This document provides an introduction to analyzing Richard C. Saylor's work on the Pennsylvania Board of Censors and Dr. Ellis P. Oberholtzer, who led the board from 1915-1920. It summarizes Saylor's view that Oberholtzer sincerely believed he was serving the public good by censoring films to protect society from negative influences. However, the document also questions whether Oberholtzer may have had other motivations beyond public service, as people are influenced by factors like class, politics, and self-interest. It sets up a critique of Saylor's perspective on Oberholtzer's motivations as a censor in early 20th century Pennsylvania.
This document provides an overview of the rise of conservatism in America from 1968-1980, outlining key events, figures, and issues. It summarizes speeches, writings, and campaigns from figures like George Wallace, Spiro Agnew, Richard Nixon, Phyllis Schlafly, and Ronald Reagan. These conveyed messages about states' rights, law and order, traditional values, small government, a strong military, and opposing liberal policies. The document also discusses the growth of conservative organizations advocating for issues like gun rights, traditional family structures, and a free market economy.
The document discusses the causes and growth of the Red Scare in the United States after World War 2. Key events that contributed to rising anti-communist fear and paranoia included the spread of communism in Europe, the Soviet development of nuclear weapons, China falling to communism, and the start of the Korean War. Within the US, investigations by the House Un-American Activities Committee and Federal Bureau of Investigation targeted suspected communists, especially in Hollywood and the federal government. This led to blacklists and prosecutions like the Hollywood Ten and Alger Hiss case, fueling further anti-communist hysteria and laws restricting civil liberties.
The women's rights movement developed due to growing dissatisfaction among women with traditional gender roles following World War 2. During the war, many women had taken on jobs formerly restricted to men, giving them a taste of independence. However, postwar society encouraged women to return to being homemakers. Over time, factors like higher education rates, more women in the workforce, and new social movements empowered women to demand equal rights and challenge societal expectations. Influential figures like Eleanor Roosevelt and Betty Friedan played key roles in advocating for women's issues and establishing organizations like NOW to advance women's civil rights.
Captain America was originally produced in the 1940s to promote American patriotism during World War 2. He was fighting against the Nazis. Captain America was reintroduced in 1953 during the Red Scare and Cold War, suggesting he was now fighting against communism and the Soviet Union. The document discusses how Captain America's character and purpose changed to reflect the fears and ideology of the times in America. It prompts students to consider what Captain America represented during different eras and how superhero stories can be influenced by their social context.
The Beat Generation was a group of American writers in the late 1940s-1950s who rebelled against conformity and mainstream culture. Key figures included Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg, and William S. Burroughs. They experimented with sexuality, Eastern religion, and drugs. Ginsberg's poem "Howl" came to define the Beat movement, chronicling the destruction of a generation. The Beat writers sought to defy conventions and write openly about their experiences on the margins of society.
The Beat Generation refers to a group of American writers who became popular in the 1950s, such as Allen Ginsberg, Jack Kerouac, and William S. Burroughs. They rejected materialism and embraced Eastern religion, experimentation with drugs and sexuality. Their writings inspired a cultural phenomenon known as the "Beat" lifestyle and paved the way for the 1960s counterculture movement. The Beat Generation had influences such as the liberation of censorship and spread of environmental awareness.
The Birmingham and Washington marches were important for raising awareness of civil rights issues. The 1963 March on Washington involved over 250,000 demonstrators gathering to demand equal rights. It was a huge success as it brought national attention to the civil rights movement and put pressure on President Kennedy to take action. Martin Luther King Jr.'s iconic "I Have a Dream" speech emphasized the Christian values of brotherhood and hope and helped unite Americans around the cause of racial equality.
To evaluate the impact of McCarthy’s charges; assess the views of his critics; question why Eisenhower didn’t do more to stop him; and articulate reasons for his downfall in 1954
This document provides an overview of the rise of conservatism in America from 1968-1980, outlining key events, figures, and issues. It summarizes speeches, writings, and campaigns from figures like George Wallace, Spiro Agnew, Richard Nixon, Phyllis Schlafly, and Ronald Reagan. These conveyed messages about states' rights, law and order, traditional values, small government, a strong military, and opposing liberal policies. The document also discusses the growth of conservative organizations advocating for issues like gun rights, traditional family structures, and a free market economy.
The document discusses the causes and growth of the Red Scare in the United States after World War 2. Key events that contributed to rising anti-communist fear and paranoia included the spread of communism in Europe, the Soviet development of nuclear weapons, China falling to communism, and the start of the Korean War. Within the US, investigations by the House Un-American Activities Committee and Federal Bureau of Investigation targeted suspected communists, especially in Hollywood and the federal government. This led to blacklists and prosecutions like the Hollywood Ten and Alger Hiss case, fueling further anti-communist hysteria and laws restricting civil liberties.
The women's rights movement developed due to growing dissatisfaction among women with traditional gender roles following World War 2. During the war, many women had taken on jobs formerly restricted to men, giving them a taste of independence. However, postwar society encouraged women to return to being homemakers. Over time, factors like higher education rates, more women in the workforce, and new social movements empowered women to demand equal rights and challenge societal expectations. Influential figures like Eleanor Roosevelt and Betty Friedan played key roles in advocating for women's issues and establishing organizations like NOW to advance women's civil rights.
Captain America was originally produced in the 1940s to promote American patriotism during World War 2. He was fighting against the Nazis. Captain America was reintroduced in 1953 during the Red Scare and Cold War, suggesting he was now fighting against communism and the Soviet Union. The document discusses how Captain America's character and purpose changed to reflect the fears and ideology of the times in America. It prompts students to consider what Captain America represented during different eras and how superhero stories can be influenced by their social context.
The Beat Generation was a group of American writers in the late 1940s-1950s who rebelled against conformity and mainstream culture. Key figures included Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg, and William S. Burroughs. They experimented with sexuality, Eastern religion, and drugs. Ginsberg's poem "Howl" came to define the Beat movement, chronicling the destruction of a generation. The Beat writers sought to defy conventions and write openly about their experiences on the margins of society.
The Beat Generation refers to a group of American writers who became popular in the 1950s, such as Allen Ginsberg, Jack Kerouac, and William S. Burroughs. They rejected materialism and embraced Eastern religion, experimentation with drugs and sexuality. Their writings inspired a cultural phenomenon known as the "Beat" lifestyle and paved the way for the 1960s counterculture movement. The Beat Generation had influences such as the liberation of censorship and spread of environmental awareness.
The Birmingham and Washington marches were important for raising awareness of civil rights issues. The 1963 March on Washington involved over 250,000 demonstrators gathering to demand equal rights. It was a huge success as it brought national attention to the civil rights movement and put pressure on President Kennedy to take action. Martin Luther King Jr.'s iconic "I Have a Dream" speech emphasized the Christian values of brotherhood and hope and helped unite Americans around the cause of racial equality.
To evaluate the impact of McCarthy’s charges; assess the views of his critics; question why Eisenhower didn’t do more to stop him; and articulate reasons for his downfall in 1954
The Beat Generation was a literary, cultural, and artistic movement that began in the 1950s in response to post-World War II consumerism and conformity. Key figures like Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg, and William Burroughs criticized issues like the Vietnam War, racial discrimination, and sexual oppression through their works. They popularized themes of nonconformity, experimentation, and questioning traditional values, influencing Western culture by breaking from mainstream society.
The Beat Generation refers to a group of American writers in the 1950s who documented and inspired a cultural phenomenon. Key aspects of Beat culture included experimentation with drugs, alternative sexuality, Eastern religion, anti-materialism, and exuberant self-expression. Major Beat works included Allen Ginsberg's Howl, William S. Burroughs' Naked Lunch, and Jack Kerouac's On the Road. The Beat Generation influenced later movements like the sexual revolution, women's liberation, and the evolution of rock music from rhythm and blues.
