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This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held in the Wilson Library at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in our reading room, and not digitally available through the World Wide Web. See the Duplication Policy section for more information.
This collection was rehoused and a summary created with support from the National Endowment for the Humanities; this finding aid was created with support from NC ECHO.
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Collection Overview
| Size | 2.0 feet of linear shelf space (approximately 1800 items) |
| Abstract | George Reid Andrews (1886-1941) of Montgomery County, N.C., was a Methodist and Congregational minister and member of the Committee on Education and Religious Drama of the Federal Council of Churches, the Church and Drama Association, and the Church and Drama League of America. The collection contains correspondence, business papers, essays, addresses, clippings, printed materials, photographs, and other materials of Andrews, executive director of the Church and Drama Association (later Church and Drama League of America), a Protestant organization addressing moral and ethical standards in film and stage productions. The bulk of the letters, 1922-1930, are between Andrews and individuals associated with the film industry or theater world, and largely deal with the moral qualities of American motion pictures, including the methods of influence used by the film industry's self-appointed moral watchdog, the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America, also referred to as the "Hays Office." Other material relates to Andrews's attempts to have his manuscript "Jesus of Nazareth" adapted for film; his role as the production consultant to Cecil B. DeMille in the production of the film "King of Kings," 1926-1927; and church attempts to influence the New York stage in the 1920s. Correspondents include Will H. Hayes, the office of Cecil B. DeMille, S. Parkes Cadman, and Harry Emerson Fosdick. |
| Creator | Andrews, George Reid, 1886-1941. |
| Curatorial Unit | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library. Southern Historical Collection. |
| Language | English |
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Information For Users
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Processing Information
Processed by: SHC Staff
Encoded by: Noah Huffman, December 2007
Updated by: Adam Fielding, Kate Stratton, and Jodi Berkowitz, February 2011; Dawne Howard Lucas, May 2021
This collection was rehoused and a summary created with support from the National Endowment for the Humanities.
This finding aid was created with support from NC ECHO.
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Subject Headings
The following terms from Library of Congress Subject Headings suggest topics, persons, geography, etc. interspersed through the entire collection; the terms do not usually represent discrete and easily identifiable portions of the collection--such as folders or items.
Clicking on a subject heading below will take you into the University Library's online catalog.
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Biographical Information
George Reid Andrews (1886-1941) of Montgomery County, N.C., was a Methodist and Congregational minister; chairman of the Committee on Education and Religious Drama of the Federal Council of Churches, 1925-1930; executive director of the Church and Drama Association, 1926-1929; executive director of the Church and Drama League of America, 1929-1930; and a consultant in the production of Cecil B. DeMille's film King of Kings, 1926-1927. In 1930-1931 Andrews was a principal figure in the controversy over public relations methods used by the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America (known as the "Hays Office").
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Scope and Content
The collection contains correspondence, business papers, essays, addresses, clippings, printed materials, photographs, and other materials of George Reid Andrews, executive director of the Church and Drama Association (later Church and Drama League of America), a Protestant organization addressing moral and ethical standards in film and stage productions. The bulk of the letters, 1922-1930, are between Andrews and church representatives and individuals in the film industry and the theater world, and largely deal with the moral qualities of American motion pictures, including the methods of influence used by the film industry's self-appointed moral watchdog, the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America, also referred to as the "Hays Office." Other material relates to Andrews's attempts to have his manuscript "Jesus of Nazareth" adapted for film; his role as the production of consultant to Cecil B. DeMille in the production of the film "King of Kings," 1926-1927; and church attempts to influence the New York stage in the 1920s. Correspondents include Will H. Hayes, the office of Cecil B. DeMille, S. Parkes Cadman, Harry Emerson Fosdick, Carl E. Milliken, Charles S. Macfarland, and Otto H. Kahn.
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Series Quick Links
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Series 1. Correspondence, 1922-1938 and undated.
Arrangement: chronological.
