1-page, 11-line typed letter signed by Margaret Mitchell, dated August 19, 1936, 5¼x4" on folding sheet with original mailing envelope, reads: "Dear Katherine: How nice of you to write me such a grand letter about my book. I am so very happy that you enjoyed it. Somehow it seems so strange to have a cousin living so far away from Georgia! I have always wished that I were better acquainted with my Sweet kin people. Maybe I'll get the chance some day. Sincerely, Your cousin, Margaret." * And a 2-page (on one sheet), 36-lines autograph letter from Margaret's brother, Eugene M. Mitchell, dated July 23, 1936 on his Mitchell & Mitchell Attorneys at Law letterhead, 11x8½" with original mailing envelope, reads: "My Dear Cousin Katherine: I received your highly esteemed letter of July 12th enclosing a check for $3.25 with which to buy a copy of Margaret’s book “Gone With the Wind.” I bought the book but Margaret had already left town and I have been waiting for her to come back so that I can get the book autographed for you. She was to be gone two weeks and it is about time for her to return but no one knows just when she will come back. No one but her husband (John R. Marsh) knows just where she is. She fled to the mountains to hide out long enough to get some rest and sleep and to escape from the salesmen, life insurance agents and all that beneficent brood who want to assist her in investing her money. The telephone and doorbell rang from dawn until midnight and her nerves became frayed and she looked like she had lost ten pounds. So it became necessary to hide her away from Atlanta for a while..." And continues: "Margaret does not own the copyright but she sold the work to the MacMillan Company who published it and allow her a royalty of 10 per cent up to 25,000 and 15 per cent on all sales over 25,000. But I hear that MacMillan has sold 140,000 and is printing several thousand more. The newspapers have stated that she has been offered $50,000 for the movie rights but I am not at liberty to say whether that is exact...Margaret would not let me and her brother Stephens know where she was going because she was afraid we would inadvertently let somebody know. Sincerely yours, Eugene M. Mitchell."
Fascinating set of letters written only a few months after the original publication of Gone With the Wind (May 1936), Margaret Mitchell’s first and only book to be published in her lifetime. Both addressed to their cousin, Katherine Hunnicutt Perce, in New Laguna, New Mexico. These letters give an incredible first-hand insight into the life and on-goings of a young successful author and consequently what the immediate fame did to her health. The letter by Margaret’s brother also reveals the financial details of book royalties and a movie deal offer and why she had to go into hiding for a short time. Margaret Mitchell won the 1937 Pulitzer Prize for her memorable novel of the antebellum South, the American Civil War, and the Reconstruction period. It is one of the most popular books of all time, selling more copies than any other hardcover book, apart from the Bible, and continues to sell over 200,000 copies a year. The December 1939 movie release became the highest-grossing film in the history of Hollywood and received a record-breaking number of Academy Awards. Tragically Margaret was killed after being hit by a speeding taxi while crossing Peachtree Street near her house. She was only 48.