Still Giving A Damn: Commemorating 70 years of Gone with the Wind
On Friday November 13th, five of the few surviving Gone with the Wind cast members were greeted by hundreds of 
fans in Marietta, Georgia to celebrate the 70th anniversary of one of America's greatest films. Ann Rutherford (Carreen O'Hara), Mickey Kuhn (Beau Wilkes), Patrick Curtis (toddler Beau Wilkes), Greg Geise (baby Bonnie and baby Beau) and Geneva Miller Roberts (an extra from the Barbecue scene) were taken aback by the passionate nature of the festivities.
Organized by Connie Sutherland, the director of Marietta’s Gone with the Wind Museum, the anniversary celebration was dubbed a “re-premiere”, and was attended by droves of men and women dressed to the nines as Southern belles, dashing beaus, and Confederate soldiers. Groups of dancers performed the Virginia reel, a folk dance made famous by Scarlett and Rhett during the Confederate fundraising auction.
During the event's Q&A session, Ann Rutherford told the crowd that her role as Scarlett O'Hara's little sister "was a nothing part [and] that nothing part has turned my golden years into platinum." Actress Olivia de Havilland (Melanie Wilkes) sent an audio message to the event in order to express her continued amazement at the film’s legacy. "I never dreamed it would endure until the next century and millennium,” she said. “And that people all around the globe would embrace it as their own." Clearly, Gone with the Wind’s impact and popularity have withstood the test of time. In fact, it continues to cause critics and audiences to ponder the cultural and cinematic significance of the film, as well as challenge new generations of filmmakers to build upon its legacy as an epic historical drama.
There was a land of Cavaliers and Cotton Fields called the Old South ... Here in this pretty world Gallantry took its last bow ... Here was the last ever to be seen of Knights and their Ladies Fair, of Master and of Slave ... Look for it only in books, for it is no more than a dream remembered. A Civilization gone with the wind ...
Soon after the publication of the novel in 1936, Sidney Howard succeeded at the near-impossible task of transforming an epic 1000-page novel into a hefty 250 page screenplay. Of course, that was after numerous revisions and the help of several writers, including Ben Hecht, then called the “Shakespeare of Hollywood”. Victor Fleming, who was wrapping up the filming of The Wizard of Oz, signed on to direct after George Cukor, who had already been a part of the preproduction for two years, was fired three weeks after the start of filming.
It took nearly two years to cast the two lead characters. Several now-legendary actresses auditioned for the role of Scarlett O'Hara, including Lucille Ball, Bette Davis, Jean Arthur, Katherine Hepburn, and Loretta Young. At the time, Vivien Leigh was a virtual unknown in American cinema, but she had always been considered a favourite for the part by producer David O. Selnick, and she was officially cast in January 1939. Clark Gable was always the top contender for the role of Rhett, and widely thought of as the perfect actor for the role by both the studio executives and movie goers alike.
After six months of principal photography, post-production continued well into mid-November. In September though, the film was secretly screened for a group of unsuspecting Californian movie-goers. Before the film began, the crowd cheered upon realizing they were about to see Gone with the Wind — a movie many had been anticipating since Howard began adapting the screenplay in ’36. Patrons were further captivated by the recent Technicolor innovations, which allowed for an rich and complex colour palette. The result made the wealth of costumes appear more vibrant and the landscapes more breathtaking. When the lights went up, the film received a standing ovation, with the majority of the patrons rating the film “excellent”, while pleading with the director not to cut it any shorter.
Rhett: Take a good look my dear. It's an historic moment you can tell your grandchildren. You can tell them how you watched the Old South disappear one night.
In the dust of the crumbling, feuding South, Vivien Leigh’s portrayal of Scarlett O’Hara perfectly embodied the great strength, defiance, and perseverance that her character relied upon throughout the years. There could have been no other than the incomparable Clark Gable to take on the larger-than-life role of Rhett Butler – a man of charm, wit, and passion. Olivia de Havilland’s sweet and angelic sensibilities as Melly brought the character to life in a way that could not be overshadowed by the oft-grandiose nature of Scarlett. Leslie Howard as the honourable Ashley Wilkes, Hattie McDaniel as the wise Mammy, and even Butterfly McQueen as the flaky Prissy, each minor or major character came to live against the elaborate backdrop of Civil War era backdrop of societal breakdowns and tumultuous love. 
