And then on a luckless day for the Saxons...A proclamation is read by a town crier to a crowd that news has arrived from Vienna that King Richard the Lion Hearted (Ian Hunter) has been captured in Austria by Emperor Leopold and held for ransom while returning from the Third Crusade in the Holy Land.Louis, and Minneapolis, eight states in total).Subsequent lawsuits and picketing tailed the film for years when it was re-released (in 1924, 1931, and 1938).Mundson has already made millions on an international illegal tungsten cartel.] This provides Gilda and Johnny with their first opportunity to speak together without him present.As it turns out, Gilda is Johnny's ex-lover and former flame and both are ex-patriate Americans.[Note: The film's MacGuffin was the unknown nature of the relationship between Gilda and Johnny before their breakup as a couple.Charlie insisted on immediately taking Johnny Boy into the back room, to demand that he pay his debt to Michael "Mikey" Longo, the local, vengeful loan shark ("You can't bulls--t people that way.Capra had originally wanted MGM stars Robert Montgomery and Myrna Loy to play the lead roles, but ended up, surprisingly, with top MGM star Gable 'on-loan' (as punishment for refusing a role opposite Joan Crawford) from the studio.