Mary Alicia Rhett (February 1, 1915 – January 3, 2014) was an American actress and portrait painter who is best remembered for her role as

India Wilkes ''Gone with the Wind'' is a novel by American writer Margaret Mitchell, first published in 1936. The story is set in Clayton County and Atlanta, both in Georgia, during the American Civil War and Reconstruction Era. It depicts the struggles of y ...

in the 1939 epic film ''

Gone with the Wind Gone with the Wind most often refers to: * ''Gone with the Wind'' (novel), a 1936 novel by Margaret Mitchell * ''Gone with the Wind'' (film), the 1939 adaptation of the novel Gone with the Wind may also refer to: Music * ''Gone with the Wind'' ...

''. At the time of her death, Rhett was one of the oldest surviving credited cast members of the movie.

Early years

Rhett was born in 1915 at

Savannah, Georgia Savannah ( ) is the oldest city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia and is the county seat of Chatham County, Georgia, Chatham County. Established in 1733 on the Savannah River, the city of Savannah became the Kingdom of Great Br ...

to Isobel Murdoch, an immigrant from

Liverpool, England Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...

, and Edmund M. Rhett, an American army officer and engineer based in Savannah. Her grandfather was Col. Alfred Moore Rhett, the commander of the 1st South Carolina Artillery for most of the civil war, and her great grandfather was

Robert Barnwell Rhett Robert Barnwell Rhett (born Robert Barnwell Smith; December 21, 1800September 14, 1876) was an American politician who served as a deputy from South Carolina to the Provisional Confederate States Congress from 1861 to 1862, a member of the US H ...

, Alfred Rhett's father. After her father's death during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, Alicia and her mother moved to

Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, the county seat of Charleston County, and the principal city in the Charleston–North Charleston metropolitan area. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint o ...

. Rhett became a theatre actress in Charleston. A newspaper article in 1939 quoted a

Selznick International Pictures Selznick International Pictures was a Hollywood motion picture studio created by David O. Selznick in 1935, and dissolved in 1943. In its short existence the independent studio produced two films that received the Academy Award for Best Picture� ...

news release as saying that Rhett Butler's first name was chosen by

Margaret Mitchell Margaret Munnerlyn Mitchell (November 8, 1900 – August 16, 1949) was an American novelist and journalist. Mitchell wrote only one novel, published during her lifetime, the American Civil War-era novel '' Gone with the Wind'', for which she wo ...

because "Since earliest Colonial days, the Rhett family has occupied a prominent position in the South generally, and, more particularly, in and around Charleston, S.C." Alicia Rhett graduated from Memminger High School in Charleston.

''Gone with the Wind''

During a performance of ''The Recruiting Officer'' in 1936, Rhett was spotted by Hollywood director

George Cukor George Dewey Cukor (; July 7, 1899 – January 24, 1983) was an American film director and film producer. He mainly concentrated on comedies and literary adaptations. His career flourished at RKO when David O. Selznick, the studio's Head of ...

, who was impressed by her charm and beauty. The director was scouting for an actress to play the role of

Scarlett O'Hara Katie Scarlett O'Hara Hamilton Kennedy Butler is a fictional character and the protagonist in Margaret Mitchell's 1936 novel ''Gone with the Wind'' and in the 1939 film of the same name, where she is portrayed by Vivien Leigh. She also is the m ...

after producer

David Selznick David O. Selznick (May 10, 1902June 22, 1965) was an American film producer, screenwriter and film studio executive who produced ''Gone with the Wind'' (1939) and '' Rebecca'' (1940), both of which earned him an Academy Award for Best Picture ...

purchased the film rights to the

novel. Previously, she had been suggested by talent scout Kay Brown as a possible

Southern belle Southern belle () is a colloquialism for a debutante in the planter class of the Antebellum South. Characteristics The image of a Southern belle is often characterized by fashion elements such as a hoop skirt, a corset, pantalettes, a wide-b ...

for the film. Rhett auditioned for the part of

Melanie Hamilton Melanie Hamilton Wilkes is a fictional character first appearing in the 1936 novel ''Gone with the Wind (novel), Gone with the Wind'' by Margaret Mitchell. In the Gone with the Wind (film), 1939 film she was portrayed by Olivia de Havilland. Mel ...

