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Such a frustrating disappointment

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

This is a beautifully written comedy/drama, very typical of the best of the late 1930's. But this movie illustrates how much it was a man's world and the wife is never to be involved in his business. When Van (Gable) is putting together this big magazine take-over, he completely shuts out his wife, which is why she does not understand why Whitey (Jean Harlow) is down in Havana instead of her. If he had only told her of his hush-hush plans, the whole misunderstanding wouldn't have happened! All of the actors are perfectly cast and do a wonderful job. This is exactly the kind of quality adult performance Jean Harlow was heading towards. What a tragedy she was dead within a year. This is also one of Clark Gable's best roles. He was excellent in this kind of light comedy/drama role...shame he didn't do more.

WIFE VS. SECRETARY (Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 1936), directed by Clarence Brown, with title promising loud and sassy comedy, is actually a somber story by Faith Baldwin featuring a top-notch cast of Clark Gable, Jean Harlow, Myrna Loy, and a young James Stewart shortly before reaching star status himself. Harlow, who earlier encountered a "wife vs. secretary" situation of her own in RED-HEADED WOMAN (1932) opposite Chester Morris, is the secretary again. No longer the vulgar, sex-starved, immoral type from that pre-code era, but resolved, soft-spoken, and highly efficient. With the screenplay by Norman Krasna, Alice Duer Miller and John Lee Mahin, the film itself comes across as not highly original in premise but something slightly ahead of its time as well as better scripted than others bearing a similar theme.The introduction to the central characters starts with the boss. He's Van Stanhope (Clark Gable), a happily married man of three years with an attractive wife, Linda (Myrna Loy), living in a luxurious New York City Park Avenue apartment equipped with servants and expensive furnishings. A magazine publisher of his very own business, Stanhope Publications, Van has an attractive secretary, Helen "Whitey" Wilson (Jean Harlow), who affectionately addresses him as "Dear." A middle-class girl living with her brother and his wife (William Newell and Margaret Irving), Whitey is also engaged to Dave (James Stewart), an ambitious $75 a week working man who wants her to quit working after they get married. Upon her initial meeting with Whitey during an office visit with Linda, Van's mother, Mimi (May Robson), with a suspicious nature based on her own marital experience, advises the non-jealous Linda to have Van dismiss his secretary, but overlooks it, believing their partnership is only platonic. After hearing similar accusations from her society friends (Marjorie Gateson and Gloria Holden) attending her dinner function, and observing Van and Whitey ice skating together at a company party as she sits in the grandstand suffering from a cold, Linda slowly starts believing these accusations to be true. Even Dave, who patiently awaits for Whitey in his car while she works overtime, begins to have his doubts, causing the engagement to be broken. As Van gets called off for an important business deal in Havana, Cuba, Linda eagerly awaits his telephone call that never comes. She finally makes the call herself, connecting to his hotel room at 2 a.m., only to be surprised that it's Whitey, not Van, who answers the phone.Initially a disappointment for anyone expecting a retread of RED-HEADED WOMAN or a wild and crazy farce as Harlow and Loy's second and final union in LIBELED LADY (1936), WIFE VS. SECRETARY is actually quite effective in the way the actors present themselves: Gable the serious-minded businessman who loves his wife ("If you want to keep a man honest, never call him a liar") while looking upon his secretary simply as his loyal assistant; Loy, the highly sophisticated and refined type wearing fur coats, outlandish gowns and even a classy wardrobe at the breakfast table, as the trusting wife. Breaking away from stereotypical feuds between in-laws, wife and mother-in-law get along quite favorably. Resorting to tears at one point, wife's crying is not enacted in the usual outbursts and screeching in the Carole Lombard or later Lucille Ball manner, and thankfully so. Harlow's Whitey is serious-minded and hard-working, but because of her attractiveness and relationship with her employer, falls victim to accusations for which she is innocent. Whitey's confrontation with the wife while on the verge of leaving her husband concludes with her saying, "You're a fool, for which I am grateful." The familiarity of the James Stewart persona is quite evident here, even at this point of his early career. Regardless of he using the male ego reflection of he "wanting to wear the pants," his character is soft-spoken, patient and caring in spite of playing second fiddle to his girlfriend's job. Stewart's two extended scenes with Harlow as they converse late at night while seated in his car gives him worthy attention from its viewers. Director Clarence Brown keeps the leisurely pace moving at 88 minutes. Under less capable direction, WIFE VS. SECRETARY wouldn't have been as interesting with its result. Of its three, or four central characters, it's Harlow who comes out best. Other members of the cast include George Barbier, Hobart Cavanaugh and Gilbert Emery.Seldom seen and revived until cable television came along, WIFE VS. SECREtARY finally turned up on Turner Network Television before finding its place on Turner Classic Movies. Distributed to home video in the 1990s, WIFE VS. SECRETARY is also available on DVD. (*** steno-pads)

