Teacher's Pet

Entertaining comic 'Battle of the Sexes'!
"Teacher's Pet" is a deliciously funny look at journalism, and the clash between 'formal' education vs. practical experience, with higher learning championed by Doris Day, and the 'School of Hard Knocks' represented by the 'King', himself, Clark Gable. Despite an obvious age difference (Gable, at 57, was showing all of his years), the chemistry between the stars is electric, and with Oscar-nominated Gig Young providing terrific comic support as Gable's brilliant yet down-to-earth competition for Day, the film manages to be both witty and wise.

With over a quarter century of playing newspapermen, the role of hard-boiled City Editor Jim Gannon fit Clark Gable like an old shoe. No-nonsense, pragmatic, and a workaholic, Gannon was the classic 'school drop-out' who learned the newspaper business from the ground up, and held college in contempt. While Gannon was obviously a dinosaur, even by 1950s' standards, Gable appears to be having a ball as the cigarette-smoking,...

A DELIGHTFUL DAY WITH CLARK.
Tough, cynical Jim Gannon, a newspaperman from the "old school" first ridicules then falls for a lady teacher who has her own ideas about writing the news. This little 1958 film is a jewel because it contains one of Gable's finer latter-day comedy performances. As the veteran newsman, Gable literally had me laughing out loud in a couple of scenes - something I didn't expect at this point in his career. As Erica Stone, the beautiful teacher of journalism, Day really shines in her plumb role, conveying sexiness, brains and taste in her performance. Gig Young all but steals the show (he was nominated for a best supporting AA) in his gem of a performance as the likeable egghead Hugo Pine; his playing is smooth and assured. Young eventually WON an Oscar for his brilliant performance as the cynical MC in THEY SHOOT HORSES DON'T THEY? Tragically, Young fought private demons in his private life and would ultimately commit suicide - taking his newlywed young wife with him...

GABLE & DAY SCORE IN GOOD COMEDY.....
Hard-as-nails, uneducated city news editor Jim Gannon (Clark Gable) sits in on a journalism class by teacher Erica Stone (Doris Day) and falls for her. Trouble is, he's posing as Jim Gallagher---a new student, because he had crassly rejected her offer to speak to her class on, what else, journalism. He has a hard nose against education since he never finished high school and believes that experience is the best teacher. She is amazed at his skill and offers to tutor him, unaware of his ruse. Complications arise from a colleague of Stone's, Hugo Pine (Gig Young) who's a world class scholar on everything. Mamie van Doren is in an all too brief role as Peggy DeVore, Gannon's girlfriend who sings at the Bongo Club and performs "The Girl Who Invented Rock & Roll". She's very funny and holds her own with Gable in the equally funny night club scene. This b&w 1958 film (scripted by Fay & Michael Kanin) has much to say on honesty and truth in journalism but also scores points on experience as...

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