Miriam Hopkins III: BECKY SHARP
Miriam Hopkins blacklisted during the post-war anti-Red hysteria? Why? And how come that fact — to the best of my knowledge — has never been discussed anywhere?
During the late '30s and throughout the '40s, Hopkins was involved with several political and social groups that were considered fronts for the Communist Party. These groups included the Motion Picture Democratic Committee (of which Hopkins was 2nd vice president) and the incendiary League of Women Shoppers.
In 1945, Louis Bundenz, a Communist Party functionary and the managing editor of the Daily Worker, renounced communism and in 1950 created a “List of 400 Concealed Communists” for the FBI. Miriam Hopkins was on that list. Of course she wasn’t blacklisted to the extent that many in the entertainment industry were. However, in her mind, she considered herself blacklisted. After her 1952 role in Carrie, she didn’t appear in films again until William Wyler cast her in The Children’s Hour nine years later. Now, was this due to blacklisting or just a lack of roles for middle-aged women? During that time she continued to appear in plays and summer stock, and on television.
Hopkins' FBI file is almost 100 pages long, showing that they monitored her activities from 1937 almost up to the time of her death. Most of the accusations claimed Hopkins was a communist "sympathizer," which in the eyes of the FBI was just as damning. However, there are letters in her file that pointedly accuse her of being a real communist. One anonymous letter addressed to J. Edgar Hoover stated, “Why not investigate the following: Miriam Hopkins, Hollywood. [Screenwriter] Donald Ogden Stewart, Hollywood. They are sure Reds.” Perhaps it was from a disgruntled “fan.” In any event, it doesn’t appear the FBI took that letter too seriously, or I’m sure the consequences would have been worse.
Gary Cooper, Miriam Hopkins in Design for Living
Did Miriam Hopkins have a favorite film or film role? In your opinion, which films best reflect Hopkins' acting abilities?
The films she made with Lubitsch [The Smiling Lieutenant, Trouble in Paradise, Design for Living] were her favorites, and she would reminisce more about them as she got older. At one time, The Story of Temple Drake was a favorite, but she later had a change of heart after seeing it with an audience shortly before her death.
Besides the Lubitsch films, I feel her acting abilities were best displayed in 24 Hours (1931), Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (she was strangled in both films), and These Three (1936). And in supporting roles, she made quite an impression in The Heiress, Carrie, and The Children’s Hour.
Miriam Hopkins, Louise Fazenda, Bette Davis in The Old Maid
And inevitably … Did Miriam Hopkins and Bette Davis truly hate one another, or was that just studio publicity that Davis herself decided to perpetuate after Hopkins' death?
It’s true that they felt very little affection for each other – Bette was just more outspoken about it (surprise!). Miriam would never publicly admit to a feud with Bette or with anyone else for that matter — and there were several that she did not get along with, including the aforementioned George Raft and Paul Muni, in addition to Errol Flynn. (Bette reportedly had problems with him, too.)
It’s too bad that Bette was so vocal about it so many years after Miriam’s death. Once during an interview with one of the morning news programs, Bette was asked about working with difficult actors. Of course, she mentioned Joan Crawford and when asked about Hopkins she replied, “Miriam Hopkins was a bitch!” Unfortunately, Miriam’s family was watching that interview and it hurt them deeply. They didn’t think it was fair that Bette was so virulent about Miriam when she was no longer around to defend herself. I understand how they feel, but Davis defenders will say she was old and had suffered a stroke, which I’m sure contributed to her bluntness.
Say what you want about Miriam Hopkins, but she was more of a class act in that respect because she refused to air her dirty laundry in public. She really could have ripped Bette a new one if she wanted – and rightly so — but she chose not to.
Now, this is bad for me, of course, when it comes to researching her life for a biography. But it says something about her character.