Gordon Kahn (1902–1962) was an American writer and

screenwriter A screenwriter (also called scriptwriter, scribe, or scenarist) is a person who practices the craft of writing for visual mass media, known as screenwriting. These can include short films, feature-length films, television programs, television ...

who was

blacklisted Blacklisting is the action of a group or authority compiling a blacklist of people, countries or other entities to be avoided or distrusted as being deemed unacceptable to those making the list; if people are on a blacklist, then they are considere ...

during the McCarthy era; he is the father of broadcaster and author Tony Kahn.and physician Jim Kahn.

Background

Gordon Jacques Kahn was born on May 11, 1901, in Szigetvár,

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

. When he was six years old, he and his parents moved to the

Lower East Side The Lower East Side, sometimes abbreviated as LES, is a historic neighborhood in the southeastern part of Manhattan in New York City. It is located roughly between the Bowery and the East River from Canal to Houston streets. Historically, it w ...

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

in the United States of America. In 1918, Kahn graduated from Townsend Harris High School in New York City. He spent the next year at

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

, then took up studies at

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

Career

While studying at Yale, Kahn became a reporter for the ''Bridgeport Star''.

New York

In New York, he worked for the ''

New York Herald The ''New York Herald'' was a large-distribution newspaper based in New York City that existed between 1835 and 1924. At that point it was acquired by its smaller rival the '' New-York Tribune'' to form the '' New York Herald Tribune''. Hi ...

'' and ''Zitt's Theatrical Weekly'', the latter for which he wrote a Broadway column in the style of

Samuel Pepys Samuel Pepys ( ; 23 February 1633 – 26 May 1703) was an English writer and Tories (British political party), Tory politician. He served as an official in the Navy Board and Member of Parliament (England), Member of Parliament, but is most r ...

. In 1922, he wrote a book called ''Manhattan Oases'' about

speakeasies A speakeasy, also called a beer flat or blind pig or blind tiger, was an illicit establishment that sold alcoholic beverages. The term may also refer to a retro style bar that replicates aspects of historical speakeasies. In the United State ...

, illustrated by his roommate of the time,

Al Hirschfeld Albert Hirschfeld (June 21, 1903 – January 20, 2003) was an American caricaturist best known for his black and white portraits of celebrities and Broadway stars. Early life and career Al Hirschfeld was born in 1903 in a two-story duplex apa ...

. For much of the 1920s, Kahn wrote for the ''

New York Daily Mirror The ''New York Daily Mirror'' was an American morning tabloid newspaper first published on June 24, 1924, in New York City by the William Randolph Hearst organization as a contrast to their mainstream broadsheets, the ''Evening Journal'' and '' ...

''.

Hollywood

In 1930, former ''Mirror'' colleague Samuel Marx (later head of scenery at

MGM Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures, commonly shortened to MGM or MGM Studios) is an American Film production, film and television production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered ...

), invited Kahn to move to

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...

and try his luck as a screenwriter. He wrote more than a script a year (well over two dozen) in a period under two decades. Writing credits include: '' The Death Kiss'' (1932), '' Newsboys' Home'' (1938), and '' Buy Me That Town'' (1941). Kahn joined several leftist and liberal causes and helped found the

Screen Writers Guild The Screen Writers Guild was an organization of Hollywood screenplay authors, formed as a union in 1933. A rival organisation, Screen Playwrights, Inc., was established by the AMPP, film studios and producers, but after an appeal to the National ...

(now

Writers Guild of America The Writers Guild of America (WGA) is the name of two American labor unions representing writers in film, television, radio, and online media: * The Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE) is headquartered in New York City and is affiliated wit ...

). He was the first managing editor of ''The Screen Writer''.

Hollywood blacklist

In 1947, when the

House Un-American Activities Committee The House Committee on Un-American Activities (HCUA), popularly the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC), was an investigative United States Congressional committee, committee of the United States House of Representatives, created in 19 ...

(HUAC) began its hearings on "Communist infiltration," Kahn was one of the "Nineteen Unfriendlies" subpoenaed. He was not called to testify and so did not become one of the

Hollywood Ten The Hollywood blacklist was the mid-20th century banning of suspected Communists from working in the United States entertainment industry. The blacklisting, blacklist began at the onset of the Cold War and Red Scare#Second Red Scare (1947–1957 ...

