MGM Forced Gardner to Abort
Despite being married three times, Ava Gardner had no children. This was not due to a lack of desire to have children or because she was physically incapable. It was actually because MGM tried to control its actresses’ bodies, not wanting their leading ladies to get pregnant. Gardner became pregnant twice while married to Sinatra, and both times she had to have an abortion. “MGM had all sorts of penalty clauses about their stars having babies,” Gardner explained in her memoir. Her husband was upset over the abortions. Today, there are numerous special effects employed to conceal pregnant actresses, but back then, the options were more limited. Still, it’s terrible to learn that the studios pushed actresses to get abortions.
MGM Forced Gardner To Abort
Mogambo Was a Nightmare to Shoot
Most film shoots run quite smoothly, but every now and then you get a disaster in which nothing appears to go right and the major egos collide. That was the case with Mogambo. She went into the shoot with tensions between her and Sinatra, and the shoot itself created its own set of issues. John Ford, the famed director, wanted to cast Maureen O’Hara but had to settle with Gardner, which made for an unhappy working environment as he took it out on her. Clark Gable, who was pals with Gardner, was co-starring, and he was unhappy with how his co-star was treated. This influenced his attitude, and with the director and the two stars all having negative mindsets, it was not a nice set.
Mogambo Was A Nightmare To Shoot