This document provides an overview of major social and political events in the United States during the 1960s. It discusses the civil rights movement, the Vietnam War protests, and the rise of other social movements advocating for women's, gay, and environmental rights. The decade was characterized by widespread social unrest and activism focused on issues of racial equality, individual freedoms, and opposition to the Vietnam War. Lyndon Johnson launched major civil rights reforms and anti-poverty programs as protests and unrest intensified.
The document discusses the rise of the Black Power movement in the 1960s. It began with Malcolm X advocating for black self-determination and control of the civil rights movement. The term "Black Power" was coined in 1967 and became an ideology for black youth calling for an end to white power. The Vietnam War also divided black America as blacks made up a disproportionate number of casualties. Martin Luther King Jr.'s opposition to the war shifted blacks' views and led to attempts to discredit him, culminating in his 1968 assassination. The Black Power movement inspired black separatism and nationalism through literature and art and groups like the Black Panthers.
The Beat Generation was a group of American writers in the 1950s known for rejecting social and literary conventions. Key figures included Allen Ginsberg, William S. Burroughs, and Jack Kerouac. They met as students at Columbia University and were influenced by Eastern religion, alternative lifestyles, and experimentation with drugs. Ginsberg's poem "Howl" and Burroughs' novel "Naked Lunch" addressed taboo topics and helped liberalize publishing. Their works had an anti-establishment message and documented underground cultures, influencing the counterculture of the 1960s.
The document provides background information on the student protest movement of the 1960s. It discusses key events, organizations, and issues that students protested including:
- The Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) which advocated for greater student involvement in university governance.
- Protests against the Vietnam War as many students were drafted to fight. Opposition grew due to the rising death toll and US military tactics.
- Support for the Civil Rights Movement through freedom rides, marches, and sit-ins to end racial discrimination and segregation.
- The developing hippie counterculture that rejected mainstream values and advocated for free love, art, music and drug experimentation.
The document provides context on
The Black Power Movement grew out of the Civil Rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s, sparked by Stokely Carmichael's popularization of the term in 1966. While sharing similar goals of racial equality, the Black Power Movement advocated a more militant approach and focused on instilling racial pride and self-determination among Black Americans. The movement saw the establishment of Black studies programs, increased interest in African heritage, and the growth of the Black Arts movement, though it began to decline by the late 1970s.
The Beat Generation were a group of American writers who emerged in the 1950s in response to World War II and rejection of prevailing middle-class values. Key members included Allen Ginsberg, whose poem Howl criticized restrictive American assumptions, and Gary Snyder, whose work resisted cultural authority. The Beat poets wrote in a spontaneous style with free verse and sought to bring poetry to the streets. Their work was influenced by Romantic poets and jazz music and explored themes of politics, Buddhism, and social commentary.
Discussion of the formation of the USSR from the Old Russia after the Russian Civil War. Stalin's take over of power in 1928. His tragic rule of the USSR the use of the Secret Police and the beginning of the "Terror": Introduction to the faces of murder.
The document provides biographical information on American reformer and suffragist Frances Willard. It states that Willard became president of the Woman's Christian Temperance Union in 1879 and remained president for 19 years. Under her leadership, the WCTU lobbied Congress and petitioned for laws promoting women's rights. Willard played an instrumental role in the passage of the 18th and 19th Amendments, prohibiting alcohol and granting women the right to vote. Her vision also expanded to include issues like education, workers' rights, and public health.
The Black Power Movement grew out of frustrations with the pace of progress of the Civil Rights Movement. Younger black activists felt non-violent protest was no longer effective and advocated for black pride, power, and self-defense. Key leaders included Stokely Carmichael and the Black Panthers. They appealed to urban black youth and sought black political power, pride, and autonomy. While they drew attention to issues facing black communities, their militant tactics damaged the cooperation achieved through non-violent protests and reduced white support for the Civil Rights Movement. Overall, the Black Power Movement had both positive and negative impacts on efforts to achieve racial equality.
Who Are New Afrikan Political Prisoners and Prisoners of WarRBG Communiversity
This document discusses New Afrikan political prisoners and prisoners of war. It explains that they are imprisoned due to their participation in progressive and revolutionary political movements, not for criminal acts. They worked to build resistance movements and make political changes. As participants in these movements, we have an obligation to support political prisoners who were imprisoned for their activism and resistance. The document provides context on the Black Liberation Army and other underground organizations that advocated for and used armed struggle against systems of oppression like racism, sexism, and capitalism. Many former members of these groups are still imprisoned today.
Joseph Stalin (18 December 1878 – 5 March 1953), born Ioseb Besarionis Dze Jugashvili, was dictator of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (the U.S.S.R or the Soviet Union) from the mid-1920s until his death in 1953. His subsequent reign of terror cemented him as one of the most ruthless and murderous dictators in history. His system of government was known as Stalinism.
"U.S. Neoconservatism, Education and the Critique of Liberalism.'
Neoconservatism is a US phenomenon that at one level represents a historical and ideological reaction to the sixties counter cultural revolution that established new freedoms for Blacks, students, women, gays, and 'cultural minorities'.
The presentation also charts the significance of education as a battleground against multiculturalism and as a basis for a resocialization and neoconservative remoralisation of education.
1. The document discusses the rise of neoconservatism in the US as a reaction against the social movements of the 1960s that pushed for civil rights and greater social freedoms. These movements included the civil rights movement for Black Americans as well as students, women, and gay rights groups.
2. Neoconservatism emerged as a critique of liberalism and rollback of the new social freedoms and rights won during this era. Central to the neoconservative view was challenging the status of the Vietnam War and promoting a more aggressive assertion of American values abroad.
3. The origins and development of neoconservative thought are traced back to intellectuals influenced by the political philosopher Leo Strauss at
The History of ReconstructionBackground Many Americans like.docxSUBHI7
The document provides background on the Reconstruction period in American history after the Civil War. It notes that African Americans enjoyed significant political influence and rights from 1867 to 1875 during Reconstruction, more than before or after, which challenges the common American narrative of continual progress toward greater equality. The document outlines primary sources on Reconstruction to assist with analyzing whether the goals of Radical Reconstruction were feasible, if drastic societal transformation can occur through government action, and if a more gradual approach may have been more successful or had different costs.
The document discusses the Cold War at home in the United States from 1945-1991. It describes how fears of communism grew after FDR's death and the Yalta Conference. J. Edgar Hoover and Senator Joseph McCarthy led campaigns claiming the government was infiltrated by communists. This led to investigations like the HUAC hearings and blacklisting of thousands from Hollywood and government. While communist governments still exist, the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991 marked a decline in fears of communism in the United States.
The 1960s was a turbulent decade in America marked by civil rights struggles, opposition to the Vietnam War, and the rise of a counterculture movement. Literature, music, and art reflected and helped shaped this period of social and political change. Pop artists like Andy Warhol appropriated images of consumer culture to challenge conventions of fine art. Events like the Kent State massacre and the Civil Rights movement further fueled anti-war and anti-establishment sentiments that permeated 1960s culture.
Paper#1In his great work, Black Reconstruction in America 1860.docxsmile790243
Paper#1
In his great work,
Black Reconstruction in America 1860 to 1880
, historian W.E.B. Du Bois wrote this: "One reads the truer deeper facts of Reconstruction with a great despair. It is at once so simple and human, and yet so futile. There is no villain, no idiot, no saint. There are just men; men who crave ease and power, men who know want and hunger, men who have crawled."
