My wife and I watched a double feature last night. We've become interested in Hollywood films that were censored during the Great Depression. One of the two we watched was:

”The Divorcee” (1930): Norma Shearer stars in this censored Hollywood morality tale. Set in 1928, BEFORE the Great Depression crashed down on everyone, and made FOR the real-time Depression audience, this is the story of a woman who, finding her marital situation "inconvenient", sets out to “live” all of life she thinks she’s missed. It’s most amazing in one way: the costuming and the sets by Cedric Gibbons. This melodrama has great Art Deco everywhere you look. Why, even the people are dancing in geometric gestures, in revealing gowns, dramatic poses, and risqué life styles… I found Shearer fascinating to watch for her odd beauty and ability to use her body in photogenic ways."

Hollywood was at odds with the censorship board. As is usually the case, a bad economy creates an environment of conservatism and reevaluation of life styles.

Sound familiar?

Hollywood was trying to make films that might sell, and the censors were trying to cut out anything that would! Push, pull, push, pull. Film makers fought back by finding loopholes in ever-increasing guidelines. Even the Fleischer Brothers cartoons "Betty Boop" went under HEAVY censorship. Yes, Betty had to wear longer dresses and lose the cleavage. We CAN'T have cartoon cleavage!

So, taking "The Divorcee" as an example, Hollywood stopped using the short "Flapper" skirts of the 1920's. Instead, they draped Shearer, sans ANY underwear - at all - on any thing - in dramatically long gowns made of VERY clingy, satiny material, allowing stiff nipples and pubic hair to be visible through this silvery sheen.

"But you SAID no short skirts!!"

And the game went on.

If you're interested, I believe they are filed on Netflix under "Censored Films".

How does this apply to more recent eras? What about the lax attitudes in '70's films? It's all relative. Much of the 60's nudity vanished in the '70's, as the economy worsened. (Don't confuse the flood of more recent films SET in the 70's with the actual films OF the 70's.)

What can we expect now? The same thing. If it hasn't already begun, it will. The economy says so. But do we still have a "censorship" board? Forget whether we have a "board" or not. "Boards" are nothing but a group of people made up from a portion of "US".

People withdraw in a bad economy. They get conservative.

They CONSERVE.

Sound familiar?