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Posted by Faye Bell on May 06, 2009 at 20:54:13:
FROM: RECORD.PUB.COM - Date May 6, 2009
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GONE WITH THE WIND ACTRESS AT KENT STATE UNIVERSITY
ANN RUTHERFORD Played CAREEN O'HARA in Famous Movie
May 1, 2009
By Colin McEwen
Record-Courier staff writer
Legendary film star Ann Rutherford shared memories, thoughts and stories about the “Golden Age” of Hollywood with an eager crowd at Kent State University on Thursday.
The 88-year-old actress starred in many films in the 1930s and the 1940s, but perhaps her most famous role was as Careen O’Hara in the silver screen classic, “Gone with the Wind.”
“I fell in love with the book, but I never imagined I’d be in the film,” she said. “I think I got the job by a hair.”
The more than 150 people in attendance in the packed Murphy Auditorium in Rockwell Hall watched a 15-minute video of her many roles — right alongside one of Hollywood’s legends.
Christopher Sullivan, of the Gone with the Wind Museum in Georgia, moderated the discussion with Rutherford, asking her questions about roles and the people she starred with.
“It’s been an interesting life and I’ve enjoyed every moment of it,” she said.
Rutherford said Clark Gable was “gorgeous,” well liked by the crew, and was known to play cards on the set; John Wayne was a giant gentleman, who was “all-guy;” and Judy Garland was one of the most talented singers and actresses Rutherford said she has ever known.
And, with her credentials, she has known quite a few.
The Canadian-born Rutherford appeared as Polly Benedict in the Andy Hardy film series as well as in numerous Westerns.
But her favorite role — with the most success — was almost certainly “Gone with the Wind,” a film that was also a crowd favorite, Rutherford said.
“Show business has been kind to me,” she said. “If someone told me in 1939 that people would prop me up to talk about ‘Gone with the Wind,’ I wouldn’t have been the least bit surprised.”