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Gone With the Wind collection

 Collection
Collection number: ahc.MSS724

Scope and Content

This collection contains ephemera and memorabilia pertaining to the novel Gone With the Wind and it's film adaptation. Documents primarily include articles, newspapers and clippings, scrapbooks, and paper dolls. These materials documents the life of Margaret Mitchell Marsh, the publication of the book, the Atlanta premier of the movie, and the legacies of all three. Also included is a partial run of the German serialization of the novel that ran inDie Nieu Post. Of particular note is a first hand account of Marsh's first speech after publishing the movie, and a scrapbook compiled by Mrs. Green Warren that includes photographs of the movie premier and the days leading up to it.

Dates

  • 1921-2002, undated

Conditions Governing Access

This collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Reproduction and Use

Unpublished manuscripts are protected by copyright. All requests to publish, quote, or reproduce must be submitted through the Kenan Research Center.

Administrative/Biographical History

Margaret Mitchell Marsh (1900-1949) of Atlanta, Georgia, wrote the historical novel Gone with the Wind in 1926. The novel follows Scarlet O'Hara, the daughter of a plantation owner, immediately before and during the Civil War and during Reconstruction in Clayton County and Atlanta. In June 1936 the Macmillan publishing company published the book and it made the American fiction bestseller list in 1936 and 1937. Marsh won a Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1937 but never wrote another novel. In 1939 Selznick International Pictures adapted the novel into a blockbuster movie directed by Victor Fleming that starred Clark Gable and Vivien Leigh. On December 15, 1939 Gone With the Wind premiered at the Lowe's Grand Theater in Atlanta. The movie was nominated for thirteen Academy Awards and received ten, including Best Picture and Best Supporting Actress for Hattie McDaniel's portrayal of Mamie, which became the first time an African American won an Academy Award. The movie was the highest-earning film to that point. MGM bought the rights to the movie and re-released it multiple times. As of 2019, Gone with the Wind is ranked number six on the American Film Institute's list of top 100 movies and number two on the 2014 Harris poll of American readers.

Extent

18.05 linear ft. (six document cases, one half document case, nine oversize boxes, and two flat files)

Language

English

Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements

Audio recordings were made on LP records and can be made accessible only through conversion to digital surrogates. Patrons who request access to the audio content in this collection are responsible for digital conversion costs.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Gift, 1988, with subsequent additions

Related Archival Materials

Visual material has been separated from the collection. Please contact an archivist for access to these materials.

Description Control

This collection was processed in 2019.

Title
Gone With the Wind collection
Author
Leah Lefkowitz
Date
May 2019
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
Finding aid is written in English.

Repository Details

Part of the Kenan Research Center at Atlanta History Center Repository

Contact:
130 West Paces Ferry Road
Atlanta GA 30305
404-814-4040