Special Services (entertainment)

For other uses, see Special service (disambiguation).

Special Services was the entertainment branch of the American military. The unit was created on 22 July 1940 by the War Department as part of the Army Service Forces.[1] Special Services not only used its own specially trained and talented troops but also would often engage local performers.[2] Among its activities were staging plays and stage acts, holding concerts, filming documentaries, and providing recreational opportunities for servicemen.

Special Services were one of the few U.S. Army units to be racially integrated during World War II. Special Services opened their first Recreational Officer school at Fort Meade Maryland on 1 April 1942.[3]

Within the United States Marine Corps, the Special Services Division was the forerunner of today's Special Services Branch. It was formed on 1 March 1943, to provide morale maintaining recreational and informational services to Marine Corps personnel.[4][5] As of at least 2004, the Special Services Branch was still active within the USMC.[6]

  1. ^ P. 415 Emerson, William K. Encyclopedia of United States Army Insignia and Uniforms 1996 University of Oklahoma Press
  2. ^ p.57 Monod, David Settling scores: German Music, Denazification, & the Americans, 1945–1953 UNC Press 2005
  3. ^ "Home" (PDF).
  4. ^ Page 82, Leatherneck - Volume 44, Issue 3
  5. ^ "Shadow box". army.togetherweserved.com. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  6. ^ "United States Marine Corps (USMC): Officer Job Descriptions MOS 9913: Special Services Officer, who 'supervises and coordinates special services activities involved with command morale, welfare, and recreation programs,' among other duties". Archived from the original on 21 September 2004. Retrieved 14 April 2020.