Gone With the Wind
The story of a film
By Alice Murins
This epic book was written by Margaret Mitchell who was born in Atlanta Georgia U.S.A. on the 8th of November 1900.
She was well educated and worked as a writer and reporter on the Atlanta Journal between 1922 and 1926.
In 1926 she began work on a romantic novel of the American Civil War from the Southerner’s point of view. At first they were just episodes out of sequence but eventually she tied them into the story of "Gone With The Wind". The title comes from a poem "Cynara" by Ernest Dowson.
There was no thought of publishing it until in 1935 Margaret was persuaded to submit the manuscript; it was accepted being published in 1936. In that year it was awarded the Pulitzer Prize. Fifty thousand copies were said to be sold in one day; by 1965 twelve million copies had been sold in over forty countries. It has been translated into twenty five different languages.
David O’Selznick of Selznick International Pictures bought the rights to the book for $50,000 before he had even read it. He eventually paid Margaret Mitchell a further $50,000 after the movie was such a success.
Many scriptwriters were employed however it remained mostly the work of the playwright Sydney Howard who sadly died in an accident before he saw the finished epic. Max Steiner wrote the haunting theme music.
There was only one choice for the part of Rhett Butler, the public clamoured for Clark Gable. He had the good looks and devil may care attitude suitable for a gambler and blockade runner. However Clark was reluctant to play the part, fearing he could not fulfil the expectations of his fans. He had no say in the matter as he was under contract to Metro Goldwyn Mayer and Louis B. Mayer the head of M.G.M. was the father of Irene Selznick. So Clark was loaned out to Selznick along with $1,250,000 - about one third of what the film cost to make.
It is said that after two years of searching, Vivien Leigh, (a British actress little known in America) was chosen to play Scarlett. An English actress playing a southern belle upset quite a few well known actresses who longed for the part. The screen tests showed Vivien’s beauty and confirmed her acting ability.
The author Margaret Mitchell had resolved not to be involved with the film after selling the rights to the book; however she was kept informed. She was happy with the choice of Vivien to play Scarlett because the actress had read and understood the book. She also practised four hours a day for a fortnight to perfect a Southern accent. The Daughters of the Confederacy objected in vain.
In December 1938 the burning of Atlanta was the first scene to be shot. Old film sets were put to the torch with stand ins for Gable and Leigh driving through the flames in a horse and cart. This cleared a space for the set of Tara and parts of Atlanta to be built. The actors began filming on the 26th January 1939.
The first director George Cukor was dismissed from the film for running behind schedule. It was said he devoted too much time to the best shots for Vivien and Olivia de Havilland who was playing Melanie Wilkes. Clark Gable’s choice of the new director Victor Fleming caused some tension on the set. A short while after this change, Fleming suffered a nervous breakdown; then Sam Wood took over until he recovered, after which they shared the job of directing.
All was not happy on the set. Vivien made herself unpopular holding up shooting if she was unhappy with a scene or thought some dialogue silly. A stickler for realism, she slapped Evelyn Keyes (who was playing her young sister Suellen) hard on the cheek leaving her finger marks. Evelyn Keyes objected to being treated like a bit player of no importance. Kissing Clark Gable was not pleasant either as she hated his whiskey breath.
Off the set Vivien was very lonely. She did not like America and missed Laurence Olivier who was appearing on the stage in New York. He was waiting for his divorce to be settled so they could marry.
The rest of the main cast was made up of Leslie Howard as Ashley Wilkes with Olivia de Havilland as his wife Melanie. Thomas Mitchell played his usual wonderful Irishman as Scarlett’s father with Harry Davenport as the Doctor. Victor Jory was the crafty overseer while George Reeves (who played Superman in the TV series) was one of the red headed Tarleton twins. The part of Mammy to Scarlett was played by Hattie McDaniel, the first black woman to win an Oscar.
The film had taken about seven and a half months to make and it premiered in Atlanta on December the 15th 1939. Clark Gable attended with his wife Carole Lombard who had a hard job persuading him to go. The Gables sat with Margaret Mitchell and her husband John Marsh. Miss Mitchell said Gable had played Rhett just the way she had imagined him. Vivien Leigh came with Laurence Olivier.
It was one of the longest pictures ever made, taking three hours and forty two minutes to show to a viewing public who had been used to screwball comedies and musicals that usually lasted eighty to ninety minutes.
