'Surviving the Hollywood Blacklist: Lessons for the 21st Century'

'Surviving the Hollywood Blacklist: Lessons for the 21st Century'

Presented by the Writers Guilds of America and the National Press Club

Washington, Dec. 13 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ --
WHAT: A National Press Club "Newsmaker" panel discussion marking the 60th
anniversary of the Hollywood Blacklist. Two notable blacklisted
artists and two historians will reflect on this controversial
episode in our nation's history and discuss the lessons learned.

Panelists will include Oscar-nominated blacklisted screenwriter and
author Walter Bernstein; blacklisted actress Marsha Hunt; noted
historian and author Victor Navasky, as well as WGAE President and
television historian Michael Winship.

WHO: Walter Bernstein -- An Oscar-nominated screenwriter, Mr. Bernstein
was blacklisted in the early 1950s, and forced to work under a
pseudonym until 1960, when he again began receiving screenwriting
credits for films including Fail Safe. In 1977, he was nominated
for an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for the motion
picture The Front, starring Woody Allen as a man who acts as a
front for blacklisted screenwriters. Mr. Bernstein is a current
member of the Writers Guild of America, East Council.

Marsha Hunt -- Ms. Hunt made her acting debut in 1935, appearing in
52 films until 1949, but her career was curtailed when she was
blacklisted for her pronounced liberal views and her affiliation
with the Committee for the First Amendment. In October 1947, she
flew with the group of about thirty actors, directors, writers and
filmmakers (including John Huston, Lauren Bacall and Humphrey
Bogart) to Washington, D.C. to protest the actions of the House Un-
American Activities Committee.

Victor Navasky -- Long-time editor and publisher of The Nation (now
Publisher Emeritus), and author of Naming Names, which won a
National Book Award, Mr. Navasky is recognized as one of the
foremost scholars of the blacklist. Mr. Navasky wrote Naming Names
after interviewing more than 150 people who had been called to
testify in front of the House Un-American Activities Committee.

Michael Winship -- Currently President of the Writers Guild of
America, East, Mr. Winship is an award-winning writer and producer
on such programs as NOW with Bill Moyers. Winship is a television
historian who knew several of the writers whose lives were
shattered by the blacklist including Ring Lardner, Jr. and Ian
McLellan Hunter, as well as Walter Bernstein.

WHERE: National Press Club (Lisagor Room)
529 14th Street NW, Washington, D.C. 20045

WHEN: Today -- Thursday, December 13, 2007 -- 1:00 pm
Contact: Jody Frisch or Taj Meadows, 805.453.1141 to arrange
interviews

For more information about the Writers Guild of America, West, please visit www.wga.org; for more information about the Writers Guild of America, East, please visit: www.wgaeast.org.

The Writers Guild of America, West (WGAW) and the Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE) represent writers in the motion picture, broadcast, cable, and new media industries in both entertainment and news.

FCMN Contact:

Source: Writers Guilds of America

Contact: Jody Frisch or Taj Meadows, both for the Writers Guilds of
America, +1-805-453-1141
/First Call Analyst:

Web site: http://www.wga.org/
http://www.wgaeast.org/

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