Posted on 03/14/2002 5:07:26 AM PST by HairOfTheDog
Ashley Wilkes is a study of a person who's world has fallen down around him. Ashley is a great character.
Rhett Butler is my favorite. He is an intricate, complex human being who I actually like. I read the book for Rhett not for Scarlett.
Plus you get the details of Atlanta Society during this time. The social mores, etc.
But don't judge the book by the movie.
OT (apparently a yankee in disguise), called GWTW a soap opera...
Didn't your granddaddy pass down stories of that era to you?
I demand satisfaction, suh!
My granddaddy was right....anything north of Winston Salem was Yankee.
I wuz sweet talkin'?... oh man, I must be slippin'...
Tell me the story about whacking people with hoses again
Hey, talk watcha know... give'em hell at the town meeting!
Actually, two of my great-grandfathers fought for the Confederacy. And legend has it that the "Rebel Yell" originated in my home county.
My family didn't really talk about it much. It's not like we were land owners or anything. My mom's dad was in WWI, but died before she graduated high school (he was hit with nerve gas). I don't know that my dad's dad was ever in the military.
My history teachers in school really romanticized it a lot. And I'm fascinated by that whole era. In fact both eras fascinated me - the actual Civil War time frame and the actual making of the movie time frame.
The stories behind the making of GWTW are also fascinating. I only saw it once but several years ago there was a tv mini-series on "The Search for Scarlet O'Hara" - more soap opera than the actual movie, but every Hollywood starlet wanted to play that role. IIRC they started filming before they cast Vivien Leigh.
Ma'am if it hadn't been for the Virginians, there wouldn't be a Winston-Salem...
BWAAAHAHAHAHA!! Good one! ^5
hey, what's not to like about g'nad?... g'nad got rogueish good looks, strong white teeth, sparklin' disposition... what's not to love?...
Yeah, but Scarlett created a lot of negative energy in me. Translation: I spent a lot of time wanting to whack her with a sock full of sand... And I didn't get her fascination with Ashley. What kinda name is that for a guy anyway? And she's supposed to always wish she coulda had him instead of Rhett? (Or so I remember...my memory is a bit vague.)
Reading your posts has convinced me to go get the book and read it. I need something to do to kill the time until TTT comes out. :)
David O Selznick began to film GWTW before Vivien Leigh was cast because he was under obligation to begin working Clark Gable on a certain date.
The first scene they shot was the burning of Atlanta. Selznick used the burning as a way to clear his backlots so that he could rebuild Atlanta there.
Vivien Leigh came to the shooting. Myron Selznick brought her. She was dating Laurence Olivier at the time.
If Vivien Leigh had not come along the part with have gone to Paulette Goddard.
So did Vivien Leigh who portrayed her. She thought Scarlett was horribly written as compared to the book.
During the time of the Civil War, Ashley was a man's name. It was a strong family name.
Leslie Howard (who portrayed Ashley) didn't like the character either. He thought Ashley was portrayed as weak. In the movie, Ashley is weak. In the book, he's not like that at all. You can see why Scarlett is drawn to him.
Of course, Rhett Butler is the best character.
If the Virginians thought more about winning the war than they did about protecting Virginia, we'd still have a republic. :)
Once a fella ignores them or (worse) chooses another, the gloves come off and it's a desperate pursuit until they finally have them. Then, they dump them.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.