The 40 Acres Lot, also called “The Back Forty,” was originally leased for use in director Cecil B. DeMille’s epic 1927 film The King of Kings. The sets designed for the city of Jerusalem were large and spectacular, and they remained intact until the 1933 production of King Kong saw them redressed to resemble what we now know as the large gate on Skull Island. 

In 1935 the gate was only minorly re-dressed for the film She. The wall and gate remain almost entirely intact, and it’s fairly obvious in this instance that the set is the same. 

In 1938, when David O’Selznick began production on Gone with the Wind, he dismantled many of the 40 Acres sets to make room for new sets for his own production. DeMille’s original set from eleven years before was chosen not only to be demolished but also to be set on fire to film the “Burning of Atlanta” scene. This scene was the first shot ever to be filmed before the main character was cast. As legend has it, it was on this night, December 10, 1938, when David O’Selznick first met Vivien Leigh, who he would cast in the film as Scarlett O’Hara.

The set was re-decorated one last time. False facades were added to make the set look like warehouses, and then the entire thing was set ablaze. Sometimes it is noted that the sets for The Garden of Allah and Little Lord Fauntleroy were also burned for Gone with the Wind, but this does not appear to be true. The Atlanta Railroad set was eventually constructed over the spot where the previous set had been.

Visit Retroweb.com to learn more about the various studio backlots, as well as the 40 Acre backlot. 

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