Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation
Encyclopedia
The Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation (Damon Runyon) is a not-for-profit cancer research
organization focused "discovering the talent to discover the cure." The Foundation states that its goals are to: "identify the best and brightest early career scientists in cancer research, accelerate the translation of scientific discoveries into new diagnostic tools and treatments, and to enable risk-taking on bold new ideas."
The Foundation was founded in 1946 by controversial media personality Walter Winchell
in New York City
under the name Damon Runyon Cancer Memorial Fund in memory of his colleague and friend Damon Runyon
.
research.
The organization gained more notoriety in 1949 when Milton Berle
, a long-time friend of both Runyon and Winchell, hosted the first-ever telethon, raising $1,100,000 for the Foundation over 16 hours. In its first three decades, the Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation was a popular cause among celebrities from Hollywood to Broadway and the sports world. Marlene Dietrich, Bob Hope, Marilyn Monroe, Joe DiMaggio, and many of their contemporaries served as supporters and Board members.
The Foundation has funded 11 Nobel Prize
laureates including Albert Szent-Györgyi
, Salvador E. Luria, Susumu Tonegawa
, and Sidney Altman
among others. Sixty-one Damon Runyon scientists and alumni have been elected to the National Academy of Sciences
.
rates the Foundation three of four stars, indicating the organization "exceeds or meets industry standards and performs as well as or better than most charities in its Cause." According to the Better Business Bureau
, Damon Runyon meets the 20 standards for charity accountability as of 2011. A timeline listing of specific accomplishments and milestones by Damon Runyon scientists is available on the Foundation's website.
Cancer research
Cancer research is basic research into cancer in order to identify causes and develop strategies for prevention, diagnosis, treatments and cure....
organization focused "discovering the talent to discover the cure." The Foundation states that its goals are to: "identify the best and brightest early career scientists in cancer research, accelerate the translation of scientific discoveries into new diagnostic tools and treatments, and to enable risk-taking on bold new ideas."
The Foundation was founded in 1946 by controversial media personality Walter Winchell
Walter Winchell
Walter Winchell was an American newspaper and radio gossip commentator.-Professional career:Born Walter Weinschel in New York City, he left school in the sixth grade and started performing in a vaudeville troupe known as Gus Edwards' "Newsboys Sextet."His career in journalism was begun by posting...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
under the name Damon Runyon Cancer Memorial Fund in memory of his colleague and friend Damon Runyon
Damon Runyon
Alfred Damon Runyon was an American newspaperman and writer.He was best known for his short stories celebrating the world of Broadway in New York City that grew out of the Prohibition era. To New Yorkers of his generation, a "Damon Runyon character" evoked a distinctive social type from the...
.
History
Almost immediately after Runyon's passing on December 10, 1946, Winchell went on the air and asked his audience for contributions to cancerCancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
research.
"Mr. and Mrs. United States! A very dear friend of mine - a great newspaperman, a great writer, and a very great guy - Damon Runyon, was killed this week by America's Number Two killer - Cancer. It's time we tried to do something to fight this terrible disease. We must fight back, and together we can do it. Won't you send me a penny, a nickel, a dime, or a dollar? All of your money will go directly to the cancer fighters, in Damon Runyon's name. There will be no expenses of any kind deducted."
The organization gained more notoriety in 1949 when Milton Berle
Milton Berle
Milton Berlinger , better known as Milton Berle, was an American comedian and actor. As the manic host of NBC's Texaco Star Theater , in 1948 he was the first major star of U.S. television and as such became known as Uncle Miltie and Mr...
, a long-time friend of both Runyon and Winchell, hosted the first-ever telethon, raising $1,100,000 for the Foundation over 16 hours. In its first three decades, the Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation was a popular cause among celebrities from Hollywood to Broadway and the sports world. Marlene Dietrich, Bob Hope, Marilyn Monroe, Joe DiMaggio, and many of their contemporaries served as supporters and Board members.
Award Programs and Research
Damon Runyon currently manages three award programs "aimed at encouraging and advancing the work of early career cancer researchers with high promise." The Fellowship Award is the oldest and most widely known in the scientific community, giving postdoctoral researchers $100,000-$200,000 over 3 years. Other programs include the Clinical Investigator Award and the Damon Runyon-Rachleff Innovation Award.The Foundation has funded 11 Nobel Prize
Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
laureates including Albert Szent-Györgyi
Albert Szent-Györgyi
Albert Szent-Györgyi de Nagyrápolt was a Hungarian physiologist who won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1937. He is credited with discovering vitamin C and the components and reactions of the citric acid cycle...
, Salvador E. Luria, Susumu Tonegawa
Susumu Tonegawa
Susumu Tonegawa is a Japanese scientist who won the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine in 1987 for his discovery of the genetic mechanism that produces antibody diversity. Although he won the Nobel Prize for his work in immunology, Tonegawa is a molecular biologist by training...
, and Sidney Altman
Sidney Altman
Sidney Altman is a Canadian American molecular biologist, who is currently the Sterling Professor of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology and Chemistry at Yale University. In 1989 he shared the Nobel Prize in Chemistry with Thomas R...
among others. Sixty-one Damon Runyon scientists and alumni have been elected to the National Academy of Sciences
United States National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences is a corporation in the United States whose members serve pro bono as "advisers to the nation on science, engineering, and medicine." As a national academy, new members of the organization are elected annually by current members, based on their distinguished and...
.
Evaluations
Charity NavigatorCharity Navigator
Charity Navigator is an independent, non-profit organization that evaluates American charities. Its stated goal is "to advance a more efficient and responsive philanthropic marketplace by evaluating the financial health of America's largest charities."-About:...
rates the Foundation three of four stars, indicating the organization "exceeds or meets industry standards and performs as well as or better than most charities in its Cause." According to the Better Business Bureau
Better Business Bureau
The Better Business Bureau , founded in 1912, is a corporation consisting of several private business franchises of local BBB organizations based in the United States and Canada, which work through their parent corporation, the Council of Better Business Bureaus .The Better Business Bureau, through...
, Damon Runyon meets the 20 standards for charity accountability as of 2011. A timeline listing of specific accomplishments and milestones by Damon Runyon scientists is available on the Foundation's website.