LITTLE-KNOWN FACTS ABOUT GONE WITH THE WIND

Hattie McDaniel, who played maid Mammy, wasn’t allowed to attend the film’s premiere in Atlanta, Georgia, due to segregation laws. Clark Gable was furious and threatened to boycott the premiere himself unless she was allowed to be there, but did attend when Hattie convinced him to go. She later won an Oscar for her performance – the first AfricanAmerican to ever win one.

Vivien Leigh hated kissing Clark Gable because of his horrific breath, said to be caused by his chain-smoking and false teeth. But Clark was also spotted eating garlic cloves before his scenes with his leading lady.

Vivien worked on the film’s set for 125 days, compared with Clark’s 71 days, but was paid a fifth of what he earned.

The movie went through three directors. The first, George Cukor, was fired after disagreements with the film’s producer David O. Selznick, and, as it was rumoured, because he was gay and David didn’t think he could direct the film’s love scenes with the required passion. Victor Fleming was brought on board, but because of his already full workload with The Wizard of Oz, which was released in the same year, had to take extended leave due to exhaustion. Sam Wood was hired to fill in until Victor recovered. However, Vivien and Olivia continued to secretly visit George for coaching.

Olivia de Havilland was known for her wicked sense of humour – in one scene where Clark was required to pick her up, she asked the props department to attach her to the set. Clark nearly threw out his back.

Clark almost quit the production when he realised he’d have to cry on screen. He was worried he’d be seen as weak and over-emotional, and would be typecast. The scene in question – in which he learns of Scarlett’s miscarriage – was shot twice, once with

Clark crying, and once with his back to the camera. The crying shot was used.

Clark and Hattie were good friends, and Clark loved to prank his pal by replacing the fake whiskey she was drinking in her scenes with the real stuff.

Despite a popular myth, it’s not the first movie to have the word “damn” spoken. In fact, the film’s most famous phrase – “Frankly my dear, I don’t give a damn,” uttered by Rhett as the very last line as he turns away from Scarlett – almost didn’t happen as there was a fight to get the dialogue past censors.

The film officially won eight Oscars, including Best Director, Best Picture and Best Actress, and also won two honorary awards, which is why it’s sometimes referred to as the first film to win 10 Oscars.

At the time of filming, Vivien was having an affair with Sir Laurence Olivier, who was in New York shooting another project. She was so desperate to get back to him, she at times insisted working through the night to hurry production up.

Victor Fleming thought the film would bomb, so he asked for a salary as opposed to a percentage of the profits.

The film had its wide release in January 1940, and was released in wartime Britain in April of that same year, but New Zealanders had to wait until May 2, 1941, when it premiered at Auckland’s St James Theatre.

It was reported that the film had 20,107 words of dialogue, a Hollywood record.