Below is a link to a photo gallery you may have already seen in the ajc- it's got some nice shots of the premiere in celebration of the 75th anniversary of the book release being celebrated today. I believe the book was first printed and sold the first of May- The Book of the Month Club wanted to have it for July, so it was not officially released till May 30th 1936. Do comment if I have those months wrong- very possible- The "official" celebrations of the 75th anniversary sort of split it down the middle for today, May 14th, which is pretty ok by me, since today is a favorite day and sticks in my mind anyway.
Click here for gallery, including Margaret Mitchell being presented with a pink camellia corsage at the premiere.
Picked up the above booty at on of the famous Cove garage sales. The '36 Singer is a get from a sale down the street. Appropriate, no? Talullah Bankhead, as we all know, was pretty hot for the part of Scarlett in Selznick's movie version, which was being "cast" as the book began flying off the shelves that summer. She was a great buddy of Jock Whitney, and tested extensively. Whether her flamboyance could have served the film or not is anyone's conjecture- Talullah was a fantastic, long lasting presence, as we southern pistols often turn out to be, and I enjoy the 1950s television Talullah more than anyone on currently. And of course, we owe the famous name of our childhood, Bankhead Highway, to her grandfather, who was a supporter of the Federal Good Roads project which brought us that road and in Bay County, U. S. 98, which leads through the beaches of our fair panhandle.
OF course, Clark Gable loved the Cove- loved the hunting and fishing offered at the Cove Hotel. He trained at the Gunnery School across Watson Bayou from there, at Tyndall Air Field in 1941 after his enlistment in the Army Air Corps. The Cove Hotel offered guided trips, led often by Wallace Caswell, seen in Panama City Beach: Tales from the World's Most Beautiful Beaches, and none other than George Thomas and various Thomas brothers, all of whom appear in The Cove: Panama City's Historic Neighborhoods.
The King also enjoyed the dances held at the Cove Hotel, and the lovely lasses he squired there. He frequented Mattie'e Tavern on Beck Avenue in St. Andrews, a stone's throw from every southsider's favorite seafood spot, Hunt's Oyster Bar.
To hear a little of what it sounds like to be at Hunt's on glittering St Andrews Bay on a blue sky day - in the middle of the week! - as well as what it's like to be standing on the white dunes of St Andrews State Park watching dolphins go by,
click the WKGC link below, scroll down and listen to Panama City Beach: Tales from the World's Most Beautiful Beaches. wkgc
Of course, as always, the best thing about the cove, or here, or anyneighborhood is the folks, and we here on the East end just welcomed some new neighbors from Chipley, fixing up a nice place on the lagoon, and I got to see George Thomas and the cover girl of the Cove book, his lovely bride Dorothy. Mr George, 92, was out picking up the paper so I hopped out and we went in and got Miss Dorothy out of bed to say hey. Then at the sale noted above- one of my youngest Cove friends was helping her mom with her grandmother's home- they were all for giving my the stuff, which of course couldn't be allowed.
But that's what it's like down here- and that's what neighborhoods are all about! Happy 75th Anniversary Day to you and yours!
