Gone with the Wind (film) 1978, CBS signed a deal worth $35 million to broadcast the film twenty times over as many years. Turner Entertainment acquired the MGM film library in 1986, but the deal did not include the television rights to "Gone with the Wind", which were still held by CBS. A deal was struck in which the rights were returned to Turner Entertainment and CBS's broadcast rights to "The Wizard of Oz" were extended. It was used to launch two cable channels owned by Turner Broadcasting System: Turner Network Television (1988) and Turner Classic Movies (1994). It debuted on videocassette in March 1985,
Gone with the Wind (film) in London, opening in April 1940 and playing for four years. By the time MGM withdrew it from circulation at the end of 1943 its worldwide distribution had returned a gross rental (the studio's share of the box office gross) of $32 million, making it the most profitable film ever made up to that point. Even though it earned its investors roughly twice as much as the previous record-holder, "The Birth of a Nation", the box-office performances of the two films were likely much closer. The bulk of the earnings from "Gone with the Wind" came from its roadshow and