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The Screen Guild Players radio program
originated as a manner in which to raise money
for the Motion Picture Relief Fund. The Motion
Picture Relief Fund was created on December 24,
1924 in response to increasing financial need in
the Hollywood community. While there had been an
earlier attempt to provide relief in the form of
the Motion Picture War Service Association
(created to help the families of those in the
motion picture industry who had either enlisted
or been drafted), it disbanded at the end of
World War I. However, in many cases the need for
financial assistance remained. And, with the
onset of the Depression, many other individuals
found themselves in financial straits. The
Motion Picture Relief Fund was created to deal
with these issues. Unfortunately, from 1924 to
1938, the fund's expenditures consistently
exceeded its income. As a result, the fund was
reorganized. During the first year of the
newly organized fund, Jules Stein, founder of
the Music Corporation of America, presented both
the new president of the Motion Picture Relief
Fund and the president of the Screen Actor's
Guild with an idea to raise money. He proposed
that a radio program be presented by the motion
picture industry with proceeds contributed to
the fund. Under this proposal, actors and
directors would donate their time, and writers
and producers would allow the use of their
material. A special contract would be arranged
so that the sponsor would pay the Motion Picture
Relief Fund a predetermined weekly fee.
After legal issues were resolved, the
Columbia Broadcasting System presented the first
network radio broadcast of the Screen Guild
Show on Sunday, January 8, 1939, at 4:30
Pacific Time. At first, the program was
formatted to meet the talents of the performers
appearing in each particular show. This provided
a large variety of program styles, including
revues, musicals, and dramatizations. As time
went on, it became obvious that actors were more
willing to volunteer their services if they were
already familiar with the part. As a result, the
number of cinema adaptations presented in the
show began to increase. The title of the show
was changed to the Screen Guild Theatre,
reflecting the increased use of dramatizations.
Gulf Oil Corporation sponsored the initial
three years of the program. However, due to the
uncertainty of the oil market with the onset of
World War II, Gulf Oil chose not to continue.
The Lady Esther Corporation took over and
changed the name of the program to the Screen
Guild Players, and during its sponsorship,
the program consistently ranked in the top ten
of the most popular radio shows. Unfortunately,
there was a depression in the cosmetic industry
in 1947, which caused Lady Esther to discontinue
sponsorship. Camel Cigarettes, on a three-year
contract, then purchased the show, but due to a
time change, ratings began to fall. The show
moved to various broadcasting networks before it
was repurchased by the Columbia Broadcasting
System in 1950. By this time, many of the usual
radio sponsors were moving to the new medium of
television, and ratings of the Screen Guild
Players continued to fall. The final
production of the show occurred on June 30,
1952.
In the thirteen years that the radio program
ran, it earned $5,235,607 for the Motion Picture
Relief Fund. A large portion of this amount went
into the building of the Country Home, a
retirement home for people from the Hollywood
community, located in Woodland Hills. |
