myra Marsh	Miss Clark
Holmes Herbert	Frawley,Business Man
Frederick Burton	Trent
Harold Minjir	Williams
Maurice Cass	Bakewell
Guy D'Ennery	Cuban Waiter
Niles Welch	Tom Axel
Richard Hemingway	Bridegroom
Paul Ellis	Raoul
Tom Rowan	Battleship
Edward Le Saint	Bit
Helen Shipman	Bit
Clay Clement	Herbert
Tom Mahoney	Policeman
Nena Quartaro	Telephone Operator
Charles Irwin	Information Clerk
Andre Cheron	Frenchman
Eugene Borden	Ship's Officer
Hooper Atchley	Postal Clerk
Lucille Ward	Scrub Woman
Philip Trent	Elevator Boy
Helen "Whitey" Wilson	Jean Harlow
Herbert Stothart	Composer

Technical Credits

Alice Duer Miller

John Lee Mahin

Norman Krasna

Clarence Brown	Director
Alice Duer Miller	Screenwriter
John Lee Mahin	Screenwriter
Hunt Stromberg	Producer
Norman Krasna	Screenwriter

Editorial Reviews

A leisurely paced comedy-drama, Wife vs. Secretary remains pure fluff and the kind of fluff that only MGM could get away with. The star trio does as well as could be expected with the rather old-fashioned material but the real treat here is Ray June's fluid camera (the opening sequence, a delightful cinematic "cheat," is a lulu) and art directors William A. Hornung and Edwin B. Willis' glorious sets. Oddly, for such a Grade-A production, there are several minor lapses in continuity, and at one point, Myrna Loy calls Clark Gable's character "Jake" although he is named Van or V.S. in the remainder of the film.

All Movie Guide - Hans J. Wollstein