The Hollywood Blacklist affected many different entertainers working in various facets of the industry. In Rare Birds: An American Family, Dan Bessie shares his family history and how it was affected by the blacklist.

Bessie’s family included numerous creative minds over the course of 150 years in America, eventually finding a niche in entertainment via his uncle Harry’s Turnabout Theater. The renowned puppet theater intrigued the public and also had its fair share of notable visitors, including the likes of Shirley Temple, Ray Bradbury, and Albert Einstein.

Not a typical Hollywood story, Rare Birds is one that will delight fans of theatre history, puppeteering, and classic film.

Rare Birds: An American Family is available for purchase via the University Press of Kentucky.