At the time, Gone with the Wind was the most expensive and longest-running film ever made, but as it turned out, the reception was well worth the efforts. The film was widely recognized as a masterpiece, and it wasn’t long before it began receiving the appropriate honours. The following year, it captured 8 Academy Awards out of 13 nominations. Hattie McDaniel won for Best Supporting Actress, the first African-American to ever be nominated, or to win an Oscar. Sidney Howard’s efforts were posthumously acknowledged with the Best Screenplay distinction. Victor Fleming took home the statue for Best Director, and everyone involved over the three years of creation was thrilled when the film received the Oscar for Best Picture.
Vivien Leigh also took home an Academy Award for Best Actress, and was catapulted into superstardom as industry insiders and awestruck audiences fell in love with her beauty and talent. When Mickey Kuhn (who portrayed Beau Wilkes) was asked during the 70-year celebration about his encounters with Leigh, he related a story of meeting her 10 years after the filming of Gone with the Wind. When he was 18 years old, she invited him into her dressing room one evening in order to discuss his career. "Every time I think or talk about that meeting," he said "I kind of get chills."
It’s not difficult to understand why the film has come to be hailed a timeless classic. Created by a roster of first-class actors and filmmakers, the story and its characters have endured in our hearts and minds because they distil a tangible humanity and universal appeal that continues to resonate with modern audiences. The ability of people to make the most their circumstances, and to never falter in the face of turmoil is at the heart of this intertwining story. As we witness each person struggle and survive, we feel their urgency, despair, moments of joy, and flickers of hope right alongside them.
Rhett: No, I don't think I will kiss you, although you need kissing, badly. That's what's wrong with you. You should be kissed and often, and by someone who knows how ….
Famed film critic Roger Ebert commented on the forward-thinking qualities of Scarlett O’Hara, and how she came to influence the various women's liberation movements: "Scarlett … was a woman who wanted to control her own sexual adventures, and that is the key element in her appeal. She also sought to control her economic destiny in the years after the South collapsed… She was the symbol the nation needed as it headed into World War II; the spiritual sister of Rosie the Riveter." At its initial screenings, people were shocked by the open portrayal of Scarlett and Rhett’s sexual relationship, a risky move that eventually led to the breakdown of Hollywood’s conservative Production Code, allowing subsequent filmmakers to gradually include more “adult” content in their work.
As a result of Gone with the Wind's fiery relationship-of-equals between Scarlett and Rhett, romance in film became something different altogether. The traditional tales of happily-ever-after began to take a backseat to relationships of substance, conflict, and humour. The battle of the sexes would soon be in full force, and the effects would become evident in such films as Pillow Talk, Annie Hall, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, and The Way We Were.
In 1989, Gone with the Wind was inducted in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". Today, the American Film Institute ranks the film in the top ten on its "100 Greatest Movies" list. When adjusted for inflation, the film’s profits still make it the highest-grossing picture ever released in Hollywood history.
To promote the film's anniversary, Warner Home Videos and TCM released a limited edition DVD on November 17th. Attendees of the re-premiere were able to purchase the DVD or Blu-ray versions. Those who have already viewed the re-mastered film are praising the Blu-ray resolution, which boasts six times better resolution than the standard DVD, and features the sound quality of Dolby TruHD.
Three bonus discs are included in this set, and they are filled with amazing extras including exclusive interviews, documentaries, newsreels, stock footage, cast and character profiles, and a host of historical information. In addition to the bonus features, a limited number of sets will also include a 50-page hardcover booklet of photos and notes, a CD of soundtrack samples, frame-able art prints, as well as a beautiful reproduction of the original souvenir program from the 1939 premiere.
Gone with the Wind is the archetype of classic Hollywood storytelling, an art form that is decidedly absent in modern cinema. This film was a juggernaut like none other. It incorporated every innovation available to create a visually-stunning world, while keeping focus on the heart of the saga – the characters, their relationships, and their realities. The result was an experience that, after 70 years of tremendous change, still has the power to provoke thought and debate while affecting us on a deeply emotional level.
If there is anything that can tug at our sense of survival, I will leave you to recall the moment when Scarlett vows to live on against the face of adversity as she is backlit by a glowing dawn. One of the most moving scenes in film history, these are the fittingly empowering words of a movie that will never wane in its sheer brilliance.
Scarlett: As God is my witness, as God is my witness they're not going to lick me. I'm going to live through this and when it's all over, I'll never be hungry again. No, nor any of my folk. If I have to lie, steal, cheat or kill. As God is my witness, I'll never be hungry again!
