The Motion Picture & Television Fund (MPTF) is a charitable organization that offers assistance and care to those in the motion picture and television industries and their families with limited or no resources, including services such as temporary financial assistance, case management, and residential living.
Mary Pickford conceived the idea of a fund to help those in the motion picture industry who were out of work and struggling and, in 1921, the Motion Picture Relief Fund was founded with Joseph Schenck as president, Pickford as vice-president and the Reverend Neal Dodd as administrator.[1]
In 1940, Jean Hersholt, then president of the Motion Picture Relief Fund, found 48 acres (19ha) of walnut and orange groves in the southwest end of the San Fernando Valley which were selling for US$850 an acre ($0.21/m2) ($40,800). The fund's board purchased the parcel that same year to build the Motion Picture Country House. To offset the costs for the first buildings, which were designed by architect William Pereira, 7 acres (2.8ha) were sold. Pickford and Hersholt broke the first ground. The dedication was on September 27, 1942.
The Motion Picture Hospital was dedicated on the grounds of the Country House in 1948. In attendance were Buddy Rogers and Loretta Young, among other stars.[1] Services were later extended to those working in the television industry as well, and the name was altered to reflect the change. The retirement community, with individual cottages, administrative offices, and a hospital, is located at 23388 Mulholland Drive in the Woodland Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles, California.
Operations
Scores of movie notables have spent their last years here, as have far less famous people from behind the scenes of the industry. Those with money paid their own way, while those who had no money paid nothing. Fees are based solely on the "ability to pay".
Individuals in movies, TV, and other aspects of the industry, such as actors, artists, backlot men, cameramen, directors, extras, producers, and security guards are accepted. To qualify for a cottage, applicants (or their spouses) must have reached a minimum age of 70 and must have worked steadily for at least 20 years in entertainment industry production. The waiting time is usually a few months, with no preference given to celebrities or those who can pay their own way, officials of the fund have said.[citation needed]
History since 1990
In 1993, the Motion Picture & Television Fund Foundation was established with Jeffrey Katzenberg as Founding Chairman. The Foundation, as it was formerly known, existed as the conduit to fulfill the vision of its donors and their philanthropy to the growing human needs of the entertainment community it serves. The MPTF Foundation puts on annual events that help raise millions of dollars in funds to continue to assist those entertainment industry members in need. These events include the Michael Douglas and Friends Golf Tournament,[3] The Night Before and The Evening Before,[4] the Heartbeat of Hollywood golf tournament and its Heartbeat Lite companion event, and Reel Stories, Real Lives.[5]
In 2004, filmmaker Barry Avrich directed and produced, Glitter Palace the first documentary on the Motion Picture Country Home that was narrated by Brian Linehan. The film featured many of the residents living at MPTF.[6]
In 2006, the groundbreaking for the Saban Center for Health and Wellness featuring the Jodie Foster Aquatic Pavilion was held on The Wasserman Campus. The center was named after donors Haim Saban and his wife, Dr. Cheryl Saban.[7] It opened its doors on July 18, 2007, and features aquatic and land-based therapies as well as MPTF's Center on Aging, a best-practice model which provides a variety of programs that are geared toward improving the lives of the entertainment industry seniors throughout southern California. A new and emerging need to address quality-of-life issues for older adults in their own homes was identified and led to the creation of such MPTF programs and initiatives as Palliative Care, Elder Connection, Rebuilding Together, and the MPTF Age Well Program.[8] In 2014, MPTF opened the Samuel Goldwyn Jr. Center for Behavioral Health, specializing in adults over 55 with acute mental health needs.[9]
There was a turbulent period starting in early 2009 when the MPTF announced that rising costs amid the recession would force it to shutter its long-term care unit, which had 136 patients at the time, as well as its acute-care hospital. That decision created a barrage of criticism, with some questioning the fund's commitment to its stated goal of "taking care of our own."[10] The MPTF restructured, brought in Bob Beitcher in 2010, and launched an aggressive $350 million fundraising campaign in 2012 headed by Jeffrey Katzenberg and George Clooney. Beitcher said the fundraising push was to provide a safety net for the 75,000 baby boomers who would be retiring from the industry over the next 20 years. At that point, $238 million had already been raised with key contributions from Clooney, Steve Bing, Tom Cruise, Barry Diller, Fox Entertainment Group, David Geffen, Michael Lewis, Jerry Perenchio, Joe Roth, Jeffrey and Marilyn Katzenberg, Todd Phillips, Patrick Soon-shiong, Thomas Tull and John Wells, among others. As of 2014,[update] $325 million has been raised for this campaign.[11] For its health care centers, MPTF partnered with UCLA Health, which today operates five MPTF health care centers in Los Angeles. These health centers are still exclusive to entertainment industry members.[12]
