How tall was Vivien Leigh

Miss Sandy Cowell said on 5/Nov/19
Vivien, tragic and tortured Classical Hollywood Actress, was born 106 years ago today. She lived to just 53 years of age, finally dying of tuberculosis. My Mum allowed my brother and myself to stay up late one evening to see 'Gone With The Wind'. I can't have been any older than 10. I thought Vivien was absolutely beautiful.

5ft3. 💐

RIP Vivien XXX 🕯️

Mister lennon said on 31/Dec/18
I thought that vivien was 5'3 and olivia 5'4. But now , i think 5'2 for both. A weak or solid one for vivien and a strong one for olivia. Maybe olivia could be a weak 5'3.

If you seen the gone with the wind screen tests, the one with vivien, olivia and leslie howard together, both vivien and olivia are standing straigth and with good posture, and you can see that olivia is a little bit taller. Very close, but olivia is sligthly taller.

Mister lennon said on 28/Dec/18
Sorry, but olivia was taller than vivien in real life. Vivien had better posture, but olivia owned her with equal posture.
Not by much, yes, but taller.
In the movie, they tricked it to make scarlett looking taller than melanie, olivia slouching a lot to look shorter than vivien, because scarlett was the main and stronger character.
Maybe a strong 5'2 for olivia and a weak 5'2 for vivien.

Michael 5'10", 178 cm said on 16/Dec/18
I saw Gone with the Wind recently and she looked about 5'3" in it because she looked short next to the other guys, especially next to Clark Gable who was like a good 10 inches taller than her. She couldn't have been taller than 5'3".

Arch Stanton said on 23/Jun/17
I know you live in a world where everybody is a perfect model Mary but however pretty and "classic" Vivien was, she had a notorious reputation which is talked about as much as her acting career. Biographers devote whole chapters to her dark side.

Scarlett Rose said on 20/May/17
little sue said on 25/Dec/13
She listed at 5ft 3 on another site, if she wore flat slippers in Wizard of Oz and Judy wore those heeled red slippers that would but put her about 5ft 1 so a couple of inches would be about right
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Can I believe my eyes? Was Little Sue suggesting the size of your heels would alter your perception of someone's height? And message to Editor Rob, I get the impression Little Sue is too old for you! 😆

Sandy Cowell said on 14/Apr/17
@ Rob - I see! 👍

Sandy Cowell said on 13/Apr/17
@ Rob - It's smashing to know that you're into 'South Park'!
I somehow thought you might be!
Until the subject of posing as someone else cropped up, I never knew such things went on!
Arguing with oneself about one's own cause sounds remarkably funny, if a bit sad!

Sandy Cowell said on 13/Apr/17
@ Rob - A 'sock puppet'? Love the expression! Do you remember Mr Garison's sock puppet in 'South Park', not to mention what he did? 😂

MaryAnne said on 11/Apr/17
Also, I really want a IP check from you Rob. Wouldn't be pretty interesting for all of us to find out who writes comments under the two nicknames and supports himself/herself in arguements rather than reveals her/his own personality?

Sandy Cowell said on 10/Apr/17
@ Arch Stanton - You seem to be a bit of a connoisseur on the subject of which female celebrities were animals in bed!
The first little tale of yours I took notice of was a rather detailed description of Sondra Locke's relationship with Clint Eastwood! Now I find it was Vivien Leigh and Clara Bow with this same basic instinct as well! How very interesting!
No doubt you will know of a few more!
Anyway, my Mum allowed us as kids to stay up late one Saturday night to see 'Gone With the Wind' and, of course, I saw that Vivien was extremely pretty with a lovely figure. I was too young to take in her height and as that is the only time I have ever seen her, I will have to guess Vivien's height from the information here!
I'll go with 5ft3.25!

MaryAnne said on 9/Apr/17
I wish people would not talk about Leigh's public life ''bedroom life''.It's really disgusting to see comments about bedroom life of the someone who is dead for years.I would rather to see more such comments like issue of height, Hollywood presence or beauty.

Arch Stanton said on 9/Apr/17
Clara Bow also has something of a "reputation" on that front!

Arch Stanton said on 9/Apr/17
LOL Tubbs, yes Leigh was said to have an "insatiable appetite" which wore Laurence out. You could imagine her being extremely temperamental and demanding, but on the same level, an absolute monster in bed. I'm sure as John Mayer would say "dynamite".

5'3.5 isn't impossible.

Tubbs said on 22/Sep/16
Having read a book about the golden age of Hollywood it sounded like it would have been difficult to gauge her height stood up as she spent most of her time on her back.....having said that, she looks around the 5'3" mark

Arch Stanton said on 24/Jun/16
Very naughty girl!!

