861.4061 Motion Pictures/114: Telegram
The Secretary of State to the Ambassador in the Soviet Union (Harriman)
1358. Your 1675, May 12.73 The Hays organization74 has now informed the Department that it is unable to locate the remaining persons. For your confidential information, it is understood the Hays organization is dropping the matter because of unfavorable publicity which has appeared in certain American newspapers denouncing as propaganda the Soviet intention to award decorations to a large number of persons in the American motion picture industry.
The Department does not know of any other practicable method of obtaining the desired information regarding the remaining members of the group in question. Moreover, it is felt that the Soviet Embassy in Washington could easily locate the persons through Kolatosov75 who was understood to be in Hollywood.
You should accordingly approach the Soviet authorities in accordance with the second paragraph of Department’s 893 of April 13. The Department will be glad to take up with the Army or Navy the question of acceptance of decorations by any of the group which are now in those services.
- Not printed.↩
- Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America, Inc., New York, N.Y., of which Will H. Hays was the president.↩
- Mikhail Konstantinovich Kalatozov, representative of Soyuzintorgkino, the All-Union Combine for Export and Import of Motion Picture Film, Photo-Chemicals, and Motion Picture Equipment.↩