The brainchild of Jeffrey Katzenberg, the annual "Night Before the Oscars" launched in 2003 and remains one of the main MPTF fundraising events. The 14th annual "Night Before" party, held February 27, 2016, raised a total of $5.2million to benefit the MPTF. More than $70million has been raised since the event was launched.[13]
Through June 1, 2014, the MPTF's operations include a 250-bed multilevel care hospital, seven primary care health centers, a 186-unit retirement community on The Wasserman Campus in Woodland Hills providing independent and assisted living, and a free-standing child care facility.[14]
The Samuel Goldwyn Foundation is the single largest donor in the foundation's 93-year history, with the family's total contributions to the MPTF upwards of $55 million.[15]
In 2020 and 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic, MPTF was the administrator or co-administrator for multiple relief funds including the DGA, IATSE, ViacomCBS, Cast & Crew, the cast and crew of Westworld, and The Comedy Store, as well as its own dedicated COVID-19 relief fund for industry members at large.[17] During the pandemic, MPTF Studios (the on-campus video production facility) began broadcasting live programming from its recently remodeled campus theater several days per week with residents and supporters video conferencing in to participate in a variety of shows and activities.[18]
MPTF's memory care facility, Harry's Haven (named after Kirk Douglas' father, Herschel "Harry" Danielovitch), was relocated from its original standalone building to the second floor of the hospital in 2019[19] after an extensive remodel and upgrade. Also in 2019, the long-term care unit in the hospital was dedicated as Mary Pickford House, which contains 40 beds. Adjoining it is Hersholt Place (named after Jean Hersholt) with an additional 10 beds.[20]
On January 14, 2021, MPTF was announced as the recipient of the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award, to be presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences at the 93rd Oscars ceremony on April 25.[21] This marked the first time in Academy history that an organization was chosen for the award, which was also presented that year to Tyler Perry. The award also coincided with the 100th anniversary of MPTF's founding.[22]
2020 COVID-19 outbreak
The hospital experienced an outbreak amidst the COVID-19 pandemic in April 2020,[23] resulting in the deaths of at least seven residents.[24] All of the infected residents were transferred to the former acute care unit, J-Wing, which was set up as the dedicated COVID-19 unit of the hospital. The first fatalities at the retirement community were John Breier, a long-term care resident who died on April 7, 2020, and actor Allen Garfield, who also died on April 7.[25] By April 22, 2020, 14 residents (out of a population of 162 residents) and nine of the facility's 400 employees had tested positive for COVID-19.[24] Including Breier, at least five residents had died from COVID-19 by April 22, 2020.[26][24] In January 2021, MPTF began a campus-wide program to vaccinate all residents.[27]
The Academy Awards of Merit, commonly known as the Oscars or Academy Awards, are awards for artistic and technical merit given for "Excellence within the American and international film industry".
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), often pronounced AM-pass; also known as simply the Academy or the Motion Picture Academy) is a professional honorary organization in Beverly Hills, California, U.S., with the stated goal of advancing the arts and sciences of motion pictures. The Academy's corporate management and general policies are overseen by a board of governors, which includes representatives from each of the craft branches.
The Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award is awarded periodically by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) at the Governors Awards ceremonies for an individual's "outstanding contributions to humanitarian causes". Prior to 2009 and in 2021, this award was presented during the main Oscars ceremony. The award category was instituted in 1956 and first awarded at the 29th Academy Awards, in March 1957. Unlike the Academy Award of Merit, the awards are restricted with the nomination and voting limited to industry professionals that are members of the Board of Governors of AMPAS.
