I have been planning this blog for a some time now and I think it's finally time it happened.
If you know anything about Hollywood history and the casting of Gone with the Wind then you already know the direction this is going.
For starters, my boyfriend Cory and I get along great. We have lots in common and agree on most things. One thing we have in common is a love for Classic Hollywood. The one thing that we disagree on the most when it comes to movies is the casting of Scarlett O'Hara.
This is not something that is a great barrier or anything that results in a knock down drag out fight. It's just something fun to joke about and somehow we manage to bring it up everyday. It's gotten to the point now where it's always something I can count on.
I am pro-Vivien Leigh and he is on team Paulette Goddard, who was almost cast as the infamous Southern Belle. Paulette Goddard was signed with David Selznick at the time but he did not cast her because she couldn't prove that she was legally married to Charlie Chaplin. At the time our buddy Vivien Leigh was legally married to her first husband but was "living in sin" as they say with Laurence Olivier. I really don't see the difference in those situations but it was 1939 and people cared about things like that then. Nowadays you could marry a chicken on the internet, have a Cheeto as your maid of honor (or best man) and video tape your wedding night and no one would bat an eye.
I love Paulette Goddard. I think she is adorable and I love her in the movie The Ghostbreakers with Bob Hope. But she is was not the right choice for the part of Scarlett.
She could have played Scarlett if Rhett had needed a zany sidekick. Having coached some acting pieces before I can tell that Paulette Goddard is a good actress by watching her screen test. Just because you are a good actress doesn't mean you can't play every part that comes your way. If you act, the sooner you know this the better off you will be :).
Obviously, Vivien Leigh was cast accordingly. NOTE TO CORY: There was no casting couch involved regardless of what you think, my dear!
Here are the screen tests from GWTW. I am kinda obsessed with this video. I think it's hilarious and interesting to see all the different acting choices. It's a little painful in some parts (poor Lana Turner and Tallulah Bankhead. Really what the fuck were they thinking.) I would hate to think that my massive acting fail is immortalized on celluloid for ever.
Anyway, enjoy and remember that tomorrow is another day!
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