Born in Indiana, she was eight years old when her parents divorced, and her mother took her and her two older brothers to L.A. to start a new life. At age twelve she was spotted playing baseball in the street by director Allan Dwan who cast her as a tom-boy in "A Perfect Crime". Bitten by the movie bug, she went on to amateur theatre, small and then larger roles in Fox westerns and comedies. In 1926, an auto accident scarred the left side of her face, which was repaired by plastic surgery. After recuperating, she went to Max Sennett and made 13 two-reelers in 18 months. This was followed by full-length features at Pathe and then Paramount, where she became one of Hollywood's highest paid stars. In her personal life, she became noted for her coarse language, practical jokes, lavish parties and her genuine concern for all people, down to the lowliest crew members. She was returning from a War bond drive in her home state of Indiana, when her plane crashed outside of Las Vegas in 1942, killing her and her mother and 20 other passengers.



They Knew What They Wanted (1940): $150,000
Vigil in the Night (1940): $150,000 + % of gross
In Name Only (1939): $150,000 + % of gross
Made for Each Other (1939): $150,000
Nothing Sacred (1937): $18,750/week
Swing High, Swing Low (1937): $150,000
Rumba (1935): $3,000/week
Twentieth Century (1934): $5,000
No Man of Her Own (1932): $1,000/week
Fast and Loose (1930): $350/week
Matchmaking Mamma (1929): $400/week
The Swim Princess (1928): $400/week
Hearts and Spurs (1925): $25/week
Marriage in Transit (1925): $75/week

During World War II, after her death, a Liberty ship was named after her. Linked romantically to crooner Russ Columbo until his accidental death late in 1934. Interred at Forest Lawn, Glendale, California, USA, in the Great Mausoleum, Sanctuary of Trust, on the left hand side, next to Clark Gable. Second cousin of Kenneth Hawks. Cousin-in-law of Mary Astor. Cousin-in-law of Dee Hartford. She was posthumously awarded the Medal of Freedom by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt as the first woman killed in the line of duty in WWII. Roosevelt greatly admired her work for the war effort, and ironically she was returning from an engagement selling War Bonds when her plane crashed. Measurements: 34 1/2B-24 1/2-34 (MGM costumer Adrian's book), (Source: Celebrity Sleuth magazine) Her film To Be or Not to Be (1942) was in post-production when she died in a plane crash, and the producers decided to leave out a part that had her character ironically saying, "What can happen in a plane?" The Jack Benny radio show that followed her death was cancelled because Benny, a good friend and admirer, was grief-stricken. The time was filled with music instead. She was offered the lead role in a proposed melodrama, "Smiler with a Knife," to be directed by a newcomer at RKO named Orson Welles. She turned it down, opting to return to screwball comedy in Mr. & Mrs. Smith (1941). Welles refused to make Smiler without her; instead, he began work on Citizen Kane (1941). The plane crash that killed her took place less then a month before the Oscars. Despite her mothers premonition of the disaster, she refused to take a train to Los Angeles. She was reputedly in a rush after getting wind of an alleged affair between her husband Clark Gable and Lana Turner who were filming Somewhere I'll Find You (1942) at the time. Was named #23 Actress, The American Film Institutes 50 Greatest Screen Legends The decision to take the plane which eventually killed Carole and her mother was decided literally by the flip of a coin, with Carole winning the toss. The plane they took was a military convoy which made many stops in order to pick up troops. After the first stop, an officer requested Carole, her mother and publicist to get off the plane to make room for more troops. Carole reportedly argued with him, stating the fact she had raised more than half a million dollars in war bonds and had the right to stay on. The officer finally conceded, and shortly after, the plane crashed. Her performance as Maria Tura in To Be or Not to Be (1942) is ranked #38 on Premiere Magazine's 100 Greatest Performances of All Time (2006). Part of her honeymoon with Clark Gable was at the Willows Inn in Palm Springs. The Inn continues to operate to this day and anyone can stay in the same room, called "The Library Suite" today. The room remains largely unaltered since the Gables stayed there more than 60 years ago. She was of English and German heritage. Just before her relationship with Clark Gable began in earnest, Carole read and loved the book "Gone With the Wind". Excited, she sent a copy of the book to Gable, with a note attached reading "Let's do it!". Gable wrongly assumed she was making a sexual advance to him, and called Carole to organize a date. When he found out Carole wanted to make a film of the book with him as Rhett Butler and herself as Scarlett, he refused, and kept the copy of the book she had given him thereafter in his toilet. Attended Fairfax High School in Los Angeles. Was elected "May Queen" in 1924. Quit soon thereafter to pursue acting full time. Graduated in 1927. Twice turned down opportunities to play a newspaperwoman, in Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936) and His Girl Friday (1940). The roles brought their respective actresses (Jean Arthur and Rosalind Russell) considerable attention. After her death, the Van Nuys News ran an unusual front page tribute: "Down deep in their hearts, those who had chatted with her over the back fence or across a garden row knew that Carole Lombard wanted more than anything else to be a model housewife and a good neighbor. And she was just that. She was a loveable person, just as much at home in blue denims and ginghams as she was in furs and jewels.". Gable and Lombard first met in late 1924 while working as extras on the set of Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ (1925). They would make three films together as extras, Ben-Hur, The Johnstown Flood (1926) and The Plastic Age (1925) and star together in No Man of Her Own (1932), but not become romantically attached until 1936.