Eric Johnston

Eric Johnston lived a very full life. His journey began when he enlisted in the United States Marine Corps during World War I. He quickly rose through the ranks until he was assaulted in Beijing which ultimately led to him being discharged from the military in 1922. After moving back home, he picked a job selling vacuums which prompted him to buy two successful appliance manufacturers, making himself a power business man. Then, in 1931 he was elected as the president of the Spokane Chamber of Commerce. He then found himself as the managing trustee of the Washington Brick and Lime Company, which was bankrupt. He managed to pull it out of bankruptcy and become chairman of the entire company. He was also the president of an electrical contractor, the Wayne-Burnaby Company.

Because of his success as a business man, Johnston found himself involved with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. He began as part of the tax committee in 1933, became a director in 1934, and was soon elected vice president in 1941. He was then promoted to the head of the Chamber of Commerce when younger business men began to replace the older, more conservative people. He was the youngest president of the Chamber of Commerce and was re-elected three times. He ended up working closely with President Franklin D. Roosevelt on important events such as wartime commissions. He also helped to maintain relations with Latin America. He toured the Republics of the Soviet Union as the first American diplomat to.

After his retirement from the Chamber of Commerce in 1945, Johnston became president of the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors Association (MPPDAA). This happened in 1946. One of his first deeds as president was to shorten the name to the Motion Pictures Association of America (MPAA). Interestingly, Johnston is responsible for the creation of the Hollywood Blacklist which named known and suspected communists who worked in the industry, resulting in their careers often being ruined. Also while in the MPAA, he approved the production code which outlined restrictions on controversial topics in films such as crime, sex, language, nudity, and violence. Loving the idea of the arts he was an actor in the play The Waldorf Conference.

He served the MPAA until his death in 1963. During that time he was appointed by Harry S. Truman and Dwight D. Eisenhower to three different important positions in government.