Gone with the Wind

Gone With The Wind Trivia

from IMDb.com

• When Gary Cooper turned down the role for Rhett Butler, he was passionately against it. He is quoted saying both, "'Gone With The Wind' is going to be the biggest flop in Hollywood history," and, "I'm just glad it'll be Clark Gable who's falling on his face and not Gary Cooper
• Clark Gable's line "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn" was voted as the #1 movie quote by the American Film Institute. "After all, tomorrow is another day!" was voted as the #31 movie quote by the American Film Institute
• 1,400 actresses were interviewed for the part of Scarlett O'Hara. 400 were asked to do readings. Among the many famous actress considered for the part of Scarlett were Jean Arthur, Lucille Ball, Tallulah Bankhead, Bette Davis, Claudette Colbert, Joan Crawford, Paulette Goddard, Susan Hayward, Katharine Hepburn, Olivia de Havilland, Carole Lombard, Norma Shearer, Barbara Stanwyck, and Margaret Sullavan. Bankhead (an authentic "Southern Belle" from Alabama) was the clear frontrunner, but her unsavory personal life made producers reluctant to hire her.
• One of the movie's most enduring myths is that Vivien Leigh was a last-minute "discovery" after filming had already started (the Burning of the Atlanta Depot scene). The truth is that David O. Selznick masterminded a free publicity campaign of "Who will play Scarlett?" by keeping Leigh's participation a secret until the last minute. Among Selznick's many memos is one from 1937 that had Leigh secured in the role. She and Laurence Olivier (who was to begin filming Wuthering Heights (1939)) came over from Europe, then traveled by plane to California to arrive just before the first scene was filmed (the Burning of the Atlanta Depot scene). Selznick conveniently had reporters present when his brother arrived with Leigh in tow to loudly announce his (scripted) lines that HE had THE Scarlett that Selznick had been looking for. Filming stopped and David was later quoted as saying (also scripted) that when he saw Leigh's face reflected by the flames of Atlanta, he immediately knew she was Scarlett. Amazingly, decades after the film's release, many people still believe that Selznick was stupid enough to begin filming (with money secured through his own studio, not MGM) the most expensive movie in history (up to that time) without securing the star (who is in almost every scene). The scheme worked, though, and the public ate it up.
• In the scene where Scarlett searches for Dr. Meade, making her way among 1,600 suffering and dying Confederate soldiers, to cut costs and still comply with a union rule that dictated the use of a certain percentage of extras in the cast, 800 dummies were scattered among 800 extras.
• In the scene where Rhett pours Mammy a drink after the birth of Bonnie, for a joke during a take, Clark Gable actually poured alcohol instead of the usual tea into the decanter without Hattie McDaniel knowing it until she took a swig.
• The scene where Scarlett digs up a turnip then retches and gives her "As God is my witness" line, the vomiting sounds were actually made by Olivia de Havilland since Vivien Leigh could not produce a convincing enough retch.
• Vivien Leigh worked for 125 days and received about $25,000. Clark Gable worked for 71 days and received over $120,000.
• Margaret Mitchell wrote her novel between 1926 and 1929. In her early drafts, the main character was named "Pansy O'Hara" and the O'Hara plantation we know as Tara was called "Fountenoy Hall." A few of Margaret Mitchell's working titles for the novel included "Tomorrow is Another Day," "Not in Our Stars," "Bugles Sang True" and "Tote the Weary Load."