Marietta Celebrates Gone with the Wind

Celebration of Southern culture is an ongoing activity in this historic region of northwest <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" />Georgia.  Marietta is a city that was founded before the Civil War, and was the location of hard fought battles as General Sherman marched to Atlanta.  Tara, the memorable plantation and setting for the novel Gone with the Wind, is based on a local estate.  The Marietta Gone with the Wind Museum is holding a celebration this weekend to mark the 75th anniversary of Margaret Mitchell’s famous novel with surviving cast members from the film, interviews, autograph signings and a panel of authors.

The celebration kicks off 9:30 a.m. Friday at the Marietta Country Club with “Breakfast with the Stars,” where fans can have brunch with actors, authors and artists.   The brunch is held in honor of the late Robert Warren of Austell, an avid “Wind” fan who died last month.

A “Scarlett Look-Alike” contest will be held afterward, with judging led by actress Morgan Brittany of TV's "Dallas,” who portrayed Vivien Leigh in “Gable and Lombard.” 
Other events include a dinner and an interview with Mitchell biographer Anne Edwards.

Saturday begins with a 10 a.m. autograph signing at the museum and an afternoon author’s panel from 3 to 5 p.m. in the Hilton ballroom with authors Edwards, Susan Lindsley, Marianne Walker and John Wiley.

The museum will also premiere Edwards’ memoirs of her interaction with Leigh and the Mitchell family, titled “Scarlett and Me.”

The celebration concludes with an 8 p.m. Saturday program at Marietta Middle School titled “The Golden Age of Hollywood” with Ann Rutherford, owner of the “Wind” collection.

Also celebrating the novel’s anniversary, Georgia Public Broadcasting will air a documentary about Margaret Mitchell on June 30 on GPB at 8 p.m. Many of the scenes were filmed in and around Marietta. <?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />