LARRY PARKS

Larry Parks was an actor from the 1940s to the 1960s. He is surely best remembered for his starring role in The Jolson Story (nominated for the Best Actor Academy Award for this film; and its sequel, Jolson Sings Again). Some of his other roles include: Freud, Down to Earth, and The Gallant Blade. He was being groomed to be a major romantic lead, but then he was called as the first witness before the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAAC), and he initially refused to "name names", which earned him the dislike of many patriotic Americans, and then he eventually DID "name names", which earned him the dislike of many others, and that combination of events effectively ended his career (it is interesting to note that Lucille Ball, then the number one TV star, was allowed to quietly testify, and that had no effect on her career!). Parks passed away in 1975 at the age of 60.