June 5 in A.A. History

In 1918, Robert “Smitty” Ripley S. [right, mother and son, father and son], the son of Anne Ripley and Dr. Bob S., was born.

In 1939, Ebby T. [left] started a new job. As he later put it,

    … through the connections of my brother [the politically influential Jack T., II] I secured a job at the New York State World’s Fair Commission at the fairgrounds [right: aerial view, 1939].

    During this time, he frequently spent time with Bill and Lois W., and may have even stayed with them. Lois believed he was sober and attending meetings. However, Ebby later admitted, 

    I did not sober up. I managed to drink and hold [the job] pretty well, and with so many people there, and crowds, I wasn’t noticed much. I got away with it all summer.

    By fall, though, he was “drinking it up pretty hard.” The following spring, he convinced his boss that “I was again on the straight and narrow” and was rehired for the same position.

In 1947, A.A. National Secretary Margaret “Bobbie” B. [left] sent a bulletin [right] to A.A. groups informing them that

    Pathé Pictures, makers of the “This Is America” movies series, has completed a 15-minute “short” film about Alcoholics Anonymous which would be distributed through RKO. They tell us that this film will be shown soon in neighborhood theatres—we cannot supply it. The film is called “I Am an Alcoholic.” It not only shows how one man recovered through AA, but portrays a reasonable facsimile of the founding of AA in Akron [Ohio] by Bill [W.] and Dr. Bob [S.].… We were unable to cooperate with the makers when the story was filmed.…
    On the subject of movies, MARCH OF TIME has informed us that 16-mm films of PROBLEM DRINKERS are now available through their distributional outlet. Write directly to MARCH OF TIME, 369 Lexington Ave., New York if you would like to rent or buy for a group showing.

    The March of Time newsreel series, including “Problem Drinkers” [right: screen capture] were shown in thousands of movie theaters.

In 1988, an A.A. memorial service for Sybil C. [left, 1985], who died on May 14, just six days shy of her 90th birthday, was finally held after several delays due to A.A. conference schedules. The service lasted over two hours. Sybil got sober in A.A. on 21 Mar 1941, in Los Angeles, California, and she was recognized as the first woman in A.A. west of the Mississippi.