Fireball

by Robert Matzen

  After a change into formal attire, the movie star attends a tea and reception at the governor's mansion prior to heading to the Cadle Tabernacle. [©2013 GoodKnight Books. All Rights Reserved.]

  Carole delivers a speech at the Cadle Tabernacle. [©2013 GoodKnight Books. All Rights Reserved.

  Dignitaries congratulate Carole as Petey (far left) looks on. [©2013 GoodKnight Books. All Rights Reserved.]

  Following her speech, Carole leads more than 11,000 Hoosiers in what was, for her, a shaky rendition of the Star Spangled Banner. [©2013 GoodKnight Books. All Rights Reserved.]

  Rescuers discover this catastrophic scene on the morning of January 17. Scorch marks stain the cliff where the fireball burned. [Trans World Airlines (TWA) Records (K0453), the State Historical Society of Missouri]

  The CAB report shows that Gillette’s compass heading from Boulder City (dotted line) is correct; from Las Vegas (solid line), a fatal error.

  An official CAB photos shows, at upper left, the bodies of three crash victims that had been thrown clear of the wreck. Investigators are examining the inverted tail section. [Trans World Airlines (TWA) Records (K0453), The State Historical Society of Missouri]

  Remains are wrapped in army blankets and set aside. Soon the right wing (at center of photo) will be moved to reveal several crash victims, including Carole Lombard. [Trans World Airlines (TWA) Records (K0453), The State Historical Society of Missouri]

  On January 18, rescuers struggle to remove Carole Lombard’s body from the crash scene by pulling it up the mountain on ropes.

  Left: Prior to the crash, Lyle and Elizabeth Van Gordon, witnesses of the fireball, pose in Goodsprings with Potosi Mountain behind them. [Van Gordon Family Collection] Above: Volunteers and investigators rest on the mountainside. [LostFlights Archive Collection]

  MGM VP Eddie Mannix, a gaunt, devastated Clark Gable, and close friend Al Menasco leave Gable's bungalow at the El Rancho Hotel Las Vegas.

  At the Pomona train station, the crated caskets of Carole, Petey, and Otto are moved to hearses for the trip to Forest Lawn Glendale. [The Carole Lombard Archive Foundation]

  Invitations are required for admittance to the joint funeral service for Carole and Petey at Forest Lawn. [Marina Gray Collection]

  Early in 1944 the S.S. Carole Lombard is christened by Irene Dunne. A tearful Gable looks on from a distance as Louis B. Mayer cowers and the ever-tough Fieldsie (right, in head wrap) doesn’t flinch. [Marina Gray Collection]

  Chapter Notes

  1. A Perfectly Routine Friday Night

  Accounts of the events of January 16, 1942, by Thomas Parnell, Charles Duffy, Ed Fuqua, and Floyd Munson were found in the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) official “Investigation of Accident Involving TWA Trip 3, Aircraft NC 1946, which occurred near Las Vegas, Nevada, January 16, 1942,” Docket No. SA-58 (known throughout the Chapter Notes as “CAB investigation”), and in “Hearings Before a Select Committee on Air Accidents in the United States House of Representatives, 77th Congress, Second Session on House Resolutions 125 and 403, Executive Hearings in Las Vegas on January 21-33, 1942 and in Los Angeles January 23-27, 1942” (known as “House investigation”).

  2. Perpetual Motion Machine

  Biographical information on early Carole Lombard came from a variety of sources, including Larry Swindell’s biography, Screwball, which was written in 1975 when a number of Lombard’s friends and relatives were still alive. Periodicals and files at the Margaret Herrick Library of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences provided a wealth of material, including the Lyn Tornabene Collection of research gathered in writing her 1976 biography of Clark Gable, Long Live the King. Tornabene’s audiotaped interviews with many notables from 1973–75 are available for study, including that of Delmer Daves, who spoke at length about his relationships with both Lombard and Gable.

  3. The Radiating Halo

  Descriptions of the Blue Diamond Mine and the Charleston Mountains, including the heights known variously as Potosi Mountain, Table Mountain, Double Up Peak, and Double or Nothing Peak, were based on my visits to these sites. The testimony of Yanich, Harper, and Salyer was found in the CAB investigation and House investigation transcripts, as was the story of Charlie and Ruth Hawley. Quotes by eyewitnesses received wide coverage in news stories that appeared within the first 24 hours of the accident as reporters struggled to make sense of the crash.