Correspondence in this series was primarily carried on by Andrews in his capacity as executive director of the Church and Drama Association (later Church and Drama League of America) and chairman of the Committee on Educational and Religious Drama of the Federal Council of Churches. In these positions Andrews was at the forefront of early Protestant efforts to come to terms with the film as an instrument for good and ill, and of church attempts in the 1920s to have an impact on the theater in New York. Topics include his attempts to have his manuscript "Jesus of Nazareth" adapted for film; Andrews's involvement with Cecil B. DeMille's film King of Kings; his involvement with the Church and Drama Association, the Federal Council of Churches, and the Church and Drama League of America; Andrews's relationship with Will H. Hays and the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America, referred to as the "Hays Office;" and other topics related to religion and the motion picture industry. Correspondents include Will H. Hayes, the office of Cecil B. DeMille, S. Parkes Cadman, Harry Emerson Fosdick, Carl E. Milliken, Charles S. Macfarland, and Otto H. Kahn.
| Folder 1a |
Original finding aid |
| Folder 1 |
1922-1923Letters chiefly concern Andrews's attempts to have his manuscript "Jesus of Nazareth" made into a film. D. W. Griffith and Adolph Zukor are among the producers with whom the project is discussed. There is frequent correspondence with Will H. Hays. |
Folder 2-3
Folder 2Folder 3 |
1924Letters chiefly concern Andrews's attempts to have his manuscript "Jesus of Nazareth" made into a film. D. W. Griffith and Adolph Zukor are among the producers with whom the project is discussed. There is frequent correspondence with Will H. Hays. |
Folder 4-5
Folder 4Folder 5 |
1925Letters concern Andrews's continued attempts to gain support for production of his manuscript "Jesus of Nazareth"; also present are discusssions of morality in the theater and motion picture industry. Correspondents include Will H. Hays, the office of Julius Rosenwald, Felix M. Warburg, and William B. Millar. |
Folder 6-9
Folder 6Folder 7Folder 8Folder 9 |
1926The bulk of the correspondence relates to Andrews's involvement in Cecil B. DeMille's film King of Kings; the Federal Council of Churches, and the Church and Drama Association. Correspondents include Cecil B. DeMille, Will H. Hays, Carl E. Milliken, Charles S. Macfarland, Charles P. Fagnani, Harry M. Warner, and Samuel McCrea Cavert. |
Folder 10-14
Folder 10Folder 11Folder 12Folder 13Folder 14 |
1927Topics chiefly concern Cecil B. DeMille's film King of Kings; the Church and Drama Association; the "Hays Office;" and Andrews's interest in involvement in future DeMille films. |
Folder 15-21
Folder 15Folder 16Folder 17Folder 18Folder 19Folder 20Folder 21 |
1928Topics include reactions to Cecil B. DeMille's film King of Kings; the relationship between the Church and Drama Association and the "Hays Office;" and the Church and Drama Association's decision not to endorse the play Mr. Moneypenny. Correspondents include Carl E. Milliken, Harry Emerson Fosdick, S. Parkes Cadman, Charles S. Macfarland, Otto H. Kahn, and Beatrice Mansfield. |
Folder 22-42
Folder 22Folder 23Folder 24Folder 25Folder 26Folder 27Folder 28Folder 29Folder 30Folder 31Folder 32Folder 33Folder 34Folder 35Folder 36Folder 37Folder 38Folder 39Folder 40Folder 41Folder 42 |
1929Correspondence concerns the Church and Drama League of America; the Commission on Motion Pictures of the Federal Council of Churches; the "Hays Office;" endorsements of New York plays by the Church and Drama Association and Church and Drama League of America; the National Committee for the Study of Social Values in Motion Pictures; and the Little Theater movement. Correspondents include S. Parkes Cadman, William C. Redfield, Charles S. Macfarland, Otto H. Kahn, Harry Emerson Fosdick, Carl E. Milliken, Charles K. Gilbert, Guy E. Shipler, Howard M. LeSourd, Eddie Dowling, Maud and Otis Skinner, Grant Mitchell, Charles Stelzle, and Thomas P. Appleget and Arthur W. Packard of the office of John D. Rockefeller Junior. |
Folder 43-48
Folder 43Folder 44Folder 45Folder 46Folder 47Folder 48 |
1930Correspondence concerns financial difficulties and other problems of the Church and Drama League of America. Correspondents include Otto H. Kahn, S. Parkes Cadman, Sue Ann Wilson, Charles S. Macfarland, Guy E. Shipler, Samuel McCrea Cavert, Arthur W. Packard, and Harry Emerson Fosdick. |
| Folder 49 |
1931Correspondence concerns the report of the Federal Council of Churches, The Public Relations of the Motion Picture Industry. Correspondents include E. R. Burton, F. Ernest Johnson, Samuel McCrea Cavert, and Henry Smith Leiper. |
| Folder 50 |
1933, 1938-1938Topics include Andrews and the "Hays Office" regarding funding of summer camping facilities. Correspondents include Arthur E. Morgan. |
| Folder 51 |
UndatedLetters include statements of support for the Church and Drama League of America and business notes. Correspondents include Grant Mitchell and Minnie Maddern Fiske. |
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Series 2. Writings, 1931 and undated.
