The Screen Composers Association Collection spans the years 1942-1974 (bulk 1940s-1950s) and encompasses 3 linear feet. The collection contains bulletins, minutes of meetings, membership records, financial reports and records, press releases and publicity, and correspondence with Zissu. The minutes provide detailed accounts of the agenda and pursuits of the organization. Most of the membership applications include credits and some biographical background. Part of the association's power (and thus the collection's strength) was due to the membership, which consisted of a majority of film composers. Of interest in the membership records file is a two-page signed register of the 1942 meeting at the Beverly Hills Hotel. There are correspondence and reports covering various aspects of ASCAP (including domestic and foreign distributions). The correspondence concerning ASCAP provides an inside look into the business aspect of music, specifically performing rights, royalty payment, and rights of ownership. Other material includes check ledgers, bank statements, and bills-paid files.

The inaugural meeting of the Screen Composers Association (SCA) was held on July 20, 1945; however, the roots of the group extend back nearly three years before that. The earliest documentation is a letter dated October 29, 1942, under the heading "The Film Composer's Emergency Committee," calling for a meeting of all writers of film music. Two factors contributed to this call. First, the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) was creating a new writer classification system; and second, due to World War II, income from foreign royalties was now being collected and distributed by ASCAP (these royalties were previously collected and distributed by the performing rights society within each individual country).

On November 3, 1942, more than 40 prominent film composers met at the Beverly Hills Hotel. Their first action as a group was a unanimous decision to send ASCAP a wire of protest against the adoption of any new writer classification system. This action foreshadowed the future battle that SCA would have with ASCAP over the recognition of, and royalty payment for, background music for film. A group of eight composers (Anthony Collins, Adolph Deutsch, Leigh Harline, Arthur Lange, Edward Plumb, Max Steiner, Roy Webb, and Victor Young) continued to meet under the name of the Film Composers' Committee. In October 1943 they outlined their initial objectives, which included the formation of a film composers guild, the formulation of a basic agreement with the motion picture producers, analysis of U.S. copyright law, and the promotion of "closer relationships between composers and the various arts and crafts that contribute to American films." An April 1946 press release cites film employment contracts, the ASCAP system of royalty distribution, ASCAP membership requirements, and the public performance of film music as reasons for the society's existence. New York lawyer Leonard Zissu was presented as legal counsel at the inaugural meeting of SCA. Later a deal was arranged whereby his retainer and fees were paid for by a percentage of ASCAP royalties due to SCA members.

The association had two major accomplishments in its first 15 years. First, it was directly responsible for the formation of the Composers Guild of America. In October 1953 a composers guild committee was formed within SCA. This committee led to a general meeting held December 4, 1953, where 150 composers voted unanimously for the prompt formation of the Composers Guild of America (in 1955 lyricists were added to form the Composers and Lyricists Guild). Second, SCA (in conjunction with Zissu) not only convinced ASCAP of the importance of dramatic underscore in film and television, but also lobbied for, and received, larger royalty payments from ASCAP. The association's strongest years were from 1945 to 1959 before membership began to wane. Three factors seem to have contributed. First, as ASCAP gave greater recognition and royalty payments to film and television underscore, there was less reason to continue lobbying for it. Second, according to its constitution, SCA could never function as a union; in fact, the formation of the Composers Guild took all guild-type activity (contractual agreements, for example) out of SCA. Third, as the membership aged, it became difficult to attract new young members, since each member had to pay a percentage of his or her ASCAP royalties to Zissu. (It is ironic that the younger composers were already receiving larger royalty payments due to the previous success of SCA.) There was some resurgence of activity in the early 1970s but the organization never recaptured its earlier energy.