The censoring of history and politics takes us back to the. The legion of decency has condemned some very interesting films. However, it is important to recognize that much excellent primary material resides in american archives. This textbased pdf or ebook was created from the html version of this book and is part of the portable library of liberty. Look at the aforementioned catholic legion of decency. The catholic church in the united states maintained an index of prohibited books and the national legion of decency founded in 1933 lobbied hollywood to edit or ban movies, pulp magazines, and.
The 1993 rerelease of a streetcar named desire restores four scattered minutes of footage that catholic censors in the legion of decency ordered cut from the picture before its original 1951 release. The motion picture production code of 1930, also known as the hays code, was a set of moral and ethical guidelines that for over three decades censored american films, in order to uphold conservative values. But for all their zeal the churches have accomplished very little, declared time magazine in 1934 as it hailed the new catholic legion of decency. For the next three decades, breen, hays, and the catholic legion of decency virtually controlled the content of all hollywood films. American history when censorship was not only permitted, but in fact welcomed.
Alexander mcgregors book represents one of the few attempts by a british scholar to assess this pivotal era in usa film history. Aug 11, 2011 your post was as interesting as the book a cast of killers about the william desmond taylor mystery and it made me look into florence a little further. Good taste and decency georgetown library repository. Roman historybook xxix wikisource, the free online library. This is a list of films condemned by the national legion of decency, a united states catholic. I highly doubt that i will get a justifiable reply, i am sure that i will get a reply that says you have violated our tos. Officially though the church was never fully explicit in its means of prosecution of such rules any individual who dared read any books included on this list risked excommunication and, thus, spiritual damnation. They pledged not only never to go to any morally objectionable movie, but never even to go to any movie theater that had ever shown a morally objectionable film. Legion and the pca under the directorship of geoffrey shurlock was not as close as it had once been, but neither was it an adversarial relationship. Decency legion rept, yr ended aug, lists record 16 films condemned, only 51 of 270. National legion of decency asks more family films of hollywood. My mother, who attended catholic school in san francisco as a kid, was telling me about it one evening. Private codes of decency did come into existence in the 30s. Full text of motion pictures classified by national legion.
A brief history of the legion of decency rick kephart. Evelyn millis duvalls 1956 manual on dating and sexual behavior facts of. They would determine what entertainment, specifically movies, was decent for catholics to partake in. Motion pictures classified by national legion of decency. The index librorum prohibitorum was a list of books banned for lay roman catholic readership. The catholic church, the legion of decency, and many modern advo cates of. Censoring the silver screen a history of the legion of.
Donald wildmon lead the drive to restore decency and traditional values to movies, skinners book makes timely reading. Romanowski shows that the rise of the evangelical movement in the 1970s radically altered the picture, in contradictory ways. Becounting one of the most fascinating eras of hollywood, hollywood censored is based on an extensive survey of original studio records, censorship files, and legion archives. In its heyday from the 1930s to 1960s it promoted the motion picture production code which enforced morality on filmmakers. The catholic church and hollywood download ebook pdf. These regulations, such as the production code administration, set up in hollywood in 1933, the legion of decency, and the national office for decent literature, were promoted by the catholic church. The catholic church and hollywood download ebook pdf, epub. The national legion of decency, originally known as the catholic legion of decency, was an american organization with a long tradition of campaigning for movies to be more boring and less reflective of actual life. Obviously such a project as steal this book could not have been carried out alone.
