Actors’ Strike of 1919

ACTORS’ STRIKE OF 1919. The American Federation of Actors, the precursor of Actors’ Equity, called a strike on August 6, 1919. One hundred actors closed 12 Broadway productions. The 2,700 members of Equity didn’t represent all the performers on the legitimate stage. Producers wooed nonunion actors, and many shows were ready to reopen with replacements. But the stagehands and musicians, already members of the American Federation of Labor (AFL), joined the strike, and the shows were closed...