Writings include "Jesus of Nazareth," which Andrews intended to have adapted to film; a manuscript by Andrews regarding his experiences with the film industry and the Motion Picture Producers and Distributers of America, also referred to as the "Hays Office;" essays and addresses by Andrews, chiefly regarding the film King of Kings, the church, the motion picture industry, and eugenics; and essays and addresses by others, including Will H. Hays, Harry Emerson Fosdick, and Frank Gillmore, with topics covering King of Kings, morality and motion pictures, and George Reid Andrews.
| Folder 52 |
Manuscript: "Jesus of Nazareth" by George Reid Andrews, undated |
Folder 53-56
Folder 53Folder 54Folder 55Folder 56 |
Manuscript: 1931Manuscript by George Reid Andrews regarding his experiences with the film industry and the Motion Picture Producers and Distributers of America, also referred to as the "Hays Office." |
Folder 57-58
Folder 57Folder 58 |
Essays and addresses by George Reid Andrews, undated |
| Folder 59 |
Essays and addresses by others |
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Series 3. Business Papers, circa 1923-1930 and undated.
Business papers includes the Certificate of Incorporation of the Motion Picture Foundation, 22 March 1923; memoranda and reports of the Church and Drama Association; report, memoranda, and minutes of meetings relating to the establishment of the Commission on Motion Pictures of the Federal Council of Churches; and reports and minutes of meetings of the Church and Drama League.
| Folder 60 |
The Motion Picture Foundation |
| Folder 61 |
The Church and Drama Association |
| Folder 62 |
Federal Council of Churches |
| Folder 63 |
Church and Drama League |
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Series 4. Clippings, Printed Material, and Separated Items, 1925-1941 and undated.
Arrangement: chronological.
Clippings chiefly regard meetings, speeches, and articles relating to the Church and Drama Association and the Church and Drama League of America. Printed material includes programs of dinner meetings, notices of addresses by Andrews and others, and other material related to the Church and Drama Association and the Church and Drama League of America. Separated items include photographs from the film King of Kings along with advertising copy, and an audiocassette of Andrews interviewing his brother Frank L. Anderws about farm life circa 1900 and Lilly and Andrews family histories.
| Folder 64 |
Clippings: 1925 |
| Folder 65 |
Clippings: 1926 |
Folder 66-67
Folder 66Folder 67 |
Clippings: 1927 |
| Folder 68 |
Clippings: 1928 |
| Folder 69 |
Clippings: 1929 |
Folder 70-71
Folder 70Folder 71 |
Clippings: 1930 |
| Folder 72 |
Clippings: 1931-1934; 1941 |
| Folder 73 |
Clippings: Undated |
| Folder 74 |
Printed material |
| Oversize Paper Folder OPF-4184/1b |
Photographs from the film King of Kings |
| Extra Oversize Paper Folder XOPF-4184/1a |
Advertising copy for the film King of Kings |
Image Folder PF-4184/1-14
PF-4184/1PF-4184/2PF-4184/3PF-4184/4PF-4184/5PF-4184/6PF-4184/7PF-4184/8PF-4184/9PF-4184/10PF-4184/11PF-4184/12PF-4184/13PF-4184/14 |
PhotographsApproximately 205 8 X 10 black-and-white photographs from the film King of Kings, along with photographs of Andrews with director Cecil B. DeMille. |
| Audiocassette C-4184/1 |
Audiocassette: Interview with Frank L. Andrews, undated |
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Items Separated