Modern Screen (Jan-Dec 1960)

By Taylor M. Mills Director of Public Relations — Motion Picture Association of America The August issue of Modern Screen carried an article entitled For Adults Only. It brought forth a flood of mail from readers, many of whom agreed with the theme of the article — that movies today present too much adult entertainment, and that perhaps some form of "adult" classification should be adopted by the motion picture industry to advise movie patrons concerning films treating mature subjects. We appreciate this opportunity to present our viewpoint on these subjects and to reply to some of youi very thoughtful letters you wrote in response to this article. The editors of Modern Screen were good enough to share them with us. The article discussed ten films which the editors implied were too adult for those of tender years. The films mentioned were: Who Was That Lady?, Blue Denim, Because They're Young, A Summer Place, Home from the Hill, Pillow Talk, Happy Anniversary, The Best of Everything, Suddenly Last Summer and The Fugitive Kind. Though the majority of letters received agreed with the publication's views, more than a few readers contributed some interesting personal comments. In connection with the film, Who Was That Lady?, one young film fan said: "What was so terribly 'sordid' about that film? In the movie Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh played the parts of a young married couple — just as they are in real life. Everyone who saw the film realized this. And if I can be frank for a moment." she added, "what is wrong about a married couple being shown together in a bed?" (Incidentally the bed scenes shown in the two photographs in the article did not appear in the picture as released.) Blue Denim also was listed in the article as a shocking film — especially for teen-agers. A fifteen-year-old girl from Portland, Maine, wrote: "The advertisements gave a good idea of what the movie was about. The action, dialogue and story-line were all handled carefully and with good taste. I personally feel that all teenagers should have seen this movie." Another young writer from Illinois told the editor: "I thoroughly disagree with your opinion that these movies are ruining teen-agers. Everyone of the movies mentioned, and I have seen most of them, pointed out to teen-agers the problems that result from being over-emotional about their feelings and desires. All of the movies mentioned taught a lesson to teens. I feel they are presented in such a fashion as to teach a moral." This young lady sounds like a thoughtful and mature person for nineteen years of age. If the plea from those who wrote to the editor asking for more wholesome family entertainment is an honest and sincere one, the question arises as to why the public, supposedly hungry for such films, does not give better support to these subjects at the local theaters. Many a fine picture suitable for the entire family has failed to succeed at the box-office. Frequently these have been expensive color films that have been widely advertised and yet never earned their production cost, not to mention any profit for the producing company. So despite the fact that many of the letters received by the editors appeal for more fine family films, moviegoers seem to flock to pictures based on powerful, dramatic subjects portraying true-to-life stories. One cannot expect any film company to continue to produce family films, if these pictures do not gain support at the box-office. The year 1-960 has seen more family-type pictures released than have been noted for some time. How many have you seen? Over the Christmas holidays you had: Journey to the Center of the Earth, The Last Angry Man, 1001 Arabian Nights (the feature-length Mr. Magoo cartoon) and Disney's dramatic Alpine story, Third Man on the Mountain. The Easter season saw Dog of Flanders, Scent of Mystery, The Snow Queen, When Comedy Was King and Please Don't Eat the Daisies. This past summer there were a host of fine family films to choose from, including: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Hound Dog Man, Kidnapped, Toby Tyler and Pollyanna. And certainly no one could object {Continued on next page)