Hollywood Blacklist of Gibson

[Rick Duncan]

In light of recent news reports in the New York Times
about Hollywood studio executives who say they plan to
blacklist Mel Gibson because of his artistic vision in
The Passion, I am surprised that there has been no
discussion on this list about blacklists and
McCarthyism. Certainly, there is no Congressional
committee investigating Gibson (although some critics
have called for "hate crime" investigations), but for
studio executives to state, as one was reported to say
in the Times-- "I won't hire him. I won't support
anything he's part of"-- solely because they object to
his artistic vision of his religious beliefs certainly
is correctly labeled a "Hollywood Blacklist." No?

An editorial in the Dallas Morning News put it well:
"Ah. It's interesting to see what a filmmaker has to
do to make Hollywood's new blacklist. Get indicted for
drugging and raping a 13-year-old girl and flee the
country to avoid trial? Nope: Roman Polanski earned an
Oscar last year. Serve a prison stint for molesting a
12-year-old boy? Nope: Disney hired ex-con Victor
Salva to make "Powder" in 1995. Consort with a
dictator? Nope: Steven Spielberg rhapsodized that
dinner with Fidel Castro was 'the eight most important
hours of my life.' Be a pious Catholic who makes a
film about the death of Jesus Christ faithful to the
Gospels? Guards, take him away!"

Hollywood still likes to agonize over the evil of the
blacklist, and how it destroyed careers and deprived
the public of many great films and performances. Maybe
it's time for Hollywood and other enemies of
blacklists to condemn the blacklisting of Mel Gibson.

Any thoughts?


=====
Rick Duncan 
Welpton Professor of Law 
University of Nebraska College of Law 
Lincoln, NE 68583-0902

"When the Round Table is broken every man must follow Galahad or Mordred; middle things are gone." C.S.Lewis

"I will not be pushed, filed, stamped, indexed, briefed, debriefed, or numbered."  --The Prisoner

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