Assess the events of Reconstruction from the perspective of the nearly four million newly freed Americans in the South, starting with the death of Lincoln and ending with the Compromise of 1877. What went right? What went wrong? What would you have done differently?
Make sure to provide authoritative sources in APA format.
B., D. B. (1962).
Black Reconstruction in America 1860-1880
. World Publishing.
Paper#2
Theodore Roosevelt was one of the most complex figures in our nation's history. He was also president during a period in which, before radio or TV, political cartoons in newspapers truly flourished. Choose one cartoon of TR and explain its meaning. What is the issue at hand? Is it a positive portrayal of TR or a negative one and what is your evidence for your opinion? Finally, what does the cartoon reveal about TR's character? Make sure to paste the cartoon you investigate below your response!
Paper#3
Many people do not realize that Dr. Seuss (Theodor Seuss Geisel), was a political cartoonist as America entered and fought World War II. His cartoons during this period address many issues, from the dangers of Nazism to racism here at home. (The cartoon below, for example, mocks isolationism and the 'America First' movement.)
Choose one cartoon from Dr. Seuss from the 1930's or 1940's and explain its larger historical context. Who or what is being addressed and what do you feel Dr. Seuss is "saying" about the subject through the medium of his art? Do you feel Dr. Seuss has a positive or a negative view toward the characters in the cartoon you select? Do you agree with Dr. Seuss' point of view in the cartoon you select?
Make sure to paste the cartoon you investigate below your response!
Make sure to provide authoritative sources in APA format.
Paper#4
From November 1963 to January 1969, Lyndon B. Johnson served as president during some of the nation's most tumultuous years since the Civil War.
Assess his presidency. What were his accomplishments? What were his failures? Overall, did Johnson have a positive impact on America or a negative one and what is the historical evidence that supports your view? Make sure to bring in foreign and domestic issues and events to support your views.
Make sure to provide authoritative sources in APA format.
Paper#5
In a series of speeches in 1967, Dr. King first used the phrase "two Americas" to describe the link between racism and economic inequality. John Edwards, the Democratic nominee for Vice President in 2004, popularized this phrase, using "two Americas" to refer to the increased so.
The Beat Generation was a literary, cultural, and artistic movement that began in the 1950s in response to post-World War II consumerism and conformity. Key figures like Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg, and William Burroughs criticized issues like the Vietnam War, racial discrimination, and sexual oppression through their works. They popularized themes of nonconformity, experimentation, and questioning traditional values, influencing Western culture by breaking from mainstream society.
The Beat Generation refers to a group of American writers in the 1950s who documented and inspired a cultural phenomenon. Key aspects of Beat culture included experimentation with drugs, alternative sexuality, Eastern religion, anti-materialism, and exuberant self-expression. Major Beat works included Allen Ginsberg's Howl, William S. Burroughs' Naked Lunch, and Jack Kerouac's On the Road. The Beat Generation influenced later movements like the sexual revolution, women's liberation, and the evolution of rock music from rhythm and blues.
This document provides an overview of major social and political events in the United States during the 1960s. It discusses the civil rights movement, the Vietnam War protests, and the rise of other social movements advocating for women's, gay, and environmental rights. The decade was characterized by widespread social unrest and activism focused on issues of racial equality, individual freedoms, and opposition to the Vietnam War. Lyndon Johnson launched major civil rights reforms and anti-poverty programs as protests and unrest intensified.
The document discusses the rise of the Black Power movement in the 1960s. It began with Malcolm X advocating for black self-determination and control of the civil rights movement. The term "Black Power" was coined in 1967 and became an ideology for black youth calling for an end to white power. The Vietnam War also divided black America as blacks made up a disproportionate number of casualties. Martin Luther King Jr.'s opposition to the war shifted blacks' views and led to attempts to discredit him, culminating in his 1968 assassination. The Black Power movement inspired black separatism and nationalism through literature and art and groups like the Black Panthers.
The Beat Generation was a group of American writers in the 1950s known for rejecting social and literary conventions. Key figures included Allen Ginsberg, William S. Burroughs, and Jack Kerouac. They met as students at Columbia University and were influenced by Eastern religion, alternative lifestyles, and experimentation with drugs. Ginsberg's poem "Howl" and Burroughs' novel "Naked Lunch" addressed taboo topics and helped liberalize publishing. Their works had an anti-establishment message and documented underground cultures, influencing the counterculture of the 1960s.
The document provides background information on the student protest movement of the 1960s. It discusses key events, organizations, and issues that students protested including:
- The Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) which advocated for greater student involvement in university governance.
- Protests against the Vietnam War as many students were drafted to fight. Opposition grew due to the rising death toll and US military tactics.
- Support for the Civil Rights Movement through freedom rides, marches, and sit-ins to end racial discrimination and segregation.
- The developing hippie counterculture that rejected mainstream values and advocated for free love, art, music and drug experimentation.
The document provides context on
The Black Power Movement grew out of the Civil Rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s, sparked by Stokely Carmichael's popularization of the term in 1966. While sharing similar goals of racial equality, the Black Power Movement advocated a more militant approach and focused on instilling racial pride and self-determination among Black Americans. The movement saw the establishment of Black studies programs, increased interest in African heritage, and the growth of the Black Arts movement, though it began to decline by the late 1970s.
The Beat Generation were a group of American writers who emerged in the 1950s in response to World War II and rejection of prevailing middle-class values. Key members included Allen Ginsberg, whose poem Howl criticized restrictive American assumptions, and Gary Snyder, whose work resisted cultural authority. The Beat poets wrote in a spontaneous style with free verse and sought to bring poetry to the streets. Their work was influenced by Romantic poets and jazz music and explored themes of politics, Buddhism, and social commentary.
Discussion of the formation of the USSR from the Old Russia after the Russian Civil War. Stalin's take over of power in 1928. His tragic rule of the USSR the use of the Secret Police and the beginning of the "Terror": Introduction to the faces of murder.
The document provides biographical information on American reformer and suffragist Frances Willard. It states that Willard became president of the Woman's Christian Temperance Union in 1879 and remained president for 19 years. Under her leadership, the WCTU lobbied Congress and petitioned for laws promoting women's rights. Willard played an instrumental role in the passage of the 18th and 19th Amendments, prohibiting alcohol and granting women the right to vote. Her vision also expanded to include issues like education, workers' rights, and public health.
The Black Power Movement grew out of frustrations with the pace of progress of the Civil Rights Movement. Younger black activists felt non-violent protest was no longer effective and advocated for black pride, power, and self-defense. Key leaders included Stokely Carmichael and the Black Panthers. They appealed to urban black youth and sought black political power, pride, and autonomy. While they drew attention to issues facing black communities, their militant tactics damaged the cooperation achieved through non-violent protests and reduced white support for the Civil Rights Movement. Overall, the Black Power Movement had both positive and negative impacts on efforts to achieve racial equality.
Who Are New Afrikan Political Prisoners and Prisoners of WarRBG Communiversity
This document discusses New Afrikan political prisoners and prisoners of war. It explains that they are imprisoned due to their participation in progressive and revolutionary political movements, not for criminal acts. They worked to build resistance movements and make political changes. As participants in these movements, we have an obligation to support political prisoners who were imprisoned for their activism and resistance. The document provides context on the Black Liberation Army and other underground organizations that advocated for and used armed struggle against systems of oppression like racism, sexism, and capitalism. Many former members of these groups are still imprisoned today.
