Bruce Cook (1) (1932–2003)

"Lei è mai stato membro del Partito comunista?" Alla domanda di J. Parnell Thomas, senatore e presidente della Commissione per le attività antiamericane, Dalton Trumbo - lo sceneggiatore più pagato e ammirato di Hollywood - non risponde. Alle sue spalle, per sostenerlo, ci sono Humprey Bogart, Lauren Bacali, Gene Kelly, John Garfield e John Huston. È il 1947, e negli Stati Uniti l'ondata di paranoia anticomunista investe anche gli studios: centinaia di registi, attori e scrittori sono chiamati a deporre. Solo dieci di loro, gli Hollywood Ten, saranno inquisiti e imprigionati per essersi rifiutati di parlare, di tradire compagni e amici. Da allora Trumbo sarà costretto a lavorare per il mercato nero, senza poter firmare le sceneggiature di capolavori come Vacanze romane e La più grande corrida. È solo nel 1960 che Kirk Douglas, produttore e protagonista dello Spartacus di Stanley Kubrick, vuole scrivere il suo nome chiaro e tondo nei titoli di testa del film. "In ogni città e provincia liste di dissidenti sono già compilate" è lo battuta più celebre di Laurence Olivier nelle vesti del generale Crasso. "Trumbo è, senza dubbio, un prodigio della volontà. Ha sempre tenuto duro: è sopravvissuto, ha prevalso, ha persino trionfato. Si potrebbe persino prenderlo come esempio di un certo tipo di valori - tenacia, indipendenza, perseveranza - che oggigiorno sono diventati parecchio rari."… (mere)

“Beat, in the sense of beaten, frustrated, played out...”

The reading at the Six Gallery in San Francisco, “Howl”, “Go”, Neal, and “On the Road” - the Beat Generation! It's all in here, including interviews with some of the main players. Not a lot of new information for me, but a good overview. It reads more like a college text than anything else, and at times, I felt it was a bit dry. But it does contain some gems like:

“And if Allen Ginsberg was the Beat Generation’s Walt Whitman, then Gary Snyder was its Henry David Thoreau.” - I never made that connection, but I think it’s right on!

Anyway, it was an ok read, and if you are new to the topic, it might be even better than that. I will say, though this has nothing to do with the writing, I was surprised that there were no photographs! I think it's the first book about the Beats that I've ever read without them! A bit strange in their absence…… (mere)

The period of time of the blacklist in Hollywood is an embarrassing time for our history. But, with all history, it has its roots in period realities, fears, and social significance. Just after WWII, the devastation of that conflict brought into light many of the normal concerns and fears that such a cataclysmic event can produce. Political preferences were just as likely to be called into question and perspectives analyzed. Communism was no exception. Many jumped onto the "bandwagon" of the Communists with its seeming intent to ensure equal distribution. At the same time, fears that large military endeavors can occur, stoked the fears of Americans to a world seemingly in disarray. Having grown-up very poor, Trumbo had a talent for writing and recognition of social issues. As -- what I would call -- a "free-thinker" of the time, Communism probably seemed like a worthy consideration. Labor and management -- the people and government, the have's and have not's -- to someone wanting more for others, it seemed a legitimate choice. Dalton Trumbo managed to work-through and prosper during the blacklist period without sacrificing his personal convictions. He didn't talk. He didn't name names. Dalton Trumbo was a fighter and worker and seemed to earn it everyday. It's a testament to the character of the individual. A family man who loved his wife and children, Dalton Trumbo remained Dalton Trumbo despite the ignorance and severity of the blacklist period.… (mere)