Hollywood Canteen

For the 1944 Warner Bros. motion picture, see Hollywood Canteen (film).
Marlene Dietrich (left) and Rita Hayworth serve food to soldiers at the Hollywood Canteen in 1942.

The Hollywood Canteen operated at 1451 North Cahuenga Boulevard in the Los Angeles, California,[1][2] neighborhood of Hollywood between October 3, 1942 and November 22, 1945, as a club offering food, dancing, and entertainment for enlisted men and women,[1][3] who were usually on their way overseas during World War II.[4] Even though the majority of visitors were US servicemen, the canteen was open to allied countries as well as women in all branches of service.[5] Their tickets for admission were just their uniforms, and everything at the canteen was free of charge.[6][7]

The canteen was co-founded by the actors Bette Davis and John Garfield. The East Coast counterpart was the New York City–based Stage Door Canteen,[8] which featured Broadway stars and was also celebrated in a film, Stage Door Canteen (1943).[9]

  1. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference mitchtorr was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Harrison, Scott (March 6, 2017). D'Vorkin, Lewis (ed.). "From the Archives: Entertaining the troops at Hollywood Canteen". Los Angeles Times. eISSN 2165-1736. ISSN 0458-3035. OCLC 3638237. Archived from the original on June 28, 2017. Retrieved October 28, 2023 – via WayBack Machine. Started by Bette Davis and others in 1942, the canteen on Cahuenga Boulevard became a fixture in Hollywood, during World War II.
  3. ^ Myers, Robert (October 6, 1942). Lane, Clement Quirk (ed.). "Bette Shows The Way at New Canteen". Chicago Daily News. Wide World. p. 10. Retrieved October 29, 2023 – via GenealogyBank; NewsBank. A big fellow on shore patrol for the Navy, assured he was divulging no military secret, estimated there were 1,000 men inside the Canteen and 15,000 or more jammed outside on Sunset Boulevard, in the heart of the film capital. The Canteen holds only 1,000 at a time.
  4. ^ Hamilton, Sara (October 18, 1942). "Glamour At Hand for Uniforms". Detroit Sunday Times. p. 18. Retrieved October 29, 2023 – via GenealogyBank; NewsBank. Of course one sailor fainted dead away when he discovered it was Lamour he danced with and a soldier came down with whistling hiccoughs when Irene Dunne passed him the sandwiches and Cregar got stuck for two hours between tables, but those things are expected.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference honor1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference spiro was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Kaufman, Wolfe (October 5, 1942). Catledge, Turner (ed.). "A Lesson in Democracy at Hollywood's Canteen". The Chicago Sun. Evans Sr., Silliman (publ.). p. 13. ISSN 1553-8478. Retrieved October 31, 2023 – via GenealogyBank; NewsBank. Well, 42 Hollywood guilds and unions are involved in the effort. Everyone works for free, of course. Jules Stein, head of Music Corporation of America, is treasurer. He accepts donations and handles the various moneys involved.
  8. ^ "Actors to Organize Hollywood Canteen". The Bay City Times Extra. August 16, 1942. p. 18. Retrieved October 29, 2023 – via GenealogyBank; NewsBank. Hollywood – Movie-town newsreel: The celebrated Stage Door Canteen in Manhattan, where stars in all branches of show business entertain men in uniform—and only men in uniform—will have a counter-part here. Bette Davis and John Garfield are the organizers.
  9. ^ Aaker, Everett (May 3, 2013). George Raft: The Films. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company. p. 106. ISBN 978-0786466467. Retrieved October 27, 2023 – via Google Books. The romances depicted in this film were fictitious, but they provided a framework for numerous New York and Hollywood thespians to make cameo guest appearances.