Longtime SAG Board Member to Receive Hollywood Division's Ralph Morgan Award

Screen Actors Guild today announced that veteran actor and longtime SAG Board member Joseph Ruskin has been selected to receive the prestigious Ralph Morgan Award, the highest service award given by the Hollywood Division.

Ruskin was first elected to the Hollywood Board of Directors in 1976 and served multiple terms for more than 20 years. He has served four times as 1st vice president and twice as 3rd vice president. He also serves as a trustee on the SAG-Producers Pension and Health Board and chairs the SAG Foundation’s John L. Dales Scholarship program, which provides scholarships to SAG members and their children.

“Joe is deeply admired and respected by his peers,” said Pamela Reed, the Hollywood Division chair of the National Honors and Tributes Committee. “His honesty, integrity, kindness and leadership have been an asset to the Guild for quite some time. This award is well-deserved.” 

Ruskin’s credits read like a history of television, including such notable shows as The Honeymooners, The Twilight Zone, Get Smart, Star Trek, Hogan’s Heroes, Mission Impossible, The Six Million Dollar Man, Starsky and Hutch, Charlie’s Angels, Knight Rider, Hill Street Blues, St. Elsewhere, L.A. Law, ER, Alias and Bones. His movie roles include Smokin' Aces, The Scorpion King, Indecent Proposal and Prizzi’s Honor, to name a few. 

The Ralph Morgan Award is named after SAG’s first president, who led the fight to establish a union for screen actors in 1933. It has been given periodically since 1981 for distinguished service to the Guild’s Hollywood membership. Among the previous recipients of the Ralph Morgan Award are past SAG presidents Ed Asner, William Schallert and Dennis Weaver, screen legend and Board member Gloria Stuart, as well as other distinguished officers and members. 

The honor will be bestowed Sunday, July 17 as part of the Annual Hollywood Division Membership meeting at the Sportsmen’s Lodge in Studio City.