Production Code

The Production Code (also known as the Hays Code) was a set of guidelines governing the production of motion pictures. The Motion Pictures Producers and Distributors Association (MPPDA, later to become the Motion Picture Association of America or MPAA) adopted the code in 1930, began effectively enforcing it in 1934, and abandoned it in 1967. The Production Code spelled out what was and was not considered morally acceptable in the production of United States motion pictures.

1934 changes to the Code

The MPPDA responded to criticism of the racy and violent pre-Code films by strengthening the Code. An amendment to the Code, adopted on June 13, 1934, established the Production Code Administration, and required all films to obtain a certificate of approval before being released. Joseph I. Breen was appointed head of the new Production Code Administration. The Code was further fortified by the creation of the Catholic Legion of Decency, which designated "indecent" films that Catholics should boycott.

Related Topics:
June 13 - 1934 - Production Code Administration - Joseph I. Breen - Catholic Legion of Decency

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Under Breen's leadership, enforcement of the Production Code became rigid and notorious. The Code prohibited any reference in a motion picture to illicit drugs, homosexuality, premarital sex, profanity, prostitution, and white slavery. Films could still be violent, and feature heterosexual romance. Smoking cigarettes was still allowed and even encouraged. Films could not endorse hatred of a racial or ethnic group, but the Code also prohibited interracial relationships or marriages. The power of Breen to change scripts and scenes angered many writers, directors, and Hollywood moguls.

Related Topics:
Illicit drugs - Homosexuality - Premarital sex - Profanity - Prostitution - White slavery - Heterosexual - Cigarette - Hatred of a racial or ethnic group - Interracial relationship - Mogul

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The first major instance of censorship under the Production Code involved the 1934 film Tarzan and his Mate, in which brief nude scenes involving a body double for actress Maureen O'Sullivan were edited out of the master print of the film. Another famous case of enforcement, dramatized in the 2004 Martin Scorsese film The Aviator, involved the 1943 western The Outlaw, produced by Howard Hughes. The movie was denied a certificate of approval and kept out of theaters for years, primarily because promotion for the film focused attention almost exclusively on Jane Russell's breasts. Eventually Hughes was able to persuade Breen that the breasts did not violate the code and the film could be shown.

Related Topics:
1934 - Tarzan and his Mate - Maureen O'Sullivan - 2004 - Martin Scorsese - The Aviator - 1943 - Western - The Outlaw - Howard Hughes - Jane Russell

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The enforcement of the Production Code led to the dissolution of many local censorship boards. Meanwhile, the U.S. Customs Department prohibited the importation of the foreign film Ecstasy (1932), starring Hedy Lamarr, an action which was upheld on appeal. The United States Supreme Court had already ruled that motion pictures were not protected by the First Amendment.

Related Topics:
U.S. Customs Department - Ecstasy - 1932 - Hedy Lamarr - United States Supreme Court - First Amendment

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