An actor and playwright, Wexley came to Hollywood and became a
successful screenwriter. Because he spoke German, he was hired to work
with fellow playwright
Bertolt Brecht on the script to
Hangmen Also Die! (1943). A member of the Communist Party, his career came
to a sudden end when he was brought before the House Un-American
Activities Committee and named as a Communist after working on the film
Cornered (1945) and blacklisted in Hollywood because of his
political views.
