John Joseph Cantwell

John Joseph Cantwell (December 1, 1874 – October 30, 1947) was an Irish-born American prelate of the Catholic Church. He led the Archdiocese of Los Angeles from 1917 until his death in 1947, becoming its first archbishop in 1936. Cantwell was critical of the U.S. film industry and helped found the National Legion of Decency.

Early life and education Cantwell was born in Limerick in Ireland on December 1, 1874, to Patrick and Ellen (née O'Donnell) Cantwell. He was the eldest of fifteen children, ten of whom survived into adulthood. Three of his brothers also became priests and served in California, while one sister became an Ursuline nun and remained in Ireland.

Cantwell was raised in Fethard, County Tipperary, where he received his early education at the Monastery National School run by the Patrician Brothers and later the nearby Classical Academy. In 1884, he entered Sacred Heart College, a Jesuit day school in Limerick, while living with his maternal grandparents. During his studies there, his uncle William J. O'Donnell served as Mayor of Limerick in 1890.

From Limerick, Cantwell began his theological studies at St. Patrick's College in Thurles, one of Ireland's missionary seminaries, in 1892. He spent the following seven years there preparing for the priesthood, and was convinced by a friend to apply for the Archdiocese of San Francisco. The 24-year-old priest sailed from Queenstown in Ireland on August 3, 1899, arriving in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, two weeks later. In addition to four of his brothers, Cantwell's widowed mother and his sister Nellie immigrated to the United States in the 1920s. The family lived with Cantwell at the episcopal residence in Los Angeles.

Upon his arrival in California in late 1899, the archdiocese assigned Cantwell as an assistant pastor to Reverend Michael O'Riordan, a fellow native of Limerick, at St. Joseph the Worker Parish in Berkeley, California. While serving in Berkeley, Cantwell organized a Newman Club at the University of California and served as the group's first chaplain in addition to his parish duties. Lacking a chapel in its early years, the club used a bakery as a meeting place. Cantwell's new duties took him to San Francisco and he remained in his position for 11 years.

Bishop Thomas James Conaty died in September 1915, leaving vacant the Diocese of Monterey-Los Angeles. The Vatican appointed Bishop John Joseph McCort to succeed Conaty in June 1916, but McCort declined the appointment.. Bishop Peter Muldoon of the Diocese of Rockford was next appointed in March 1917 but he asked to withdraw his nomination. Hanna then advocated with the Vatican for Cantwell.

Bishop of Los Angeles-San Diego Due to the population growth in California, on June 1, 1922, Pope Pius XI divided the Diocese of Monterey-Los Angeles into the Diocese of Monterey-Fresno and the Diocese of Los Angeles-San Diego, with Cantwell as bishop of Los Angeles-San Diego. Pacelli, who was elected Pope Pius XII three years later, declared that he was "particularly impressed with" Cantwell and "the work that has been accomplished in Southern California." Cantwell established a minor seminary (now Daniel Murphy High School) in 1927 and St. John's Seminary in Camarillo, California, in 1938. In response to this influx, Cantwell declared, "We, in Los Angeles, so close to the Mexican border...cannot be indifferent to the dreadful persecution which is now being waged not only against the Catholic Church but against the most fundamental principles of Christianity." In response, he established the Confraternity of Christian Doctrine in the diocese in 1922, mainly to supplement the religious instruction given at the Catholic settlement houses for Mexican immigrants. He pointed out that "many Mexicans who have come among us have given up their homes, their businesses, and their farms" due to persecution and concluded by saying that "to treat these people harshly is unpriestly." During his address, he noted that the Ku Klux Klan had persecuted both African Americans and Catholics, and expressed his strong support for civil rights:

...Religion teaches us to see in every man, no matter what may be the color of his skin, a human soul upon which is stamped the image of God...If men realize the dignity of the human soul apart altogether from external appearances, they will be forced to recognize the equality of all men in the sight of God. Its first president and vice-president were the actors Thomas Meighan and Jackie Coogan, respectively. The Guild originally met in the parish hall of Blessed Sacrament Parish in Hollywood before establishing itself at the Good Shepherd Parish in Beverly Hills, California, in 1924. However, the Guild failed to gain influence within the film industry and was viewed as little more than a social club. While still working for Hays, Breen became Cantwell's close adviser on forcing the industry to accept more stringent self-censorship. Cantwell opposed government intervention in the film industry and "any attempt to legislate morality in people." Breen persuaded him to propose action by his fellow bishops to pressure the industry at the annual meeting of the National Catholic Welfare Council (NCWC) in November 1933. Cantwell then enlisted the help of Amadeo Giannini, the Catholic president of the Bank of America and a major lender to the film studios. Cantwell vowed to condemn anyone associated with film production, including Bank of America, who failed to cooperate. Giannini then warned his clients in the industry that the Bank of America would no longer "finance their products if...the Catholic Church were to come out in opposition to their business." Cantwell said that films were "preaching a philosophy of life which, in most instances, is...sinister and insidious" and "lowered both the public and private standards of conduct of all who see them." In particular, Cantwell condemned the 1932 film The Sign of the Cross and the 1933 film Ann Vickers. He also assessed blame on Broadway playwrights in New York City, from whom "the stories now current on the screen are selected. Seventy-five percent of these authors are pagans."

Following Cantwell's speech, the bishops created the Episcopal Committee on Motion Pictures, with Archbishop John T. McNicholas as chair and Bishops Cantwell, John F. Noll, and Hugh Charles Boyle as members. Through the popularity of its rating system and the circulation of membership pledges at church services, the Legion wielded significant influence on the film industry for decades and had millions of members throughout the United States.

In April 1936, Cantwell blessed the first meeting of the Hollywood Anti-Nazi League. He continued to call for film boycotts, including 1947's Duel in the Sun, which he called "morally offensive and spiritually depressing" and warned that Catholics may not see "with a free conscience."

Later life and death Cantwell celebrated his silver jubilee as a bishop in 1942, receiving congratulatory messages from Pope Pius XII and US President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Cantwell was active in the relief effort in Europe following the end of World War II in 1945. He also condemned the 1946 imprisonment in Yugoslavia of Archbishop Aloysius Stepinac by its communist government.

Two weeks after being stricken with a throat infection, Cantwell died on October 30, 1947, at Queen of Angels Hospital in Los Angeles. He received tributes from Los Angeles Mayor Fletcher Bowron, Episcopal bishop Robert Burton Gooden, and actors including Bing Crosby, Bob Hope, Eddie Cantor and Pat O'Brien.

In popular culture Cantwell appears as a character in James Ellroy's novel Perfidia (2014), as a Fascist sympathizer and close friend of the character Dudley Smith.