  4. The Long Road

  Various accounts covered the surgical procedure on Carole Lombard’s face, and information about her subsequent treatment and recovery was taken primarily from the article, “Scars That Glorified,” by Agnes O’Malley, which appeared in the June 1929 issue of Motion Picture Classic and from other allusions by Lombard to the accident. The article, “Sophisticated at Sixteen,” by Carter Bruce, in the July 1931 issue of Modern Screen also helped. The Academy Library houses Lyn Tornabene’s audio interviews of Richard Lang and Margaret Wyler. My interviews with Lombard archivist Carole Sampeck in the fall of 2012 provided fresh perspective on the encounter with Joseph P. Kennedy. Contemporary articles at the Academy fleshed out the Lombard of this time; the Hughes and Liveright stories were unearthed by Swindell. Jill Winkler’s niece, Nazoma Ball, provided perspectives on Carole Lombard and Jill in a series of interviews I conducted with her in 2012 and 2013. The relationship between Lombard and William Powell was widely chronicled in contemporary magazines. Robert Stack’s memories were collected in my interview with him in Bel Air and also gathered in his memoir, Straight Shooting.

  5. A Long and Grim Weekend

  An understanding of the geography of southern Nevada, including Goodsprings and the Walking Box Ranch, was obtained during my explorations of the area. The papers of the CAB investigation contained transcripts of the radio conversations between Flight 3, Las Vegas Air Traffic Control, and Burbank. The story of Thomas Parnell was taken from the CAB and House investigations.

  6. Merely Physical

  Communications between Carole Lombard and Russ Columbo revealed their complex relationship. These were published in the 2002 biography, Russ Columbo and the Crooner Mystique by Joseph Lanza and Dennis Penna. Their research revealed a tempestuous pairing unlike that described in previous biographical work and cast doubt on the often-repeated story that Lombard had described Columbo as the love her life to Noel Busch of Life magazine. My conversations with Greenbriar Picture Shows web host John McElwee and Barrymore expert Mike Mazzone helped to put Twentieth Century in proper perspective, and the account by Howard Hawks of working with Lombard and Barrymore on the picture appeared in Richard Schickel’s The Men Who Made the Movies. Lombard’s perspective was found in the article, “Perfect Abandon for Carole Lombard,” by William Fleming, which appeared in the June 1934 issue of Shadoplay magazine.

  7. A Perfect Flying Experience

  The experiences of Capt. Art Cheney were found in the CAB and House investigations, as were transmissions between the ground and the Western Air vehicles in flight that evening.

  8. Inflexible Fate

  Coverage of the shooting of Russ Columbo was provided by the Los Angeles Times, with Lanza and Penna providing depth and perspective. Lombard’s comments on the matter were found in a somewhat sanitized article, “We Would Have Married,” by Sonia Lee in Movie Classic, December 1934. Descriptions of the Church of the Blessed Sacrament resulted from my visit to the site.

  9. Jimmy Donnally Lands His Plane

  I discovered the story of Wayne Williams and Charles Castle while reviewing coverage of the crash of Flight 3 by the Pittsburgh Press in an article entitled, “Flier Fulfills Hopes of Child: Pilot Killed in Crash Gave Illinois Boy Ride in ’30.” From there the trail led back to contemporary newspaper coverage of the Charles Castle story from June 1930. In particular, a full account was contained in a three-column story syndicated nationally and entitled “Boy Makes Hero of Mail Aviator: Achieves Ambition to Ride with Idol and Is Now Official Mascot.”

  10. Calculated Mayhem

  The v
iews of George Raft were expressed in Lewis Yablonsky’s 1974 Raft biography. The William Haines story was courtesy of Larry Swindell. Descriptions of Lombard’s new tennis lifestyle came from an insightful in-person interview between Lyn Tornabene and Alice Marble that is available at the Academy Library, with supplemental information in Marble’s two memoirs, The Road to Wimbledon and Courting Danger. The comment by Swami Daru Yoganu was found in Paramount press materials dated 1936. Lombard’s parties were covered widely by the press and photographers, mentioned in numerous movie star memoirs, and encapsulated in articles, including “How Carole Lombard Plans a Party” by Julie Lang Hunt, which appeared in the February 1935 issue of Photoplay. The story of Ernst Lubitsch’s first involvement with Lombard was courtesy of Scott Eyman’s 1993 Lubitsch biography. A history of the Mayfair Club was obtained from the 1985 book Out with the Stars by Jim Heimann.