, but the role went instead to

Olivia de Havilland Dame Olivia Mary de Havilland (; July 1, 1916July 26, 2020) was a British-American actress. The major works of her cinematic career spanned from 1935 to 1988. She appeared in 49 feature films and was one of the leading actresses of her time. ...

. In March 1937, Cukor offered Rhett the role of

, sister of

Ashley Wilkes George Ashley Wilkes is a fictional character in Margaret Mitchell's 1936 novel ''Gone with the Wind (novel), Gone with the Wind'' and the 1939 Gone with the Wind (film), film of the same name. The character also appears in the 1991 book ''Scarl ...

. After the success of ''Gone with the Wind'', Rhett left Hollywood and returned to South Carolina and retired from filmmaking in 1941, citing a lack of suitable roles. Rhett later became an accent coach for aspiring actors and a

radio announcer An announcer is a voice artist who relays information to the audience of a broadcast media programme or live event. Television and other media Some announcers work in television production, radio or filmmaking, usually providing narrations ...

at station

WTMA WTMA (1250 kHz), “News Talk 1250 WTMA”, is a commercial AM radio station licensed to Charleston, South Carolina. It has a talk radio format and is owned by Cumulus Media. WTMA's studios and offices are on Faber Place Drive in North Char ...

in Charleston.

Portrait painter

Prior to appearing in ''Gone with the Wind'', Rhett showed talent as a

sketch artist A sketch (ultimately from Greek σχέδιος – ''schedios'', "done extempore") is a rapidly executed freehand drawing that is not usually intended as a finished work.Dia ...

and portrait painter. Between takes on ''Gone with the Wind'', she made sketches and drawings of her fellow actors. Soon, Rhett was creating portraits of American servicemen in the Charleston vicinity. Some of her later works included portraits of Admiral Louis Emil Denfeld, and librarian Estellene P. Walker, the latter of which is on display in the South Carolina State Library. Coincidentally, Rhett was commissioned to paint the portrait of a then 19-year-old Charleston resident Alexandra Braid, later known as

Alexandra Ripley Alexandra Ripley ( Braid; January 8, 1934 – January 10, 2004) was an American writer best known as the author of '' Scarlett'' (1991), written as a sequel to '' Gone with the Wind''. Her first novel was ''Who's the Lady in the President's Bed ...

, author of '' Scarlett'' (1991), the sequel to ''

''. Rhett illustrated a number of books, including ''South Carolina Indians'' (1965), written by Beth Causey and Leila Darby. Of particular note, Charlotte Brown Lide commissioned Ms. Rhett to paint a portrait of her late husband, Claudius Murray Lide, Sr., and the same year painted a reproduction of William Harrison Scarborough's "The Miller Sisters". These two portraits are housed in the home of Claudius Murray Lide, Jr. in

Columbia, South Carolina Columbia is the capital of the U.S. state of South Carolina. With a population of 136,632 at the 2020 census, it is the second-largest city in South Carolina. The city serves as the county seat of Richland County, and a portion of the city ...

Death

Rhett died at age 98 of natural causes on January 3, 2014, at Bishop Gadsden Episcopal Retirement Community in her longtime hometown of

. In her obituaries, Rhett was cited as "the oldest living actor from ''

Gone With the Wind Gone with the Wind most often refers to: * ''Gone with the Wind'' (novel), a 1936 novel by Margaret Mitchell * ''Gone with the Wind'' (film), the 1939 adaptation of the novel Gone with the Wind may also refer to: Music * ''Gone with the Wind'' ...

''", being 17 months older than Dame

. Alicia Rhett was laid to rest beside her parents at St. Philip's Episcopal Church Cemetery, in Charleston, South Carolina, under a large standing granite stone, marked by her name, dates, with the description, "Daughter of Edmund M. and Isobel M. Rhett -Portraitist".

Filmography

References

External links

*
''New York Times'' biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rhett, Alicia 1915 births 2014 deaths American film actresses American women painters Actors from Savannah, Georgia Actresses from Charleston, South Carolina American portrait painters Artists from Georgia (U.S. state) Artists from Charleston, South Carolina Actresses from Georgia (U.S. state) American people of English descent 20th-century American actresses 20th-century American painters 20th-century American women artists 21st-century American women