Frazier brinley would do anything for the department of connecticut and the american legion. The 1933 grease entry was a 4 september 2009 addition and the history gives no reason for the change. Hollywood studios submitted their films to the legion for a rating, which varied from general approval to condemnation. More than 7 million people pledged not to patronize theaters that played non legion approved movies. Cadegan shows how the churchs official position on literary culture developed over this crucial period. A nun looks back on 47 years of unholy filmmaking a new turner classic movies series honors films that were deemed salacious, immoral or downright lewd by the catholic legion. Indeed, the public outcry was so great that even the federal government considered creating a national censorship board. The legion of decency was a catholic organization founded in the 1930s, and active in the 50s and 60s. The american legion was chartered and incorporated by congress in 1919 as a patriotic veterans organization devoted to mutual helpfulness. Tcm running festival of films once condemned by the. The national legion of decency was established in 1933 and reorganized in 1965 as the national catholic office for motion pictures ncomp. A brief history of the legion of decency by rick kephart the legion of decency was formed in the 1930s to combat immoral movies. Censoring the silver screen a history of the legion of decency february 29, 2016 sister rose patheos explore the worlds faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality.
Aug 08, 2008 the catholic legion of decency notwithstanding, films about banned topics like drug addiction often made for intriguing, wellreceived movies. Films were viewed as heavily influential on their audiences and were not constitutionally protected by the liberties of free. For a complete history of the legion of decency see black, op. Catholic population of 20,000,000 as well as all protestants and jews who care to sign, the legion last week claimed 2,000,000 members. Did you know the legion of decency condemned a miracle on. National legion of decency asks more family films of. This is a facsimile or imagebased pdf made from scans of the original book. Jul 17, 2019 irritated, catholics retaliated by forming the national legion of decency and movie producers soon realized that they were losing traction and money within the catholic strongholds of big american cities. Provides information to auxiliary members about the history, mission, programs, membership eligibility, customs, and operations of an american legion auxiliary unit. The legion of decency is a band out of the inland empire of california. Request permission export citation add to favorites track citation. The national legion of decency, also known as the catholic legion of decency, was a catholic group founded in 1933 as an organization dedicated to identifying and combating objectionable content in motion pictures from the point of view of the american catholic church. This is a doctoral dissertation prepared in the department of political philosophy at fordham university, new york.
Fcc attacked by newspaper writers for rebuke to nbc in mae west case. It is obviously under contruction, and always will be. The legion of decency and the national catholic office for motion pictures, 1933 1970 1993. To get the book to you might be the biggest challenge we face. The legion of decency the business of screenwriting and fighting the good fight. Legion of decency and the national catholic office for motion pictures, 193970 kindle edition by skinner, james m download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets.
When otto preminger made the man with the golden arm. I have contacted yahoo on this matter, but i am still waiting for a reply from them concerning this matter. Theodorus, the secretary, aims at the imperial authority, and being accused of treason before valens at antioch, and convicted, is executed, with many of his accomplices. Though the legion of decency threatened the hays office, it did not. For more than three decades the catholic church, through its legion of decency, had the power to control the content of hollywood films. And the usccb is not a governing body and as such can make suggestions but your not bound by them. The legion of decency and the national catholic office for motion pictures, 19331970. The history of sex in american film saussy 2008 the journal of. Lovers of paris, a french import, originally potbouille and based on the zola novel of that name. A brief history of the legion of decency how the catholic. The legion found the number of films rated for adults and adolescents fairly stable but noted a. Among the movies they condemned and told all catholics not to see were psycho, never on sunday, spartacus, some like it hot, the last picture.
Other articles where legion of decency is discussed. Rami jaffee from the foo fighters, doug pettibone from lucinda williams. All about the legion about us the legion of decency. After a series of sex scandals rocked the movie industry in 1922, the hollywood moguls hired will hays to clean the image of movies. The 69yearold navy veteran and 41year legionnaire has been a department commander, vice commander and historian, as well as a post commander and adjutant a position he currently holds, and more most notably national historian in 20042005. From the mid1930s to the late 1960s the catholic legion served as a moral guardian for the american public. On the face of it, the blast that was issued by the national legion of decency of the roman catholic church the other day berating the motion picture industry for what it determined has been an. Jody penningtons the history of sex in american film provides an. People took a pledge, in church, against bad movies. National legion of decency news newspapers books scholar jstor march 2016 learn how and when to remove this template message. The legion of white decency our expanded site for the legion at yahoo groups has been deleted for reasons unknown. Movies condemned by the national catholic legion of decency. Full text of motion pictures classified by national legion of decency.
