Hollywood remains obsessed with the blacklist era. It’s a no-brainer as to why.
Writers, directors and stars who didn’t publicly denounce the Communist party - or name those who embraced it - risked jail time at the worst, and career suicide at best. We’re a nation that allows horrible entities like the KKK to exist, but during the Cold War Communist sympathizers in Hollywood weren’t allowed to practice their form of politics. So anyone in favor of truly free speech would be aghast at how the nation acted during that time.
Creative types are all about free speech, right? Right?
Some argue there’s an unofficial blacklist going on now regarding conservatives in Hollywood. But it’s not as defined as what Communist sympathizers faced in the ’40s and ’50s.
Still, it reveals a hypocrisy on modern Hollywood’s part that will never be the subject of its own film.
However, we do have a new documentary on perhaps the most infamous members of the Hollywood 10. “Trumbo” recalls the life of legendary screenwriter Dalton Trumbo, one of 10 Hollywood artists blacklisted during that era. He also served roughly a year in jail for contempt of Congress.
My Pajamas Media review of “Trumbo” explores the complexity behind the life and times of the Oscar-winning screenwriter, as well as a begrudging admiration for how the film lets the man’s considerable flaws bubble to the surface. I found “Trumbo” more damning than its creators may have realized.
** Welcome visitors from Ed Driscoll’s terrific blog. I’m a contributing film critic and entertainment reporter for The Washington Times and I blog both for this site as well as Movies in Toto, the washingtontimes.com’s movie community. Learn more about me here. And thanks for visiting!
(Photo: Oscar-winning screenwriter Dalton Trumbo is the focus of “Trumbo,” a complicated but savvy new documentary)
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{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
during the Cold War Communist sympathizers weren’t allowed to practice their form of politics
You need to go back to the history books. There was an operating Communist party USA even during the cold war. Not to mention that CP sympathizers made up a large fraction of the NY literary elite.
The “blacklist” occured when the congress investigated communist influence in the entertainment industry. The studios themselves, who were obviously embarassed about this, banned the principle suspects, and ALSO BANNED the folks who testified against the communists in the investigations. Folks like Robert Taylor and several very successful writers never worked in Hollywood again because of this same blacklist.
I think a useful analog is if Hitler had beaten Stalin. Then Hollywood would be making endless features celebrating the brave Nazi sympathizers who were banned by the studios. Of course, Hollywood and historical revisionism go hand in hand.
K - I changed the posting to add “in Hollywood” re the first line you quote in my post … and thanks for the clarification. Just sloppy on my part … I know the Comm. party was alive and well at that time …
Your thoughts about Hollywood and historical revisionism are truer than it should be, alas
“Robert Taylor never worked again…because of the blacklist”??? Say what? Dude, do yourself a favor. Go to IMDB right now. This minute. And look up Mr. Taylor’s CV. The guy worked a LOT after the 1950s.