Jean Pierre Carl Buron, known professionally as Jean Hersholt, was a Danish-American actor. He is most famous for starring on the CBS radio series Dr. Christian from 1937–1954, which later inspired a TV series with the same name from 1956-1957. He also co-starred with Shirley Temple in the film Heidi (1937). When asked how to pronounce his name, he told The Literary Digest, "in English her'sholt; in Danish, hairs'hult." From 1924 to 1955, he had 140 motion picture credits: 75 silent film and 65 "talkies"; he directed four.
Woodland Hills is a neighborhood bordering the Santa Monica Mountains in the San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles, California, United States.
The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed for excellence in both American and international film and television. It is an annual award ceremony held since 1944 to honor artists and professionals and their work. The ceremony is normally held every January, and has been a major part of the film industry's awards season, which culminates each year in the Academy Awards. The eligibility period for Golden Globes corresponds to the calendar year.
Anthony Howard Goldwyn is an American actor, singer, producer, director, and political activist. He made his debut appearing as Darren in the slasher film Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives (1986), and had his breakthrough for starring as Carl Bruner in the fantasy thriller film Ghost (1990), which earned him a nomination for the Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor. He went on to star as Harold Nixon in the biographical film Nixon (1995), which earned him a Screen Actors Guild Award nomination, and as Neil Armstrong in the HBO miniseries From the Earth to the Moon (1998).
Allen Garfield was an American film and television actor.
Rose Elizabeth Tapley was an American actress of the stage and an early heroine of silent films.
Dimitra Arliss was an American actress.
Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center is a hospital located on the campus of the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), in Westwood, Los Angeles, California, United States. It is currently ranked by U.S. News & World Report, as the best in California and the West Coast. The hospital provides tertiary care to Los Angeles and the surrounding communities.
The Lillian Booth Actors Home of The Actors Fund is an American assisted-living facility, in Englewood, New Jersey. It is operated by the Actors Fund, a nonprofit umbrella charitable organization that assists American entertainment and performing arts professionals.
Anne Buydens was an American philanthropist and film producer. She was the wife of actor Kirk Douglas from 1954 until his death in 2020. She received a Jefferson Award for Public Service in 2003.
Jay D. Roth is an American lawyer who for over two decades served as the National Executive Director of the Directors Guild of America (DGA), the 17,000 member entertainment guild representing the economic and creative rights of directors and members of the directorial team working in film, television, documentaries, news, sports, commercials and new media throughout the world. Following his long-planned retirement in May 2017, Roth began a new role with the Guild as Senior Advisor.
Kevin Ken Tsujihara is an American businessman, and former chairman and CEO of Warner Bros Entertainment. He succeeded Barry Meyer as CEO in March 2013, and as chairman in December 2013, having previously been president of Warner Bros. Home Entertainment. Upon assuming the role of CEO, Tsujihara became the first Asian American to run a major film studio. He resigned in 2019 due to alleged sexual misconduct revealed by leaked text messages.
Connie Sawyer was an American stage, film, and television actress, affectionately nicknamed "The Clown Princess of Comedy". She had over 140 film and television credits to her name, but was best known for her appearances in Pineapple Express, Dumb and Dumber, and When Harry Met Sally.... At the time of her death at age 105, she was the oldest working actress in Hollywood, with a career spanning 85 years, and was the oldest member of the Screen Actors Guild and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
Nina Shaw is an American talent attorney whose clients include Jamie Foxx and Nick Cannon. She is a partner at Del Shaw Moonves Tanaka Finkelstein and Lezcano Law Firm.
Ruth Irene Tompson was an American camera technician, animation checker and supercentenarian. She was known for her work on animated features at The Walt Disney Company and was declared a Disney Legend in 2000.
Joel Rogosin was an American television producer, director, and screenwriter in the 1960s to the 1990s. He was nominated for two Primetime Emmy Awards for his production work on Ironside in 1970 and 1971, and received his third Emmy nomination for producing Magnum, P.I. in 1983.
