Arranging Support for Artists

For most people, childhood fascinations rarely become lifelong passions; they often get left behind as youthful fancies. That never happened to James Cashion. As a boy, James fell in love with the movies. He spent his free time absorbed in the beautiful fantasies that only Hollywood could create. While his career interests took a different path, he never abandoned his childlike love of the movies—especially the music within them—and that's exactly why he made an estate gift to MPTF.

Even though he never worked in the entertainment industry, James felt that movies were a great gift to him in his lifetime and he wanted to return the favor to people who spend their lives creating them. He believed that doing the greatest good for committed artists in front of and behind the camera was to make a legacy gift to MPTF, which has been dedicated to helping the entertainment community since 1921.

James' love of Hollywood ignited his encyclopedic knowledge of movies and his impressive collection of original sheet music for each Oscar-winning tune since the Best Song category was added in 1934. His assemblage of sheet music—lovingly framed and arranged on the walls of his home—was the topic of conversation at his annual Academy Awards parties. As an adult, he loved to spend his vacations traveling from the Northeast to Los Angeles. He toured studios and attended the TCM movie festivals—meeting some of his favorite celebrities like Tony Curtis, Debbie Reynolds, Hugh Jackman and Joan Crawford—and corresponded with Piper Laurie.

In 1964, he received his B.A. in mass communications with an emphasis in radio, TV and motion pictures from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. James was drafted in the Army in 1967 and served 20 months at the U.S. Army Signal Center and School in Fort Monmouth, New Jersey. He joked with his friends that his single greatest contribution to the entertainment industry was writing and producing a student orientation film for the armed forces. After his time in the Army, he pursued a career in communications and advertising, working at NBC and the advertising agency Saachi & Saachi Compton, Inc.

MPTF is lucky to have the generous support of donors like James, who passed away in 2016, two days before his 75th birthday, in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. We are grateful that his passion for movies fueled his philanthropy. His generous legacy gift has made it possible for industry members to receive support through our programs and services.

There are many ways you can support MPTF through a legacy gift. To learn more, contact Louie Anchondo at 818-876-1925 or louie.anchondo@mptf.com.