Joseph Stalin (18 December 1878 – 5 March 1953), born Ioseb Besarionis Dze Jugashvili, was dictator of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (the U.S.S.R or the Soviet Union) from the mid-1920s until his death in 1953. His subsequent reign of terror cemented him as one of the most ruthless and murderous dictators in history. His system of government was known as Stalinism.
"U.S. Neoconservatism, Education and the Critique of Liberalism.'
Neoconservatism is a US phenomenon that at one level represents a historical and ideological reaction to the sixties counter cultural revolution that established new freedoms for Blacks, students, women, gays, and 'cultural minorities'.
The presentation also charts the significance of education as a battleground against multiculturalism and as a basis for a resocialization and neoconservative remoralisation of education.
1. The document discusses the rise of neoconservatism in the US as a reaction against the social movements of the 1960s that pushed for civil rights and greater social freedoms. These movements included the civil rights movement for Black Americans as well as students, women, and gay rights groups.
2. Neoconservatism emerged as a critique of liberalism and rollback of the new social freedoms and rights won during this era. Central to the neoconservative view was challenging the status of the Vietnam War and promoting a more aggressive assertion of American values abroad.
3. The origins and development of neoconservative thought are traced back to intellectuals influenced by the political philosopher Leo Strauss at
The History of ReconstructionBackground Many Americans like.docxSUBHI7
The document provides background on the Reconstruction period in American history after the Civil War. It notes that African Americans enjoyed significant political influence and rights from 1867 to 1875 during Reconstruction, more than before or after, which challenges the common American narrative of continual progress toward greater equality. The document outlines primary sources on Reconstruction to assist with analyzing whether the goals of Radical Reconstruction were feasible, if drastic societal transformation can occur through government action, and if a more gradual approach may have been more successful or had different costs.
The document discusses the Cold War at home in the United States from 1945-1991. It describes how fears of communism grew after FDR's death and the Yalta Conference. J. Edgar Hoover and Senator Joseph McCarthy led campaigns claiming the government was infiltrated by communists. This led to investigations like the HUAC hearings and blacklisting of thousands from Hollywood and government. While communist governments still exist, the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991 marked a decline in fears of communism in the United States.
The 1960s was a turbulent decade in America marked by civil rights struggles, opposition to the Vietnam War, and the rise of a counterculture movement. Literature, music, and art reflected and helped shaped this period of social and political change. Pop artists like Andy Warhol appropriated images of consumer culture to challenge conventions of fine art. Events like the Kent State massacre and the Civil Rights movement further fueled anti-war and anti-establishment sentiments that permeated 1960s culture.
Paper#1In his great work, Black Reconstruction in America 1860.docxsmile790243
Paper#1
In his great work,
Black Reconstruction in America 1860 to 1880
, historian W.E.B. Du Bois wrote this: "One reads the truer deeper facts of Reconstruction with a great despair. It is at once so simple and human, and yet so futile. There is no villain, no idiot, no saint. There are just men; men who crave ease and power, men who know want and hunger, men who have crawled."
Assess the events of Reconstruction from the perspective of the nearly four million newly freed Americans in the South, starting with the death of Lincoln and ending with the Compromise of 1877. What went right? What went wrong? What would you have done differently?
Make sure to provide authoritative sources in APA format.
B., D. B. (1962).
Black Reconstruction in America 1860-1880
. World Publishing.
Paper#2
Theodore Roosevelt was one of the most complex figures in our nation's history. He was also president during a period in which, before radio or TV, political cartoons in newspapers truly flourished. Choose one cartoon of TR and explain its meaning. What is the issue at hand? Is it a positive portrayal of TR or a negative one and what is your evidence for your opinion? Finally, what does the cartoon reveal about TR's character? Make sure to paste the cartoon you investigate below your response!
Paper#3
Many people do not realize that Dr. Seuss (Theodor Seuss Geisel), was a political cartoonist as America entered and fought World War II. His cartoons during this period address many issues, from the dangers of Nazism to racism here at home. (The cartoon below, for example, mocks isolationism and the 'America First' movement.)
Choose one cartoon from Dr. Seuss from the 1930's or 1940's and explain its larger historical context. Who or what is being addressed and what do you feel Dr. Seuss is "saying" about the subject through the medium of his art? Do you feel Dr. Seuss has a positive or a negative view toward the characters in the cartoon you select? Do you agree with Dr. Seuss' point of view in the cartoon you select?
Make sure to paste the cartoon you investigate below your response!
Make sure to provide authoritative sources in APA format.
Paper#4
From November 1963 to January 1969, Lyndon B. Johnson served as president during some of the nation's most tumultuous years since the Civil War.
Assess his presidency. What were his accomplishments? What were his failures? Overall, did Johnson have a positive impact on America or a negative one and what is the historical evidence that supports your view? Make sure to bring in foreign and domestic issues and events to support your views.
Make sure to provide authoritative sources in APA format.
Paper#5
In a series of speeches in 1967, Dr. King first used the phrase "two Americas" to describe the link between racism and economic inequality. John Edwards, the Democratic nominee for Vice President in 2004, popularized this phrase, using "two Americas" to refer to the increased so.
Jacob Riis was a Danish American social reformer, muckraking journalist, and social documentary photographer in the late 19th century known for using photography and writing to help impoverished communities in New York City and improve living conditions for lower class citizens through model tenement projects. He is considered a pioneer in photography for his use of a newly practicable flash.
White Papers ( Skull And Bones) By Goldstein & SteinbergSlipknoo
This document provides an overview of the secret society known as Skull & Bones at Yale University, of which U.S. President George H.W. Bush is a member. It details the society's origins and influential alumni, and argues that the society's worldview of an American-led "New World Order" shapes U.S. foreign policy under Bush, particularly regarding the Middle East. The society seeks to establish undisputed U.S. control over global affairs and oil reserves through networks within government and policy institutions.
This document discusses the history of African Americans and the civil rights movement in the United States. It covers slavery in the 18th-19th centuries, racial segregation laws, important court cases like Plessy v. Ferguson and Brown v. Board of Education, and civil rights leaders including Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King Jr., and Malcolm X. It also examines literary works and films that helped African Americans express themselves and reclaim their cultural identity and history.
Media Popular Culture, and the American CenturyKate Doronina
Edited by Kingsley Bolton and Jan Olsson,
Sweden, 2010
Introduction: Mediated America: Americana as Hollywoodiana
Part 1: Cinema and Americanization
Part 2: Americans at the Margins
Part 3: American Dreams/American Nightmares
Part 4: America Goes Digital
The document discusses several key aspects of life in the United States during the 1950s. It describes the political landscape dominated by fears of communism and Dwight Eisenhower's presidency. It also examines the civil rights movement sparked by Rosa Parks and led by MLK Jr. Rock and roll emerged as a popular new genre, while suburban life grew due to post-war housing demands and the baby boom. Eisenhower sent troops to integrate Little Rock Central High School when the governor blocked black students from attending.
Abraham Lincoln And The Corwin Amendment - The Infamous Ghost Version Of Th...Luz Martinez
1) Abraham Lincoln initially supported the Corwin Amendment in early 1861, which would have made slavery permanent in the US Constitution by prohibiting any future amendments to interfere with slavery in the states. 2) The Corwin Amendment passed both houses of Congress with two-thirds support before Lincoln took office. 3) While Lincoln was personally opposed to the expansion of slavery, he took pragmatic stances to prevent secession, showing he was willing to compromise on slavery to preserve the Union.
