Museum
celebrates Hollywood support for military
By Maritza Diaz
On-line Forty-Niner
 HOLLYWOOD
— An old golf club lies inside a glass case
surrounded by pieces of war history. The
owner of the club would walk on aboard a
military ship or camp, swinging the club
over his shoulder and proceeded to make
millions of U.S. troops laugh. The owner’s
name is Bob Hope.
An impressive pictorial look through history
offers a glimpse into the connection Hollywood
stars had with the military from the 1940s
to the present. The new exhibit, sponsored
by the United Services Organizations, shows
various photos of celebrities who served
in the military.
The photos of the celebrities with the troops
display the strong support Hollywood has
for those in the armed forces. Uniforms,
military IDs and personal writings accompany
the dozens of photographs in the exhibit.
All the pieces combined create a poignant
look into the impact Hollywood had throughout
the U.S. wars.
“I was born after the war and I didn’t know
about World War II, in terms of the USO,”
Jan-Christopher Horak, curator of the exhibit
said. “So, I talked to the people to get
the history down and then I started looking
for objects, which would be visual, and
help bring the exhibit together to tell
the story.”
The current exhibit is in commemoration
with an event, which will celebrate the
80th birthday of Johnny Grant, the honorary
mayor of Hollywood. Grant has been part
of the USO and a supporter of the troops
for over 50 years.
“We started planning this months before
we knew there was going to be a war. It
takes a good year to do an exhibit,” Horak
said.
Horak selected each piece that is displayed
and says his favorite photograph is the
one of Marilyn Monroe during the Korean
War.
“I kind of had in my minds eye the way I
wanted things, I did have to throw a few
things out,” Horak said. “Most of what I
wanted to put in I did. If it was important
it’s in there.”
The display of memorabilia begins at the
entrance of the museum with various photos
of celebrities who served in the wars. A
list of famous names and the service they
were a part of is placed between photos
of celebrities in uniform.
A little further down the wall and museum
patrons will come across movies posters
for “Top Gun,” “Hot Shots” and the military
uniforms used on the television show “JAG.”
Having these pieces as part of the exhibit
can seem to be a little out of place, but
it shows that Hollywood can support the
troops in other ways.
Although there are many pieces to view,
the exhibit is rather small. The entire
collection can be seen in less then 10 minutes
without giving the collection too much thought.
However, by taking the time to carefully
look at each item, and look into the lives
of the people who supported the troops,
an important part of history can be experienced.
“By and large, Hollywood has always supported
the military no matter what the ideological
goals are,” Horak said.
“USO Presents Hollywood Salutes the Troops”
will run through Sept. 1 at the Hollywood
Entertainment Museum.
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