Orson
Welles was born in Kenosha, Winconsin,
on 6th May, 1915.
He studied at the Art Institute of Chicago and worked briefly as a
reporter before travelling to Ireland where he made his acting debut
at the Gate Theatre in Dublin.
After touring Spain and Morocco
he returned to the United States where he appeared
as Mercutio in Romeo and Juliet,
and Marchbanks in Candida. In
1934 Welles directed Macbeth for
the Negro People's Theatre, as part of the Federal
Theatre Project. He also directed The
Cradle Will Rock, a musical about the tyranny of capitalism
written by the Marxist composer, Marc
Blitzstein.
In 1937 Welles founded the Mercury Theatre where he presented a modern-dress
version of Julius Caesar. He also
produced the controversial radio version of War
of the Worlds. In 1940 Welles moved to Hollywood and made
Citizen Kane. Based on the life
of the newspaper magnate, William Randolph
Hearst, it is considered one of the best movies in the history
of the cinema. Hearst attempted to get the movie banned and although
he failed to do this he did make it difficult for the film to be exhibited.
The Magnificent Ambersons (1942),
Welles's film about America at the turn of the century, was also well
received. This was followed by filmed versions of MacBeth
(1948) and Othello (1951).
After the Second World War the House
of Un-American Activities Committee began an investigation into
the entertainment industry. In its first three years the HUAC managed
to get a large number of people blacklisted for their political views.
On 22nd June, 1950, three former FBI agents
and a right-wing television producer, Vincent Harnett, published Red
Channels, a pamphlet listing the names of 151 writers, directors
and performers who they claimed had been members of subversive organizations
before the Second World War but had not so far
been blacklisted. This included Welles who had been criticised for
working with members of the Communist Party
such as Marc Blitzstein in the 1930s.
Welles did not direct another film until The
Touch of Evil in 1958. This was followed by The
Trial (1962), The Immortal Story
(1968), Chimes at Midnight (1965)
and F for Fake (1973). Orson Welles
died on 10th October 1985.
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