How Bob Hope, Marilyn Monroe & Other Hollywood Stars Lifted Troop Morale Through the USO

With the country headed into World War II, then President Franklin D. Roosevelt asked Congress to enact the nonprofit United Service Organizations (USO), uniting a number of service organizations with the goal of handling “the on-leave recreation of the men in the armed forces.”

The first USO facility opened in 1941 in DeRidder, La., and many more sprang up soon after, serving as a home away from home. Dances and social events were provided at USO centers, as well as food, music, and movies. Women volunteers served coffee and doughnuts, danced, and provided conversation for war-weary soldiers.