Eric Johnston (December 21, 1896 – August 22, 1963) was a motion picture association executive. December 21 is the 355th day of the year (356th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1896 was a leap year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... August 22 is the 234th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (235th in leap years), with 131 days remaining. ... 1963 was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ...

He was born in Washington DC, and became head of the United States Chamber of Commerce before being named President of the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) by the movie studio heads in 1945. ... The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is the worlds largest not-for-profit business federation, representing 3,000,000 businesses 2,800 state and local chambers 830 business associations They are staffed with policy specialists, lobbyists and lawyers. ... The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA, originally called the Motion Pictures Producers and Distributors Association) is a non-profit trade association formed to advance the interests of movie studios. ... A movie studio is a company which develops, equips and maintains a controlled environment for the making of a film. ...

In November of 1947, Johnston was part of a closed-door meeting with forty-seven motion picture company executives at New York City's Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. As a result, on the 25th of November, Johnston issued the Waldorf Statement, a two-page press release that marked the beginning of the "Hollywood blacklist." For other uses see film (disambiguation) Film refers to the celluliod media on which movies are printed Film — also called movies, the cinema, the silver screen, moving pictures, photoplays, picture shows, flicks, or motion pictures, — is a field that encompasses motion pictures as an art form or as part of... Midtown Manhattan, looking north from the Empire State Building, 2005 New York City (officially named the City of New York) is the most populous city in the United States, and is at the center of international finance, politics, communications, music, fashion, and culture. ... Waldorf-Astoria hotel The Waldorf-Astoria is the name of two luxury hotels in New York City — an original that formerly stood on the site of the Empire State Building on Fifth Avenue, and a modern American 42-story luxury hotel and Art Deco landmark that has been located on... The Waldorf Statement was a two-page press release issued on November 25, 1947 by Eric Johnston, President of the Motion Picture Association of America, following a closed-door meeting by forty-eight motion picture company executives at New York Citys Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. ... A news release or press release is a written or recorded communication directed at members of the news media for the purpose of announcing something claimed as having news value. ... Playwright Arthur Miller testifies before HUAC The Hollywood blacklist was a group of mainly film actors, directors, and screenwriters in the late 1940s and early 1950s who were unable to work openly after having been targeted by Hollywood producers who were members of the MPAA after being convicted of contempt...

Eric Johnston served as President of the MPAA until his death in 1963.