  11. Flight 3 Is Down

  The testimony of H. Lyle Van Gordon was found in the CAB investigation and that of Elizabeth in the House investigation. Lyle’s sons, Steve and Doug, provided information about their parents, particularly Lyle, who was able to climb a mountain in an effort to save lives. Chuck Duffy, the TWA man in Las Vegas on the night that Flight 3 stopped there, was interviewed by both CAB and House investigators.

  12. A Man in a Man’s Body

  Lyn Tornabene’s comprehensive biography, Long Live the King, is the starting point for any conversation about Clark Gable. My visits to Clark Gable’s birthplace, Cadiz, Ohio, and vicinity also helped. Original quotes about Gable and Lombard by Howard Strickling, Gail Strickling, Ursula Theiss, Delmer Daves, Richard Lang, Harry Drucker, and Benny Massi were obtained from audiotape recordings in the Tornabene collection at the Academy. One of Gable’s fast-cars-and-fast-motorcycles friends, Hollywood actor and writer Steve Hayes, provided perspectives on Gable that are sprinkled throughout this book. The story of Gable and Loretta Young comes from many sources, primarily Judy Lewis’s 1994 memoir, Uncommon Knowledge. Tales of the Lombard pranks and publicity stunts were described in “Subject: Lombard” by Claude Binyon, which ran in the January 1940 issue of Photoplay, and Elizabeth Wilson’s “It Looked Good for a Laugh at the Time,” in the January 1941 issue of Silver Screen. Carole’s Bel Air menagerie was described in many print pieces, including Julie Lang Hunt’s, “The Utterly Balmy Home Life of Carole Lombard,” which ran in the February 1937 edition of Motion Picture.

  13. The Plane That Fell

  Calvin Harper described his movements on the night of January 16 to the House panel. The story of Willard George is problematic. George is the only witness who claimed to see Flight 3 circling over the foothills and bobbing up and down prior to impacting the mountain as if there were “a fistfight in the cockpit.” Nobody at the Blue Diamond Mine saw that, the Hawleys didn’t see it, and the fact that Flight 3 impacted the cliffs while in perfectly level flight all but disproves George’s testimony before CAB investigators, and yet in other regards, he speaks credibly and is difficult to ignore as a witness. Investigators concluded that George was reporting on the movements of Western 10 at the point in the timeline when Capt. Cheney circled the wreckage. Maj. Anderson testified before both the CAB and House panels.

  14. Somber Hymns and Cold Marble

  American newspapers carried the story of Clark Gable vs. Violet Norton, and FBI files on this case were consulted as well. David Stenn’s excellent biography, Bombshell, provided grounding on the career and relationships of Jean Harlow. Contemporary newspaper accounts provided background on the funeral, and my visits to Forest Lawn Glendale were helpful as well. An article by Kirtley Baskette covered the Birdwell-created story of Lombard’s week as publicity chief of the Selznick Studios. Lyn Tornabene interviewed Margaret Wyler about her time with Lombard, and I listened to that audio recording at the Academy. A March 1937 Movie Mirror article by Jack Smalley entitled, “Lombard Creates a Glamorous Rival,” was also consulted.

  15. Hoping Against Hope

  Accounts of first responders in and around Las Vegas were found in the Las Vegas Review Journal and Reno Evening Gazette and also in testimony given to CAB and House investigators.

  16. Certified Bombs

  Both Long Live the King and Screwball provide descriptions of Gable’s lifestyle and proclivities, and these were supplemented by my reviews of source interviews in the Tornabene collection at the Academy, particularly the interviews with Howard and Gail Strickling, Ursula Theiss, Delmer Daves, and Jean Garceau. The “bombing” of MGM with leaflets was covered in the press of the day, which proved to be a much more reliable source than anecdotes recounted decades later. The saga of production of Fools for Scandal at Warner Bros. was uncovered in my thorough review of the production files at the USC Warner Bros. Archives in Los Angeles. The story of Lombard and her tax bill was picked up by the wire services and covered in newspapers large and small.

  17. The Plain, Black Night

  Maj. Herbert Anderson’s trek across the desert is contained in the CAB investigation and more in-depth examination was located in the House investigation.

