This handwritten letter from actor Olivia de Havilland Goodrich to psychiatrist William Menninger and his typed reply discuss The Snake Pit, a 1948 film starring Olivia de Havilland. Olivia de Havilland was famous for playing Maid Marian alongside Errol Flynn in Robin Hood (1938) and Melanie Hamilton in Gone with the Wind (1939). She was nominated for an Academy award for The Snake Pit, which is credited for instigating mental healthcare reform in the United States. Dr. William Menninger, a psychiatrist and co-founder of the Menninger Clinic, was a leader in the reform of state mental healthcare. In his letter, he invites de Havilland to attend the opening meeting of the American Psychiatric Association conference on April 11, 1949.
Kansas Memory
Kansas Historical Society
Olivia de Havilland Goodrich correspondence with William Menninger - March 10, 1949