Communist infiltration of Hollywood motion-picture industry : hearing before the Committee on Un-American activities, House of Representatives, Eighty-second Congress, first session (1951)

COMMUNISM IN MOTION-PICTURE INDUSTRY 1435 gold mine they were opening up when they did set up these study groups. I know on one occasion Stanley—the election campaign com- mittee, I should say, of which I was'the head—needed some quick money to finance the preliminary arrangements for Earl Browder to speak at a big stadium on the East Side. We needed this money to lay on the line right now. Stanley Lawrence raised, within a matter of a few hours, a thousand dollars, brought it down in cash, and gave it to me. We later paid this back. I remember another occasion when I had to go out to Hollywood with Earl Browder to make a movie short—I believe it was a talkie—which was to be used for campaign purposes. It never was used, but I believe it was made. The last thing before I left the downtown office with Browder was to receive from Stanley Lawrence several hundred dollars to turn over to Tania Tuttle, who had charge of making this film, and which I did turn over to her. Mr. Tavenner. Now, who was her husband ? Mr. Ashe. Frank Tuttle. Mr. Tavenner. Frank Tuttle, the director? Mr. Ashe. That's correct. Mr. Tavenner. From your observation and your knowledge as a functionary of the Communist Party, what would you say was the principal objective of the Communist Party, and how did it go about the accomplishment of it in Hollywood ? Mr. Ashe. In Hollywood? Well, I would say that the purpose of the Communist Party in Hollywood was fourfold: First, to surround the party with as many name personalities as possible, both as party members and as sympathizers and dupes and dopes, so that they could exploit these people's names; and they did. Second, to recruit members into the Communist Party. Third, to raise money, which, as I said before, I don't think they realized at the outset the gold mine that they had there, but which they quickly exploited to the fullest— and, in fact, there are five points. Fourth, they wanted to control, as far as possible, the content of the films made in Hollywood. I have read the testimony of some of the people who have testified before this committee, in which they insist that it is virtually impossible to control the content. These are friendly witnesses. I have to find myself in complete disagreement with them because I know of any number of occasions when they did influence the content of these films. I didn't come prepared to give chapter and verse. I could if I had enough time to do some research. I have seen many, many films out of Hollywood in which some part of the Communist line was injected by deliberate intent. It couldn't have been otherwise. At the same time, the Communist Party wanted to control the con- tent of the film in the sense that there would be nothing of an anti- Communist nature in there that would discredit them, and I under- stand that they were quite effective at that at one time. I know that at one time there were picket lines here in the city of Los Angeles picket- ing anti-Communist films, and I am quite certain that we were advised of the anti-Communist content of these films by the Communists in Hollywood who would have the first knowledge of any anti-Commu- nist content. So I am afraid that these other witnesses who have said that it is impossible to influence the content of the films were not sufficiently familiar with all of the ramifications of the Communist movement