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As "The Great Gatsby" Opens, The Story's Power Endures

It's Hollywood's fourth attempt to capture the magic of F. Scott Fitzgerald's classic as Baz Luhrmann's The Great Gatsbyopens this weekend to much fanfare (and mixed reviews).

But those who've loved and studied the novel for decades say the fact that Jay Gatsby is once again getting the Hollywood treatment is not surprising.

"Fitzgerald was saying something about class, about the romantic American idea we hold of the self-made man," says Dr. Julie Sloan Brannon, Professor of English at Jacksonville University.

"And of course, any story with the element of star-crossed lovers (between Gatsby and his lost love Daisy Buchanan) entrances every generation. It truly is timeless."

Melissa Ross joined WJCT in 2009 with 20 years of experience in broadcasting, including stints in Cincinnati, Chicago, Orlando and Jacksonville. During her career as a television and radio news anchor and reporter, Melissa has won four regional Emmys for news and feature reporting.