Unsung History15 Dec 2025

Christmas Films, the Early Cold War & the FBI

When It’s a Wonderful Life was first released, it wasn’t a box office hit, but it did draw the attention of the FBI and its investigation into the Communist Infiltration of the Motion Picture Industry (COMPIC). The House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) didn’t end up doing anything with the FBI’s allegations of subversion in the film, but the pressure of investigations like this led to a shift in Christmas films over the next 15 years away from stories of social problems to more lighthearted romances and musicals. Joining me in this episode is Dr. Vaughn Joy, author of Selling Out Santa: Hollywood Christmas Films in the Age of McCarthy. Dr. Joy’s public scholarship website with her husband, Dr. Ben Railton, is Black and White and Read All Over.

Our theme song is Frogs Legs Rag, composed by James Scott and performed by Kevin MacLeod, licensed under Creative Commons. The mid-episode music is "Carol of the Bells," composed by Mykola Leontovych and performed by the Concert Band of the United States Air Force Band of the Rockies; the performance is in the public domain and available via Wikimedia Commons. The episode image is a still from It’s a Wonderful Life, which is in the public domain.

Films Discussed:

Additional Sources:

“Breaking Hollywood's 'Pattern of Sameness'; That is the task the independent producers have set themselves, says Frank Capra, who is one of them.” by Frank Capra, The New York Times, May 5, 1946.
“The Truman Doctrine, 1947,” U.S. Department of State Office of the Historian.
“House Un-American Activities Committee,” Harry S. Truman Library & Museum.
“Screen Guide for Americans,” by Ayn Rand, the Motion Picture Alliance for the Preservation of American Ideals, 1947.
“FBI File on Communist Infiltration- Motion Picture Industry (COMPIC),” via archive.org.
“When 'It's a Wonderful Life' Came Under FBI Scrutiny,” by Christopher Klein, History.com, December 11, 2025.
“How ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’ Went From Box Office Dud to Accidental Christmas Tradition,” by Jay Serafino, Mental Floss, December 6, 2024.

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