MARGARET MITCHELL - TYPED LETTER SIGNED 09/14/1937 - HFSID 55689

MARGARET MITCHELL.
The author of Gone With the Wind recommends a young man who wishes a part in the movie version to go directly to New York to "present himself personally" to the Selznick Company.
TLS: "Margaret", 1p, 7x11. Atlanta, Georgia, 1937 September 14. On her personal letterhead to Edwin. In full: "As I have just returned this morning from a visit with the Clifford Dowdeys in Blowing Rock and have found the mail knee deep, this letter will confine itself only to the matter of your friend, William Schultz. The letter from the Selznick company does have a note of finality and polite refusal. I hardly know what to suggest. If, as you say, the photographs of the young man were poor ones, that may explain the matter. And if the charm of this boy is in his personality and his voice, that may be a further explanation. If he is really interested and money is no problem, then perhaps he would have better luck if he went to New York and presented himself personally either to Katharine Brown or Mr. Bundsmann. The letter does have a 'we are not interested' sound. If the boy should be in New York anytime in the next six weeks, a personal try wouldn't hurt. I am sorry about Mr. Littauer turning down that story. I'll write more later. Love to you both," On July 30, 1936, Selznick International Pictures had purchased Mitchell's epic novel, Gone With the Wind, for a record $50,000. KATHARINE BROWN, Selznick's New York representative, had first brought the book to Selznick's attention and was the one who closed the deal. She was also the one who brought Vivien Leigh to Selznick's attention so it made sense for Mitchell to urge the young man to see her in New York. The film later captured the 1939 Academy Award for Best Picture. MITCHELL (1900-1949) was awarded the 1937 Pulitzer Prize in Fiction for her sweeping novel set in the Civil War and post-War era.Edwin was EDWIN GRANBERRY, who had written the one of the first complimentary reviews of Gone With the Wind for the "New York Sun" (June 30, 1936). Mitchell had first met Granberry in person at a writers' retreat at the Blowing Rock School of English in North Carolina, the summer campus of Rollins College, where Granberry was an instructor. She and her husband, JOHN MARSH,became close friends with Edwin and his wife, Mabel, and they corresponded regularly. Mr. Littauer was KENNETH LITTAUER, an Editor at "Collier's" magazine. Because of the insatiable demand for news about her, Mitchell had asked Granberry to write an "official" article about her. The article, "The Private Life of Margaret Mitchell", had appeared in "Collier's" on March 13, 1937. Slightly creased. Fine condition.