  18. Malaise

  Details about the Gable-Lombard ranch were found in an article by Ida Zeitlin called “At Home with the Gables,” which appeared in the August 1940 issue of Picture Play, and in another by Adele Whitley Fletcher called, “How Clark Gable and Carole Lombard Live,” from the October 1940 issue of Photoplay. Additional information was supplied by Jean Garceau’s Dear Mr. G. and my visits to Encino. Descriptions of Lombard’s pregnancy at the end of 1939 were found in contemporary newspapers and magazines. Descriptions of the Atlanta premiere of Gone With the Wind abound; Alice Marble talked about the experience of accompanying Gable and Lombard to Atlanta in her memoirs. A description of the Selznick-Fleming feud was given by Howard Strickling to Lyn Tornabene on an audiotape at the Academy, and the Richard Lang interview addressed Gable’s adultery. MGM got some mileage out of the “disappearance” of Carole and Clark in wire stories that made page one of newspapers in January 1940. Garson Kanin wrote a chapter about Lombard in his book, Hollywood, and recounted several of their conversations. Newspapers covered the trip of the Gables to Washington and Baltimore, with coverage so extensive that it was possible to trace the physicians and their specialties. Garceau’s description was found in Dear Mr. G.

  19. Road King

  Warren Carey answered questions from CAB and House investigators in detailing his attempts to reach the crash site.

  20. A Flame to Many Moths

  Don Worth’s article, “Will Carole Lombard’s Marriage End Her Career?” in the July 1939 issue of Modern Screen magazine looked at the star’s struggle to balance career and home life. Garson Kanin’s reminiscence of Lombard in Hollywood was invaluable as a character study. Quotes by Lucille Ball about Lombard were found in Lucille by Kathleen Brady, Lucy in the Afternoon by Jim Brochu, and Ball of Fire by Stefan Kanfer. Insights about Lana Turner were provided by Steve Hayes, a Turner friend and confidant. Turner’s memoir Lana was also consulted, although in that volume she denied any sexual liaison with Gable. Robert Stack opened up to me about Lombard during my face-to-face interview with him about their long association and making To Be or Not to Be. His memoir, Straight Shooting, provided more information. Lombard’s concept of profit participation was recounted by Kyle Crichton in a February 1940 issue of Collier’s and touched upon in Scott Eyman’s Lubitsch biography. Jack Benny’s experience making To Be or Not to Be was recounted in Mary Livingstone Benny’s book. Details about the planning of the bond tour appeared in contemporary newspapers.

  21. Fool’s Errand

  Details of the passage of the first responders to the base of Potosi Mountain were found in the CAB Report, and descriptions of the terrain were based upon my site visits.

  22. The VIPs

  Details about Otto Winkler were courtesy of Jill Winkler’s niece, Nazoma Ball, with additional information provided by Howard and Gail Strickling. Jill Winkler’s manuscript, “Flashback into Obliv
ion,” supplied by Nazoma Ball, provided insight into Otto and Jill, details of the elopement of Lombard and Gable, and a description of the last visit of the Winklers to the Gable ranch. Jean Garceau’s Dear Mr. G. described the notes written by Carole to Clark, and my interviews with Carole Sampeck put those notes in context. Howard Strickling, Robert Stack, Richard Lang, Fred Peters III, and others confirmed that the Gables had quarreled prior to Carole’s departure for Indianapolis. Myron Davis’s reminiscences about working on the bond tour were taken from a 2009 interview by Dean Brierly that appeared in B&W magazine. Newspaper articles detailed Lombard’s whistle-stops en route to Indianapolis. Wes Gehring’s book, Carole Lombard: The Hoosier Tornado, shed light on the day of the bond sale, as did many newspaper accounts.

  23. Gleaming Silver

  Descriptions of the climb of the first responders up Mt. Potosi were based on my climb to the crash site over the rescuers’ route. Testimony by Lyle Van Gordon and Jack Moore appeared in the CAB investigation, and their rescue efforts were chronicled in the Las Vegas Review Journal.

  24. The Coin Flip

  Evidence contained in press coverage indicates that Lombard’s decision to fly home was a spontaneous one made the night of January 15. Of greatest interest is a wee hours of January 16 conversation between Carole and Petey overheard at the Indianapolis airport by Mr. and Mrs. James C. Todd of Indianapolis. Petey begged Carole not to get on the plane, indicating that the decision was a recent and controversial one. This story, under the headline, “Mother Warned Carole Lombard,” hit the wire services with other first reports about the crash. The coin flip was also widely covered in newspapers. Myron Davis described his airport meeting with Carole in the B&W interview.