Hollywood Traitors

There's a myth about the Hollywood blacklist-- and perhaps even you have fallen for it. According to the legend, noble Hollywood figures--creative screenwriters, brilliant directors, and beloved actors--were dragged before the dreaded House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) and grilled on their personal beliefs and associations, in flagrant violation of the First Amendment. Only by "taking the Fifth" could they escape turning informant against their innocent friends and colleagues. The brave and conscientious "Hollywood Ten" were the heroes of the hour. They refused to "name names" of Communists in Hollywood (most of whom were simply slightly misguided liberals, according to the legend) and were jailed for contempt of Congress. And then, in what was a terrible loss for the cinematic art, they were completely shut out of working in Hollywood. Now, however, you can learn the real story from an authoritative source: longtime Human Events editor Allan Ryskind, who, as the son of Marx Brothers screenwriter Morrie Ryskind, grew up in Hollywood and knew many of the key players in this real-life Hollywood drama. In Hollywood Traitors: Blacklisted Screenwriters--Agents of Stalin, Allies of Hitler, Ryskind reveals how the alleged "victims" of the Hollywood blacklist were actually ideological thugs: enthusiastic Stalinists committed to bringing about a socialist utopia in America--by violent revolution, if necessary. These screenwriters prostituted their talent in the service of Communist propaganda, which included pro-Nazi propaganda during the Hitler-Stalin Pact.