Christmas Films, the Early Cold War & the FBI

When It’s a Wonderful Life was first released, it wasn’t a box office hit, but it did draw the attention of the FBI and its investigation into the Communist Infiltration of the Motion Picture Industry (COMPIC). The House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) didn’t end up doing anything with the FBI’s allegations of subversion in the film, but the pressure of investigations like this led to a shift in Christmas films over the next 15 years away from stories of social problems to more lighthearted romances and musicals. Joining me in this episode is Dr. Vaughn Joy , author of Selling Out Santa: Hollywood Christmas Films in the Age of McCarthy . Dr. Joy’s public scholarship website with her husband, Dr. Ben Railton, is Black and White and Read All Over . Our theme song is Frogs Legs Rag , composed by James Scott and performed by Kevin MacLeod, licensed under Creative Commons. The mid-episode music is " Carol of the Bells ," composed by Mykola Leontovych and performed by the Concert Band of the United States Air Force Band of the Rockies; the performance is in the public domain and available via Wikimedia Commons. The episode image is a still from It’s a Wonderful Life , whi…