LOS ANGELES – In 1940, Hollywood humanitarian Jean Hersholt purchased 48 acres of walnut and orange groves in the far reaches of the San Fernando Valley for a hospital to be run by the Motion Picture Relief Fund.
Hersholt, a popular character actor of the day, was president of the fund, which had been founded 20 years earlier by Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford and others to aid needy members of the film industry.
After a delay caused by World War II, the Woodland Hills hospital was finally completed in 1948. Among those attending the opening ceremonies were Robert Young, Shirley Temple, Ronald Reagan and Hersholt, who is probably best known today as the namesake of a special Oscar recognizing charitable work — most recently given to Jerry Lewis.
For the next 60 years, the hospital provided treatment for stars and janitors, directors and secretaries. Those who could afford to pay their way — such as Norma Shearer — did so. Those who were broke — and there were many in the topsy-turvy film industry — were taken care of.
Now, Hollywood has been shocked with news that the hospital itself is passing away, a victim of red ink and an ailing economy.
"We studied the problem for three years," says Ken Scherer, president of what is now the Motion Picture and Television Fund Foundation. "We found that we had an operating deficit of $10 million a year.
"We reached the conclusion that the best thing to do was to take some of those dollars and invest them in programs that would reach more people. The aging population wants to live in their own homes and not come to the Motion Picture and Television Fund."
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