John Milton Bright (January 1, 1908 – September 14, 1989) was an American journalist, screenwriter and political activist. Bright was born in Baltimore and worked with

Ben Hecht Ben Hecht (; February 28, 1894 – April 18, 1964) was an American screenwriter, director, producer, playwright, journalist, and novelist. A journalist in his youth, he went on to write 35 books and some of the most enjoyed screenplays and play ...

as a newspaper journalist in Chicago. With fellow journalist Kubec Glasmon, Bright co-wrote a series of stories adapted as screenplays. The most notable of these, ''Beer and Blood'', became the 1931 film '' The Public Enemy'' starring

James Cagney James Francis Cagney Jr. (; July 17, 1899March 30, 1986) was an American actor and dancer. On stage and in film, he was known for his consistently energetic performances, distinctive vocal style, and deadpan comic timing. He won acclaim and maj ...

. The two were nominated for a 1931 Academy Award for Best Story. In 1933 he became one of the ten founders of 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 ...

. As with other founders and members of the Screen Writers Guild, Bright was targeted in the early 1950s by 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 ...

, and put on the

Hollywood blacklist 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 ...

. Bright's wife Josefina Fierro was a Mexican-American activist in her own right. Bright fled to Mexico and wrote screenplays for at least two Mexican films.Cold War Exiles in Mexico: U.S. Dissidents and the Culture of Critical ... by Rebecca Mina Schreiber, page 223 His

posthumous Posthumous may refer to: * Posthumous award, an award, prize or medal granted after the recipient's death * Posthumous publication, publishing of creative work after the author's death * Posthumous (album), ''Posthumous'' (album), by Warne Marsh, 1 ...

2002 memoir was called ''Worms in the Winecup.''

Films

Bright's credits as a screenwriter, often collaborating with others, include: * '' Smart Money'' (1931) * '' The Public Enemy'' (1931) * ''

Blonde Crazy ''Blonde Crazy'' is a 1931 American pre-Code romantic comedy-drama film directed by Roy Del Ruth and starring James Cagney, Joan Blondell, Noel Francis, Louis Calhern, Ray Milland, and Guy Kibbee. The film is notable for one of Cagney's li ...

'' (1931) * '' The Crowd Roars'' (1932) * '' Three on a Match'' (1932) *'' Taxi!'' (1932) * ''

If I Had a Million ''If I Had a Million'' is a 1932 American pre-Code Paramount Studios anthology film starring Gary Cooper, George Raft, Charles Laughton, W. C. Fields, Jack Oakie, Frances Dee and Charlie Ruggles, among others. There were seven directors: ...

'' (1932) * '' She Done Him Wrong'' (1933) * '' San Quentin'' (1937) * ''

Sherlock Holmes and the Voice of Terror ''Sherlock Holmes and the Voice of Terror'' is a 1942 American mystery thriller film based on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes detective stories. The film combines elements of Doyle's short story " His Last Bow", to which it is credited ...

'' (1942) * '' The Brave Bulls'' (1951)

References

External links

Interview of John Bright
part o
Hollywood Blacklist
interview series, Center for Oral History Research, UCLA Library Special Collections, University of California, Los Angeles. {{DEFAULTSORT:Bright, John 1908 births 1989 deaths 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American screenwriters American activists American male journalists American male screenwriters Hollywood blacklist Writers from Baltimore Screenwriters from Chicago