Above: Actor Jeff Corey (1914-2002), in Brute Force (Universal Pictures, 1947). Later photos of Corey--which can be found with a simple Google search--will be instantly recognizable to folks who watched TV or movies made in the 20th century, as he was an extremely prolific character actor (see his IMDB page here). Photo from Universal Pictures and Radio Spirits, and used here for educational and non-commercial purposes.
Above: Here we see Jeff Corey, still using his birth name Arthur Zwerling, in the cast of the WPA Theatre production, "Life and Death of an American" - a play about the struggles of the working-class (he is listed as one of the "chanters"). Most of the other people in the cast went on to some degree of entertainment success too (or had been successful before), perhaps most notably John Arthur Kennedy. Image from newspapers.com, used here for educational and non-commercial purposes.
The Indomitable Jeff Corey
Jeff Corey, born Arthur Zwerling, was born in Brooklyn, New York, 1914. He attended the New Utrecht High School in Brooklyn (still operating), became president of its drama club, graduated in 1931, and then attended the Feagin School of Dramatic Art (also in NYC, but no longer open), there winning the "Milward Adams Memorial Scholarship" ("Arthur Zwerling Wins Dramatic Art Scholarship," Brooklyn Times Union, October 16, 1932, p. 8). He then spent the 1930s performing his stagecraft in New York and elsewhere.
Corey participated in the WPA's Federal Theatre Project, but it's not clear how many productions he had a role in. Recall from the second image & caption above that he played in "Life and Death of an American." This play was considered by some to be anti-capitalist and thus anti-American. Back then--and even now to a large degree--anything that was about the working-class and their struggles was considered subversive (apparently, we're supposed to beat our chest and declare American-style capitalism number one, even if it's destroying our lives with low wages, poor benefits, usury, and substandard and unaffordable healthcare).
When the circus-like House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC, led by Congressman and carnival barker Martin Dies) skewered the Federal Theatre Project in 1939, "Life and Death of an American" was one of the plays that came under its scrutiny. A witness--a former WPA employee--said that the play was communist because there was a scene where the audience hissed at a policeman. Congressman Clarence Cannon (D-Missouri), one of the sane members of HUAC, a fairly good supporter of the New Deal, and a "crotchety, cranky, and cantankerous" man who once punched Republican Congressman John Taber (R-NY) in the mouth, was flabbergasted and raked the witness over the coals:
"So because in a play an audience gets up and hisses a policeman, you think that is sowing the seeds of communism? That is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard of. If that is sowing the seeds of communism, then we have communism all over this country... Cite us some play, read us a passage from a play, or give us some specific instance that the Federal Theatre Project was intended to disseminate communism." (Witness: "That is my general observation.") "Sure, but based on what? Give us some facts." (Witness: "I was asked on what information I had, and my opinion, and I gave it.") "That opinion is wholly worthless unless it supported by some facts. The gentleman does not cite a single thing in support of such an astounding statement" (Hallie Flanagan, Arena, New York: Duell, Sloan and Pearce, 1940, pp. 350-351; the exchange was also widely reported in newspapers).
After the Federal Theatre Project ended in 1939, Jeff Corey continued his acting career, especially in the movies. When World War II came, he became a Navy combat photographer, served on the aircraft carrier Yorktown (CV-10), and earned citations for putting himself in danger to capture battle footage. One of his citations read: "His sequence of a Kamikaze attempt on the Carrier Yorktown, done in the face of grave danger, is one of the great picture sequences of the war in the Pacific, and reflects the highest credit upon Corey and the U.S. Navy Photographic Service."
After the war, Corey returned to acting, but it wasn't long before he got caught up in the second communist witch hunt orchestrated by HUAC, this time assisted by the Motion Picture Alliance for the Preservation of American Ideals, a group of fanatics led by the likes Ayn Rand and also self-appointed super-patriots like John Wayne and Ronald Reagan. Folks like Wayne and Reagan, who either didn't serve or never saw combat, felt perfectly comfortable going after those who did, such as Jeff Corey and Purple Heart recipient Russell Johnson (of Gilligan's Island fame). Johnson recalled of Reagan (who he co-starred with in a western), as well as the time period generally:
"Back then, Reagan saw Red every time he turned around... He was suspicious of everyone-unless you were a John Wayne-like, ultra 110 percent American conservative... You have to realize that that was a dangerous time in this country. People's freedoms were being inhibited and challenged, and in those years you were guilty by association or accusation - unless you proved yourself innocent. Reagan was a part of that... This whole period in America made me sick. I remember that later I did a guest spot on 'The Real McCoy's and Walter Brennan approached me one day and asked me to sign some kind of loyalty oath he was holding in his hand. I refused. I thought, 'Why do I have to prove to anybody that I'm a patriot?' I had served my time overseas during World War II. I was shot down and earned a Purple Heart, risking my life. Hell, I understand Reagan never even left the country during the war. He was stationed at 'Fort Roach,' making military training films at the old Hal Roach Studios in Culver City, California" (Russell Johnson with Steve Cox, Here on Gilligan's Isle, New York: Harper Collins, 1993, pp. 12-14).
Jeff Corey was similarly rebellious, refusing to "name names" when he was called to testify before HUAC in 1951, and he even mocked the hearings. For this, he was blacklisted by Hollywood executives for about ten years. But Corey took his exile in stride, worked construction jobs to support his family, earned a college degree at UCLA, and opened an acting studio where he taught stars and future stars, such as James Dean, Jack Nicholson, Jane Fonda, and Richard Chamberlain (see, e.g., "Jeff Corey Comes Back," Associated Press, in the Daytona Beach Morning Journal (Daytona Beach, Florida), January 18, 1961, p. 4; and "Banned actor became coach to stars," The Globe and Mail (Toronto, Ontario, Canada), August 26, 2002, p. R7).
When the communist witch hunts in D.C. and Hollywood subsided, Corey was allowed to return to acting and appeared in tons of TV shows and movies over the remaining decades of the 20th century (again, check out his IMDB page, listing 242 credits overall).
For his voluminous acting roles (spanning 70 years on stage and screen), his teaching of so many Hollywood stars, his resistance to Red Scare bullying, and most importantly his service during World War II, Corey should receive some sort of posthumous lifetime achievement award. If no award fits, one should be created, for example, "The Jeff Corey Award for Grit and Determination."
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