- Born
- Died
- Birth nameAlvah Cecil Bessie
- Alvah Bessie was born on June 4, 1904 in New York City, New York, USA. He was a writer and director, known for Objective, Burma! (1945), Northern Pursuit (1943) and The Very Thought of You (1944). He was married to Sylviane L. Martin. He died on July 21, 1985 in Terra Linda, California, USA.
- SpouseSylviane L. Martin(June 16, 1963 - July 21, 1985) (his death, 3 children)
- Refused to write under a pseudonym after his blacklisting, working instead as a publicist, book reviewer and lighting technician at the hungry i nightclub in North Beach, San Francisco. In 1965, he wrote a book about his experiences during the McCarthy era, entitled "Inquisition in Eden".
- Was a member of the U.S. Communist Party when he fought with the famous Abraham Lincoln Brigade in Spain during the Spanish Civil War and during his tenure as a Hollywood screenwriter. He resigned from the Party in 1954.
- As Alvah C. Bessie, won a 1936 O. Henry Award for his short story "A Personal Issue", which appeared in Scribner's Magazine.
- Won a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1935, publishing his first novel, "Dwell in the Wilderness", the same year. In 1936 and 1937, was drama editor for the Brooklyn Daily Eagle.
- One of the "Hollywood Ten", and father of Dan Bessie.
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