USO Mourns Johnny Grant’s Passing, 1923-2008 |
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Every organization needs champions...Johnny Grant was one of the USO’s most consistent supporters in the entertainment community.
– Edward A. Powell, USO president and CEO.
The United Service Organizations (USO) bids a fond farewell to one of its greatest and most treasured supporters, the Honorary Mayor of Hollywood Johnny Grant.
Introduced to the USO as a GI serving in World War II, Grant served as the organization’s tour event emcee in the early 1940s and later became its entertainment ambassador and headline performer. He traveled for decades with longtime friend and legendary USO advocate Bob Hope and participated in at least 60 USO tours over the years (even he wasn’t quite sure how many). His travels around the world included trips to Vietnam, Korea and Afghanistan.
“Johnny Grant was a dear friend, and I will miss him,” said Edward A. Powell, president and CEO of the USO. “One of the first phone calls I received after coming to the USO was from Johnny, and I valued his commitment to the USO and his advice on entertaining American service members.”
In an effort to slow down, Grant stopped touring with the USO several years ago. However, he continued to recruit entertainers and convince them to perform for the U.S. military at both USO and non-USO-sponsored events. In December of 2007, Grant returned from what would be his final visit to troops, a holiday tour to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
A former member of the USO World Board of Governors, Grant is the recipient of the USO’s highest and most prestigious honor, the Spirit of Hope Award. Inspired by Bob Hope's dedication to the men and women of the U.S. armed forces, the award was presented to Grant for his tireless commitment to military entertainment and unwavering patriotism.
“Every organization needs champions,” Powell said. “Johnny Grant was one of the USO’s most consistent supporters in the entertainment community.”
Johnny Grant and Terry Moore visited troops in Korea as part of a USO tour.
A star-struck serviceman who visited Hollywood in 1943, Grant later returned to the golden state and went on to become a broadcasting pioneer as well as Tinseltown’s honorary mayor. Throughout his 50-year career in the entertainment industry, Grant hosted red carpet Oscar arrivals and Walk of Fame inductions, appeared in movies, and produced Hollywood's annual Christmas Parade and charity telecasts. Once a disc jockey for the U.S. armed forces, Grant was the creator and producer behind the “Welcome Home Desert Storm” parade, the largest one-day event in L.A. history.
Seemingly born with the mission to bring a touch of Hollywood to the troops, he is heralded as one of the most enthusiastic, energetic and vocal supporters of the U.S. armed forces. His most notable honors include two Emmy Awards, a star located outside Mann’s Chinese Theater on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame and an elaborate foot and handprint ceremony which drew one of Hollywood’s largest crowds and included an Air Force fly-over, mini parade and police escort.
Despite his accomplishments and accolades, Grant is best remembered by the USO as a humble, personable and spirited man with a genuine heart for America’s troops. Because of his infectious personality and standup character his legacy as Hollywood’s most recognized spokesman and the USO’s greatest cheerleader will forever live on.
On behalf of the men and women of the U.S. military and all those who have benefited from Grant’s efforts, the USO extends its heartfelt condolences to Grant’s family and friends.