Margaret Mitchell's Gone With the Wind: A Bestseller's Odyssey from Atlanta to Hollywood

by Ellen F. Brown, John Wiley Jr.

Overview

Margaret Mitchell's Gone With the Wind: A Bestseller's Odyssey from Atlanta to Hollywood presents the first comprehensive overview of how this iconic novel became an international phenomenon that has managed to sustain the public's interest for seventy-five years. Various Mitchell biographies and several compilations of her letters tell part of the story, but, until now, no single source has revealed the full saga. This entertaining account of a literary and pop culture phenomenon tells how Mitchell's book was developed, marketed, distributed, and otherwise groomed for success in the 1930s—and the savvy measures taken since then by the author, her publisher, and her estate to ensure its longevity.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781589796928
Publisher:	Taylor Trade Publishing
Publication date:	06/16/2012
Pages:	432
Product dimensions:	5.60(w) x 8.70(h) x 1.20(d)

About the Author

Ellen F. Brown is a rare book dealer and freelance writer specializing in stories about antiquarian books and the rare book industry. She lives in Richmond, Virginia.

John Wiley, Jr. owns one of the largest collections of Gone With the Wind memorabilia in private hands, including every American edition of the novel and over 600 foreign editions. He writes a quarterly newsletter, The Scarlett Letter, for GWTW fans and collectors.

Table of Contents

Cast of Characters ix

Introduction 1

1 This Woman Has Something 5

1900-August 1935

2 A Manuscript of the Old South 27

August 1935-January 1936

3 In Cold Type 41

February-March 1936

4 A Book with Definite Possibilities 57

April-May 1936

5 Fanning the Flame 75

May-June 1936

6 The Making of a Colossal Upper-case Success 91

June-July 1936

7 That Book About the Wind 105

August-October 1936

8 The Reluctant Celebrity 119

Fall 1936

9 Gone With the Wind, Inc. 137

December 1936-April 1937

10 Defending Scarlett's Honor 153

Spring-December 1937

11 From Greenland's Icy Mountains to India's Coral Strand 175

1938

12 Me and My Poor Scarlett 189

1939

13 Toting the Weary Load 209

December 1939-1942

14 Reconstruction 231

1943-Summer 1941

15 A Bolt from the Blue 249

Fall 1947-August 1949

16 Inherit the Wind 269

August 1949-1959

17 Minding Scarlett's Business 287

1960-May 1983

18 Tomorrow Is Another Book 303

June 1983-2011

Epilogue 323

Acknowledgments 325

Notes 329

Bibliography 359

Index 367

Editorial Reviews

In a narrative as engaging and well-paced as that of Gone With the Wind itself, Brown and Wiley chronicle the journey of the story that captured the world’s imagination and the woman whose tireless efforts changed the way books are made, sold, and read. This is a celebration of the unique power great books have to shelter, heal, and unite us and it is a must-read for anyone who has wondered what life is like for the artists whose work changes our lives.
— Rebecca Joines Schinsky

The Book Lady's Blog

A beat up manuscript that was viewed as unfinished quickly became a cultural icon. Margaret Mitchell's Gone with the Wind: A Bestseller's Odyssey from Atlanta to Hollywood tells the story of both Gone with the Wind and its author Margaret Mitchell. An enigma of her contemporaries, people for years have wondered how the novel came into being and how it cached on so hotly, as well as what was the intent of the author during the story's dramatic almost cliffhanger ending. A fascinating exploration of literature, culture, and film, Margaret Mitchell's Gone with the Wind: A Bestseller's Odyssey from Atlanta to Hollywood is a fine read and highly recommended.

Midwest Book Review

A fascinating exploration of literature, culture, and film, 'Margaret Mitchell's Gone with the Wind: A Bestseller's Odyssey from Atlanta to Hollywood' is a fine read and highly recommended.

The Midwest Book Review

People with an interest in Gone With the Wind and the publishing business in general will find much to fascinate in this captivating history of the Gone With the Wind empire. Highly recommended.

Devourer of Books blog

[A] fascinating perspective on the life of a tremendously successful book...

From the Publisher