Gone With the Wind

produced by David Selznick & premiered Dec. 15, 1939, from Margaret Mitchell's novel published June 30, 1936. The novel was purchased by Selznick for $50,000 in 1936 before publication, and the book won a Pulitzer Prize in 1937. Filming began in November 1938, and the premier in Atlanta was Dec. 15, 1939.

"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 the books, for it is no more than a dream remembered. A Civilization gone with the wind..." [film prolog]
1936 book
porch scene from UT

Resources:

Filmnotes | History Department