Lillian Hellman

Lillian Florence Hellman was an American author, prose writer, memoirist, and screenwriter who lived from June 20, 1905, to June 30, 1984. She was famous for her work on Broadway and for being a communist sympathizer and political activist. When she went before the House Committee on Un-American Activities (HUAC) during the height of the anti-communist efforts from 1947 to 1952, she was put on a blacklist. Her income dropped because the American film business put a ban on her in the 1950s, even...See more

Lillian Florence Hellman was an American author, prose writer, memoirist, and screenwriter who lived from June 20, 1905, to June 30, 1984. She was famous for her work on Broadway and for being a communist sympathizer and political activist. When she went before the House Committee on Un-American Activities (HUAC) during the height of the anti-communist efforts from 1947 to 1952, she was put on a blacklist. Her income dropped because the American film business put a ban on her in the 1950s, even though she kept working on Broadway. Many people praised Hellman for not answering HUAC's questions, but some thought she belonged to the Communist Party even though she denied it. Hellman had many hits as a writer on Broadway, such as "The Children's Hour," "The Little Foxes" and "Another Part of the Forest," "Watch on the Rhine," "The Autumn Garden," and "Toys in the Attic." She turned her semi-autobiographical play The Little Foxes into a movie script, and Bette Davis played the lead role. Hellman was in a relationship with Dashiell Hammett, a writer and political leader who was also on a 10-year blacklist. The two never got married. See less