microBoz

It’s airing again tomorrow (1 Aug) on TCM at 1PM.

In 1934, David O. Selznick finally found himself in the position to build his own studio and become an independent producer. He declined renewal of his contract, against MGM’s wishes, and accepted a $20,000 fee to finish producing Anna Karenina (1935)with Greta Garbo, and to oversee the shooting of another Dickens adaptation, A Tale of Two Cities (1935). Selznick had great success with David Copperfield in 1934 and retained many of the same cast members of that film, including Basil Rathbone, Elizabeth Allan and Edna May Oliver.

Sounds cool, unfortunately I could only make out two of the names from the photos: Count Smorltork (from The Pickwick Papers) and Little Nell.

The gravestone of Robert Seymour, original illustrator of The Pickwick Papers has been rediscovered after a century, and will now be unveiled at the London home of Dickens. Seymour committed suicide within a day of being dropped as Dickens’ illustrator.

A number of admirers of Seymour certainly believe that morally Dickens was responsible for his death. The wretched artist is thought to have believed his genius had been stolen and that the book would make another man rich and famous.