. Soon after December 1947, however, when the Studios announced the firing of the Hollywood Ten, Kahn lost his job at Warner Bros. Studios. In 1948, he published ''Hollywood on Trial''. Kahn sold his 13-room

Beverly Hills Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. A notable and historic suburb of Los Angeles, it is located just southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Beverly Hil ...

home, and he and his family moved into a smaller house in Studio City. In 1950, fearing arrest, he fled to

Cuernavaca Cuernavaca (; , "near the woods" , Otomi language, Otomi: ) is the capital and largest city of the Mexican state, state of Morelos in Mexico. Along with Chalcatzingo, it is likely one of the origins of the Mesoamerica, Mesoamerican civilizatio ...

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

. His wife and sons Jim and Tony joined him six months later. The Kahns lived there until low funds in 1956, after which they returned to the United States and lived in

Manchester, New Hampshire Manchester is the List of municipalities in New Hampshire, most populous city in the U.S. state of New Hampshire. Located on the banks of the Merrimack River, it had a population of 115,644 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Manches ...

. Kahn used the pseudonym "Hugh G. Foster" to write magazine articles for ''Holiday'' and ''

Atlantic Monthly ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher based in Washington, D.C. It features articles on politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 1857 ...

'', but he never wrote scripts for Hollywood again.

Personal life and death

Kahn married Barbara Brodie; they had two sons. Kahn is described as a "man who affected a beard and monocle." One

FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...

report noted that Kahn had "a facial resemblance to Lenin." Gordon Kahn died age 61 on December 31, 1962, of a heart attack during a snowstorm in Manchester.

Works

Film Screenplays: * 1931: '' X Marks the Spot'' * 1932: '' The Death Kiss'' * 1934: '' The Crosby Case'', '' Mama Runs Wild'', '' The People's Enemy'' * 1935: '' Gigolette'' * 1937: ''

Navy Blues (1937 film) ''Navy Blues'' is a 1937 American film directed by Ralph Staub. Plot summary A sailor bets his friends he can date any woman he wants to. They pick out a librarian with a reputation as a "cold fish", and when he pursues her he discovers that ...

'', '' The Sheik Steps Out'' * 1938: '' I Stand Accused'', '' Newsboys' Home'', '' Tenth Avenue Kid'' * 1939: '' Ex-Champ'', '' Mickey the Kid'', '' S.O.S. Tidal Wave'', '' Ex-Champ'' * 1940: '' Wolf of New York'' * 1941: '' Buy Me That Town'', ''

World Premiere A premiere, also spelled première, (from , ) is the debut (first public presentation) of a work, i.e. play, film, dance, musical composition, or even a performer in that work. History Raymond F. Betts attributes the introduction of the film ...

'' * 1942: '' Northwest Rangers'', '' A Yank on the Burma Road'' * 1944: '' Cowboy and the Senorita'', ' Lights of Old Santa Fe'', '' Song of Nevada'' * 1945: '' Two O'Clock Courage'' * 1946: '' Blonde Alibi'', '' Her Kind of Man'' * 1948: '' Whiplash (1948 film)'', ''

Ruthless (film) Ruthless refers to a lack of compassion or empathy. Ruthless may also refer to: Music * ''Ruthless!'', a 1992 musical * Ruthless (Ace Hood album), ''Ruthless'' (Ace Hood album), 2009 * Ruthless (Bizzy Bone album), ''Ruthless'' (Bizzy Bone album) ...

'' * 1949: '' Streets of San Francisco (film)'' Television: * 1956: ''The Adventures of Robin Hood'' - screenplay for 1 episode as "Norman Best" Books: * ''Manhattan Oases'' illustrated by

(1922) (2003) * ''Recent American History'' (1933) * ''Hollywood on Trial'' (1948)

Legacy

Kahn is the subject of his son Tony's 1987 short documentary ''The Day the Cold War Came Home.'' ''Blacklisted,'' a docu-drama in six half-hour episodes that first aired on National Public Radio in 1997, chronicles the last fifteen years of Gordon Kahn's life and the fears and ordeal his family experienced. It was written, produced, and narrated by Gordon Kahn's son Tony Kahn. All of the words of Gordon and his wife Barbara were drawn from their writings, diaries, and letters. The words put in the mouth of

J. Edgar Hoover John Edgar Hoover (January 1, 1895 – May 2, 1972) was an American attorney and law enforcement administrator who served as the fifth and final director of the Bureau of Investigation (BOI) and the first director of the Federal Bureau o ...

were all derived from a confidential 3,000-page FBI surveillance file on Gordon Kahn dated from 1944 to 1962.

References

External links

Wisconsin Historical Society
Gordon Kahn Papers, 1944-1950 * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kahn, Gordon 1902 births 1962 deaths American male screenwriters Hollywood blacklist Screenwriters from New York City People from Cuernavaca Jewish American novelists American communists Columbia University alumni Yale University alumni 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American writers 20th-century American screenwriters