Popular Criticisms & Reforms of the US Judicial BranchGerry Huesken
The document outlines several major criticisms of the US judicial system. It discusses issues with lengthy sentences for minor crimes, racial disparities, concerns around individual rights protections, secret court proceedings, judicial activism interfering in politics, lifetime appointments, high incarceration costs, and outside money influencing decisions. Potential reforms proposed include increasing transparency, simplifying criminal law, prioritizing rehabilitation over incarceration, tort reform, and strengthening anti-corruption efforts.
Forget football: How fantasy sports are helping kids learnGerry Huesken
1) A history teacher created Fantasy Geopolitics, an online fantasy sports-style game, to engage students in world events and current affairs.
2) Students draft countries and earn points based on how frequently their countries are mentioned in news reports. Over 50,000 students and 1,000 teachers now use the platform.
3) The game encourages students to closely follow news about their countries and others to gain competitive advantages, leading them to study news more deeply. Teachers report improved test scores and connections students make between current and historical events.
Fantasy football meets social studies in Elizabethtown classroom - LancasterO...Gerry Huesken
Gerald Huesken, a teacher at Elizabethtown High School, is using a game called Fantasy Geopolitics to engage students in current events in their world history class. In Fantasy Geopolitics, students draft countries to assemble fantasy teams and earn points based on how frequently their countries appear in the news. This sparks discussion as students follow headlines to gain points. The game is helping students who may not usually be interested in news that does not directly affect them to learn more about global events.
This document provides background information on Mark Twain's later writings criticizing American imperialism between the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It discusses Twain's initial literary success followed by financial struggles in the late 1800s. It then covers his worldwide speaking tour in the 1890s and his return to the US, when he began engaging in anti-imperialist activities. The purpose of the paper is to examine how historians have studied and interpreted Twain's anti-imperialist works over time and whether perceptions of them have changed.
Pope John Paul II visited Vendee, France in 1984 to pay tribute to 99 Catholics killed in an anti-government uprising during the French Revolution's Reign of Terror in 1793. His visit and words referring to "deeds...stained by sin" on both sides reignited the historical debate around the uprising. In particular, it brought more attention to the controversial thesis of historian Reynald Secher that the violence against Vendee's Catholics constituted a "Franco-French genocide". The Pope's visit highlighted the ongoing controversy around how to characterize the violent suppression of the Vendee uprising during the Revolution.
This document discusses the formation of the Czechoslovak Legion during WWI and its effects on Czechoslovakia's treatment during later eras. The Legion was formed by Czech and Slovak volunteers fighting under the Allies to help establish an independent Czech state after the war, in line with Woodrow Wilson's principle of self-determination. However, the Legion's actions also made Czechoslovakia a target for political revenge by the Soviet Union during WWII and the Cold War. The paper will examine the Legion's role in WWI, the Russian Civil War, and early Czech statehood to understand how it impacted Czechoslovakia's treatment in the later 20th century.
1. 1
|
P a g e
The
Motivations
of
a
Censor:
A
Study
of
Dr.
Ellis
P.
Oberholtzer
and
The
Effects
of
his
Times
on
the
Pennsylvania
Board
of
Censor
(Motion
Pictures)
Gerald
G.
Huesken
Jr.
HIST
610:
Seminar
in
United
States
History
Dr.
Ronald
Frankum
August
25,
2012
Figure
1:
The
Board's
Official
Seal
of
Approval,
cir
1917
(Pennsylvania
State
Archives,
Harrisburg)
2. 2
|
P a g e
Introduction
-‐
Critiquing
Richard
C.
Saylor
and
his
Work
on
the
Pennsylvania
Board
of
Censor
and
Dr.
Ellis
P.
Oberholtzer:
When
looking
back
over
the
history
of
the
United
States,
no
topic
has
spawned
more
controversy
than
the
issue
of
censorship
and
when
(or
if)
government-‐sponsored
suppression
of
information
is
appropriate,
especially
in
times
of
perceived
national
crisis.
Regardless
of
the
time
period,
there
have
always
been
those
who
believed
they
were
acting
in
the
best
interest
of
society
(the
"censor")
and
those
who
believed
that
any
suppression
was
an
infringement
on
their
rights
as
an
American
citizen.
It
is
within
this
vain
of
historical
scholarship
that
Pennsylvania
archivist
Richard
C.
Saylor
produced
an
article
on
the
history
of
the
Pennsylvania
Board
of
Censor
for
motion
pictures
for
a
2004
edition
of
the
academic
journal,
Film
History.
While
looking
to
present
an
"interesting
case
study
of
government-‐legislated
censorship
boards",
Mr.
Saylor
also
attempted
to
show
the
reader
some
insight
into
the
motivating
factors
of
one
of
the
board's
earliest
and
most
influential
leaders,
Pennsylvania
historian
Dr.
Ellis
P.
Oberholtzer.1
Well-‐respected
in
his
time
as
the
biographer
of
prominent
American
historical
figures
such
as
Abraham
Lincoln
and
Henry
Clay
as
well
as
the
creator
of
an
early
seminal
work
of
American
historical
scholarship
(the
multi-‐volume
A
History
of
the
United
States
since
the
Civil
War),
Oberholtzer
served
on
the
Board
of
Censor
from
1915
until
his
dismissal
in
1920.
Throughout
this
period,
Oberholtzer,
according
to
Saylor,
would
become
not
just
a
force
for
movie
censorship
in
the
state
of
Pennsylvania,
1
Saylor, Richard C. "Dr. Ellis Paxson Oberholtzer and the Early Years of the Pennsylvania State Board of Censors
(Motion Picture)." Film History: An International Journal 16.2 (2004): 142. Print.
Figure
2:
Dr.
Ellis
P.
Oberholtzer
cir.
1936
(Temple
University
Archives,
Philadelphia)
3. 3
|
P a g e
but
an
advocate
and
spokesperson
for
the
practice
nationwide
as
well
as
a
campaigner
for
more
Federal
control
over
the
motion
picture
industry.2
It
is
with
this
in
mind,
that
Saylor
tried
to
provide
a
rational
means
to
explain
Oberholtzer's
motivations
for
accepting
such
a
calling.
To
Saylor,
the
answer
lies
in
Oberholtzer's
desire
to
"save
Americans
from
themselves"
and
argues
that
Oberholtzer
believed
he
was
performing
a
vital
service
justified
by
"a
moral
obligation
to
eliminate
salacious
material
from
films
before
the
masses
were
subject
to
its
negative
influence",
an
obligation
that
had
to
be
done
objectively
and
without
the
influence
of
partisan
politics
or
pressure
for
motion
picture
industry.
3
In
Saylor
approximation,
Oberholtzer
was
driven
by
these
moral
convictions
of
public
service
and
his
passion
for
the
betterment
of
American
society.4
When
looking
at
the
historical
record
of
Oberholtzer,
who
carefully
crafted
his
historical
image
for
posterity
with
the
publication
of
numerous
articles,
speeches,
and
even
a
full-‐length
book
(1922's
The
Morals
of
the
Movie),
it
is
easy
to
see
what
Saylor
sees
-‐
a
patriotic
American
citizen
concerned
with
the
direction
of
his
country
and
betterment
of
his
fellow
citizens.
"I
am
no
friend
of
the
censor...or
for
the
matter...any
name
or
political
order
which
suggests
government
control,"
wrote
Oberholtzer
in
the
preface
to
The
Morals
of
the
Movie,
"Indeed
I
am
an
individualist
who
would
dwell...in
complete
freedom
[
if
possible]."5
While
it
is
safe
to
assume,
as
Saylor
has,
that
Oberholtzer
truly
saw
himself
as
a
champion
for
public
good
during
an
era
of
Progressive-‐minded
reform,
the
reality
of
the
situation
is
that
human
beings
are
not
completely
ignorant
of
other
competing
factors,
specifically
one's
class,
politics,
or
survival.
