Editing Ed Sullivan (section)

==Politics==
Sullivan, like many American entertainers, was pulled into the [[Cold War]] [[anticommunism]] of the late 1940s and 1950s. Tap dancer [[Paul Draper (dancer)|Paul Draper]]'s scheduled January 1950 appearance on ''Toast of the Town'' met with opposition from Hester McCullough, an activist in the hunt for what she perceived as subversives. Branding Draper a [[Communist Party USA|Communist Party]] sympathizer, she demanded that Sullivan's lead sponsor, the Ford Motor Company, cancel Draper's appearance. Draper denied the charge, and appeared on the show as scheduled. Ford received over a thousand angry letters and telegrams, and Sullivan was obliged to promise Ford's advertising agency, Kenyon & Eckhardt, that he would avoid controversial guests going forward. Draper was forced to move to Europe to earn a living.{{sfn|Barnouw|1990|pp=117–21}}

After the Draper incident, Sullivan began to work closely with Theodore Kirkpatrick of the anti-Communist ''[[Counterattack (newsletter)|Counterattack]]'' newsletter. He would consult Kirkpatrick if any questions came up regarding a potential guest's political leanings. Sullivan wrote in his June 21, 1950, ''Daily News'' column that "Kirkpatrick has sat in my living room on several occasions and listened attentively to performers eager to secure a certification of loyalty."{{sfn|Barnouw|1990|pp=117–21}}

Cold War repercussions manifested in a different way when [[Bob Dylan]] was booked to appear in May 1963. His chosen song was "[[Talkin' John Birch Paranoid Blues]]", which poked fun at the ultraconservative [[John Birch Society]] and its tendency to see Communist conspiracies in many situations. No concern was voiced by anyone, including Sullivan, during rehearsals; but on the day of the broadcast, CBS's Standards and Practices department rejected the song, fearing that lyrics equating the Society's views with those of [[Adolf Hitler]] might trigger a defamation lawsuit. Dylan was offered the opportunity to perform a different song, but he responded that if he could not sing the number of his choice, he would rather not appear at all. The story generated widespread media attention in the days that followed. Sullivan denounced the network's decision in published interviews.<ref>"Bob Dylan walks out on The Ed Sullivan Show". [http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/bob-dylan-walks-out-on-the-ed-sullivan-show History.com archive]. Retrieved May 12, 2015.</ref>

Sullivan butted heads with Standards and Practices on other occasions, as well. In 1956, actress [[Ingrid Bergman]] was planning a return to Hollywood with the film ''[[Anastasia (1956 film)|Anastasia]]'' after living in exile in Europe since 1950 in the wake of her scandalous love affair with director [[Roberto Rossellini]]. Sullivan was confident that the American public would welcome her back, and invited her to appear on his show. He flew to Europe to film an interview with Bergman, [[Yul Brynner]], and [[Helen Hayes]] on the ''Anastasia'' set. When Sullivan arrived back in New York, Standards and Practices informed him that under no circumstances would Bergman be permitted to appear on the show, either live or on film. However, Sullivan's prediction about Bergman's career later proved correct, as she won her second [[Academy Awards|Academy Award]] for ''Anastasia'', as well as the forgiveness of her fans.<ref name=Million>{{cite book|url=http://www.otrr.org/FILES/Magz_pdf/TV_Radio_Mirror/TV%20Radio%20Mirror%205705.pdf|title=Fifty Million People Can't Be Wrong|author=Merwin, Gregory|date=May 1957|publisher=TV-Radio Mirror|pages=32–33|access-date=February 12, 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131002135647/http://www.otrr.org/FILES/Magz_pdf/TV_Radio_Mirror/TV%20Radio%20Mirror%205705.pdf|archive-date=October 2, 2013}}([[PDF]])</ref>