Intrada Soundtrack Forum

75 years ago December 15th 1939. That was the date of the world premier of 'Gone With The Wind' surely one of the most greatest and most iconic movies ever made so I am very surprised that nobody has made any comments about this important event nor has there been any re-release of Max Steiner's wonderful score. The superb Rhino double CD with extensive booklet has not been available for some time. To be sure it's not my kind of film and I've never read the book but I do have the DVD with the fascinating 2 hour 'making of' documentary ( which in many ways is better than the film itself) and I do recognise it's importance in 20th century filmmaking so it is disappointing that this significant date and event has gone without it being celebrated in some way, after all the next significant date will be 15 th December 2039 and none is us is likely to around then!
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Grail: ONE OF OUR DINOSAURS IS MISSING (Ron Goodwin)

I hope I'll live 25 years more !

Eh, I never got caught up in anniversary celebrations. Any time is a good time to appreciate it and bring the music back in print in its deluxe edition. The same goes for the Rhino release of Alfred Newman's How the West Was Won, which has room for improvement.

We are also coming up on the sesquicentennial of the end of the Civil War. One would think that there would be more interest, but sadly there is not the same kind of awareness as there was in 1989 for the 50th anniversary. WB did do a full blown reissue in 1999 which perhaps didn't do too well. Do Millennials even know about the movie, let alone care?

Apart from the music, which is all by itself a master class in film scoring, GWTW is a true milestone, an unparalleled mega-blockbuster and cultural phenomenon that only "The Sound of Music" came close to truly rivaling in the pre-Jaws/Star Wars era. It can also still spark discussion about the tension between independent productions and studio pictures -- something that is still very much relevant, in that DOS wanted to make it independently but had to eventually partner with LB Mayer in order to get it finished.

I agree that "The Making of a Legend" is superb. It remains required viewing for anyone interested in filmmaking and Hollywood history (even if you don't like the movie itself), and stands as possibly the best "making of" documentary ever done.

Mike M.