Arch Stanton said on 14/Jun/15
Rob can you add Caesar and Cleopatra, Waterloo Bridge, Storm in a Teacup, Fire Over England and 21 Days? She looked shocking in her last film Ship of Fools. Her voice was like Dot Cotton and she was only 52 at the time!! Hard to believe she was once that beautiful!

mister_lennon said on 26/Dec/13
Agree on 5'2 and a half to 5'3 for Vivien.

little sue said on 25/Dec/13
She listed at 5ft 3 on another site, if she wore flat slippers in Wizard of Oz and Judy wore those heeled red slippers that would but put her about 5ft 1 so a couple of inches would be about right

little sue said on 24/Dec/13
Her mental illness caused her many problems, it used to make her highly sexed! Poor Laurence Oliver could'nt keep up with her,

Arch Stanton said on 23/Dec/13
Sue if Garland was 4'11.5, how tall was Billie Burke? Burke only looked about 2 inches taller in The Wizard of Oz.

Arch Stanton said on 23/Dec/13
Ha if you knew how volatile a temper she had Lorne you'd not use the word "cute"!! She was a very naughty girl methinks! I'm not as good as estimating female heights especially shorter women I agree Sue because heels and camera position can often fool me. I agree Sue on 5'2.5"-5'3". I'm just saying that she didn't look at low as 5'0 and managed to "look" 5'3" range in Waterloo Bridge.

little sue said on 23/Dec/13
I think women back then were slighter boned and if she was 103lbs that's a very low body weight for 5ft 3 so it gave them a more 'petite'..

mister_lennon said on 23/Dec/13
well, i think that she was about 5'2 or 5'3 as much.olivia de havilland was about 1 inch or 1 inch and a half taller than vivien in real life, and olivia was about 5'4 as much.

little sue said on 21/Dec/13
Lol Arch, you a typical man and always add inches (wink wink). look at pics of her with Marilyn MOnroe, looks 2 to 3 inches shorter. I'd say Viv was between 5ft 2 to 3.

little sue said on 21/Dec/13
Judy Garland was 4ft 11.5, all her biogs state her at that and I once heard a radio interval with Liza Minelli where she said her mother was 4ft 11.

Arch Stanton said on 20/Dec/13
If the biographies said 5 ft 0 or 1 that's fair enough but no way did she really look that short. Judy Garland was that range not Vivien.

Arch Stanton said on 20/Dec/13
She didn't look 2-3 inches shorter than Havilland though Sue, in the film at least they made her look a bit taller than Olivia. I can imagine Olivia being 1-1.5 taller in reality but 2-3 inches is silly. You don't seriously think she was only 5 ft 0-1?? Sue no kidding you're becoming the female equivalent of Johno!

Arch Stanton said on 20/Dec/13
5'1?? Looks 5'3"-5'4" in Waterloo Bridge to me. Exceedingly beautiful at that time too.

little sue said on 10/Dec/13
I've read a couple of biographies in the last couple of weeks and one says 5ft 1 and the other just over 5ft. Would explain why she looked 2 or 3 inches shorter than De Havilland

mister_lennon said on 5/Aug/13
I think De Havilland was taller than Leigh. K said it well. In the movie, they tried to Leigh Looks taller, but she was shorter than De Havilland. Olivia was hunching over almost all the time, trying to made Vivien Taller, but normally, in real life, Olivia was taller than Vivien. Not much more, but taller. solid 5'4 for Olivia and a weak 5'3 for vivien sounds pretty right, i think.

K said on 31/May/13
I think this is right on. I'd say Olivia De Haviland is 5'4" but was made to look shorter in Gone with the Wind. It's one if my favorites, I can't count how many times I've seen it. Haviland is definitely taller but her character is suppose to be weak while Scarlett is strong. Melanie often seems hunched over. I think they probably made Scarlet seem taller in many scenes to emphasize their characters. I can think of one scene in particular where Melanie shoots the Yankee on the stairs at Tara and she looks taller in that scene. But they seem very close height wise. I can see why they would want Melanie to appear shorter through out the movie...

Arch Stanton said on 29/May/13
Nah, they' close in height, Leigh looks like she's a bit taller. Mmm 5 f t 4 for Havilland, I see why you questioned in now, Leigh looks a bit taller in Gone with the Wind but she might have footwear advantage but doubtful.

Arch Stanton said on 29/May/13
God she was really sexy, something about her, the reports of her voracious sexual appetite too add to it!

Arch Stanton said on 29/May/13
Rob this is rather strange but she looks almost 2 inches taller than Olivia in Gone with the Wind.

Sarah Ann said on 3/Sep/11
She looks short and she was but like my mother says men like short women.

guyfrommars said on 24/Apr/11
Strange, I've always tought she was at least 5'6". She wasn't that short next to Gable in Gone with the Wind. Of course, I guess she was wearing pretty high heels.

kris said on 11/Feb/11
please do not put marilyn monroe and vivian leigh in the same category- Marilyn big busted, big boned, blond- no education, no refinement, vivian small boned, brunette, educated with refinement

Jeff the Man said on 18/Dec/10
She looked this height next to 6'0.5" Clark Gable and 5'9"-5'10" Leslie Howard.