After advocating for Hollywood’s freedom of expression during the McCarthy era, a once-prominent group was recently revived amid renewed concerns of government censorship.
In response to the Red Scare, the Committee for the First Amendment was founded in September 1947 by screenwriter Philip Dunne, actress Myrna Loy and filmmakers John Huston and William Wyler. The group pledged support for the creatives known as the Hollywood Ten, who were cited for contempt of Congress after refusing to address the House Un-American Activities Committee about supposed communist affiliations.
With membership that included Humphrey Bogart, Katharine Hepburn, Lauren Bacall, Frank Sinatra and Judy Garland, the Committee took out ads in The Hollywood Reporter to detail their nonpartisan agenda. Oct. 27 marks the 78th anniversary of “Hollywood Fights Back,” the CFA’s first radio broadcast condemning the HUAC hearings. But as industry blacklisting continued to ruin careers, prominent talent like Bogart and Bacall — who had traveled to D.C. to protest the actions of HUAC — distanced themselves from the CFA, and it ultimately collapsed.
Earlier this month, Oscar winner and political activist Jane Fonda — whose father, Henry Fonda, was an original member — relaunched the Committee with the support of more than 500 Hollywood figures, including Jamie Lee Curtis, Ben Stiller, Viola Davis and Billie Eilish; thousands more have since asked to join. Fonda tells THR that the revival was in the works prior to ABC temporarily suspending Jimmy Kimmel Live! in light of FCC chair Brendan Carr’s criticism, but that the situation underscored the need to speak out.
As comedian and Committee member Audra Sisak notes, “Kimmel was the last straw, and we definitely needed to get our rights back.” The CFA has already set up virtual meetings, with host Fonda encouraging participation at events like the Oct. 18 “No Kings” protests.
“Now, just like back then, the entertainment industry — which depends on free expression — has a special responsibility to help lead the charge,” Fonda says. “Every act of censorship paves the way for the next — unless we stand up, loudly and collectively, to stop it.”
This story appeared in the Oct. 22 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. Click here to subscribe.
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