"Gone With the Wind" won eight major awards and two special Oscars. Clark Gable missed out but Vivien Leigh carried one Oscar off to be used as a door stop at her home in England.
Margaret Mitchell never wrote another book and died after a car accident on August 16th 1949 in Atlanta.
A sequel was permitted to be written by Alexander Ripley titled "Scarlett" in 1991. A film was made of it but like the book it was very forgettable. A parody sequel in 2001 titled "The Wind Done Gone", told from a slave’s outlook was sued by the Margaret Mitchell estate to block publication and the matter was settled out of court.
After sixty six years it is still a very moving film of such a terrible time. I think Clark Gable deserved an Oscar just for the way he delivered the words "Frankly Scarlett, I don’t give a damn," and walked off into the fog.
References:
Encyclopaedia Britannica 2005
The Life and Loves of Gable by Jack Scagnetti
Vivien Leigh by Hugo Vickers
CHRISTMAS 2007
by Alice Murins
What of Christmas now he said
Of the baby in the stable?
Where have all the wise men gone
Who were seeking the bright Star.
It was in an eastern country
This story long ago
Told of love, forgiveness, peace
Through all the world should flow.
2000 years have come and gone
The message still today
When Christmas comes to bring us joy
Some others turn away.
Light the candles, keep the faith,
Do good but not for gain
For if we do not find the Peace
How can we on Earth remain?
The Christmas List
Isobel sat by the window, not really noticing anything; she was lost in thought. Another Christmas, how many was that she had lived through? Well over seventy of them and how many could she remember?
Perhaps when she was a tiny child coming into the dining room late on Christmas Eve to ask her mother had Santa Claus been yet? Her mother had been putting the finishing touches to a doll's cot with sheets, a coverlet and pillow to match. Hoping Isobel was too sleepy to notice, her mother led her back to bed saying, "Father Christmas won't come while you are awake."
In the morning Aunty Nance arrived with a beautiful doll dressed as a bride so the joy was complete and the doll was named Pearl.
In the early years the Christmas dinner was a cooked feast but as sense prevailed the fare was cold with salads and so on. During the War years friendly neighbours celebrated together ... small gifts were bought. It was a joy to choose a vase of handkerchief or maybe a cup, saucer and plate, but nothing costing more than ten shillings. Isobel could always count on a new story book.
There were lists of Christmas cards to send, especially ones to relations overseas. The cards had snow scenes mostly - how funny was that from a land of sunshine? Through the years some bright spark finally came up with pictures of Australia's wonderful country scenes or the animals that inhabit the place - much more realistic for a wide brown land.
Isobel looked at last year's Christmas list and noted with sadness the names crossed from it. First of all her dear cousin Tom had passed away. He was a few years older than her and they had only met twice in a lifetime as he had lived in England ... But there had been letters and the last time they met it was as if the years in between did not matter.
Two old friends were gone; no more Christmas or birthday cards from them. A sad argument with a distant cousin left no doubt Isobel was crossed off that list. A colleague she had worked with who always sent a card could not now be contacted ... should Isobel try to find her or just let it slide?
It is one of the joys of Christmas, thought Isobel, to send cards for the festive season to friends whom one hardly sees from year to year or to penfriends one has never met. To choose a card to suit their personalities ... to write the words that say Happy Christmas, I miss you or See you in the New Year.
Well, this year the list was not as long - so better get on with it or the overseas cards would not get there on time. Isobel thought her family had never made too much of Christmas; there were presents and good food but no decorations or a Christmas tree. When her own children were young she had insisted on a tree. Her eldest daughter still had the fairy doll sent by a great aunt in England to grace the top of the tree.
This year Isobel would listen to the carols being sung ... watch the church services on television ... rejoice in the cards and presents she would receive and sending a card with a peaceful Nativity scene to each of her grandchildren to remind them why we celebrate Christmas.
There is one name however she need not send a card to - oh happy day! Her grandson Roy is returning home after travelling the world ... it was something to look forward to for an extra special Christmas.
The Clock on the Wall
by Alice Murins
The clock on the wall has seen it all
The seconds ticked away
A lifetime's gone, but family lives on
Although we are far away.
The clock case carved by a loving hand
Graced the kitchen wall for years,
But a grandma died and the clock she prized
Came over the seas to here.
Watch the clock on the wall, the face never shows
The joys or tears it has seen.
Ticking softly away the night and the day
So much history in between.
The clock on the wall sets the time for us all
We come and we go but it's there.
It will still carry on even when we are gone
With only our children to care.