Van (Clark Gable) is the boss of a magazine and wants to expand his circulation by buying out a rival. He travels abroad to seal the deal and spends most of his time with his secretary Whitey (Jean Harlow). There are several misunderstandings that leave his wife Linda (Myrna Loy) feeling neglected and betrayed and she files for divorce....There is not much of a plot to this film and the story takes it's time to develop. Apart from the stupid names in this film - Van and Whitey....?? - the cast are good with special mention going to the women. There are interesting sets to look at and memorable scenes include the bedroom scene between Gable and Harlow in Cuba, the confrontation between Harlow and Loy, and the ending. As Harlow seems to be in most of the memorable scenes, I think she comes off best in the film, despite not being the "blonde bombshell" that she is famous for being. She's not that blonde! The film drags and then, all of a sudden, it gets good towards the end with Harlow in all the good scenes.As regards the story, it's waifer-thin but I have to mention May Robson's role as Van's mother, "Mimi". What a bitch! She pulls her son's wife aside and poisons her mind with ideas of a fictional affair between him and his secretary. Bloody cow! Despite the film taking ages to get to the confrontational scenes that we are waiting for, it gets there in the end and you are left feeling that the film has been worth it.

IMDb mentions something interesting that you'll be able to see for yourself if you see the DVD for this film. Included as one of the extras is the short "The Public Pays" and if you look carefully, you'll see the same set used in both films."Wife Vs. Secretary" begins with Clark Gable's character being woken up by the butler. You'll then notice that this amazingly happily married couple sleeps in separate bedrooms--a bizarre convention that is there due to the Production Code of 1934 that would not allow a married couple in the same bed at the same time! To comply, couples either slept in separate beds or separate bedrooms! It's hard to imagine a happily married couple like this with such living arrangements, but this is Post-Code Hollywood! Considering the butler and maid, the palatial apartment and their own private elevator, it's obvious the couple (Gable and Myrna Loy) are incredibly wealthy and successful. I loved how when Gable, the big boss, came back to work after a vacation with Loy he's greeted by his staff--including one who says "Good morning, B.S.!".You soon see that Gable is ably assisted by his secretary (Jean Harlow) and she manages his busy life very well. This is a very interesting role for Harlow and is very, very different from her usual role playing a 'Dame'--an earthy and rather unsophisticated girl. Here, she is efficient and a shadow of her usual earthy self and is a bit of a stretch.Unfortunately, while Gable is a very hard-working and loyal husband and the marriage rock-solid, problems develop. There are lots of wagging tongues that keep making accusations and insinuations--many of which Loy overhears. These gossips and nosy butt-heads keep pointing out how Harlow is and how it would only be natural if Gable has an affair with her. After hearing this repeatedly, Loy unfortunately starts to listen. And, when she starts looking for evidence of an affair, little innocent things begin to look not so innocent. As a result, the marriage starts to fail. Gable's only crime was taking the idle gossip a bit too lightly and perhaps working too hard--and perhaps taking the situation too lightly when he and the secretary begins to spend too much time together. Even if he was a bit unwise, you feel sorry for the guy--especially when it gets so bad that Loy wants a divorce! And, frankly, I could see how many good marriages might be destroyed by the wagging tongues of supposedly well-meaning 'friends' as well as husbands who don't think of how their actions appear to others.Overall, an extremely well-made movie with top acting, a very good script (with one exception--see below) and of all the actors, the one who came off best was Harlow--with a different sort of performance that was a notch better than usual.This film has an interesting point to make, but at other times it seems desperately old fashioned. In particular, when May Robson supposedly gives some sage advice, she tells Loy that you can't be angry at men for having affairs--"they're all like little boys". Wow. What an idiotic thing to say.