I LED THREE LIVES: The True Story of Herbert A. Philbrick’s Television Program

Described by one critic as a “product of the McCarthy era [which] contains what was perhaps the most explicit political propaganda ever found in a popular dramatic series on American television.” During the 1950s, I Led Three Lives gained a lot of attention for television viewers who were fascinated with the weekly adventures of Herbert A. Philbrick, who for nine frightening years did lead three lives — average citizen, member of the Communist party, and counterspy for the FBI. Today, the series remains favored by those who remember the program, starring Richard Carlson in the lead role, which reflected the stereotypes that were all too prevalent during the Red Scare of the 1940s and early 1950s. In this television program, Communist spies really were behind every bush, and anyone with liberal views was indeed suspect. The series today is regarded as a product of its time. Television stations will probably never air the series in syndication and fans now have to resort to DVD collector