Alicia Rhett
Alicia Rhett (born March 15, 1971) is also the name of another American actress, born in Los Angeles, California. |
Alicia Rhett |
Alicia Rhett (born
February 1,
1915) is an
American portrait painter and
actress who is best remembered for her role as India Wilkes in the
1939 film
Gone with the Wind.
Rhett was born in
Savannah, Georgia. Her mother was Isabelle Murdoch, an immigrant from
Liverpool, England and her father was Edmund M. Rhett, an army officer and engineer based in Savannah. After her father's death during
World War I, Alicia and her mother moved to
Charleston, South Carolina. Rhett became a local theatre actress in Charleston.
During a performance of "Lady Windermere's Fan", in
1936, Rhett was spotted by Hollywood director
George Cukor, impressed by her charm and beauty. The director was scouting for talent to play the role of
Scarlett O'Hara, after producer
David Selznick had purchased the rights to the
Margaret Mitchell novel. Previously Rhett had also been noted by talent scout Kay Brown as a possible Southern belle for that film. Rhett auditioned for the role of Melanie Hamilton, which eventually went to
Olivia de Havilland. In March,
1937 Cukor offered Rhett the role of India Wilkes, daughter of John Wilkes, instead.
After the success of
Gone with the Wind, Rhett left Hollywood to return to South Carolina and retired from making movies in
1941, citing a lack of suitable roles. Rhett later became an accent coach for aspiring actors and a radio announcer at station WTMA, in Charleston.
Shortly before appearing in
Gone with the Wind, Rhett had also developed as a sketch artist and portrait painter. During the filming of
Gone with the Wind she would make sketches and drawings of fellow actors between takes. Some of her later subjects included Admiral
Louis Emil Denfeld, and Estellene P. Walker, which is on display in the South Carolina State Library. Rhett also illustrated a number of books, including
South Carolina Indians (
1965) authored by Beth Causey and Leila Darby.
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Gone with the Wind (
1939) as India Wilkes.
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New York Times biography
