The
Hollywood Canteen operated at 1451
Cahuenga Boulevard in
Hollywood, California, between October 3, 1942, and November 22, 1945 (
Thanksgiving Day), as a club offering food, dancing and entertainment for
servicemen, usually on their way overseas. Even though the majority of visitors were U.S servicemen, the
canteen was open to servicemen of
allied countries as well as women in all branches of service. A serviceman's
ticket for admission was his
uniform, and everything at the canteen was free of charge.
The driving forces behind its creation were
Bette Davis and
John Garfield, along with
Jules Stein, President of
Music Corporation of America,
who headed up the finance committee. Bette Davis devoted an enormous
amount of time and energy to the project and served as its president.
[citation needed] The various
guilds and
unions of the
entertainment industry donated the labor and money for the
building renovations. The Canteen was operated and staffed completely by
volunteers
from the entertainment industry. By the time the Canteen opened its
doors, over 3000 stars, players, directors, producers, grips, dancers,
musicians, singers, writers, technicians, wardrobe attendants, hair
stylists, agents, stand-ins, publicists, secretaries, and allied
craftsmen of radio and screen had registered as volunteers.
Stars volunteered to
wait on tables,
cook in the kitchen and
clean up.
One of the highlights for a serviceman was to dance with one of the
many female celebrities volunteering at the Canteen. The other highlight
was the entertainment provided by some of Hollywood's most popular
stars, ranging from radio stars to big bands to novelty acts. On
September 15, 1943, the one millionth guest walked through the door of
the Hollywood Canteen. The lucky soldier, Sgt. Carl Bell, received a
kiss from
Betty Grable and was escorted in by another beautiful star, including
Marlene Dietrich.
A Hall of Honor at the Hollywood Canteen had a wall of photos which honored the film actors who served in the military.
By 1944, the Canteen had become so popular that Warner Bros. made a movie titled
Hollywood Canteen. Starring
Joan Leslie and
Robert Hutton, the film had scores of stars playing themselves. It was directed by
Delmer Daves, who also wrote the screenplay. At the time the Canteen closed its doors, it had been host to almost three million servicemen.
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