Gene Autry

I first met Ronnie Reagan when I was doing a picture off the coast of California, on Catalina Island. He came out because he was announcing ball games for the Chicago Cubs and they held their spring training on the island. So he spent the day out there with me and my band. He said, "Gene this actor's union intrigues me. How do you go about getting in it?" I wasn't sure because I'd had a contract when I came out west to appear in a picture and had been out in California ever since. But Ronnie was very interested and said he'd come out to Hollywood too. He became head of the Screen Actors Guild and held that position for a long time. I'm a strong believer in the Screen Actors Guild. I've been a union man during my whole career.