Rena Vale
Encyclopedia
Rena Vale, or Rena M. Vale, (1898–1983) was a writer who from 1926 to 1930 was a scriptwriter for Universal Studios
in Hollywood and in the 1930s was an investigator for a U.S. House of Representatives committee that later became the House Committee on Un-American Activities.
in Flagstaff in 1918. She taught school in Arizona for two years and was also a cowgirl
in that state. She moved to California in 1920, where she was also a ballroom dancer
in Long Beach, California. She worked at the Board of Education
and then as a shop assistant, selling men's hosiery
.
to the Lubin motion picture company
, for which she received $25. Twelve years later, in March 1928, she was announced as the winner of a national contest sponsored by Photoplay
magazine and Paramount Pictures
for her scenario for a movie called Swag. She won from 40,000 entries and received a first prize of $5,000.
In 1929 Vale was director of publicity for Pickwick Airways and for several years after was an aviation writer.. In November 1932 she was secretary to Wycliffe A. Hill, who was engaged in an endeavor to develop a "robot" process that would help put jokes together from a series of standard formats.
By May 1934, Vale was working as assistant to screenwriter George Yohalem, hoping to sell some of her own work, but in those days a stenographer could not "even attempt to sell her own stuff without being blacklisted, but she has a chance to sell stuff under other names." She worked for other writers as well, but by 1936 she was unemployed and registered with the California State Emergency Relief Administration.
as secretary to R. Frederick Sparks, supervisor of the WPA Historical Records Survey
. It was during the period that she became a member of the Communist Party, under the pseudonym Irene Wood, and held various positions and attended various meetings of the party
In August 1937, "in accordance with Communist Party decision, upon which I acted," Vale requested and received transfer to the Federal Theater Project of the WPA and, with others, worked on a play titled Sun Rises in the West, about migratory workers, which was later produced at the Mayan Theater
in downtown Los Angeles and the Greek Theater in the Hollywood Hills
. In March 1938, she transferred to the Federal Writers Project, where she was editorial assistant to Robert Brownell, who was in charge of the history essay for the Los Angeles Guide. Vale said she mailed back her party book in resignation in mid-1938, and in October of that year she learned she was expelled from the party. Shortly thereafter, she said, she was fired as editorial assistant and her salary was reduced.
In October 1941, she was secretary for the California State Assembly Committee on Un-American Activities.
In November 1942 she filed a lengthy affidavit with the Joint Fact-Finding Committee to the 55th California Legislature detailing her experiences as a member of the Communist Party and giving the names of those she said worked with her, implicating comedienne Lucille Ball
, writer-activist Carey McWilliams
, actress Gale Sondergaard
, author John Steinbeck
, and journalist Charles Harris Garrigues
, among others, in a lengthy affidavit. She also worked for Sen. Joseph McCarthy
's permanent subcommittee on investigations.
"Tri-Nation Service Starts; First Plane of Pickwick Latin-America Airways Given Send-Off in Colorful Pageant," Los Angeles Times, August 19, 1929, page A-2
"Mayan Play New, Novel," Los Angeles Times, July 4, 1938, page A-7 (review of Sun Rises in the West)
Rena Vale, "Stalin Over California," Los Angeles Times, March 29, 1940, page A-4 (reprinted, in part, from the American Mercury magazine)
Philip Dunne, "Wires Crossed," letter in the Los Angeles Times, August 6, 1941, page A-4, denying he had ever been a member of the Communist Party
Universal Studios
Universal Pictures , a subsidiary of NBCUniversal, is one of the six major movie studios....
in Hollywood and in the 1930s was an investigator for a U.S. House of Representatives committee that later became the House Committee on Un-American Activities.
Early life
Vale was born as Rena Marie Vale in Arizona on January 30, 1898, and graduated from Northern Arizona Normal SchoolNorthern Arizona University
Northern Arizona University is a public university located in Flagstaff, Arizona, United States. It is accredited by the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools, and has 39 satellite campuses in the state of Arizona. The university offers both undergraduate and graduate degrees.As of...
in Flagstaff in 1918. She taught school in Arizona for two years and was also a cowgirl
Cowboy
A cowboy is an animal herder who tends cattle on ranches in North America, traditionally on horseback, and often performs a multitude of other ranch-related tasks. The historic American cowboy of the late 19th century arose from the vaquero traditions of northern Mexico and became a figure of...
in that state. She moved to California in 1920, where she was also a ballroom dancer
Taxi dancer
A taxi dancer, or taxi for short , is a paid dance partner in a partner dance. For official purposes in the US, their occupation was referred to as "dancer", when they worked in taxi-dance halls that had all the necessary business permits...
in Long Beach, California. She worked at the Board of Education
Board of education
A board of education or a school board or school committee is the title of the board of directors or board of trustees of a school, local school district or higher administrative level....
and then as a shop assistant, selling men's hosiery
Hosiery
Hosiery, also referred to as legwear, describes garments worn directly on the feet and legs. The term originated as the collective term for products of which a maker or seller is termed a hosier; and those products are also known generically as hose...
.
Screenwriter
In 1916, at age 18, she sold a screenplayScreenplay
A screenplay or script is a written work that is made especially for a film or television program. Screenplays can be original works or adaptations from existing pieces of writing. In them, the movement, actions, expression, and dialogues of the characters are also narrated...
to the Lubin motion picture company
Lubin Studios
The Lubin Manufacturing Company, was an American motion picture production company that produced silent films from 1902 to 1916. Lubin films were distributed with a Liberty Bell trademark.-History:...
