Will Geer (born William Aughe Ghere, March 9, 1902 – April 22, 1978) was an American actor and social activist, who was active in labor organizing and other movements in New York and Southern California in the 1930s and 1940s. In California he befriended rising singer Woody Guthrie. They both lived in New York for a time in the 1940s. He was blacklisted in the 1950s by HUAC for refusing to name persons who had joined the Communist Party. Geer acted on stage in New York and eastern theatres, and in California for film. He is best-known as an actor for his later portrayal of Grandpa Zebulon Tyler Walton in the 1970s TV series The Waltons. Contents

Personal life Edit

Early career Edit

Blacklist Edit

Geer was blacklisted in the early 1950s for refusing to testify before the House Committee on Un-American Activities. As a result, Geer appeared in very few films over the next decade. Among them was Salt of the Earth (1954) which was produced, directed, written, and starring blacklisted Hollywood personnel. It told the story of a miners' strike in New Mexico from a pro-union standpoint. The film was denounced as "subversive", and faced difficulties in its production and distribution as a consequence.

Later years Edit

TV and filmography Edit

Discography Edit

Folkways: The Original Vision (2005) Smithsonian Folkways

(2005) Smithsonian Folkways Ecology Won: Readings by Will Geer and Ellen Geer (1978) Folkways Records

(1978) Folkways Records Woody's Story: As Told by Will Geer and Sung by Dick Wingfield (1976) Folkways Records

(1976) Folkways Records American History in Ballad and Song, Vol.2 (1962) Folkways Records

(1962) Folkways Records Mark Twain: Readings from the Stories and from "Huckleberry Finn" (1961) Folkways Records

(1961) Folkways Records Hootenanny at Carnegie Hall (1960) Folkways Records

(1960) Folkways Records Bound for Glory: Songs and Stories of Woody Guthrie (1956) Folkways Records

See also Edit