The rom-com starring Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert debuted 90 years ago and purportedly put a dent in undershirt sales on its way to sweeping the Oscars’ big five.

“It Happened One Night” premiered in theaters on February 22, 1934, and 90 years later, it continues to be hailed as the greatest romantic comedy of all time.

The film, based on the 1933 Cosmopolitan short story “Night Bus,” follows a wealthy socialite (played by Claudette Colbert) who defies her father’s wishes and takes a Greyhound bus from Miami to New York to reunite with her fiancé. During the journey, she encounters a newspaper reporter (Clark Gable) who agrees to help her in exchange for an exclusive story. As expected in rom-com fashion, the pair initially clash but eventually fall in love.

Notable scenes include one where Colbert’s character, standing by the roadside, lifts her skirt to hitch a ride (a scene she initially refused to film, deeming it “unladylike,” but ultimately performed after finding the body double unsatisfactory). Another memorable moment in the film occurs in a motel room where Gable’s character takes off his shirt to reveal he isn’t wearing an undershirt, a move that supposedly impacted undershirt sales at the time. Gable later explained his preference, saying, “They made me feel hemmed in and smothered.”

Although both stars were initially reluctant to participate in the film and left the set feeling unimpressed—Colbert reportedly told friends, “I’ve just finished the worst picture in the world”—critics and audiences felt otherwise. The Hollywood Reporter praised the film as a “swell, bang-up picture” with a “charming, human, believable story.” The movie was a box office success, grossing $2.5 million (equivalent to $60 million in 2024) on a budget of $325,000 (approximately $7 million today).

At the 1935 Academy Awards, “It Happened One Night” made history by sweeping the five major categories: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress, and Best Adapted Screenplay. It was the first film to achieve this feat, a distinction shared only with “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” (1975) and “The Silence of the Lambs” (1991).

The film marked the beginning of a successful collaboration between director Frank Capra and screenwriter Robert Riskin. However, their partnership ended with the 1941 film “Meet John Doe.” Frustrated by advertisements crediting “the Capra touch,” Riskin famously left a stack of blank pages on Capra’s desk, challenging him to “Put your fucking touch on that!”