Hollywood Censored: Morality Codes, Catholics, and the Movies / Edition 1

by Gregory D. Black

Overview

Hollywood Censored examines how hundreds of films were censored and edited to promote a conservative political agenda during the golden era of studio production in the 1930s. After a series of sex scandals rocked the movie industry in 1922, moguls hired Will Hays to clear the image of movies. As movie "ezar," Hays tried a variety of ways to regulate film content before adopting what became known as the production code. Written in 1930 by a St. Louis priest, the code challenged the moguls' staunch belief that movies entertain, not preach morality, by stipulating that movies stress proper behavior, respect for government, and "Christian values." The Catholic Church further reinforced these efforts by launching its Legion of Decency in 1934. For the next three decades, Hays, the Production Code Administration, and the Catholic Legion of Deceney virtually controlled the content of all Hollywood films.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	2900521565928
Publication date:	01/26/1996
Pages:	352
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 1.25(h) x 9.00(d)

Table of Contents

	List of Illustrations	viii
	Acknowledgments	ix
	Introduction	1
1	Restricting Entertainment: The Movies Censored	3
2	The Hays Office and a Moral Code for the Movies	21
3	Sex, Sex, and More Sex	50
4	Movies and Modern Literature	84
5	Beer, Blood, and Politics	107
6	Legions March on Hollywood	149
7	Sex with a Dash of Moral Compensation	198
8	Film Politics and Industry Policy	244
9	Conclusion	292
	Appendixes
A	Working Draft of the Lord-Quigley Code Proposal	302
B	Films Condemned by the Legion of Decency	309
	Selected Bibliography	311
	Filmography	321
	Index	327

Editorial Reviews

"Several books about that phase of movie censorship dealing with the Motion Picture Production Code and the Catholic Legion of Decency have been published recently. Hollywood Censored can be counted among the better ones because it is extensively researched and maintains a nice balance between the serious, the ironic and the amusing aspects. Also, it publishes a lot of previous buried material from the Legion archives." George Turner, American Cinematographer

"His mastery of the voluminious primary sources ensures a thorough description with no significant gaps." James M. Skinner, American Historical Review

From the Publisher