| Description |
xiv, 406 pages : black and white illustrations, portraits ; 24 cm. |
| Series |
Film and culture |
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Film and culture.
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| Bibliography |
Includes bibliographical references (pages 355-389) and index. |
| Contents |
Part I, Backstories. How the popular front became unpopular ; Hollywood's war record ; The preservation of American ideals ; The magic of a Hollywood dateline ; Smearing Hollywood with the brush of communism -- Part II, On location in Washington. Showtime ; Lovefest ; Friendlies, cooperative and uncooperative ; Hollywood's finest ; Doldrums ; Crashing Page 1 ; Contempt ; $64 questions and no answers ; Jewish questions ; The curtain drops -- Part III, Backfire. The Waldorf and other declarations ; Blacklists and casualty lists ; Not only victims. |
| Summary |
"In 1947, the Cold War came to Hollywood. Over nine tumultuous days in October, the House Un-American Activities Committee held a notorious round of hearings into alleged Communist subversion in the movie industry. The blowback was profound: the major studios pledged to never again employ a known Communist or unrepentant fellow traveler. The declaration marked the onset of the blacklist era, a time when political allegiances, real or suspected, determined employment opportunities in the entertainment industry. Hundreds of artists were shown the door--or had it shut in their faces. In Show Trial, Thomas Doherty takes us behind the scenes at the first full-on media-political spectacle of the postwar era, a courtroom drama starring glamorous actors, colorful moguls, on-the-make congressmen, high-priced lawyers, single-minded investigators, and recalcitrant screenwriters, all recorded by newsreel cameras and broadcast over radio. Doherty explores the deep background to the hearings and details the theatrical elements of a proceeding that bridged the realms of entertainment and politics. He tells the story of the Hollywood Ten and the other witnesses, friendly and unfriendly, who testified; tracks the flight path of the Committee for the First Amendment, the delegation from Hollywood that descended on Washington to protest the hearings; and chronicles the implementation of the postwar blacklist. Show Trial is a rich, character-driven inquiry into how the HUAC hearings ignited the anti-Communist crackdown in Hollywood, providing a gripping new cultural history of one of the most influential events of the postwar era"--Publisher's description. |
| Subject |
United States. Congress. House. Committee on Un-American Activities.
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Motion picture industry -- Political aspects -- United States -- History -- 20th century.
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Motion picture producers and directors -- Political activity -- United States -- History -- 20th century.
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Motion picture actors and actresses -- Political activity -- United States -- History -- 20th century.
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| ISBN |
0231187785 (hardcover) |
|
9780231187787 (hardcover) |
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