CUT! CENSORED VINTAGE HORROR FILMS

 

"The trouble I have with the idea of censorship is that formal censorship puts the seal of official approval on what is left after the censor has done his work. Anyone who reads the excisions made by the censors feels that the cutting is wholly of superficial. The fundamental conception of the theme may be wrong. To say of a bad play that it is passed by the Board of Censors after deletions puts sanction on what remains. The good done by the excision does not outweigh the evil done by what at least appears to be found approved."

- Francis J. McConnell, Resident Bishop of the New York Area of the Methodist Episcopal Church

So, you think the Comics Code Authority (CCA) was bad?

Before the industry watchdog Hayes Code was formed in 1934, several states enacted into law organizations tasked with excising "objectionable" material from Hollywood and Foreign films. State movie censors also acted in various capacities in Kansas, Maryland, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Virginia and Massachusetts.

Indeed, films came under scrutiny early on for the depiction of controversial and perceived unwholesome and unsavory topics. As indicated in What Shocked the Censors! A complete record of cuts in motion picture films ordered by the New York State Censors from January, 1932 to March, 1933, "The New York Board of Censorship was originally formed in 1909 to address concerns about 'indecent' films being shown in movie theaters, primarily due to complaints from moral reformers who believed such films were negatively impacting community morals, leading to a push for regulation of the film industry by reviewing and potentially censoring movies before exhibition; this was particularly driven by concerns about the portrayal of violence, sexuality, and other potentially controversial themes in early cinema."

As with pre-CCA censorship organizations, the local boards lacked uniformity. "Pregnant characters or smoking scenes might be banned in one state but allowed in another. The inconsistent rules were a massive headache for Hollywood, which was also facing the threat of federal regulation."

The book was published by in September 1933 by The National Council on Freedom from Censorship, sponsored by the American Civil Liberties Union. Its sub-text was to uncover what they asserted was the unwarranted removal of footage, thereby stifling the creative expression of artists in general and filmmakers in particular. As usual, the public would hear none of it, and continued to march lock-stop with self-righteous social engineers.

This scene has been replayed over and over again in American history. Easily forgotten are the mass comic book burnings on the 1950's and more recently the hard to ignore removal of books deemed objectionable from schools and libraries and the campaign to revise and redact so-called "offensive" content from literature. Entertainment, reading books and countless other things that are a part of life and culture have -- and should be -- always matter of personal choice and not left in the hands of a self-serving few who claim to be curators of society's moral compass.

Thankfully, the Board was dissolved in 1965.

Here is a list of the horror films (and one documentary) that were censored by the New York Board of Censorship for the years 1932-1933:

THE AMAZON HEAD HUNTERS - November 1932

REEL 2.-—Eliminate all front views of naked native women (5).

REEL 3.—Eliminate all front views of naked native women (6). Eliminate all views of naked native children where sex is shown (5).

REEL 5.—Eliminate all views of naked native children where sex is shown.

FREAKS - February 1932

(Revised version)

REEL 2.—Eliminate the episode that shows Venus moving her personal effects out of Hercules' cabin and all dialogue in connection with the scene as follows:

"You're quittin—is that it?"

"Maybe I'm only foolin'."

"Well, you're not quitting me—cause I'm kicking you out.''

"Oh"

"Oh no you don't. I gave you this."

"Why, you cheap—Oh!"

"And don't come around crying tonight, trying to come back in. I'm

through wasting my time and money on things like you."

"See here! Your time, but my money."

"Ungrateful little tramp."

REEL 5.—Eliminate the view of Cleopatra pouring the contents of the small bottle into the large bottle of champagne.

ISLAND OF LOST SOULS - December 1932

REEL 7.—"I want you to follow him and put your hands around his throat until he doesn't move any more."

KING KONG - March 1933

REEL 8.—Eliminate all views of monster holding girl as he tears clothing from her body.

REEL 9-—Eliminate all views of monster with natives in his mouth as he tears them apart. Eliminate all views of monster crushing natives with foot.

REEL 10.—Eliminate all views of monster biting man whom he holds in his mouth.

MASK OF FU MANCHU - November 1932

REEL 2.—"Just a bell ringing—You can't move. You can't sleep. You will be frantic with thirst. You will be unspeakably foul."

Eliminate scenes where Fu Manchu throws salt water on face of man who is bound, helpless, and being tortured by bell (2).

