Golden age actress Marsha Hunt, who just turned 98, introduces song she penned for marriage equality
Amazing woman, who celebrated her birthday this weekend.
She starred opposite many of the greats, including Lionel Barrymore and Ann Southern and was polling as a "top star of tomorrow" by the Hollywood press in the late 1940s.
Here she is starting out at age 20 with a young John Wayne in 1937
Her career was cut short due to the Hollywood blacklist. While having no communist ties of her own, she joined with a group of actors, including Danny Kaye, Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall, in speaking out against the House Un-American Activities Committee and defending those under fire from the committee.
Not having the power or name of a Bogart or Bacall, she found herself blacklisted and branded, ridiculously, as a
potential communist," bringing her film career to an effective end in 1950 at age 33.
“I was punished by being denied work by the industry I went to defend!” said Hunt. “While it killed the momentum of my film career, I was determined to continue acting. Happily, Broadway opened up for me, then television, and eventually movies. But I was never again given film roles as richly challenging, or the same billing or salary. ”
Instead, she shifted gears and began speaking out on thrid world poverty, homelssness, mental health and environmental causes and has been a liberal activist for more than 60 years.
Which brings us to last year, when this clip was made. It's a scene for an upcoming documentary on her life.
40 years ago, she wrote the melody for "Here's to all Who Love," and recently added the lyrics. The song is a plea for tolerance for all who love. It is sung by her friend Bill A. Jones ("Glee".
You can find info on the film here:
https://www.facebook.com/marshahuntdoc
and a good write up her life here:
http://www.seniorspectrumnewspaper.com/newspaper/07_14/article_10.htm
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