Josephine Dillon

Josephine Dillon
U.S. passport photo from 1918
Born	(1884-01-26)January 26, 1884 Denver, Colorado, U.S.
Died	November 11, 1971(1971-11-11) (aged 87) Glendale, California, U.S.
Resting place	Calvary Cemetery, East Los Angeles
Nationality	American
Alma mater	Stanford University
Occupation	Actress, acting teacher
Spouse(s)	Clark Gable (m. 1924; div. 1930)
Relatives	Enrica Clay Dillon (sister)

Josephine Dillon (January 26, 1884 – November 11, 1971) was an American stage and film actress and acting teacher. She is best known as Clark Gable's patron, acting coach and first wife.

Born in Denver, Colorado, Dillon was one of six children of Judge Henry Clay Dillon. She was the younger sister of opera singer Enrica Clay Dillon. Dillon's father became a district attorney in Los Angeles while her mother was a prominent socialite. Dillon was educated in the California public school system and in Europe. She later studied acting at Stanford University.

After graduating from Stanford in 1908, Dillon studied acting in Italy for one year before returning to the United States to act on Broadway for actor Edward Everett Horton's stock company in New York City. Dillon eventually decided to give up her career to teach acting. She relocated to Portland, Oregon where she opened "the Little Theatre", an acting school attended by wealthy area students.

It was at the Little Theatre that Dillon met a then unknown aspiring actor 17-years her junior named W. C. Gable, while she was working as a stage director for the Red Lantern Players. Initially, she was Gable's acting coach but the two began a romantic relationship after Dillon took a special interest in Gable. Dillon became his patron, paying to have his teeth fixed and hair styled. She guided him in building up his chronically undernourished body, and taught him better body control and posture. She spent considerable time training his naturally high-pitched voice, which Gable slowly managed to lower, and to gain better resonance and tone. As his speech habits improved, Gable's facial expressions became more natural and convincing. After the long period of rigorous training, Dillon eventually considered him ready to attempt a film career in Los Angeles.

Dillon moved to Los Angeles in the summer of 1924 where she opened The Dillon Stock Company. Five months later, Gable joined her. They were married shortly thereafter on December 18, 1924. On the marriage license, Gable claimed he was 24 years old while Dillon claimed she was 34. Dillon continued to work with Gable on his acting and voice while he went to auditions. During this time, Gable followed Dillon's advice to use his middle name, "Clark", as his professional name. Over the next few years, Clark Gable's career gained momentum with stage and minor film roles. After appearing in the play Machinal in 1929 and shortly before he was signed with M-G-M, Gable asked Dillon for a divorce. Dillon later recalled that he had asked for a divorce several times before but she refused as she did not believe he meant it. She filed for legal separation on March 28, 1929. Their divorce became final on April 1, 1930. Two days later, Gable married wealthy socialite Ria Langham.