REEL 4.—Eliminate all views of whip actually striking body of Terrance (5). (Strung up and being beaten.)

REEL 5.—Eliminate all views of Fu Manchu letting snake actually bite arm of native (3), and eliminate scream of native following this scene.

Eliminate scenes of Fu Manchu actually drawing blood from native's arm (2) (after snake has bitten him).

Eliminate scene of native collapsing and being dragged away.

Eliminate close views of Terrance bound to slab, struggling to escape (4).

Eliminate close views where Fu Manchu injects hypodermic needle into Terrance's neck (2). (This allows long shot of scene).

Eliminate sound of Terrance screaming in pain as this is done.

REEL 7.—Eliminate all close views of Von Berg where spikes of torture machine come close to him (5), allowing flash as he is rescued.

THE MONSTER WALKS - February 1932

REEL 6.—Eliminate italicised words: "And I'm going to kill you both."

Eliminate last scene of Hanns striking the ape's cage with whip.

Eliminate last view of Ape strangling Hanns, as Hanns drops to the floor with an agonized look upon his face.

MURDERS IN THE RUE MORGUE - February 1932

REEL 2.—Eliminate all distinct views (5) of girl bound and tied to cross beams in Dr. Mirakle's laboratory—all views of her writhing in agony—all views of Doctor standing over her, holding her arm while he tortures her.

Eliminate all sounds of girl and loud cries and moans of agony and fear, and accompanying dialogue: "Be patient. Are you in pain, Mademoiselle? It will only last a little longer."

"Ah! You are so stubborn! Hush! It will only last one more minute and we shall see. We shall know if you are to be the bride of science."

"Oh! Hush! Hush! Now, Mademoiselle, now."

"The clots—the black spots! Your blood is rotten—black as your sins.

You cheated me. Your beauty was a lie."

"Janos! Janos!"

"Get rid of it—get it away."

REEL 6.—"Her blood is perfect."

Show but flash of ape in cage raving and trying to break bars of cage. This scene directly follows above dialogue.

MURDERS IN THE ZOO - March 1933

REEL 1.—Eliminate all close views of man where his mouth is shown sewn together.

REEL 5.—Cut one half, views of Gorman as he chokes his wife and throws her into the alligator pool.

Eliminate view where he kicks her hand from bridge.

REEL 7.—Eliminate all close and distinct views of Gorman's body with snake coiled around it, and eliminate all close views of his agonized face as he is crushed to death.

MYSTERY OF THE WAX MUSEUM, January 1933

REEL 1.—Eliminate scene where man actually lights paper with cigar stub. (Burning wax museum.)

REEL 2.—Eliminate view of man actually lowering dead body out of morgue window.

REEL 3.—Eliminate: "A cow does that and gives milk besides" . (In connection with vulgar sound made by girl.)

THE LEGEND OF THE VIDEO NASTIES

The 1980's were a great time for watching horror films on video. Many of the classics were finding their way on tape, as well tons of B-movies, including those that became known as "video nasties". This phenomenon originated in the UK, but also found its way to the States. A total of 72 of these videos were "banned" in Britain and subject to confiscation. The reason? Well, violence and gore, of course! Many of these films poured on the blood and guts by the bucketful, and the more grislier the movie it seemed, the more rentals it got. Even Siskel and Ebert got in on the action with their take on the craze (see below).

The fake documentary, FACES OF DEATH (1978) was probably the most notorious with CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST (1980) not far behind. The website, IMDB has a list of the 72 movies, along with capsule summaries and whether the film was prosecuted for obscenity or not.

The following article is from the UK's June, 2021 SIGHT AND SOUND magazine and chronicles the legend of the video nasty.

THE WALKING DEAD CALLED "OFFENSIVE", "F---ING FILTH"

Horror movies have always been fodder for self-righteous moralists. Since the classics of the 1930's were almost erased in the middle of the decade as a result of a "Code" that prevented much of the very topic that they were attempting to depict, horror in general has been something of a pariah of pop culture.

Now these self-same censors have aimed their angst at the long-running AMC series, THE WALKING DEAD. There is no argument that the show is visceral, shocking and gruesome. Portraying a post-apocalyptic landscape of flesh-eating zombies trying their best to munch on the last fresh meat on the planet (i.e. unaffected humans), any episode can go from gripping drama to gory bloodshed at the drop of a decayed limb.

