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Son of producer Lewis J. Selznick. David and Irene Mayer Selznick had two sons, L. Jeffrey Selznick and Daniel Selznick. He abandoned his career at MGM after marrying Irene Mayer Selznick, the daughter of MGM studio chief Louis B. Mayer, and moved to RKO. He eventually returned to MGM after the loss of production genius Irving Thalberg. This led to the famous observation that "The son-in-law also rises", a play on words of the Ernest Hemingway novel "The Sun Also Rises". In order to fulfill his picture obligation to United Artists, Selznick brought over Alfred Hitchcock from Europe to produce/direct Selznick's UA projects while he devoted the bulk of his time to Gone with the Wind (1939). According to the 2005 book "Lion of Hollywood: The Life and Legend of Louis B. Mayer" by Scott Eyman, Selznick sold his interest in Gone with the Wind (1939) to former Selnick International chairman John Hay Whitney ("Jock") for a mere $200,000. This was undoubtedly the worst deal Selznick ever made, as the classic film has and always will continue to generate enormous revenue through theatrical reissues, TV broadcasts, and home video release. Selznick was famed for his long, detailed and incredibly involved -- and, to many of the people who received them, maddening -- memos sent to many different people during the production of a film, not just the director or writer but cameramen, editors, and pretty much anyone who had anything to do with the picture. A publicist on one of his films once got a Western Union telegram from Selznick that ended up being more than 30 feet long and finished up with, "I have just received a phone call that pretty much clears up this matter. Therefore you can disregard this wire." These famed memos are the subject of an entire book "Memo From David Selznick" edited by Rudy Behlmer. According to Behlmer, Selznick dictated his every thought to secretaries from 1916-1965 in memos that filled 2,000 file boxes. The "O" in his middle name, though it has a period after it, doesn't stand for anything. He added it because he felt it gave flair to his name. In 1935, Greta Garbo signed a contract with MGM saying only Irving Thalberg and Selznick could supervise her pictures. After the surprise success of Anna Karenina (1935) with Garbo, David O. Selznick announced that he was leaving MGM to start his own company. Garbo begged him to stay at MGM, saying he could solely produce her pictures. Selznick turned down her offer, saying he had bigger ambitions. It is interesting to note that she only acted in four other films after that: Camille (1936), Conquest (1937), Ninotchka (1939), and Two-Faced Woman (1941), and only two were box-office successes. MGM modified the contract after Thalberg's surprise death in 1936, and Garbo was reportedly furious by this decision. By the late 1940s Selznick International was making very few movies and became a talent agency by default, deriving needed income by loaning out its contract stars to other studios. Uncle of Joyce Selznick. Cousin of Brian Selznick. Was responsible for bringing Swedish actress Ingrid Bergman over to the United States by signing her to a long term contract to Selznick Pictures, Inc.