The Waterbury Democrat., 1941-09-09

something everyone can understand, so the industry will be the ham actor at which the senatorial vege- tables will be thrown. Wendell Will kie will steal the show as counsel for the movie moguls, Nicholas Schenck Harry Warner, Barney Balaban, Daryl Zanuck ct el. Presiding will be Senator D. Worth Clark of Poca- tello, Idaho. First witness will be Senator Gerald P. Nye of Coopers- town, N. D.
 Behind the scenes of these hear ings will be good bit more than meets the eye, but the principal and real reason for these hearings can be summed up like this: l. There have been a number of anti-Nazi pictures, such as Under ground Man Hunt, Confessions of NaZi Spy, I Married Q NaZi, and so on.
 2. Since these pictures have, con. sciously or not, Q propaganda motif which might be said to incite the movie-going people of these United States to go to war to wipe out Nag. ism, certain senators would like to know whether or not the people who are In control of the moving picture industry are deliberately try ing to get the United States in volved in the war,
 SOLONS WANT TO
 SEE OTHER SIDE
 It should be understood that this show is being run by senators who believe very strongly and sincerely that the United States should not become involved in this war In sup port of their contention that the movies are being used to incite the people to war, these senators make much of the point that so far no movies have been produced to pre- sent the other side of the argument screen stories which would be based on plots wherein screen heroes win the girl from the final clinch by keeping their country out of war.
 It must also be borne in mind this is not full-dress investigation. It is purely 8 dress rehearsal to deter mine whether e formal investigation should be held later on. This com plicated state of affairs exists only because of the peculiar Senate rules of procedure.
 Tn the first place, Senator Bennett Champ Clark of St. Louis, Mo, for himself and for Senator Nye, intro duced Q resolution directing the Senate Interstate Commerce Com mission to investigate and report to the Senate on any propaganda dis seminated by motion pictures to in- fluence public sentiment in the di- rection of participation in the pres ent European hunt.
 NO WITCH
 HUNT
 This resolution has not been pass ed by the Senate, but was referred to the Interstate Commerce Com mittee for investigation. The req son Clark and Nye specified that the investigation be conducted by the Interstate Commerce Commit tee was simply that the chairman of this committee is Burton K Wheeler of Butte, Mont, who as everyone knows Is No. 1 spokesman for those who believe the United States should stay out of this war and who could be counted on to ap- point a subcommittee of senators who hold similar views.
 Wheeler has done exactly this Chairman of his subcommittee Is D. Worth Clark of Idaho, an out spoken "isolationist" to use the nasty word. The other members are To. Wayland Brooks of Chicago Homer T. Bone, of Tacoma, Wash, Charles w. Tobey of Temple. N. H., and Ernest w. Mcfarland of Flor ence. Ariz., all with isolationist leanings.
 All this subcommittee can do is make its preliminary investigation and If they are justified in doing SO, recommend to the full commit tee that the full committee recom- mend to the Senate that the Clark Nye resolution, be passed.
 Since there is a possibility that this resolution might be defeated by the Senate, 1t is to the arvantage of the sub-committee to bring out all the dirt it can at the preliminary hearings. They miss no opportunity to insist. however, that this is not a witch hunt.