Vivian Leigh 
by Dolores A. Treadway
Richmond, Virginia

     Vivian Leigh was a women I admire and respect deeply.  Her talent and beauty were, by far, exquisite. She battled with tuberculosis and mental illness;  yet carried on with her short film career and vast stage roles....she had inner strength to overcome mental illness as she took on roles.  These roles, such as "Scarlett O'Hara" in Gone with the Wind or "Blanche du Bois" in Streetcar Named Desire" (films), were gems which she wore and "became" totally...fair English lady to have given us laughter and tears on film and stage, even at the point of breakdowns within her personal life.  She was an excellent actress and a great lady.

VIVIEN LEIGH

Sparkling as sun
on a restless ocean 
which searches for the shore,
yet, always yearns for
the excitement of the waves
and tides...

One exquisite woman
to touch so many lives
with her grace, beauty and talent,
yet, she needed more ~
more compassion, more understanding;
for the darkness and elation
of her mental illness
betrayed her actual existence ~
clouds which hindered,
yet, gave her inner strength 
to go forward in her gift 
of giving us a beauty to behold
and a tragic heroine to cry for
and a magnificent actress to adore...