, for which she received $25. Twelve years later, in March 1928, she was announced as the winner of a national contest sponsored by Photoplay
Photoplay
Photoplay was one of the first American film fan magazines. It was founded in 1911 in Chicago, the same year that J. Stuart Blackton founded a similar magazine entitled Motion Picture Story...
magazine and Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
for her scenario for a movie called Swag. She won from 40,000 entries and received a first prize of $5,000.
In 1929 Vale was director of publicity for Pickwick Airways and for several years after was an aviation writer.. In November 1932 she was secretary to Wycliffe A. Hill, who was engaged in an endeavor to develop a "robot" process that would help put jokes together from a series of standard formats.
By May 1934, Vale was working as assistant to screenwriter George Yohalem, hoping to sell some of her own work, but in those days a stenographer could not "even attempt to sell her own stuff without being blacklisted, but she has a chance to sell stuff under other names." She worked for other writers as well, but by 1936 she was unemployed and registered with the California State Emergency Relief Administration.
In and out of the Communist Party
In December 1936 she was put on the payroll of the Works Progress AdministrationWorks Progress Administration
The Works Progress Administration was the largest and most ambitious New Deal agency, employing millions of unskilled workers to carry out public works projects, including the construction of public buildings and roads, and operated large arts, drama, media, and literacy projects...
as secretary to R. Frederick Sparks, supervisor of the WPA Historical Records Survey
Historical Records Survey
The Historical Records Survey was a project of the Works Progress Administration New Deal program in the United States. Originally part of the Federal Writers' Project, it was devoted to surveying and indexing historically significant records in state, county and local archives...
. It was during the period that she became a member of the Communist Party, under the pseudonym Irene Wood, and held various positions and attended various meetings of the party
In August 1937, "in accordance with Communist Party decision, upon which I acted," Vale requested and received transfer to the Federal Theater Project of the WPA and, with others, worked on a play titled Sun Rises in the West, about migratory workers, which was later produced at the Mayan Theater
Mayan Theater
The Mayan Theater at 1014 South Hill Street in Los Angeles, California is a landmark former picture palace.Designed by Stiles O. Clements of Morgan, Walls & Clements and opened in August 1927, the facade of the Mayan includes stylized pre-Columbian patterns and figures designed by sculptor...
in downtown Los Angeles and the Greek Theater in the Hollywood Hills
Hollywood Hills
The Hollywood Hills is an affluent and exclusive neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, in the southeastern Santa Monica Mountains. It is bound by Laurel Canyon Boulevard to the west, Vermont Avenue to the east, Mulholland Drive to the north, and Sunset Boulevard to the south.-Hollywood Hills...
. In March 1938, she transferred to the Federal Writers Project, where she was editorial assistant to Robert Brownell, who was in charge of the history essay for the Los Angeles Guide. Vale said she mailed back her party book in resignation in mid-1938, and in October of that year she learned she was expelled from the party. Shortly thereafter, she said, she was fired as editorial assistant and her salary was reduced.
In October 1941, she was secretary for the California State Assembly Committee on Un-American Activities.
In November 1942 she filed a lengthy affidavit with the Joint Fact-Finding Committee to the 55th California Legislature detailing her experiences as a member of the Communist Party and giving the names of those she said worked with her, implicating comedienne Lucille Ball
Lucille Ball
Lucille Désirée Ball was an American comedian, film, television, stage and radio actress, model, film and television executive, and star of the sitcoms I Love Lucy, The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour, The Lucy Show, Here's Lucy and Life With Lucy...
, writer-activist Carey McWilliams
Carey McWilliams (journalist)
Carey McWilliams was an American author, editor, and lawyer. He is best known for his writings about social issues in California, including the condition of migrant farm workers and the internment of Japanese Americans in concentration camps during World War II...
, actress Gale Sondergaard
Gale Sondergaard
Gale Sondergaard was an American actress.Sondergaard began her acting career in theatre, and progressed to films in 1936. She was the first recipient of the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her film debut in Anthony Adverse...
, author John Steinbeck
John Steinbeck
John Ernst Steinbeck, Jr. was an American writer. He is widely known for the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel The Grapes of Wrath and East of Eden and the novella Of Mice and Men...
, and journalist Charles Harris Garrigues
Charles Harris Garrigues
thumb|upright|right|C.H. Garrigues,about 1941Charles Harris Garrigues was a California writer and journalist who wrote as C.H. Garrigues. He was a general-assignment reporter in Los Angeles, California, in the 1920s, a grand jury investigator and political activist in the 1930s, a newspaper copy...
, among others, in a lengthy affidavit. She also worked for Sen. Joseph McCarthy
Joseph McCarthy
Joseph Raymond "Joe" McCarthy was an American politician who served as a Republican U.S. Senator from the state of Wisconsin from 1947 until his death in 1957...
's permanent subcommittee on investigations.
Science fiction
Later, she became a science-fiction writer, with four books to her credit: Beyond the Sealed World, Taurus Four, The Day After Doomsday and The House on Rainbow Leap.Further reading
"Tri-Nation Service Starts; First Plane of Pickwick Latin-America Airways Given Send-Off in Colorful Pageant," Los Angeles Times, August 19, 1929, page A-2
"Mayan Play New, Novel," Los Angeles Times, July 4, 1938, page A-7 (review of Sun Rises in the West)
Rena Vale, "Stalin Over California," Los Angeles Times, March 29, 1940, page A-4 (reprinted, in part, from the American Mercury magazine)
Philip Dunne, "Wires Crossed," letter in the Los Angeles Times, August 6, 1941, page A-4, denying he had ever been a member of the Communist Party