"This book reveals the true story behind one of cinema's darkest episodes: how actors, directors and moguls were subpoenaed to name names and answer the '$64,000 question': 'are now you or have you ever been a member of the Communist party? ' The book charts the generation of actors who found their livelihood ruined by being 'blacklisted' and the writers forced to hire 'fronts' to continue to work; how Arthur Miller was offered the chance to have his hearing dropped in return for a photo-opportunity with Marilyn Monroe; and how Kirk Douglas's naming of Dalton Trumbo as the writer of Spartacus signalled the end of this extraordinary era. " "Painstakingly researched and drawing on numerous new interviews, Hollywood on Trial is the definitive account of how political paranoia shaped cinema for a decade. "--Jacket.