The Hays Code and the Rise of the Motion Picture Association

The Motion Picture Production Code was a set of industry guidelines for the self-censorship of content that was applied to most motion pictures released by ... The Hays Code was a system of self-censorship that Hollywood subjected itself to from 1934 to 1968, in an attempt to stave off legislative ... The Hays Code, written by a Jesuit priest and Catholic publisher, was designed as a code regulating the moral content of feature films. The Production Code spelled out specific restrictions on language and behavior, particularly sex and crime -- two sure-fire box office draws. It prohibited ... The Motion Picture Production Code, or the Hays Code, governed US film content from 1934 to 1968, limiting topics and dictating traditional ... In this episode, we interview three prominent guests to track the history of film censorship and discuss Hollywood's Hays Code from 1934 to ... It was the first attempt to introduce film censorship in the United States, and was fully enforced beginning July 1st, 1934. It remained in effect until the ... From the beginnings of motion pictures in the 1890s, some civic authorities have felt they needed to be regulated to protect innocent young minds and ... Pre-Code Hollywood was an era in the American film industry that occurred between the widespread adoption of sound in film in the late 1920s and the ... Hays (Garden. City, N.Y., 1955), 439-42. Histories of the Production Code vary on its authorship. See Paul W. Facey, The Legion of Decency: A Sociolog- ical ...