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Originally Posted by Whitehall
I agree that "Driving Miss Daisy" was a more representative and a more enjoyable film. But then, so was "Gone with the Wind"!
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I'm sorry if am mis-reading your point. And, with all my respect.
I hear this often, but take issue with it. Driving Miss Daisy, while representing those people in society at that time, was far from representative of the South. It was a small Jewish sub-culture of suburban Atlanta. Probably most Southerners were unaware it even existed. I agree, the actors were dead-on for those parts.
Gone With The Wind was just entertainment at best. Very little accurate history. As much as many would like to believe it, there was very little of this life in the South. If it did exist, it was confined to the sugar and rice plantations along the coast and in the New Orleans area. The life that was portrayed in GWTW was one that required breeding. This did not exist to any great extent. Breeding requires money and time. Both of which were in short supply in the South. These folks worked hard. They were farmers. Men, women and children all had dirty hands. No need for hoop skirts.
So, yes it may have existed, but it was far from being a window into Southern life.
Incidentally, I live in the South. I am a proud graduate of the University of Georgia. My wife is Southern (I kind of like her). My kids were all born in the South. I was born in TX, but moved away early. I am not so foolish as to believe that I am Southern. I think there is a multi-generational requirement to be Southern. There has been a lot of pain, suffering and hard work. I have too much respect for that, to dare claim it.
My two favorite books, regarding this beautiful part of our country: John Grisham's "A Painted House", and Harper Lee's "To Kill A Mockingbird". I don't believe they are wholly representative either, but definitely accurate.