Video: 'Ronald_Reagan HUAC Testimony Excerpt, 1947'

(Thursday, October 23, 1947; during the Second Red Scare and the Cold War) — Film actor Ronald Reagan, President of the Screen Actors Guild and future President of the United States, appeared before the House Committee on Un-American Activities (HUAC) today as a “friendly” witness, testifying “I do not believe the Communists have ever at any time been able to use the motion-picture screen as a sounding board for their philosophy or ideology.”

The hearings would result in the establishment of the Hollywood blacklist, the practice of denying employment to screenwriters, actors, directors, musicians and other American entertainment professionals because they were accused of having Communist ties or sympathies.

Video: 'The House Un-American Activities Committee'