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370 SOUND MOTION PICTURES
local censor bodies cannot be made as readily as in the case of the silent picture. Although correcting scenes in the silent version to meet the demands of the censor boards is a simple matter the problem is a big one when it is applied to sound. A title can be either rewritten or eliminated ; a scene can be cut out; a title can be substituted to explain the deleted action. Such methods are not possible in films that are synchronized with dialogue. They mean a return to the studio and a fresh production. The cast and the set must be recalled to retake the action. In some instances members of the cast are not available when needed for such retakes, so that the effect on general releases in censored territory is virtual obstruction.
A situation which might be considered perfectly good in forty-seven states can be barred in one, because of the dissenting opinion of the censorship board in that state. The action of such a censor body necessitates the remaking of the scenes objected to and involves a cost of many thousands of dollars before the picture may be released in that state. When it is fully realized that censorship of speech from the screen is an assault on the most sacred rights guaranteed by the Constitution the practice will ultimately be abandoned. In the meanwhile, every constructive element within the industry will devote effort to the end that no picture is produced that will offend any reasonable person. It certainly seems unfair to allow freedom of speech to those who write for the legitimate theatre and to lay a handicap on sound motion pictures. If dialogue writers must follow the dictates of censor bodies, the dialogue in many instances would be unnatural and uninteresting and would be forced down to the level of a child's intelligence. This would have a tendency to affect the better effort of fine dramatists ruinously.
Recognizing the influence of the motion picture as important in the cultural development of the country and in