#production code

ASK EDDIE RETURNS THIS THURSDAY

The final ASK EDDIE livestream of January airs this Thursday, January 27, 7:00 pm PT on the Film Noir Foundation's  Facebook page.

FNF prez Eddie Muller responds to film noir fan questions fielded by the Foundation’s Director of Communications Anne Hockens. In this episode, the second half of a two-parter, we discuss CHICAGO DEADLINE, female narrators in noir, the use of newsreels for propaganda, and which noir had the most perfect cast. We wind up this session with a lightning round of “Noir or Not?” On the cat front, Emily naps and Charlotte attempts to answer a couple of the questions.

The first half of this conversation is availablehere.

Can’t make it Thursday night? A recording will be up Friday on our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/NoirCitySFWant your question answered? We solicit questions from our email subscribers in our monthly newsletters. Sign up for free at https://www.filmnoirfoundation.org/signup.html

Note: Eddie will not be able to answer questions posted during the livestream nor ones left on our social media accounts

“A 1915 Supreme Court ruling opened the way for censorship of film along many fronts, including sexuality. The Court ruled that movies were a for-profit business and therefore not protected by the right to freedom of speech spelled out in the First Amendment of the Constitution. Within a few years of this ruling, several states began to pass censorship laws that addressed obscenity and ‘inappropriate’ topics for film. But it was not until 1931 that the film industry began policing and censoring itself through the Production Code and the Hays Censorship Office. Reference to homosexuality, gay and lesbian characters and themes, and even words like "pansy” were out. Thirty years later, in 1961, the Production Code changed once again and homosexuality was permitted official visibility provided it was portrayed with 'care, discretion, and restraint.’ Despite these cautions, words such as 'fag, faggot, fruit, dyke, pansy’ were freely admitted on the big screen. By 1968, the Production Code was eliminated completely and homosexuality was, for the first time, fair game for filmmakers.“

-Excerpt from Media Messages What Film, Television, and Popular Music Teach Us about Race, Class, Gender, and Sexual Orientation by Linda Holtzman