The Investigator

The Investigator (1954) was a radio play written by Reuben Ship and first broadcast by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) on May 30 of that year. It lampooned the US House Committee on Un-American Activities (HUAC) and its chairman, Senator Joseph McCarthy. In many ways it is as relevant in 2005 as it was when written.

The History

The play, which was well received by the left-wing press at the time, was considered by the right-wing faction in American politics to be anti-American propaganda, and just this side of treason. While not broadcast in the United States, within a few weeks bootleg tapes of the broadcast were in circulation in the US. Attempts to schedule it for broadcast in the US however met with great opposition from, amongst other groups, the American Legion.

Approximately 100,000 copies of a phonograph recording of the play were pressed and circulated, mostly in the US. It was denounced as communist propaganda by none other than Ed Sullivan, and the recording gained a certain status as an underground classic during one of the high points of the Great Red Scare of the McCarthy Era. It is not known if any have survived.

The Author

Reuben Ship was involved the political struggles between two unions vieing for control of the burgeoning television industry in the early 1950's, and he was promptly labelled a communist in HUAC hearings. Much to the dismay of the Committee, it was determined that while much of his work could be considered treasonous if written by a US citizen, Reuben Ship was Canadian. The Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) arrested him in July, 1953 and, after a prolonged ordeal threw him out of the US at the Detroit/Windsor border crossing. His comment upon being expelled from the "Land of Liberty" was that he "...felt liberated". It was this experience which gave him the material which he incorporated into the radio play.

The Play

The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation has opened certain of their archives, including the recording of The Investigator. It may be downloaded by contacting the CBC at the website listed below, or it may be listened to in streaming audio by accessing the Journal for MultiMedia History, link given below.

Fallout from a US Broadcast

In 1967, radio station KPFK, a member station of the Pacifica Foundation and located in the Los Angeles area, broadcast the play. Although KPFK enjoyed a reputation as an underground radio station, the uproar in the community subsequent to the broadcast nearly cost the station its license.

References and Links

• Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
• The Journal for MultiMedia History