Did y'all hear the news?
Gone with the Wind had it's 75th birthday. It's been a full 75 years since we first watched Miss Scarlett flirt with those Tarletan twins at the 12 Oaks barbecue. 75 years from the moment we cried as Atlanta burned and were convinced that tomorrow would be a new day.
And by "we", I mean, not me. I was sadly not around for the original theater release, although my siblings might disagree with me. They've taken to calling me "grandma" lately. Which makes sense because I'm 92 at heart. I was once told, by a man who recently celebrated his 99th birthday, that "you're only as old as you feel in your heart". Bob Hope told him that. I love Bob Hope and I do believe that 92 would be about as accurate age for me as you could guess.
Anyway, back to Miss Scarlett.
For two nights only, select theaters put this movie back on the big screen. It was amazing to see how the quality stood up to modern movies. After all of these years, its still a pleasure to watch the beautifully filmed scenes play out as the superb actors do their thing. It's a timeless story of how people react when faced with difficult situations. And one of my favorites.
I've read that most Southern women identify with either Scarlett or Melanie. Which is funny to me, but also true. It's not a happy book by any means, I read it cover to cover in about two weeks last winter. All 732 pages, it was too cold outside to do anything else. I just read and dreamed about warmer weather. And got so very wrapped up in the drama. Scarlett herself is a fascinating study, I just wanted so badly for her to break down, to be human, to show a bit of warmth. But she never does. She is so brave, but her bravery boils down to nothing but selfishness. All of the characters really are fascinating really, sweet Melanie, wimpy Ashley, shocking Rhett. We all have our favorites. My Mimi says that they are representative of the four main temperaments, which is probably another post for another day.
Tell me, did you get the chance to see this is the theater? Have you read the book?
I didn't even know it was the anniversary! I saw the movie once; Scarlett and Ashley just drove me nuts. :-) I haven't read the book, though I own a hardback anniversary edition my aunt gave me.
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