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“Exploitation At Its Wor—ER, Finest!”
By Raymond Benson
There have always been what have been termed in the motion picture industry “exploitation films,” even back in the silent days. The late 1930s and much of the 1940s, however, saw a deluge of cheap, not-even-“B” pictures made, usually independently of Hollywood and marketed in guerilla fashion as “educational” adult fare. You know the type. Reefer Madness. Child Bride. Mom and Dad.
Dwain Esper was one of the most notorious directors who made these types of pictures in the 1930s. He was assuredly the Ed Wood of that decade. He purposely chose sensational subjects—drug use, sexuality—and produced them independently of Hollywood. The Production Code was in full force during most of his working years, so distribution had to be done in creative ways—renting theaters and advertising locally that the films...
“Exploitation At Its Wor—ER, Finest!”
By Raymond Benson
There have always been what have been termed in the motion picture industry “exploitation films,” even back in the silent days. The late 1930s and much of the 1940s, however, saw a deluge of cheap, not-even-“B” pictures made, usually independently of Hollywood and marketed in guerilla fashion as “educational” adult fare. You know the type. Reefer Madness. Child Bride. Mom and Dad.
Dwain Esper was one of the most notorious directors who made these types of pictures in the 1930s. He was assuredly the Ed Wood of that decade. He purposely chose sensational subjects—drug use, sexuality—and produced them independently of Hollywood. The Production Code was in full force during most of his working years, so distribution had to be done in creative ways—renting theaters and advertising locally that the films...
- 6/1/2020
- by nospam@example.com (Cinema Retro)
- Cinemaretro.com
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