What was it like to be accused of being a disloyal American in one of the darkest times in American history? Edward Renehan, publisher, consultant, and writer, is the guest speaker at the Warner Free Lecture Friday, Oct. 8, at 7 p.m., and he will talk about his book “Pete Seeger vs. the Un-Americans: A Tale of the Blacklist.” He began the book while Seeger was alive and finished it shortly after his death in 2014. Renehan was 16 when he first met folk singer and songwriter Pete Seeger, and they maintained a close friendship over 45 years, despite their significant age difference.
Edward Renehan. (Courtesy photo)
In a recent phone conversation, Renehan said he wanted to write the book because, although there have been other books on the story of Seeger and the blacklist, they “hadn’t been done right.” He gave some background on Seeger’s activities before the blacklist era. Seeger and his good friend Woody Guthrie were involved in the labor movement of the 1930s, and they joined the Communist Party, which Renehan said was more like a union for labor politics at that time. Seeger left the party after three years but continued to be a left-wing activist. In the late ’40s he formed a band with other folk singers, called the Weavers, which was highly successful.
Around ’52 the blacklist era kicked in, with a report by the anti-Communist organization Red Channels listing alleged Communists in the entertainment industry. Members of the Weavers were named. Renehan said the Weavers were dropped by Decca Records, venues dried up, the group split up, and “Pete struggled to make ends meet.”
In 1955 Seeger and another member of the Weavers were subpoenaed to appear before the House Un-American Activities Committee where, Renehan said, “The key thing was they were under oath and could be accused of perjury.” He said Seeger and playwright Arthur Miller shared an attorney. They both pleaded the First Amendment, which gave them the freedom not to answer questions, and they could not be pressed to name names. However, it left them open to prosecution. Renehan said Seeger “didn’t help himself” when he was asked whether he was a loyal American, and his talk will clarify what he means by that. Seeger was charged with contempt of Congress and sentenced. He won an appeal, which was not settled until years later, and that charge hanging over his head negatively affected his career.
“Slowly Pete got his life back,” said Renehan. The Weavers got back together, but there were no big gigs. They played small concerts and made the college circuit. The break for a comeback came when the group did a Christmas concert at Carnegie Hall in 1957. The event was sold out, and it was recorded by Vanguard Records. On his own, Seeger still couldn’t work at many commercial venues, and no TV network would invite him to appear. A positive turn occurred in 1961 when record producer John Hammond signed Seeger with Columbia Records.
The world tour
While he was waiting for his appeal to be settled, Seeger could not leave the country. Finally, under Kennedy’s presidency, the appeal succeeded, though, as Renehan will describe, not in the most satisfactory way. In ’63 and ’64 Seeger took his family on a world tour to celebrate. Renehan said that by “world tour” most artists mean places like London and Paris. But “the world to Pete’s thinking is everywhere,” and he played on the streets of Thailand as well as in Paris.
Renehan said what helped Seeger financially were the royalties he received from his songs—songs like “Where Have All the Flowers Gone” and “If I Had a Hammer.” He said he was at Seeger’s house in the ’70s when Seeger opened one royalty check that paid him as much as he would have made in half a year playing.
During our conversation, Renehan told many stories about Seeger’s appearances on TV, and how censure of his war protest songs changed to celebration as attitudes toward the Vietnam War changed. Renehan has an incredible head for dates and details and told many anecdotes about Seeger’s connections with the Smothers Brothers and other performers like Johnny Cash, Bob Dylan, and Bruce Springsteen.
Renehan spent 14 years working in publishing in New York City and was ready to move his family out of the city; they settled in Rhode Island. While still working in publishing, he had written two books and after the move, he turned to writing full time. In 2010 he started a family business, New Street Communications, through which he published the Seeger book, since it is relatively short, he said. The company does mostly audio publishing. He is the author of some 23 books, many about people—such as the Kennedys, John Burroughs, an early naturalist, Jack Kerouac, Bob Dylan—and events, like the Treaty of Paris, and the transcontinental railroad. He said his latest book is a new genre for him, historical true crime. Due to come out in the spring, it’s called “A Killing in Salem.” From the preview he gave me, it sounds intriguingly scandalous.
Register for the event through eventbrite.com (search for Warner Free Lecture). A Zoom link will be sent to you by email.
