Blacklisted in the early 1950s for his left-wing sympathies, he refused to name names in testimony before the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) in April 1951. He was found dead, at the age of 39, of a heart attack in the apartment of a former show girl on May 21, 1952, the day after Clifford Odets, testifying before HUAC, reaffirmed that Garfield had never been a member of the Communist Party. His funeral in New York was mobbed by 10,000 fans. Vintage glossy 8 x 10 Warner Bros. - First National Pictures publicity portrait of the handsome Garfield in a herringbone jacket, signed and inscribed in fountain pen “To Barney, Best Wishes, John Garfield.” In very good condition, with scattered surface impressions, creasing in the borders and corners, two small separations in the borders, collector’s ink notations on the reverse. R&R COA.
