Читать книгу Gone With The Wind - Группа авторов - Страница 11

“Is it the greatest motion picture ever made? Probably not, although it is the greatest motion mural we have seen and the most ambitious film-making venture in Hollywood’s spectacular history.”

— New York Times, Dec. 20, 1939

The mayor read a cable of greeting from Leslie Howard, who had returned to England after war broke out with Germany, and then introduced “the man who, by national acclaim, from start to finish, was, is and always will be Rhett Butler.” Gable stepped to the microphones to tumultuous cheers: “Thank you, ladies and gentlemen. You know, as I started down here this evening, your mayor told me that the population of Atlanta was three hundred thousand. I have seen myself tonight, coming from the airport, three million people!”

After a cocktail party for the press in the hotel ballroom, the visitors changed clothes and headed to the city auditorium for the Atlanta Junior League’s Gone With the Wind ball. Gable, Leigh and de Havilland wore evening clothes, while the rest of the cast members arrived in costumes from the film. A local orchestra played Southern melodies, including “My Old Kentucky Home,” “Carry Me Back to Old Virginny,” “Old Folks at Home,” and, of course, a rousing rendition of “Dixie.” Later, with a large façade backdrop of a white-columned mansion, a choir from the city’s African-American Ebenezer Baptist Church performed spirituals such as “I Want to Walk With Jesus” and “Come Along, Children, and Be Baptized.”

The stars were introduced in their box seats and spotlights picked them out as they rose to take their bows. Shortly after 11:00 p.m., the program was turned over to band leader Kay Kyser and the audience began dancing, allowing the stars to slip out and return to their hotel.

Mitchell briefly addressed the crowd before the premiere, saying, “This is a very happy and exciting day for me.”