One of many versions of the theatre advertising poster for the 1939 film Gone With the Wind, an epic historical romance story adapted from Margaret Mitchell’s novel of the same title. The motion picture won the Oscar for Best Picture of the year as well as garnering seven other Academy Awards including Best Actress (Vivian Leigh) and Best Supporting Actress (Hattie McDaniel). Other major stars appearing in the movie were Clark Gable, Leslie Howard and Olivia DeHaviland.
Gone With the Wind was re-released during the centennial of the Civil War which took place from 1961-1965 and was a popular feature at Lykens Valley area movie houses.
Gone With the Wind was shown at the Lyric Theatre, Williamstown, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, on Friday June 15, 1962, and Saturday, June 16, 1962, with one showing each night at 7:30, regular admission price. The above ad appeared in the West Schuylkill Herald, June 15, 1962, and also included the feature for the following week, Moon Pilot, a Walt Disney film starring Tom Tyron and Brian Keith.
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Ad from Newspapers.com. The film poster is from Wikipedia. The article there includes a discussion of the racial depictions including the film’s role in perpetuating Civil War myths and black stereotypes. The film has also been accused of glorifying “marital rape,” also mentioned in the Wikipedia article. These controversies continue to the present day with streaming services pulling the film from their catalogues and annual festival showings being canceled.
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