Michael Keenan was an American actor and academic. He was best known to television audiences for his portrayal of Mayor Bill Pugen in the CBS television series, Picket Fences, during the 1990s. Keenan, who taught acting and direction at the University of Southern California, also directed dozens of plays and stage productions at the USC School of Dramatic Arts between 1987 until 2015.
1 2 Commire, Anne; Klezmer, Deborah (1999). Women in World History: A Biographical Encyclopedia. Waterford, CT: Yorkin Publications. p.664. ISBN0-7876-4061-1. "In 1967, over a decade after her husband's death, Blythe moved to the Motion Picture Country home in Woodland Hills, California, where she lived in a cottage once occupied by the late Gareth Hughes who costarred with her in two movies."
↑ Parish, James Robert; Leonard, William T. (1976). Hollywood Players, The Thirties. p.116. ISBN0-87000-365-8. "In January, 1972, he was admitted to the Motion Picture Country Home and Hospital in Woodland, California, where he died of lung cancer on May 3."
↑ Card, James (1994). Seductive Cinema. New York: Alfred A. Knopf. p.275. ISBN0-394-57218-1. "Lonely after the loss of her sister, she moved to the Motion Picture Country Home, where she spent her last years in the company of Mary Astor and other colleagues of the silent days. Viola Dana's sparkling personality was undimmed at ninety, when she died in July of 1987."
↑ Bacon, James (August 5, 1973). "James Bacon's Hollywood". The Daily Colonist. p.45. "George Jessel went to the Motion Picture Country home the other day and the first person he ran into was the man he used to imitate on stage 63 years ago. [...] When George bumped into Carter DeHaven Sr., now 87, the two old-timers immediately burst into the song Carter made famous in Vaudeville, The Lyle Bird." Retrieved January 26, 2023.
↑ "Brian Donlevy Dies Of Cancer". Bangor Daily News. Bangor, Maine. AP. April 7, 1972. p.5. Archived from the original on November 3, 2021. Retrieved August 16, 2010.
↑ United Press International (December 4, 1983). "Fifi d'Orsay, Movie Actress. Played French Flirts in 30's". The New York Times. Archived from the original on March 6, 2016. Retrieved December 23, 2013. Fifi d'Orsay, the 'French Bombshell' of 1930's motion pictures who was never able to visit France, has died at the age of 79. Miss d'Orsay was ill with cancer for several months before her death Friday at the Motion Picture and Television Country Hospital in suburban Woodland Hills.
↑ Kirkpatrick, Sydney (1987). A Cast of Killers. London: Mysterious Press. p.257. ISBN0-09-951460-5. "MINTA DURFEE, silent-film comedienne and widow of Fatty Arbuckle, died on September 10, 1975, at the age of eighty-five at the Motion Picture Country Home in Woodland Hills."
↑ Franklyn Farnum, Actor, Dies; The New York Times; July 6, 1961; p. 29
↑ "Fealy, Maude". Thanhouser. Retrieved July 25, 2022. Maude Fealy died in her sleep on November 9, 1971 in Woodland Hills, California. Prior to her passing, she had been hospitalized with arteriosclerosis at the Motion Picture Country House and Hospital.
↑ Nelson, Valerie J. (June 30, 2011). "Edith Fellows, child actress, dies at 88". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved January 18, 2022. Fellows died of natural causes Sunday at the Motion Picture & Television Fund's retirement home in Woodland Hills, said her only child, Kathy Fields Lander. She was 88.
↑ Maltin, Leonard (1980). Of Mice and Men. New York: McGraw Hill. p.120. ISBN0-07-039835-6. "In the mid-1960s, Max and his wife moved to the Motion Picture Country Home, where he died in 1972 at the age of eighty-nine."
↑ Rau, Neil; Rau, Margaret (1966). Act Your Way to Successful Living. Hollywood: Wilshire Book Company. p.145. LCCN66-12568. "Director George Seaton recalled the many long talks he had with the 82-year-old actor, bedridden in the Motion Picture Country Home. He would find Gwenn bristling with various tubes which had been inserted into his body to keep him alive. But Gwenn never discussed those tubes. Instead, his conversations with Seaton revolved around the difficulty of playing comedy on stage in comparison to tragedy."
