Gone with the Wednesday: Photoplay Magazine Makes Their Choice For Rhett

In 1937, when the casting of Gone with the Wind was the #1 topic of debate, Photoplay magazine declared their choice for Rhett Butler loud and clear.

Photoplay Throws Its Hat in the Ring

Herewith we enter the Great Casting Battle of “Gone with the Wind,” because to our mind there is but one Rhett–Clark Gable.  So sure we were of our choice that we had Vincentini paint this portrait of Clark as we see him in the role: cool, impertient, utterly charming. We like all the other handsome actors mentioned as Rhett–only we don’t want them as Rhett. We want Gable and we’re going to stick to that regardless.

Clark seemed to appreciate the rendering, as he even noted in an interview in 1940, “Photoplay, in publishing some two years ago, a sketch of me as Rhett, had given me a guide on the make-up which was an enormous help, and I followed that.”