Robert
Taylor was
born on 4th August, 1911. 1909.
He was signed by MGM while still at high school, he spent most of
his career with the company. Taylor became immensely popular after
his performance in Magnificent
Obsession
(1935). Other significant early films included Billy
the Kid (1941), Song of Russia
(1943) and Johnny Eager (1941).
In 1947 the House of Un-American Activities
Committee (HUAC) began an investigation into the Hollywood Motion
Picture Industry. The HUAC interviewed 41 people who were working
in Hollywood. These people attended voluntarily and became known as
"friendly witnesses". Taylor appeared and claimed that he
appeared in the film Song of Russia
against his better judgment. He claimed that the script by Richard
Collins and Paul Jarrico and a song
in the movie written by Yip Harburg,
were pro-Communist.
Taylor also provided evidence against Howard
Da Silva. When interviewed he claimed: "I can name a few
who seem to sort of disrupt things once in a while. Whether or not
they are Communists I don't know. One chap we have currently, I think
is Howard Da Silva. He always seems to have something to say at the
wrong time."
Taylor continued to play a series of leading roles in Hollywood movies
including Quo Vadis (1951), Ivanhoe
(1952), Knights to the Round Table
(1953) and Return of the Gunfighter
(1966). Robert Taylor died in 1969.
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