Today marks the 85th anniversary of the Atlanta premiere of “Gone with the Wind,” produced by David O. Selznick. Starring Vivien Leigh as Scarlett O’Hara and Clark Gable as Rhett Butler, it is a tale of survival, growth, and loss, filmed in glorious Technicolor. The art shown above and below are by Wilbur Kurtz and were used in the trailer for the film.
Below is a 1939 storyboard of Tara, Scarlett O’Hara’s home, by Dorothea Holt & Mac Johnson which I was able to see at the Margaret Mitchell Museum in Atlanta:
The production team faithfully recreated the art for the movie, as seen by these shots from the opening scenes of the film:
Leigh with Thomas Mitchell, who played her blustering land-loving father, Gerald O’Hara:
Storyboard art for the Atlanta Bazaar sequence, where Scarlett scandalously broke with the conventions of widowhood by dancing with Rhett Butler.
When Scarlett flirts with Rhett saying that she is dancing her reputation away, he replies: “With enough courage, you can do without a reputation.”
At the Atlanta History Center, a photo of the premiere accompanies a first edition of the book, with dust jacket cover art by George Carlson. Author Margaret Mitchell felt that the cover should convey a “Southern sensibility”; Carlson was from New England his mother had once served as a housekeeper for northern Civil War General Ulysses S. Grant. Oops.
In the film’s dramatic final shot, we see Scarlett silhouetted against a burning sunset sky:
Here’s what her costume looked like:
See more “Gone with the Wind” photos at my main website.
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