ABSTRACT
The House Committee for Un-American Activities (HCUA) had forerunners in the Overman Committee in 1916 and the Fish Committee of 1931 where again the emphasis was on Communists and aliens including blacks. The HCUA in particular was the latter-day version of the French Revolution's Committee of Public Safety, except that it did not destroy lives, only reputations. Members of the HCUA known either for their skill and subtlety or for their aggression often became public figures who enjoyed a high reputation and an equally high lifestyle, their celebrity status entitling them to the perks of their new profession. Although Martin Dies's apparent extremism has been hindsightedly criticized, in some ways his anxieties are understandable considering the known excesses of the Soviet regime during the 1930s, especially the 'treason trials'. With the American entry into the war after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, and the expedient alliance with the USSR to defeat Germany, the Special Committee effectively died the death.