In
looking
at
the
primary
and
secondary
sources
available
both
at
the
Pennsylvania
State
Archives
in
Harrisburg
and
Oberholtzer's
surviving
personal
papers
at
the
Historical
Society
of
Pennsylvania
in
Philadelphia,
a
different
picture
of
Pennsylvania's
famed
motion
picture
watchdog
starts
2
Saylor, Richard C. "Dr. Ellis Paxson Oberholtzer and the Early Years of the Pennsylvania State Board of Censors
(Motion Picture)." Film History: An International Journal 16.2 (2004): 145-153. Print.
3
Saylor 159, 146
4
Saylor, Richard C. "Dr. Ellis Paxson Oberholtzer and the Early Years of the Pennsylvania State Board of Censors
(Motion Picture)." Film History: An International Journal 16.2 (2004): 146-150. Print.
5
Oberholtzer, Ellis P. Preface. The Morals of the Movie. Philadelphia: Penn, 1922. 6. Print.
4. 4
|
P a g e
to
emerge.
While
Oberholtzer
may
have
prided
himself
as
politically
impartial
and
morally
objective,
the
evidence
speak
to
a
man
driven
by
relatively
common
class
fears
and
social
norms.
It
is
without
argument
that
Oberholtzer
obviously
fit
into
the
upper
class
of
American
society,
a
noted
and
wealthy
intellectual
who
was
not
immune
to
the
concerns
of
others
like
him.
When
looking
at
the
historical
evidence
through
this
lens,
Saylor's
image
of
the
morally-‐upright
and
objective
Oberholtzer
lessens
and
a
new
image
emerges
of
a
man
with
a
growing
nativist
fear
of
the
influence
of
motion
pictures
over
the
immigrant
and
working
classes,
anxious
over
a
preserved
breakdown
of
law
and
order
due
to
depiction
of
law
enforcement
officials
in
the
movies,
intolerant
of
the
evolving
female
gender
roles
due
to
the
influence
of
movies,
and
far
from
politically
objective
when
conducting
the
business
of
the
state.
5. 5
|
P a g e
Part
I
-‐
Background
to
the
Pennsylvania
Board
of
Censor
and
Dr.
Ellis
P.
Oberholtzer:
The
history
behind
the
Pennsylvania
motion
picture
Board
of
Censor
is
one
that
is
born
out
of
the
Progressive
era
reforms
of
the
early
Twentieth
Century.
The
bill,
P.L
1067,
calling
for
the
creation
of
a
state
'Board
of
Censor'
for
the
overseeing
of
motion
pictures,
was
adopted
in
the
spring
of
1911,
with
both
houses
of
the
Pennsylvania
General
Assembly
voting
in
unanimous
support.6
When
the
bill
was
eventually
signed
into
law
by
Governor
John
Kinley
Tener,
Pennsylvania
became
the
first
state
in
the
Union
to
have
a
legislatively
created
board
of
censor
for
the
purpose
of
viewing
and
editing
motion
pictures.7
The
originally
reading
of
the
new
law
provided
for
the
governor
to
nominate
two
censors
(one
male
and
one
female)
for
a
period
of
three
years
to
review
all
films
intended
to
be
shown
in
Pennsylvania
and
authorized
the
Board
"to
approve
such
[films]
as
shall
be
moral,
and
to
withhold
approval
from
such
as
shall
tend
to
debase
or
corrupt
the
morals"
of
the
state's
citizenry.8
6
United States. Pennsylvania House of Representatives. Journal of the House of Representatives of the
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Part IV. Harrisburg: Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, 1912.3905-06. Print.
7
Jowett, Garth. Film: The Democratic Art. Boston: Little, Brown, 1976. 118. Print.
8
Herman P. Miller.Smull's Legislative Hand Book and Manual of the State of Pennsylvania. Harrisburg: C.E.
Aughinbaugh, 1912. 122. Print
Figure
3:
Republican
Pennsylvania
governor
John
Kinley
Tener,
who
signed
P.L.
1067,
creating
the
Pennsylvania
Board
of
Censor,
into
law,
cir.
1910
(Pennsylvania
State
Archives,
Harrisburg)
6. 6
|
P a g e
In
1915,
the
Board
of
Censor's
place
as
a
permanent
fixture
in
Pennsylvania
would
be
legitimized
by
the
Pennsylvania
Supreme
Court
and
its
ruling
in
the
case
of
Buffalo
Branch
v.
Breiting.
In
their
final
opinion,
the
justices
"expressed...that
the
promotion
of
public
morals
was
a
chief
function
of
government
"
and
that
the
"
statute
creating
a
[B]oard
of
[C]ensors
was
clearly
an
exercise
of
the
police
power
of
the
state..."9
The
legal
protection
provided
to
the
Board
of
Censor
was
further
strengthened
at
the
Federal
level
when
the
US
Supreme
Court
ruled
favorably
in
the
case
of
Mutual
Film
Corporation
v.
Industrial
Commission
of
Ohio
later
that
year.
Film
distributer
Mutual
Film
Corporation
had
brought
suit
against
the
state
of
Ohio,
claiming
that
the
state's
censorship
law
violate
their
First
Amendment
rights
and
interfered
with
interstate
commerce.10
Despite
these
arguments,
the
Court
ruled
unanimously
against
the
Mutual
Film
Corporation,
citing
that
"[the
Court
could
not]
regard
[the
censorship
of
movies]
as
beyond
the
power
of
government."11
Emboldened
by
these
judicial
decisions,
the
Pennsylvania
General
Assembly
amended
P.L.
1067
in
May
of
1915,
allowing
the
governor
to
appoint
a
second
male
member
to
the
Pennsylvania
Board
of
Censor
and
allowed
for
an
increase
in
state
funding
and
staffing
for
the
Board's
day-‐to-‐day
operations.12
The
Board
would
remain
a
part
of
the
Pennsylvania
political
landscape
until
1956.
It
was
during
this
period
of
expanding
influence
for
the
Board
that
Dr.
Ellis
P.
Oberholtzer
arrived
on
the
scene.
Born
in
Chester
County
in
1868,
Oberholtzer
was
the
son
of
a
former
school
9
Oberholtzer, Ellis Paxson. The Morals of the Movie. Philadelphia: Penn, 1922. 116. Print.
10
Aronson, Michael. Nickelodeon City: Pittsburgh at the Movies, 1905-1929. Pittsburgh, PA: University of
Pittsburgh, 2008. 167-68. Print.
11
Aronson 168.
12
United States. Pennsylvania House of Representatives. Journal of the House of Representatives of the
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Part III. Harrisburg: Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, 1916. 3205. Print.
Figure
4:
Pennsylvania
governor,
Martin
Brumbaugh,
who
appointed
Oberholtzer
to
the
Board
of
Censor,
cir.
1922
(Pennsylvania
State
Archives,
Harrisburg)
7. 7
|
P a g e
teacher,
John
Oberholtzer,
and
a
socially
conscious
mother,
Sara
Louisa
Vickers
Oberholtzer,
who
was
well-‐known
as
an
abolitionist,
poet,
and
spokeswoman
for
female
suffrage.
Educated
at
the
University
of
Pennsylvania
and
later
at
European
universities
in
Paris
and
Berlin,
Oberholtzer
found
his
true
calling
as
a
writer.
