Supporting Actors: A Disability History of Theatrical Welfare in the United States

FAIN: FT-291110-23

Patrick Timothy McKelvey
University of Pittsburgh (Pittsburgh, PA 15260-6133)

Research leading to a book about the history of social services for disabled actors in the United States since the late nineteenth century, with particular focus on The Actors’ Fund of America and allied organizations.

This book will offer a history of social services for disabled actors since the late nineteenth century. At the center of this history is The Actors’ Fund of America, an organization that has financed an impressive range of disability supports, including retirement homes, health clinics, addiction recovery programs, assistive technology grants, and supportive housing for people with HIV/AIDS. “Supporting Actors” is grounded in the archives of the Fund and allied organizations, including the Edwin Forrest Home for Retired Actors (1873-1986); the Katharine Cornell Foundation (1931-1962); the Negro Actors Guild of America (1938-1982); and Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS (1988-Present). Through a series of historical case studies, “Supporting Actors” demonstrates the centrality of disability to the US theatre industry and the centrality of theatrical welfare to broader national conversations about disability and care.