The Hays Code Its Influence on Film Content

The Hays Code, which prevented films from depicting sex or homosexuality, among other things, has no place in today's moviegoing world. Movies from 1930 to 1967 were governed by a Production Code. This web site reproduces it and gives examples of where the Code prevented proposed stories and ... The code aims to sanitize movies -- no nudity, suggestive dancing, miscegenation, ridicule of religion, illegal drug use, or objectionable language. First of all, the Code prohibited a picture from “lowering the moral standards of those who see it.” It called for depictions of the “correct ... 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 ... They also instituted a set of editorial “don'ts” and “be carefuls” for film producers in 1927. However, the MPPDA and Hays are best remembered ... The Motion Picture Production Code—commonly known as the Hays Code—arrived in 1930. Co-written by a Catholic priest and the Catholic ... Hays. The code was created to avoid a code of external censorship being imposed on movie production given the contemporary social climate. The ... it was eighty years ago today—15 July 1934—that the Production Code Administration, one of Hollywood's most successful attempts to police itself ... The Hays Production Code would be the dominate standard for Hollywood for the next couple of decades, leading to the creation of many classics between 1934 & ...