Herbert Philbrick
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Herbert Arthur Philbrick (May 11, 1915 – August 16, 1993) was a
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-area
advertising Advertising is the practice and techniques employed to bring attention to a product or service. Advertising aims to put a product or service in the spotlight in hopes of drawing it attention from consumers. It is typically used to promote a ...
executive who was encouraged by the FBI to infiltrate the
Communist Party USA The Communist Party USA, officially the Communist Party of the United States of America (CPUSA), is a communist party in the United States which was established in 1919 after a split in the Socialist Party of America following the Russian Revo ...
between 1940 and 1949. His autobiography was the basis for the 1950s television series ''
I Led 3 Lives ''I Led 3 Lives'' (also known as ''I Led Three Lives'') is an American drama series syndicated by Ziv Television Programs from October 1, 1953, to January 1, 1956. The series stars Richard Carlson. The show was a companion piece of sorts to ...
''.


Communist Party involvement

Philbrick's involvement began when he joined the Cambridge Youth Council, a Communist
front group A front organization is any entity set up by and controlled by another organization, such as intelligence agencies, organized crime groups, terrorist organizations, secret societies, banned organizations, religious or political groups, advocacy gr ...
in
Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. As part of the Boston metropolitan area, the cities population of the 2020 U.S. census was 118,403, making it the fourth most populous city in the state, behind Boston, ...
. His suspicions aroused by the strange power structure and the positions taken by this group, Philbrick contacted the
FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and its principal Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement age ...
. Encouraged by them, he began deepening his involvement in Communist activities, joining first the
Young Communist League The Young Communist League (YCL) is the name used by the youth wing of various Communist parties around the world. The name YCL of XXX (name of country) originates from the precedent established by the Communist Youth International. Examples of YC ...
, and later, as a secret member, the Communist Party itself. Philbrick was used by the Party for his advertising skills. Another asset was his public role as a
Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only (believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compete ...
youth leader. After time spent in local party cells in
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and
Malden, Massachusetts Malden is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. At the time of the 2020 U.S. Census, the population was 66,263 people. History Malden, a hilly woodland area north of the Mystic River, was settled by Puritans in 1640 on la ...
, he received training in the fundamentals of
Marxism–Leninism Marxism–Leninism is a communist ideology which was the main communist movement throughout the 20th century. Developed by the Bolsheviks, it was the state ideology of the Soviet Union, its satellite states in the Eastern Bloc, and various co ...
and worked for the Party in a variety of front groups. Later he was removed from local party work and assigned to a cell of professionals where his main work consisted of working on the 1948
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presidential campaign of former U.S. Vice President Henry A. Wallace. During Philbrick's time in the Communist Party, its membership and support were eroded by the Party's sharp zigzag from anti-war agitation during the
Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact , long_name = Treaty of Non-Aggression between Germany and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , image = Bundesarchiv Bild 183-H27337, Moskau, Stalin und Ribbentrop im Kreml.jpg , image_width = 200 , caption = Stalin and Ribbentrop shaking ...
, to enthusiastic support for the war effort after the Nazi invasion of the Soviet Union. While Philbrick was in the Party,
Earl Browder Earl Russell Browder (May 20, 1891 – June 27, 1973) was an American politician, communist activist and leader of the Communist Party USA (CPUSA). Browder was the General Secretary of the CPUSA during the 1930s and first half of the 1940s. Duri ...
, its
General Secretary Secretary is a title often used in organizations to indicate a person having a certain amount of authority, power, or importance in the organization. Secretaries announce important events and communicate to the organization. The term is derived ...
, who was enthusiastic about wartime cooperation between the United States and the
Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
, and was looking forward to postwar cooperation and growing acceptance of the Communist party by the American public, dissolved the Communist Party and reconstituted it as the
Communist Political Association The Communist Party USA, officially the Communist Party of the United States of America (CPUSA), is a communist party in the United States which was established in 1919 after a split in the Socialist Party of America following the Russian Revo ...
, apparently intending to set the Party on a reformist course. Philbrick himself made a brief show of opposing this new policy—a masterstroke, as the policy was also opposed by William Z. Foster, longtime Chairman of the Communist Party. Shortly thereafter, in July 1945, as a result of the
Duclos letter Jacques Duclos (2 October 189625 April 1975) was a French Communist politician who played a key role in French politics from 1926, when he entered the French National Assembly after defeating Paul Reynaud, until 1969, when he won a substantial p ...
—a letter by a leading French Communist, which actually was a policy directive that originated in Moscow—the Party turned away from
Browderism Earl Russell Browder (May 20, 1891 – June 27, 1973) was an American politician, communist activist and leader of the Communist Party USA (CPUSA). Browder was the General Secretary of the CPUSA during the 1930s and first half of the 1940s. Duri ...
and again took a Marxist–Leninist line, though not completely abandoning the tactics of the
united front A united front is an alliance of groups against their common enemies, figuratively evoking unification of previously separate geographic fronts and/or unification of previously separate armies into a front. The name often refers to a political ...
.


