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A 'presentation copy' script from "Gone with the Wind" given to Vivien Leigh by David O. Selznick
US$80,000 - US$120,000
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Find your local specialistA 'presentation copy' script from "Gone with the Wind" given to Vivien Leigh by David O. Selznick
Footnotes
Provenance:
By direct family descent
Vivien Leigh was born Vivian Mary Hartley on November 5th, 1913 in Darjeeling India. Her father, Ernest Hartley, was French, her mother, Gertrude Yackjee, was Irish. She attended London's public schools, a French convent in Italy and finishing schools in Paris and Bavaria. She joined the Academy of Dramatic Art in London at the age of 19. Vivien's first film was the 1934 "Things Are Looking Up" when she was only 21 years old. She played a schoolgirl and had one line of dialogue which was cut from the film: "If you are not made headmistress, I shan't come back next term."
In 1932, at the age of 19, Vivian married Leigh Holman, and in 1935, she took the name 'Leigh' from him for her last name and she changed the spelling of her first name to 'Vivien' with an 'e' to become 'Vivien Leigh.' Their union created one daughter, named Suzanne, who was born October 10th 1933, shortly before Vivien's 20th birthday.
Her casting as Scarlett O'Hara happened fortuitously. After numerous screen tests with every major (and non-major) actress in Hollywood, producer David O. Selznick actually started filming his picture without his female lead. Miss Leigh happened to be a guest on the set during initial filming and when Selznick saw her, he was struck by her resemblance to Scarlett O'Hara as described by GWTW author, Margaret Mitchell. The rest, as they say, is history.
Vivien Leigh went on to become one of Hollywood's and the world's best actresses, evidenced by her two Oscars for 'Best Actress in a Leading Role;' the first for her role as Scarlett O'Hara in "Gone with the Wind" (1939) and the second for her role as Blanche DuBois in "A Streetcar Named Desire" (1951).