Wednesday, December 02, 2015

Today In History, Dec 2nd





Today in History, December the 2nd.

1954 US Senate censures Joe McCarthy (Senator-R-WI) for "conduct that tends to bring the Senate into dishonor and disrepute"

In his time Joe McCarthy inspired the "Red Scare".  He ruined many careers of people in the entertainment industry because he insinuated they were communists, or had communist ties, or sympathetic to the communist cause. 

There is a new movie that is just coming out named TRUMBO.  I haven't seen it yet but I read it is about Dalton Trumbo. 

Dalton Trumbo was on the Hollywood Blacklist because of Joseph McCarthy.   Because of the Blacklist he could not get work.   Dalton was a screenplay writer who supported liberal ideals in movies.

I read a book by Trumbo once named JOHNNY GOT HIS GUN.  It is about a War World I soldier who was blown to bits.  He lost his sight, limbs, and mouth mechanism to prevent him from speaking.  In the book he works hard to figure out a way to communicate with the outside world.   

He was in a hospital bed in France.  Nobody knew who he is, only that he was a soldier and needed help.  He was kept alive by iv's. 

Finally he and a nurse find a way to communicate  and near the end he gives a moving speech against man and war.  That might be why Dalton Trumbo made the Blacklist.


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