On January 10, 1944 (77 years ago), the United States Congress passed the Serviceman's Readjustment Act (know as the G.I. Bill). President Franklin Delano Roosevelt signed it into law on June 22, 1944. The term G.I. refers to "government issue" which American soldiers began to refer to themselves as.
The new law provided a wide range of benefits to military veterans returning to civilian life. Included in such benefits were stipends covering tuition and living expenses for veterans attending college or trade schools.
Charles Bronson (Death Wish) enlisted in the United States Army Air Force in 1943 and served as an aircraft gunner. After the war, he used the G.I. Bill to take acting classes at the Pasadena Playhouse.
Paul Newman (The Sting) served in the United States Navy during WWII as a turret gunner. Afterwards, he took advantage of the G.I. Bill and studied acting at Kenyon College, the Yale School of Drama and the Actors Studio.
George C. Scott (Patton) enlisted in the United States Marines in 1945, serving in the honor guard at Arlington National Cemetery. He studied journalism at the University of Missouri in Columbia under the G.I. Bill.
Lee Marvin (Cat Ballou) enlisted in the Marine Corp. in 1942 and fought in the Pacific theater during the war. He used the G.I. Bill to study acting at the American Theater Wing in New York City.
Ernest Borgnine (Marty) served in the US Navy during WWII patrolling the Atlantic Ocean looking for enemy submarines. Under the G.I. Bill, he studied acting at the Randall School of Dramatic Art in Hartford, CT.
Rod Steiger (In the Heat of the Night) served with the Navy in the South Pacific during WWII. With the G.I. Bill, he studied acting at the Civil Service Little Theater Group.
Steve McQueen (Bullitt) served in the Marines from 1947 to 1950. After his discharge, he studied acting under the G.I. Bill at Sanford Meisner's Neighborhood Playhouse.
A good use of tax dollars!
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