‘Love Letters of Great Men’ Didn’t Exist Until After ‘Sex and the City: The Movie’ Was Filmed
Sex and the City: The Movie was released in May 2008. For fans of the provocative HBO series, the movie didn’t come a moment too soon. While not every fan was in love with the plot, many walked away from the first flick happy that Carrie Bradshaw and Mr. Big finally got married. The book, Love Letters of Great Men, Vol. 1, was heavily featured in the movie. After seeing the movie, fans were desperate to purchase the book. There was one big problem, though. It didn’t exist. Now it does.
A book played a pivotal role in Sex and the City: The Movie
Early on in Sex and the City: The Movie, Carrie sits in bed next to Mr. Big and reads from a book about famous love stories. She tells him that she’s researching love for her next book. The book Love Letters of Great Men, Vol. 1, was a library book that eventually led to the couple’s wedding venue. Later, Mr. Big uses the same book to attempt to win back his love.
When Carrie refuses to speak to Big, he sends her a series of emails that include love letters pulled directly from the book. His romantic gesture wasn’t solely responsible for their eventual reconciliation, but it certainly played a part. In short, the book was a major plot point in the movie, but it wasn’t a real book. It was a prop created specifically for the film.
After the movie, book retailers received calls about Love Letter of Great Men
Shortly after the movie dropped in 2008, book retailers were inundated with calls about the title. According to CBS News, an online book retailer, Abebooks, received hundreds of inquires about the book in the days after Sex and the City: The Movie was released. Unfortunately for the would-be readers, the book didn’t exist.
While the actual book didn’t exist, there was something close. Love Letters of Great Men and Women: From the Eighteenth Century to the Present Day, a book published in the 1920s, is similar to the anthology that Carrie read from in the movie. There was so much demand for the work that it began trending on both Amazon and AbeBooks following the movie’s release.
Book publishers created two books in response to demand from Sex and the City: The Movie
The book might have been created as a prop for the flick, but it was a smart business move to give the people what they wanted. Love Letters of Great Mne, Vol. 1 was published to capitalize on the demand for the anthology. The book, authored by John C. Kirkland, carries a publication date of May 12, 2008. Several months after the movie hit theaters, the book ranked #1 on Amazon book sale lists in multiple categories.
John C. Kirkland’s anthology isn’t the only one that exists, though. In November 2008, St. Martin’s Press issued a similar book. The book, Love Letters of Great Men, includes works from Beethoven, Lord Byron, and other famous historical figures. Sex and the City: The Movie featured both Beethoven and Lord Byron’s private letters.
