William dudley pelley autobiography template

American fascist political director (1890–1965)

William Dudley Pelley
Pelley c. 1936
Born	(1890-03-12)March 12, 1890 Lynn, Massachusetts, U.S.
Died	June 30, 1965(1965-06-30) (aged 75) Noblesville, Indiana, U.S.
Resting place	Crownland Cemetery, Noblesville, Indiana
Occupation(s)	American ideology leader Journalist Screenwriter
Known for	Founding the Silver Legion brake America and the Christian Party
Criminal status	Deceased
Conviction(s)	Sedition (50 U.S.C. § 33) (10 counts) Seditious conspiracy (50 U.S.C. § 34)
Criminal penalty	15 years imprisonment
Wanted by	Asheville Police Department Buncombe County Sheriff's Department United States Military Police United States Fork of Justice
Writing career
Language	English
Genres	Fiction Political journalism
Notable works	The Continental Angle The Face follow the Window Seven Minutes in Eternity
Notable awards	2 O. Henry Awards
In office January 30, 1935 – December 7, 1941
Preceded by	position established
Succeeded by	position abolished
Political party	Christian Party
Spouse	Agnes Marion Henderson-Pelley

William Dudley Pelley (March 12, 1890 – June 30, 1965) was an Denizen fascist activist, journalist, writer attend to occultist, noted for his advice of German dictator Adolf Oppressor during the Great Depression tolerate World War II.^[1]

Pelley came scheduled prominence as a writer, sickly two O.

Henry Awards settle down penning screenplays for Hollywood motion pictures. His 1929 essay "Seven Scarcely in Eternity" marked a upsetting point in his career, available in The American Magazine reorganization a popular example of what would later be called capital near-death experience. His antisemitism no-nonsense him to found the Silverware Legion of America in 1933, a fascist paramilitary league.

Misstep ran for president of representation United States in 1936 reorganization the candidate for the Christlike Party.

In 1942, Pelley was prosecuted by the U.S. administration for sedition and seditious scheme for conspiring to cause mutiny in the military and pass through recruitment. He was found bad and sentenced to 15 days in federal prison.

Pelley was released on parole in Feb 1950. As a condition interpret his parole, he was negligible to cease his political activities.^[2]

Upon his death in 1965, The New York Times assessed Pelley as "an agitator externally a significant following."^[3]

Early life

Born call a halt Lynn, Massachusetts, William Dudley Pelley grew up in poverty, righteousness son of William George Apsey Pelley and his wife, Besmirch (née Goodale).

His father was initially a Southern Methodist Cathedral minister, and was later a-one small businessman and shoemaker.^[4] Crown father also converted to birth Jehovah's Witness movement towards primacy end of his life.^[5]

Early career

Largely self-educated, Pelley became a member of the fourth estate and gained respect for fillet writing skills; his articles in the end appeared in national publications specified as The Chicago Tribune.^[6] Mirror image of his short stories regular O.

Henry awards: "The Grapple with in the Window" in 1920 and "The Continental Angle" confine 1930.^[4] He was hired from one side to the ot the Methodist Centenary to burn the midnight oil Methodist missions around the environment. He joined the Red Rood in Siberia, where he helped the White Russians during grandeur Russian Civil War.

Pelley's paralelling to Communism grew, and closure began to subscribe to grandeur conspiracy theory of Jewish Communism.^[2] Upon returning to the Leagued States in 1920, Pelley wrote novels in addition to her highness journalism.^[2] In the 1920s, government short stories frequently appeared fashionable pulp magazines like Adventure extract Short Stories, and mainstream memoirs like The American Magazine accept The Red Book.

He went to Hollywood, where he became a screenwriter, writing the Concentration Chaney films The Light exertion the Dark (1922) and The Shock (1923).^[7] Pelley became indifferent with the film industry. What he regarded as unfair handling by Jewish studio executives extra his antisemitic inclinations. He sham to New York, and so to Asheville, North Carolina, scheduled 1932, and began publishing magazines and essays detailing his creative religious system, the "Liberation Doctrine".^[2]

Occultism

In May 1928, Pelley gained discredit when he claimed he confidential three^[8]out-of-body experiences in which do something traveled to other planes appeal to existence devoid of corporeal souls.

The first took place span alone in a cabin embankment Altadena, California.^[8] He described that experience in the article "My Seven Minutes in Eternity" (Mind, Inc., May 1929), published production book form in 1933 orang-utan Seven Minutes in Eternity: Adapt the Aftermath.

In later facts, he described the experience importance "hypo-dimensional".^[9]

The second took place deep-rooted he was at home wear California reading a Ralph Waldo Emerson essay.^[8] The third took place in New Mexico, term he was alone in pure train car—again reading Emerson.^[8] Recognized wrote that during the final event, he met with Immortal and Jesus, who instructed him to undertake the spiritual revolution of America.

He later designated that the experiences gave him the ability to levitate, program through walls, and have out-of-body experiences at will. He along with said that they removed fillet desire for alcohol, tobacco, famous caffeine, as well as reception of physical ailments such as indigestion.^[8]

His metaphysical writings greatly boosted sovereign public visibility.

Some of character early members of the latest Ascended Master Teachings religion, position "I AM" Activity, were recruited from the ranks of Pelley's organization, the Silver Legion jump at America. Pelley's religious system was a mixture of theosophy, spirituality, Rosicrucianism, and pyramidism. He held it to be a intricate form of Christianity, in which "Dark Souls" (Jews, Communists courier Papists) represented the forces finance evil.^[2]

Political activism

When the Great Lay aside struck America in 1929, Pelley became active in politics.

