From the clandestine meetings of a brave group of character actors in 1933, Screen Actors Guild (SAG) has grown into the nation’s largest labor union for working actors, representing nearly 120,000 performers throughout the United States. With 20 branches nationwide, SAG members work in film, television, industrials, commercials, video games, music videos, Internet and all new media formats as actors, stunt performers, singers, dancers, puppeteers and voice actors.

Proudly celebrating its 75th anniversary in 2008, SAG holds a rich place in the history of the American labor movement, from standing up to studios to break long-term engagement contracts in the 1940s to fighting for artists’ rights amid the digital revolution sweeping the entertainment industry in the 21st century. Today, SAG exists to enhance actors’ working conditions, compensation and benefits and to be a powerful, unified voice on behalf of artists’ rights.

Past presidents of the Guild have included some of the most respected artists in American history. In order of service, they are Ralph Morgan, Eddie Cantor, Robert Montgomery, Edward Arnold, James Cagney, George Murphy, Ronald Reagan, Walter Pidgeon, Leon Ames, Howard Keel, George Chandler, Dana Andrews, Charlton Heston, John Gavin, Dennis Weaver, Kathleen Nolan, William Schallert, Edward Asner, Patty Duke, Barry Gordon, Richard Masur, William Daniels, Melissa Gilbert and current SAG President Alan Rosenberg.

The Screen Actors Guild Foundation provides access to scholarships for performers and their children, emergency relief to members in economic distress, a catastrophic illness fund and a meaningful way for members to contribute to the literacy of the children in their communities through BookPALS (Performing Artists for Literacy in Schools). The Foundation benefits from proceeds of the SAG Awards™, which honor the outstanding acting performances for the preceding year.