Margaret Mitchell's Gone With the Wind by Ellen F. Brown & Jr. John Wiley

Author:Ellen F. Brown & Jr. John Wiley [John Wiley, Jr.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-1-58979-527-3
Publisher: Taylor Trade Publishing

In the fall of 1938, the Marshes saw a glimmer of light at the end of the international rights tunnel—and it was not another oncoming train. Taft finished registering the copyrights, and Mitchell felt she had done all she could to meet her obligations to Selznick regarding protection of the copyright. With Brett’s and Taft’s guidance, Mitchell approached Selznick and asked for assurances that she had fulfilled her duty under the “God Almighty clause.” In December, Selznick agreed Mitchell was off the hook as long as she continued to fight the Dutch piracy.

Another positive development occurred when relations with Saunders improved. For Mitchell, their association began to take on a friendly aspect when the two women finally met in person that spring. They had been communicating by letter, telegram, and telephone for the previous two years—a situation not ideally suited for building relationships. In June, Saunders visited Atlanta while on a business trip. Their conversation apparently branched beyond business into girl talk, and their correspondence afterward was chummy and good-natured.

Saunders and Marsh took longer to forge a bond. They had met on business matters during the agent’s visit to Atlanta, and Saunders made a stab at sending him some friendly letters after her trip. Marsh remained distant, insisting on calling her Miss Saunders though she freely used his first name. Later that summer, they had some further disagreements over the handling of the foreign accounts, and Marsh let Saunders know he viewed her as “highly emotional” and prone to “temperamental outburst,” which he found ironic given it was usually agents who complained about dealing with high-strung artists.46 Sensing she may have finally pushed him too far, Saunders retreated. She did not exactly beg his forgiveness but apologized for her attitude and agreed to do better going forward. “To sum up: I have decided to cooperate with and represent your interests on a more liberal and tolerant basis than before, and I trust that this will be acceptable to everyone concerned, and that our relations may, through the difficulties we have weathered together, become even more close and happy than they would have been without them.”47 Her one request of him was that he stop addressing her as Miss Saunders. Marsh agreed to give her another chance and began calling the agent by her first name.48

The situation improved further when, later that year, Saunders took an extended tour of Europe. She corresponded with the Marshes throughout her trip, giving every impression that she was working diligently to advance Gone With the Wind in overseas markets. She met with several of Mitchell’s publishers and sent back informative and entertaining anecdotes. After visiting the Polish firm operated by a man named Wydawnictwo J. Przeworski, Saunders regaled the Marshes with the story of an elderly white-haired woman “crouching like a bird behind the counter” who bowed deferentially to every visitor who came through the door. A few days later, while detained in Kraco´w by a snowstorm, Saunders struck up a conversation with a bookseller who informed her that the old woman was Przeworski’s mother and the one who ran the business.

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