Foley Square trial

Philbrick's Party career came to its end when the
Justice Department A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...
decided to use him as a witness in the
Smith Act The Alien Registration Act, popularly known as the Smith Act, 76th United States Congress, 3d session, ch. 439, , is a United States federal statute that was enacted on June 28, 1940. It set criminal penalties for advocating the overthrow of th ...
prosecutions of the leadership of the Communist Party, in the
Foley Square trial The Smith Act trials of Communist Party leaders in New York City from 1949 to 1958 were the result of US federal government prosecutions in the postwar period and during the Cold War between the Soviet Union and the United States. Leaders of the ...
. On April 6, 1949, he was called as a witness, testifying about his career and training as a Party activist. His testimony was perhaps most useful in that he demonstrated from the content of the training which he had received that the intent of the Communist Party was to overthrow the government of the United States. The trial took almost a year, and all 11 defendants were convicted. Upon appeal, convictions were upheld in 1951 by the
United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...
in ''
Dennis v. United States ''Dennis v. United States'', 341 U.S. 494 (1951), was a United States Supreme Court case relating to Eugene Dennis, General Secretary of the Communist Party USA. The Court ruled that Dennis did not have the right under the First Amendment to the ...
''. However, in 1969 ''
Brandenburg v. Ohio ''Brandenburg v. Ohio'', 395 U.S. 444 (1969), was a landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court interpreting the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The Court held that the government cannot punish inflammatory speech unless that s ...
'' ''
de facto ''De facto'' ( ; , "in fact") describes practices that exist in reality, whether or not they are officially recognized by laws or other formal norms. It is commonly used to refer to what happens in practice, in contrast with ''de jure'' ("by la ...
'' overruled Dennis. The Court held that the government cannot punish inflammatory speech unless that speech is "directed to inciting or producing imminent lawless action and is likely to incite or produce such action". Philbrick claimed that he was only paid by the FBI for his expenses, but "FBI files show the bureau paid him $6,823 for services and $359.38 for expenses through the trial’s resolution.".


Book

He went on to write an autobiographical book, ''I Led Three Lives: Citizen, 'Communist', Counterspy''. In addition, a television series called ''
I Led 3 Lives ''I Led 3 Lives'' (also known as ''I Led Three Lives'') is an American drama series syndicated by Ziv Television Programs from October 1, 1953, to January 1, 1956. The series stars Richard Carlson. The show was a companion piece of sorts to ...
'', starring Richard Carlson and Ed Hinton, loosely based on Philbrick's experiences, aired in
syndication Syndication may refer to: * Broadcast syndication, where individual stations buy programs outside the network system * Print syndication, where individual newspapers or magazines license news articles, columns, or comic strips * Web syndication, ...
for three seasons during the 1950s. He received $141,015 in royalties from the show.


Later years

Later in life, Philbrick retired to the home of his youth, in the Little Boar's Head district of
North Hampton, New Hampshire North Hampton is a town in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 4,538 at the 2020 census. While the majority of the town is inland, North Hampton includes a part of New Hampshire's limited Atlantic seacoast. History ...
. He remained active, giving speeches and encouraging youth and adult citizens to exercise their political rights and power, admonishing his listeners to be ever-watchful against those who would undermine the republican form of government. Toward the end of his life, he owned and ran a variety store in
Rye Beach, New Hampshire Rye Beach is an unincorporated community along the Atlantic Ocean in Rye, New Hampshire, United States. It is located along New Hampshire Route 1A near the southern border of the town of Rye, directly south of Jenness State Beach and north of L ...
. He claimed that he never stopped traveling under assumed names and watching for people following him. On August 16, 1993, Philbrick died at his North Hampton home. Philbrick was father to six children with his first wife Eva: Dale, Brenda, Leslie, Connie, Sandra, and Herbert Jr. He had a daughter, Dawn, with his second wife, Shirley Brundige Philbrick. Philbrick's personal papers were acquired by the Manuscript Division of the
Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library is ...
, where they are made available to researchers.The Herbert A. Philbrick Papers
/ref>


References


Further reading

* * * * *


External links


What Is Communism (1963) Herbert A. Philbrick
via
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05/25/71 Interview with FBI agent Herbert A. Philbrick
via YouTube
Philbrick's Store, photo c.1957
via
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Rye General Store, contemporary view
via
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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Philbrick, Herbert 1915 births 1993 deaths Advertising directors American communists of the Stalin era 20th-century American memoirists American political writers American male non-fiction writers Baptist writers Baptists from New Hampshire Members of the Communist Party USA Cold War spies Federal Bureau of Investigation informants Businesspeople from Boston People from North Hampton, New Hampshire Writers from Boston Baptists from Massachusetts American anti-communists