Suddenly, the program has gotten the attention of critics and naysayers to the point of lodging complaints with the FCC! I suspect it's the result of two things: 1) AMC's (maybe) unwise approach to promote the show with ads that reach an audience that otherwise wouldn't watch it and, 2) stay-at-home viewers who are new to the series and are appalled at the content. Either way, THE WALKING DEAD has a core -- and dare I say, rabid -- following that has kept it on the small screen for going on 10 seasons.

In the meantime, below is a clip from an online article describing what the hub-bub is all about.

The Walking Dead FCC Complaints Call the Show Troubling and Offensive
By Cameron Bonomolo | April 28, 2020 | ComicBook.com

FCC complaints filed again The Walking Dead call the hit AMC zombie series offensive and troubling. The series carries a TV-MA rating and warns that "viewer discretion is advised" when an episode containing graphic violence airs. Nonetheless, the show was the subject of complaints sent into the FCC when after the episode in which Abraham (Michael Cudlitz) and Glenn (Steven Yeun) are executed by Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) using his signature barbwire-wrapped baseball bat, Lucille, back in the premiere of the show's seventh season. One complaint called the episode "beyond brutal, beyond sick and beyond evil." More recent complaints target The Walking Dead latest antagonists, the Whisperers, who use the flesh of the dead as a means of concealing themselves from walkers and other survivors.

"It is incredibly offensive, disturbing and downright troubling and gruesome. Is there some way to make this stop," reads one complaint about the series in documents obtained by Observer, who requested complaints filed from January 1, 2017 to February 1, 2020, covering the second half of Season 7 through the first half of Season 10. A standard disclaimer provided by the FCC notes "a complaint or comment does not necessarily indicate any wrongdoing" by a program.

Some complaints lodged against The Walking Dead do not come from fans: included in the documents are complaints from people who witnessed advertisements for the AMC series while watching other channels, including CMT and the Hallmark Channel.

"How is such violent (and sexual) content allowed on tv?" wrote one viewer from Texas, who added, "AMC seems to be a satanic tv network and I believe this is a free channel, not a paid channel." 

Reads a complaint filed from a viewer in Florida after the gory executions of Abraham and Glenn, "Watching human beings bashed over the head with a [sic] barbwired basball bat over and over is just plain gore. Here I am days later and still freaked out rom what I saw and can’t erase the image from my memory. It was that horrific."

An individual from Georgia considered filing a lawsuit against the show and network AMC, writing, "If I knew the process to file a lawsuit and had the funds I would do so. This kind of violence has no place in this country." 

Taking issue with the realistic special effects crafted by Greg Nicotero, which includes walkers and the Whisperers clad in walker skins, one individual from North Carolina complained about being subjected to advertisements for The Walking Dead while watching CMT because the TV spot showed "a man cutting, sewing and wearing the skin of another human as a mask." The complaint continued, "[I was] watching Princess Diaries 2 for goodness sakes, and now I have that vivid sickening image in my mind! I couldn’t get to the remote quick enough to change the channel before it was over." 

One Hallmark Channel viewer in Texas claimed they were "ready to completely stop watching TV" because of "nonstop ads for AMC’s The Walking Dead on other channels, specifically, the Hallmark channel. It is a wholesome, clean channel, but these advertisements void that. They show people making gruesome masks made out of what appears to be rotting human skin. I do NOT want to see this or be exposed to it at all." 

Similarly, another TV watcher from Texas had trouble avoiding commercials for The Walking Dead, even after switching channels: "While watching the Food Network’s ‘The Pioneer Woman’ at 8am on Sunday (2/10/19), they showed the walking dead [sic] commercial of a person sewing a mask made out of a human head. I changed the channel to TV Land so I wouldn’t have to see it but then on TV Land while watching The Golden Girls, they showed that commercial, too. It’s a gross, disgusting depiction that I believe is inappropriate for morning shows. I’m glad I wasn’t eating my breakfast at the time." 

Someone from Ohio complained The Walking Dead "showed a moron sewing a face of another as a mask" before calling the show "f—ing filth." 

A complaint from Michigan cited the colorful language used by Negan, writing, "With the introduction of Negan, words such as; dick, dickhead, balls, prick, ass are too common on this program."

Reads another complaint from Georgia, submitted in 2017, "I am filing a huge complaint against the violence that was on display in the walking dead over the past year. The show has crossed a line into satanic over the top violence. You should all be ashamed and may go [sic] have mercy on your souls." 

[SOURCE CREDIT: comicbook.com.]