↑ "Biography". Archived from the original on January 28, 2021. Retrieved February 23, 2021.
↑ "Del Henderson, 79, Former Film Actor". The New York Times. December 5, 1956. Archived from the original on August 9, 2017. Retrieved March 9, 2010. Del Henderson, early motion-picture actor and director, died Sunday at the Motion Picture Country House after a heart attack, ...
↑ Gierucki, Paul E. (Spring 2022). "Malice in the Palace: Curley Howard's Final Film Revisited". Comique. p.141. "Moe Howard recalled the event this way: '[...] I arranged for him to be taken to the Motion Picture Country Home in Woodland Hills. They furnished him with the best care and therapy.'" Retrieved January 26, 2023.
↑ Associated Press (September 5, 1961). "Ohio Native Actor Dies at Age of 77". Circleville Herald. p.6. "Death has ended the .50-year career of actor Fred A. Kelsey, who portrayed character roles in scores of silent and talking pictures. Kelsey, 77, died Saturday at the Motion Picture Country Home and Hospital In Woodland Hills." Retrieved January 26, 2023.
↑ Edgar Kennedy, 58, Comedian in Films; The New York Times; November 10, 1948
↑ Retrieved January (December 19, 1953). "The Final Curtain". Billboard. p.56. "MILLS— Thomas R., 75, veteran stage, screen and radio actor, November 29 In the Motion Picture Country Home, Hollywood. Born in England, he went to Hollywood 35 years ago." Retrieved January 26, 2023.
↑ "obituaries". The Hollywood Reporter. January 23, 2008. Lois Nettleton, noted for her work in the plays of Tennessee Williams and as a leading lady of the screen in the 1950s and '60s, died Jan. 18 of lung cancer at the Motion Picture and Television Fund Hospital in Woodland Hills. She was 78.
↑ Victoria Riskin. Fay Wray and Robert Riskin: A Hollywood Memoir. Random House 2019 p320
↑ Cox, Stephen (1991). The Addams Chronicles: Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About the Addams Family. New York, NY: HarperPerennial pp.121–122. ISBN9780060968977. "In the early 1970s she suffered a massive stroke which greatly inhibited her speech, and prevented her from joining the rest of the 'Addams' cast in the reunion movie of 1977; but she watched the ill-fated show on television from her residence at the Motion Picture Country Home. She died at age eighty-two on January 14, 1978."
↑ "Gustav von Seyffertitz Dies". The Film Daily. " Gustav von Seyffer titz, 80, veteran character actor died at the motion picture country home. At his request there will be no funeral service. His body will lie in state today and will be cremated tomorrow." December 28, 1953. p.5.
↑ Truly Shattuck – The New York Times – December 10, 1954 p. 27
↑ "Tributes to Geoffrey M. Shurlock". The Eclectic Theosophist. July 1976. p.5. "Geoffrey M. Shurlock, a former head of the Motion Picture Association Production Code, died Monday at the Motion Picture Country Home and Hospital where he lived. He was 81 years old." Retrieved January 26, 2023.
↑ Hurd, Mike (September 5, 1976). "Hi Ho, Silver Away". Kansas State Collegian. p.4. "Moore also had to fight without his trusty companions. Tonto (Jay Silverheels) is confined to a wheelchair at the Motion Picture Country Home and Hospital, and Silver...well, Silver ain't the old mare she used to be." Retrieved January 26, 2023.
↑ "Funeral Rites Today for Ralph Spence, 60". Motion Picture Daily. December 23, 1949. p.3. "Services will be held at Pierce Brothers Mortuary here tomorrow morning for Ralph Spence, 60, who died yesterday at the Motion Picture Country Home of a heart ailment after six weeks hospitalization." Retrieved January 26, 2023.
↑ Wintz, Cary D.; Finkelman, Paul, ed. (2004).[ Encyclopedia of the Harlem Renaissance, Volume 2: K–Y]. London: Routledge. p.761. ISBN1-57958-389-X. "Madame Sul-Te-Wan died in 1959 at the Motion Picture Country Home in Woodland Hills, California."
↑ Richard Sylbert, 73, Designer Of Oscar-Winning Film Sets; The New York Times; March 30, 2002
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