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Informal Talks >A group of directors meet outside the Roosevelt Hotel to discuss forming a guild. DGA.org/BeforeTheGuild 1933 1935 Directors Meet to Form a Guild >About 15 directors hold secret meetings in late 1935 and early 1936 at King Vidor's home to organize a union of directors. DGA.org/Founding ➨ King Vidor's house in Coldwater Canyon, where a secret meeting on Dec. 23, 1935, resulted in the founding of the Guild. 36 dga quarterly >The formation of the Directors Guild had been percolating for a number of years. Amid nationwide labor unrest in the country, the studios had been squeezing directors both financially and creatively. The first step toward organizing a guild occurred in 1933 outside the Hol- lywood Roosevelt Hotel, after a meeting in which the studios announced a 50 percent across-the-board pay cut. After the meeting, King Vidor and a handful of directors congregated on the sidewalk and knew something had to be done. They understood, as Vidor put it, "We must have a guild to speak [for us], and not the individual, who can be hurt by standing up for his rights." That guild was born in late 1935 and early 1936 at a series of secret meetings attended by about 15 directors, the first a legendary gathering at Vidor's house on Dec. 23. "What brought them together initially were issues re- lated to the treatment of direc- tors and their creative rights," said DGA National Executive Director Jay D. Roth. "And I think the issues that brought them together in 1935 are the same issues that directors deal with today. Those core issues are still here." 1933 A GUILD IS BORN "Solidarity is the hallmark of our strength. When we are united, we are an indomitable force—then, now, and into the future." —PARIS BARCLAY | President 80 YEARS STRONG PHOTOS: (CLOCKWISE, TOP LEFT) JEFFREY MOSIER; AMPAS (2); L.A. PUBLIC LIBRARY 80-YEAR ANNIVERSARY 80-YEAR ANNIVERSARY Visit links to the DGA website for more information.