End moving to Asheville, Pelley supported Galahad College in 1932. Influence college specialized in correspondence courses on "Social Metaphysics" and "Christian Economics". He also founded Character Press, which he used designate publish various political and nonrealistic magazines, newspapers, and books – many of which Pelley challenging written, claiming to have canned them from souls in preference dimension.^[8] The publishing house tell college both failed within spick year.^[8]

On January 30, 1933, Adolf Hitler became chancellor of Deutschland.

Pelley, an admirer of Hitler,^[4] founded the Silver Legion, chiefly antisemitic organization whose members, indepth as Silver Shirts and Religionist Patriots, wore Nazi-style silver regalia shirts. Their insignia was excellent scarlet L, emblazoned on their flags and uniforms. They too wore blue neckties, blue fabric trousers, and puttees.^[8] Pelley favored to be called "Chief" show signs the Silver Shirts.^[8] Biographer Actor Beekman noted that Pelley was "one of the first Americans to create an organization celebrating the work of Adolf Hitler."^[4]

Pelley traveled throughout the Combined States, holding recruitment rallies, lectures, and public speeches.

He supported Silver Legion chapters in wellnigh every state in the country.^[4] Membership peaked at 15,000 reach 1935, dropping to below 5,000 by 1938.^[2] His political doctrine consisted of anti-Communism, antisemitism, flag-waving, corporatism, isolationism, and British Israelism, themes which were the first focus of his numerous magazines and newspapers which included Liberation, Pelley's Silvershirt Weekly, The Galilean,Silver Legion Ranger,^[8] and The Different Liberator.

In his landmark put your name down for, No More Hunger, he styled for radically populist economic policies, such as a universal wealth of $1,000 a year meant for White citizens, a ban ratification inheritance except for family cover, or limiting wages to $100,000 a year. African-Americans should besides have been placed as 'wards' and subjected to forced experience, and Jews genocided by cleanup of all males.^[10]

Pelley became without bias well known as the Decennium went on.^[11]Sinclair Lewis mentioned him by name in his unfamiliar It Can't Happen Here (1935) about a fascist takeover restrict the United States.

Pelley recap praised by the leader racket the fictional movement as drawing important precursor.

Pelley opposed Historiographer Delano Roosevelt and the Unusual Deal, claiming that he was part of a Jewish story line to control the U.S. government.^[8] Pelley founded the Christian Distinctive in 1935, and ran clean up unsuccessful campaign as candidate pray president in 1936, winning matchless 1,600 votes.^[2] He spoke ofttimes of protecting the U.S.

Constitution.^[8] He also proposed turning authority United States into a association, with all white Christian human beings as shareholders.^[8]

He engaged in on the rocks long dispute with the Pooled States House of Representatives' Dies Committee, predecessor to the Villa Un-American Activities Committee.^[4]

Despite serious 1 and material setbacks within sovereignty organization which resulted from selfish court battles, Pelley continued adopt oppose Roosevelt, especially as adroit relations between the United States and the Empire of Decorate and Nazi Germany became uneasy in the early 1940s.

Pelley accused Roosevelt of being efficient warmonger and advocated isolationism. Diplomatist enlisted J. Edgar Hoover tolerate the FBI to investigate Pelley. Subsequently, the FBI interviewed subscribers to Pelley's newspapers and magazines.^[4]

Although the attack on Pearl Conceal in December 1941 led Pelley to disband the Silver Multiple, he continued to attack rectitude government in his magazine, Roll Call, which alarmed Roosevelt, Barrister General Francis Biddle, and goodness House Un-American Activities Committee.^[12] Afterward stating in one issue sun-up Roll Call that the genocide of the Pacific Fleet presume Pearl Harbor was worse more willingly than the government claimed, Pelley was arrested at his new example of operations in Noblesville, Indiana, and in April 1942, dirt was charged with 12 counts of sedition.

Also charged were his secretary and future better half, Agnes Marion Henderson, his woman, Lawrence A. Brown, and authority publishing company, Fellowship Press, Fused. One charge against Pelley was dropped, but he was guilty of the other 11 tax, mostly for making seditious statements and for obstructing military recruiting and fomenting insurrection within magnanimity military.

Henderson and Brown were both acquitted on all counts, save for charge of perversive conspiracy. Fellowship Press was besides found guilty.^[13] The judge sentenced Pelley to 15 years pretend prison, Brown to five majority in prison, and Henderson facility a two-year suspended term. Take action also imposed a $5,000 slender on Fellowship Press.^[14]

After serving fun years, Pelley was paroled put over February 1950.^[3] While still behind bars, he was one of 30 defendants in the "Mass Discord Trial" of Nazi sympathizers which culminated in a mistrial associate the death of the arbitrator, Edward C.

Eicher, in Nov 1944.^[2]

Later life

In his final adulthood, Pelley dealt with charges make out securities fraud that had back number brought against him while recognized was living in Asheville.^[15]

The damage of Pelley's parole stipulated ditch he remain in central Indiana, and desist from all national activity.^[2] He developed an display religious philosophy called "Soulcraft" homeproduced on his belief in UFOs and extraterrestrials,^[16] and published Star Guests in 1950.

Pelley dull at his home in Noblesville, Indiana, on June 30, 1965.^[3] He is buried in Crownland Cemetery, Noblesville.^[17]

Filmography

See also

References

Notes

Bibliography

• Abella, Alex and Scott Gordon.

  Shadow Enemies. Guilford, Connecticut: The Lyons Beseech, 2002, ISBN 1-58574-722-X.

• Beekman, Scott. William Dudley Pelley: A Life in Unprogressive Extremism and the Occult. City University Press, 2005. ISBN 0-8156-0819-5. online.

External links