Beschreibung:

A David O. Selznick group of memos to George Cukor pertaining to Gone With the Wind MGM, 1939. Nine typed and mimeographed interoffice memoranda, 8 of which are on Selznick International Pictures, Inc., letterhead, dated June 4, 1937 through December 17, 1938, all from producer David O. Selznick and all but one addressed to the first director assigned to Gone With the Wind, George Cukor, regarding casting decisions, some with penciled annotations in shorthand. Highlights include consideration of the following actors and actresses for parts (among others): Lionel Barrymore as Dr. Meade (ultimately played by Harry Davenport); Billie Burke as Aunt Pitty Pat (ultimately played by Laura Hope Crews); and Judy Garland for Careen (ultimately played by Ann Rutherford). Selznick is famously blunt in his comments regarding prospective candidates, such as claiming that he has heard that actress Estelle Winwood "is not looking very well" and that "her looks may have gone off." He also claims that shooting tests with actor Charles Quigley as Rhett Butler is "silly ... we do an injustice to the girls who are playing Scarlett." Selznick also warns the recipients of his memos, for which he was famous, to not "leave them around where they can be read by other people." A fascinating archive which chronicles the minutiae involved in the day-to-day production of this epic film. Provenance: the collection of Tom Heyes. 5.5 x 8.25 in. to 8.5 x 11 in.