Gone with the Wind (1939)

American classic in which a manipulative woman and a roguish man carry on a turbulent love affair in the American south during the Civil War and Reconstruction.

Director:

Victor Fleming

Writers:

Margaret Mitchell (novel), Sidney Howard (screenplay),

Stars:

Thomas Mitchell, Barbara O'Neil, Vivien Leigh

Top 250 #157 | Won 8 Oscars. Another 10 wins & 6 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Thomas Mitchell	...	Gerald O'Hara
Barbara O'Neil	...	Ellen O'Hara - His Wife (as Barbara O'Neill)
Vivien Leigh	...	Scarlett - Their Daughter
Evelyn Keyes	...	Suellen - Their Daughter
Ann Rutherford	...	Carreen - Their Daughter
George Reeves	...	Brent Tarleton
Fred Crane	...	Stuart Tarleton
Hattie McDaniel	...	Mammy - House Servant
Oscar Polk	...	Pork - House Servant
Butterfly McQueen	...	Prissy - House Servant
Victor Jory	...	Jonas Wilkerson - Field Overseer
Everett Brown	...	Big Sam - Field Foreman
Howard C. Hickman	...	John Wilkes (as Howard Hickman)
Alicia Rhett	...	India - His Daughter
Leslie Howard	...	Ashley - His Son

Storyline

Scarlett is a woman who can deal with a nation at war, Atlanta burning, the Union Army carrying off everything from her beloved Tara, the carpetbaggers who arrive after the war. Scarlett is beautiful. She has vitality. But Ashley, the man she has wanted for so long, is going to marry his placid cousin, Melanie. Mammy warns Scarlett to behave herself at the party at Twelve Oaks. There is a new man there that day, the day the Civil War begins. Rhett Butler. Scarlett does not know he is in the room when she pleads with Ashley to choose her instead of Melanie.

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Plot Keywords:

love | plantation | civil war | widow | barbecue | 

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Taglines:

Winner of Ten Academy Awards [reissue]

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Genres:

Drama | Romance | War

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Certificate:

G

Details

Official Sites:

Warner Bros. [us]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

17 January 1940 (USA)

Also Known As:

Lo que el viento se llevó

Filming Locations:

Agoura Hills, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$3,977,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$1,192,593 (USA) (26 June 1998)

Gross:

$198,655,278 (USA) (13 November 1998)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Selznick International Pictures, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

238 min 223 min (1969 re-release) 234 min (1985 re-release) 224 min (1994 re-release) 233 min (1989 re-release) 226 min (copyright length)

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Half a million feet of film were shot. This was all edited down to 20,000 feet.

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Goofs

When Scarlett is talking to Rhett, her handkerchief disappears between shots. Rhett soon gives her a new one.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Brent Tarleton: What do we care if we *were* expelled from college, Scarlett? The war is gonna start any day now, so we'd have left college anyhow.
Stuart Tarleton: War! Isn't it exciting, Scarlett? You know those fool Yankees actually *want* a war?
Brent Tarleton: We'll show 'em!
Scarlett: Fiddle-dee-dee! War, war, war; this war talk's spoiling all the fun at every party this spring. I get so bored I could scream. Besides... there isn't going to be any war.
Brent Tarleton: Not going to be any war?
Stuart Tarleton: Why, honey, of course there's gonna be a war.
Scarlett: If either ...
[...]

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Crazy Credits

Rather than simply saying "Selznick International in association with Metro-Goldwyn Mayer presents Margaret Mitchell's 'Gone With the Wind'", the opening credits say "Selznick International in association with Metro-Goldwyn Mayer has the honor to present its Technicolor production of Margaret Mitchell's story of the Old South 'Gone With the Wind'".

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Connections

Referenced in The Golden Girls: Big Daddy (1986)

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Soundtracks

"Beautiful Dreamer"
(1862) (uncredited)
Music by Stephen Foster
Played during the intermission

User Reviews

65th Anniversary DVD is a must

If you have ever considered GWTW to be less than a masterpiece, you'll be swayed by the 65th Anniversary Edition DVD. The 4-disc set features the remastered film and more extras than you could possibly watch in one day (after watching the film, of course). The two-hour making-of documentary is fascinating and shows how the producer (David O. Selznick) of the film affected the cast, director(s) and writer(s) -- and shows the publicity frenzy that was the hunt for Scarlett. The feature of Olivia De Havilland (in 2004) discussing her role as Melanie is a real treat. The picture and sound are great on the 65th Anniversary DVD, and the special features are a true treasure. Accept no substitutes, seek out the 65th Anniversary DVD and bring it home.