From
1889
until
1908,
he
worked
for
a
variety
of
popular
Philadelphia
newspapers
as
an
editor
and
later
branched
out
into
the
field
of
historical
study,
editing
the
popular
American
Crisis
Biographies
series
as
well
as
organizing
a
number
of
historical
pageant
parades
for
the
city
of
Philadelphia.13
In
1915,
Oberholtzer
was
gaining
a
new
reputation
as
an
accomplished
biographer
and
respected
teacher
when
he
was
nominated
by
Governor
Martin
Brumbaugh
to
be
the
newest
member
of
the
Pennsylvania
Board
of
Censor.14
"I
knew
little
indeed
about
the
motion
picture,"
admitted
Oberholtzer,
"...
I
had
only
a
dim
knowledge
of
what
lay
in
the
dramatic
shadow-‐land
to
which
[Governor
Brumbaugh
had]
invited
me.
But
I
said
that
his
tender
of
the
office
pleased
me,
and
I
was
soon
in
my
place."15
13
Glassberg, David. American Historical Pageantry: The Uses of Tradition in the Early Twentieth Century. Chapel
Hill: University of North Carolina, 1990. 46-52. Print.
14
Aronson, Michael. Nickelodeon City: Pittsburgh at the Movies, 1905-1929. Pittsburgh, PA: University of
Pittsburgh, 2008. 172. Print.
15
Oberholtzer, Ellis P. Preface. The Morals of the Movie. Philadelphia: Penn, 1922. 6-7. Print.
8. 8
|
P a g e
Part
II
-‐
Dr.
Ellis
P.
Oberholtzer:
Champion
of
the
Nativist
Upper
Class-‐
"Stories,
or
scenes,
holding
up
to
ridicule
and
reproach…classes,
or
other
social
groups...will
be
disapproved."
-‐
Section
9,
Standards
of
the
Pennsylvania
Board
of
Censor16
"Themes
or
incidents
in
pictures
stores,
which
are
designed
to
inflame
the
mind[s]...or
to
establish
false
standards...under
the...classes...will
be
disapproved."
-‐
Section
23,
Standards
of
the
Pennsylvania
Board
of
Censor17
The
social
conditions
on
the
early
Twentieth
Century
in
the
United
States
were
times
of
great
economic
and
social
change
for
the
nation.
The
introduction
of
the
Industrial
Revolution
to
the
United
States
had
produced
great
wonders
of
manufacturing
and
technology,
but
had
also
spawned
a
growing
demand
for
labor.
From
1836
to
1914,
over
thirty
million
Europeans
migrated
to
the
United
States,
hoping
to
fill
that
demand
and
start
a
new
life
in
a
new
country.18
These
immigrants
brought
new
customs,
language,
and
political
ideals
that
were
foreign
to
most
native-‐born
Americans
and
helped
to
foster
a
deep
seeded
xenophobic
fear
not
just
among
working
class
Americans
(who
looked
upon
these
newcomers
as
competition
for
their
jobs),
but
especially
among
upper
class
Americans,
who
feared
social
and
political
instability.
Once
released
into
American
society,
many
of
these
new
immigrant
citizens
had
little
working
knowledge
of
the
English
language
and
lacked
the
proper
connections
to
find
good
employment.
Living
in
horrid
conditions
in
the
slums
of
many
American
cities,
these
naturalized
16
Oberholtzer, Ellis P. Preface. The Morals of the Movie. Philadelphia: Penn, 1922. 213. Print.
17
Oberholtzer 213
18
Evans, Nicholas J. "Work in Progress: Indirect Passage from Europe Transmigration via the UK, 1836–1914."
Journal for Maritime Research 3.1 (2001): 70-84. Print.
Figure
5:
An
anti-‐immigrant
cartoon,
published
in
1898
(The
Library
of
Congress,
Washington
DC)
9. 9
|
P a g e
American
families
would
work
whatever
jobs
would
come
their
way
and
looked
for
new
ways
to
provide
an
escape
from
the
misery
of
their
daily
existence.
The
early
motion
picture
industry
provided
just
such
an
escape.
As
frequent
guests
of
the
movie
house,
not
just
in
Pennsylvania,
but
across
the
United
States,
immigrant
workers
found
that
regular
movie
showings
fit
seamlessly
into
their
work
day,
often
over
lunch
breaks
or
at
the
end
of
working
hours.19
Immigrants
were
also
drawn
to
the
movies
because
they
required
little
working
knowledge
of
English.
"The
Russian
Jews,
the
Germans,
the
Austrians,
who
[have]
not
been
in
this
country
for
a
week
and
does
not
understand
English...goes
to
the
motion
picture
theatre
because
what
he
sees
on
the
screen
is
very
real
to
him,
and
he
understands
as
well
as
the
Americans,"
explains
one
Socialist
daily
from
the
period.20
Movie
theaters
also
provided
a
nature
socialization
ground
for
not
just
immigrants,
but
for
all
working
class
Americans.
Barriers
of
ethnic
isolation,
created
by
the
segregation
of
city
neighborhoods,
were
non-‐existent
at
the
movie
houses,
where
people
could
mingle
freely.21
Despite
the
obvious
positive
effect,
some
conservative
upper-‐class
leaders
were
fearful
that
the
film
industry
could
use
its
influence
to
unite
the
diverse
ethnic
workers
as
never
before.
To
them,
movie
houses
were
becoming
less
about
leisure
and
more
about
politics,
serving
as
centers
for
immigrants
were
people
could
exchange
news,
discuss
politics,
vote,
or
present
radical
19
Aronson, Michael. Nickelodeon City: Pittsburgh at the Movies, 1905-1929. Pittsburgh, PA: University of
Pittsburgh, 2008. 20. Print.
20
Aronson 21
21
Aronson 21
Figure
6:
An
example
of
a
typical
immigrant
family
to
the
United
States
during
the
turn
of
the
Twentieth
Century,
cir.
1915
(The
Library
of
Congress,
Washington
DC)
10. 10
|
P a g e
ideas.22
The
films
that
were
being
shown
touched
on
issues
that
could
"inflame
the
passions"
of
the
working
class'
anger
towards
the
upper
classes.23
By
the
1910's,
upper
class
America
had
become
increasingly
concerned
with
the
growing
popularity
of
movies
as
an
instrument
of
political
and
social
speech.
They
saw
this
social
unrest
not
in
the
inequality
of
American
society,
but
in
the
growing
influence
of
foreign
political
ideas
such
as
Socialism
and
the
turning
of
the
motion
picture
from
a
harmless
enjoyment
to
a
vehicle
of
social
anarchy.24
As
film
historian,
author,
and
professor
of
graduate
studies
at
University
College
in
London,
Dr.
Lee
Grieveson,
pointed
out
in
his
book, Policing Cinema:
Movies and Censorship in Early Twentieth Century America,
"censorship
[was]
born
out
of
the
social
anxiety
of
the
urban
and
industrial
society."25
It
would
be
this
issue
of
limiting
the
influence
of
pro-‐
immigration
and
working
class
themes
in
the
movies
that
would
drive
the
decisions
of
censorship
advocates
like
Dr.
Ellis
P.
Oberholtzer.
While
the
records
of
the
Pennsylvania
Board
of
Censor
are
incomplete,
there
are
tantalizing
clues
to
the
growing
nativist
pressure
of
the
upper
class
and
the
issues
of
labor
and
immigration
on
the
work
of
the
Board
which
Saylor
has
overlooked.26
The
Board's
public
report
to
Governor
Brumbough
for
1915,
bears
out
the
influence
that
movies
are
having
on
the
state's
immigrant
class,
directing
the
governor's
attention
to
the
"fearful...social
implications
of
film"
and
their
ability
to
cause
a
"mania
with
many
classes."27
"...A
few
of
[the]
ills
and
misfortunes
[of
the
motion
picture]
spring
from
a
lack
of
homogeneity
in
the
population
of
the
modern
state,"
wrote
Oberholtzer
in
an
article
for
International
22
Aronson, Michael. Nickelodeon City: Pittsburgh at the Movies, 1905-1929. Pittsburgh, PA: University of
Pittsburgh, 2008. 26. Print.
