1940's The Arts | Hellman, Lillian 1906-1984

PLAYWRIGHT, MEMOIRIST

Moralist.

"I cannot and will not cut my conscience to fit this year's fashion," wrote Lillian Hellman in 1952 in a letter addressed to the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC). She had been called before the HUAC, like so many before her, in order to name names, to admit fault, and to plead forgiveness. Some had done so. Others, like the Hollywood Ten, had gone to jail for pleading protection under the First and Fifth Amendments and being found in contempt of Congress. Hellman's tactic was to write a letter displaying a willingness to discuss her own beliefs but refuse to name names had been tried before, but she released her letter to the press and used public opinion as an ally. The tactic stumped the committee but still got her blacklisted for nearly ten years. Had the panel of congressmen been familiar with her plays, they would have expected no less. Hellman referred to herself as a...