Americans spent the 1930s trying to survive the Great Depression.
Many people lost faith in their country’s economic system, and some
turned to communism, an economic theory in which the production
and distribution of products and services are owned and controlled by
the government. It was a low point in American history.
After World War II (1939–45), America entered into a “cold war”
with Russia. This was not an actual war but a time of intense tension and
competition between the two countries. Russia was communist, and
America feared communism and the possibility that it might spread. (See
also Red Scare.)
In 1947, a congressional committee known as the House UnAmerican Activities Committee (HUAC) began investigating the motion picture industry for communist influence. The movie industry was
made up of idealistic writers, actors, and producers; many had been
against the war and dismayed with the leadership in place at the White
House. Some had joined the American Communist Party, which boasted
a membership of around fifty thousand during the war.
Going to movie theaters was a major pastime in America during the
mid-twentieth century. Films provided a brief escape from the worries of
the day, and even those families who did not have much money could
enjoy an occasional movie. Films had great influence, and the government knew this. The investigation into the film industry began when it
was alleged that communist values were being glorified in movies.
A witness list of about forty people was prepared. For one reason or
another, only eleven of these individuals were called before the committee to testify. Most of these professionals were screenwriters. The question put before them was: “Are you now, or have you ever been, a
member of the Communisty Party?” Just one witness, playwright Bertolt
Brecht (1898–1956), answered. It immediately became clear that answering that one question was not enough to satisfy the HUAC; it wanted names of other members. Ultimately, it wanted to embarrass the
witnesses by forcing them to publicly tell on their friends and colleagues.
Ten of the original witnesses refused to answer the question, not necessarily because they were members of the Communist Party but because
they believed that political affiliation in the United States was a private
issue. Refusing to answer, however, could be construed as an admission
of “guilt.” These ten screenwriters became known as the Hollywood Ten,
and their names were added to a list that circulated throughout the industry. Anyone on that list could no longer work in the movie industry.
The Ten each served a one-year jail sentence.
By the end of the investigation, about three hundred entertainers
were blacklisted; only about thirty were able to rebuild their careers.
Some continued to work infrequently, but only if they agreed to use false
names or not receive credit for their work. The blacklisting went beyond
the professional realm, however, and severed even the closest of friendships. Families were destroyed in some cases where both spouses worked
in the industry and one gave the name of the other.
Blacklisting continued until 1957 despite the fact that evidence of
the promotion of communist values in film was virtually nonexistent.