The Making of Gone With The Wind

This book was way more than expected. It’s oversized, wonderful pictures from the movie and a wonderful read. If you love the movie and like to see behind the scene this book is worth every penny.

Margaret Mitchell's classic "Gone With The Wind" is one of my favorite books. I try to reread it every couple of years or so. It is as compelling to me as it was when I first read it in 8th grade. I took my copy to school and would "sneak read" when I was supposed to be listening to some boring ol' lesson. Not much came between me and my Scarlett.But the movie "Gone With The Wind" frustrated me when I first saw it in 1967 and continues to bother me to this day. I sat in that huge theater in downtown Chicago and kept muttering to myself, "Where is that character?", "where is the scene between "so and so" and "so and so", and, of course, "uh, Scarlett had THREE children. Where are Wade Hampton and Ella Lorena?" I was proud that as a true "GWTW Book fan", I was not seduced by the film version of "my" book. As the years passed, I thought that had GWTW been made in the 1970's or 1980's, it would have - very properly - been made as a TV mini-series. Ten hours of GWTW would have gotten things right!But "Gone With The Wind" was NOT made in the '70's, it was made as a movie in 1938 and 1939. All the time constraints, as well as production problems that come with making a movie almost four hours long, of a nation's favorite book are documented in Steve Wilson's enthralling book, "The Making of 'Gone With The Wind'". This is a huge book and for the GWTW film fan it is a must read. I was not a film fan, and I still enjoyed the book. I don't think there was a memo or a drawing of an article of clothing or a screen test that wasn't included in the book.The movie "Gone With The Wind" got its start right before the book's publication. Producer David O Selznick ("DOS" in the memos) was advised by his staffer to buy the rights to the book, and he authorised her to spend up to $50,000. Upon winning the rights, he put into action the preparation to film this colossal best seller. Immediately he ran into problems. While Clark Gable was everyone's first choice as Rhett Butler, DOS was unable to find "his" Scarlett. Hollywood actress after actress tested for the part and Selznick International Pictures sent representatives to southern cities to "find" Scarlett among the local belles. Filming had already begun when English actress Vivian Leigh was signed to play the pivotal role in December, 1938.One of the most interesting things in Steve Wilson's book are the complaints made by various groups and individuals during the filming. From the KKK to the NAACP to the "United Daughters of the Confederacy" to groups representing the Union side, everyone had a beef. It would take the soul of tact to deal with all these complaints but DOS and his staff did an admirable job. But in addition to these groups, Selznick had the "Hays Code" to deal with. Steve Wilson includes in the book pages of dialog ruled on by the group, slashing words and phrases that deal with childbirth, battle injuries, and other matters that were deemed to be too delicate for movie goers of the times. Everyone knows the battle about Rhett muttering that unforgettable line, "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn", but there were many other clashes between producer and Hays Code enforcers before then.As I wrote above, Steve Wilson's book is a great book for movie fans and GWTW fans, in particular. Even though it wasn't my favorite movie, I've enjoyed watching it and am always amazed at the gasps in the theater when the camera shows Rhett Butler/Clark Gable at the bottom of the stairs at Twelve Oaks. Gable didn't want to attempt a southern accent and the book alludes to that. That was one of the many details DOS and his crew fretted about. And only one of the many details in the book.

Rough condition

Derived from the extensive holdings of the University of Texas at Austin's David O. Selznick collection, Steve Wilson's The Making of Gone with the Wind spans the time from Selznick's 1936 acquisition of the films rights of Margaret Mitchell's masterpiece to the 1940 Academy Awards, covering in full the production of one of the greatest films of all time. This incredible collection, coupled with Wilson's exceptional writing and editing, has in turn produced one of the greatest books about a film of all time.The Making approaches the story of the creation of the film chronologically, opening with the film acquisition and running through initial publicity, casting, script writing and editing, and filming; this chronological orientation is especially interesting as it allows the reader to see in what order the scenes were filmed. Centered around his papers and documents, The Making invariably focuses primarily on Selznick, but this focalization does not distract from the dozens of other creators involved, or from the players themselves. Everyone, from the costume designer Walter Plunkett to the MGM PR person who planned the Atlanta premier gets the chance to shine in some capacity.A cross between a coffee table book and a history, The Making is bursting with full page full color illustrations (the concept art is just spectacular) and black and white publicity shots. The pictures, however, are not the main focus of The Making; Wilson's text, coupled with dozens of letters, telegrams, and notes, tell the full story in an engaging and informative way. The reader really does feel that he has been granted a full insider's look into how Gone with the Wind was made.My only critique of the work is that a CD or internet link was not included to allow the reader to download high resolution copies of the pictures shown in the book, as is sometimes the case with art books. I assume that this might have been due to some copyright issue.I would highly recommend Steve Wilson's The Making of Gone with the Wind to any fans of the film Gone with the Wind or cinema buffs in general who are interested in a marvelous look at how films were made in the "Golden Age" of Hollywood.

The dust jacket was ripped and the binding is very loose. It's supposed to be new and is already falling apart. The pages look as if they are about to fall out. I wouldn't buy this new as it's not worth it. If you can find a used copy get that, however most will not be in good shape if read at all. The book itself is amazing. Filled with pictures, letters, memo's, news clips, and other tidbits I had never read or seen. This is a must have for any GWTW fan. I great look into the making of this movie. You can feel the stress, excitement, and accomplishment in the letters and articles. I've enjoyed this immensely and learned quite a bit I didn't know. Be very gentle with this book as the quality in binding is very lacking.

This contains all the detail required to appreciate the film. To buy this you must be a fan but if so it will not disappoint. It is unlikely that you would read it from start to finish but dip into it but that is not a criticism.

The definitive scrapbook for Gone With The Wind fans. Don't miss these astonishing artworks, photographs, articles, letters and more if you are in any way a fan. A top quality and weighty book.

Huge colorful book!Great gift for a fan of the movie Gone with the Wind!Love it!Great thanks to Amazon!

Wonderfully detailed behind the scenes look at the production of Gone with the Wind. Great concept art.

Although the book is slightly on the expensive side, it is an incredible read with the book detailing the day to day filming of Gone With The Wind and the process of producing it. The definitive book on the making of the film in my opinion.