The Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) is an organization composed of working journalists who cover the United Statesfilm industry for a variety of outlets, including newspapers and magazines in Europe, Asia, Australia and Latin America. Today, the 90 members of the HFPA represent at least 55 countries and have a combined readership of more than 250 million. The organization is best known for its annual Golden Globe Awards ceremony held in Los Angeles every January.
History
The association was founded in the early 1940s by a group of Los Angeles-based foreign journalists in an attempt to gain more clout with the studios and make it easier to obtain access to stars., Findarticles.com
The organization’s first awards presentation for distinguished achievements in the film industry took place in early 1944 with an informal ceremony at 20th Century Fox. There, Jennifer Jones was awarded Best Actress honors for “The Song of Bernadette,” which also won for Best Film, while Paul Lukas took home Best Actor laurels for “Watch on the Rhine.” Awards were presented in the form of scrolls.