The national legion of decency, also known as the catholic legion of decency, was a. Sep 19, 2017 10 the organization changed its name to the national legion of decency in 1935 but i will refer to as legion of decency. Full text of motion pictures classified by national. One of the odd realities of life is that those who are supposed to have a handle on whats coming usually dont. Have not been able to find any information on the 1933 grease.
Legion of decency general discussions tcm message boards. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading the cross and the. From the mid1930s to the late 1960s the catholic legion served as a moral guardian for the american. On the feast of the immaculate conception 1938, the u. Ive been reading steven kings it for the past couple of nights and this group that was the northern equivalent of the kkk was mentioned. This version has been converted from the original text. Because its been around for 80 years, there are thousands upon thousands of movies that use roman numerals in the classification i, ii, iii rather than the far. I promise, further, to stay away altogether from places of amusement which show them as a matter of policy. Legion of decency american organization britannica. Condemned by the legion of decency general discussions. In a modernday answer to pope pius xis encyclical vigilanti cura, we pray that this website will help in countering the misuse of the power of the creation and transmission of pictures and sound that god has given us. We surf facebook, looking for worthy nuggets of anything amid mindless, repetitive posts about things we rarely care much about.
I would have to consult the list to see what i could not go near. In film, it tosses out the most powerful part of stephen. Apr 16, 2012 book xxx 337934 roman history book xxix ammianus marcellinus i. List of films condemned by the legion of decency wikipedia. Aug 17, 2017 it was the legion of decency that came up with the classification system modified in the ensuing decades still in use by cns to assess the moral suitability of films. The legion had been established in 1933 by the american bishops of the. In airports, coffee shops, buses and commuter trains around the planet, you seldom see people with a book or reading from a portable device. Keep your eyes glued to that set until the station signs off. With history currently repeating itself as michael medved hollywood vs. Tensions with catholics, too, have loomed largemany protestant clergy feared the influence of the legion of decency more than hollywoods corrupting power.
Dec 10, 2008 the legion of decency charges no dues, hence differs from mrs. Under each of these names, it rated films according to their suitability for viewing, assigning a code of a, b, or c, with that of c identified as condemned for viewing by catholics. Jan 17, 2016 20 films banned by the legion of decency that are worth your time posted on january 17, 2016 january 17, 2016 by daniel gauss with the advent of commercially marketed films, in the early 1900s, there were public calls from religious groups for government regulation of the film industry. For the historian researching british cinema, there can often appear to be a paucity of archival source material. Even her wiki page brings up some interesting points. August belmonts motion picture research council with which it is in full sympathy. Skinner provides a detailed account of the early history of movie censorship in the united states and shows how the legion of decency and the catholic church came to wield such formidable influence over such matters after 1934. To return to the book, let us mention here that in subsequent footnotes we.
Pledge of the legion of decency catholic apologetics. How this religious organization got this power, used it, and. Lost legion of decency by brad miner articles first things. History is littered with great leaders who didnt really believe their enemies could defeat them, or the peasants would one day have had enough and rise up with their torches and pitchforks. Praising 1993 over 1951 or vice versa misses an important point. Hollywood censored examines how hundreds of films mae west comedies, serious dramas, and films with a social message were censored and often edited to promote a conservative political agenda during the golden era of studio production in the 1930s. When i was a kid, going to our lady of grace church, in the vestibule, every sunday, there would be a list of the films that the legion of decency had condemned. Under each of these names, it rated films according to their suitability for viewing, assigning a code of a, b, or c, with that of c. The legion called its account of mexican history an ideological perversion of the subject. Title link connects to a general grease disambiguation page that references under entertainment only the 1978 travoltanewtonjohn film, also condemned by the legion of decency. A sociological analysis of the emergence and development of a social pressure group. The catholic crusade against the movies is a continuation of my work on censorship and.
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