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With the premiere guaranteed, the people of Atlanta swung into high gear. Throughout the summer and into the fall, plans took shape for a ball, a parade, several luncheons and assorted parties. In California — first in Riverside and then in Santa Barbara — Selznick held two sneak previews. The audience comments were overwhelmingly positive, but the producer continued to trim the film and make small tweaks; he shot a short final scene on Nov. 11.

Finally, an official announcement came: Gone With the Wind would have its world premiere on Dec. 15 at Loew’s Grand Theatre in downtown Atlanta. Four days before the unveiling, Selznick wired Kay Brown, his East Coast story editor and general Girl Friday who was in Atlanta helping with premiere preparations: “HAVE JUST FINISHED “GONE WITH THE WIND.” GOD BLESS US ONE AND ALL.”

Selznick and Loew’s sent ahead numerous costumes from the film, as well as dozens of hats, props and set sketches. Most of Atlanta’s downtown retailers gave up valuable Christmas promotions to devote store windows to displays touting the film, while larger stores offered exhibits inside as well, often alongside new lines of Scarlett O’Hara dresses and lingerie and Gone With the Wind evening coats and jewelry. Atlanta’s three newspapers — the Constitution, the Georgian and the Journal — published special editions devoted entirely to the film, while their regular daily issues featured page 1 headlines and photos covering every detail.

On Wednesday, Dec. 13, the celebrities began arriving. Actress Ann Rutherford, who played Carreen O’Hara, was first, coming to Atlanta with her mother on the train. She was met by the mayor and presented with a large bouquet of red roses. That afternoon, Selznick and his wife Irene, Vivien Leigh and her beau Laurence Olivier, and Olivia de Havilland, landed at the Atlanta airport. Evelyn Keyes, who played Suellen O’Hara, and Ona Munson, who portrayed Belle Watling, arrived on a commercial flight about an hour later. Everyone was driven to their hotel in closed cars. The public would not get a glimpse of the stars until Clark Gable arrived the following day. Later that night, Selznick, Leigh and de Havilland quietly slipped away for a private visit with Margaret Mitchell at her apartment. It was the first time Scarlett’s creator met the man who had brought her characters to life on the big screen.

Thousands of Atlantans gathered to catch a glimpse of the visiting stars and dignitaries who arrived in the city for the much-anticipated premiere of Gone With the Wind.

The following day, more celebrities arrived, including Alicia Rhett (who portrayed India Wilkes), Laura Hope Crews (Aunt Pittypat) and actress Claudette Colbert, a friend of Irene Selznick. That afternoon a procession of cars took everyone back to the airport to meet the plane carrying Gable and his wife Carole Lombard. As twilight settled, a line of convertibles began a procession into the city. As the cars made their way into downtown and up Peachtree Street toward the Georgian Terrace Hotel, tens of thousands of people packed the sidewalks and hung out of upstairs windows to catch a glimpse of the stars. The parade route led past Loew’s Grand Theatre, the site of the following night’s premiere, which was decorated with a three-story façade of white columns, an enormous portrait of Gable and Leigh as Rhett and Scarlett, and red, white and blue bunting.

Margaret Mitchell, her husband John Marsh, Clark Gable and Carole Lombard inside Loew’s Grand Theatre.