23
Aronson, Michael. Nickelodeon City: Pittsburgh at the Movies, 1905-1929. Pittsburgh, PA: University of
Pittsburgh, 2008. 26-27. Print.
24
Ross, Steven Joseph. Working-Class Hollywood: Silent Film and the Shaping of Class in America. Princeton, NJ:
Princeton UP, 1998. 29. Print.
25
Grieveson, Lee. Policing Cinema: Movies and Censorship in Early-Twentieth-Century America. Berkeley:
University of California, 2004. 156. Print
26
It is important to note that the Pennsylvania Board of Censor accumulated a large mass of records during it
lifetime, but in 1958 many of these records were approved for destruction by the state. The remaining examples
have been the property of the Pennsylvania State Archives since 1970.
27
United States. Pennsylvania Board of Censor. Report of the Pennsylvania Board of Censor, June - December,
1915. By J. L. Breitinger, E. C. Niver, and Ellis P. Oberholtzer. Harrisburg: WM. Stanley Ray, 1915. 33-34. Print.
11. 11
|
P a g e
Quarterly,
"It
is
a
grouping
of
diverse
and
discordant
elements
which
work
at
cross
purposes
with
each
other."28
From
day
one,
Oberholtzer
believed
that
immigrants
were
the
perfect
target
of
movie
producers,
who
wished
to
use
their
influence
over
this
particular
group
of
people
to
further
their
own
agenda.29
Specifically,
Oberholtzer
pointed
to
the
popularity
of
melodramas
and
violent
action
/
adventure
films
known
as
"crime
serials".
"The
crime
serials
[are]
meant
for
ignorant
classes
of
the
population
with
the
grossest
tastes,"
cited
Oberholtzer,
"[These
pictures
flourish]
in
the
picture
halls
in
the
mill
villages
and
in
the
thickly
settled
tenement
houses
and
low
foreign-‐speaking
neighborhoods."30
Though
not
specifically
airing
his
nativism
publicly,
it
is
not
a
stretch
of
the
imagination
to
see
that
Oberholtzer
is
a
firm
supporter
of
the
American
upper
class
and
their
anti-‐immigrant
sentiments.
Another
batch
of
evidence
to
this
end
can
also
be
found
in
the
types
of
films
that
the
Board
of
Censor
opted
to
review
during
Oberholtzer's
term.
In
July
of
1916,
a
film
entitled
The
Mexican
Slides
was
submitted
to
the
Board
for
approval.
Described
simplistically
as
an
"action
/
adventure
story
set
in
Mexico",
the
Board
ordered
numerous
deletions
from
the
film
including
deletions
of
a
scene
depicting
"soldier's
graves"
and
the
"hanging
of
local
bandits".31
While
not
much
explanation
is
given
in
the
official
record
to
the
context
of
these
deletions,
one
who
looks
at
the
historical
timeline
might
note
that
1916
fell
within
the
time
period
of
General
John
J.
Pershing's
Punitive
Expedition
into
Mexico.
While
it
is
unknown
if
Mexican
nationals
were
numerous
in
Pennsylvania
at
this
time,
the
Board
obviously
did
not
want
to
give
the
immigrant
population
of
their
state
any
sympathy
for
foreign
fighters
like
Poncho
Villa.
Another
film
that
raises
some
question
as
to
the
motives
of
the
Board's
censorship
procedures
was
the
1915
film
The
Nigger.
Other
than
its
obviously
racist
title
(which
the
Board
ordered
changed),
the
film
28
Oberholtzer, Ellis P. "Home Rule for Our American Cities." International Quarterly 6.75 (1903): 403. Print.
29
Oberholtzer, Ellis P. Preface. The Morals of the Movie. Philadelphia: Penn, 1922. 98-99. Print.
30
Singer, Ben. "Early Film Melodramas." Action and Adventure Cinema. Ed. Yvonne Tasker. New York City:
Routledge, 2004. 58. Print.
31
United States. Pennsylvania Board of Censor. Records of the Pennsylvania Department of Education. Rules,
Procedure, and Forms 1915-1956. Harrisburg: Pennsylvania State Archives, 1916. Microfilm. RG-22.
12. 12
|
P a g e
was
required
to
make
numerous
deletions
including
scenes
depicting
"mob
violence".32
Perhaps
the
Board
did
not
want
movie
audiences
taking
their
cues
from
what
they
saw
on
the
screen.
In
May
of
1918,
the
Board
banned
a
film
entitled
The
Heart
of
Humanity,
which
was
characterized
as
a
popular
"Jewish
drama"
relating
to
the
First
World
War
that
had
been
produced
by
the
famed
American
director
D.W.
Griffith.
While,
again,
the
Board's
records
are
incomplete
as
to
why
this
film
was
banned,
it
is
worth
noting
that
the
film’s
portrayal
of
Germans
(who
maintained
a
large
viewing
audience
in
Pennsylvania)
was
considered
very
negative
for
the
time.33
Perhaps
the
most
obvious
examples
of
the
Board's
anti-‐labor,
anti-‐immigration
sentiment
can
be
found
in
the
duel
1917
films
of
The
Tiger
Woman
and
A
Sleeping
Memory.
Originally
submitted
for
review
in
May
of
that
year,
The
Tiger
Woman
told
the
story
of
Russian
debutant
who
kills
her
numerous
husbands
for
their
fortunes
as
she
makes
her
way
across
Europe
and,
eventually,
to
the
United
States.
Billed
as
a
"crime
serial",
the
Board
refused
to
grant
their
approval
to
the
film's
producers,
who
then
took
the
Board
to
court,
but
eventually
lost
before
the
Pennsylvania
Court
of
Common
Pleas.34
An
argument
could
be
made
that
the
Board
refused
to
grant
release
for
The
Tiger
Woman
out
of
fear
that
such
a
negative
portrayal
of
the
state's
Slavic
immigrants
might
insight
ethnic
violence.
In
a
similar
vein,
A
Sleeping
Memory
told
the
story
of
rich
young
women
who
is
forced
to
turn
working
class
after
her
father
32
United States. Pennsylvania Board of Censor. Records of the Pennsylvania Department of Education. Elimination
Sheets 1915-1956. Harrisburg: Pennsylvania State Archives, 1916. Microfilm. RG-22
33
United States. Pennsylvania Board of Censor. Records of the Pennsylvania Department of Education. Legal Briefs
1915-1940. Harrisburg: Pennsylvania State Archives, 1916. Microfilm. RG-22
34
United States. Pennsylvania Board of Censor. Records of the Pennsylvania Department of Education. Legal Briefs
1915-1940. Harrisburg: Pennsylvania State Archives, 1916. Microfilm. RG-22
Figure
7:
A
handbill
from
the
Regent
Theatre
in
Albany,
New
York
during
the
week
of
March
5th,
1917
promoting
the
film
The
Tiger
Woman
and
its
star,
Theda
Bara.
(The
Historical
Society
of
New
York,
New
York
City)
13. 13
|
P a g e
commits
suicide.
According
to
the
Board's
legal
records,
the
woman
is
harassed
throughout
the
film
by
representatives
of
the
working
class
for
her
wealthy
upbringing
until
she
turns
to
drug
abuse
to
cope
with
the
social
stigma.35
While
one
could
maybe
see
audiences
feeling
sympathy
for
such
a
character,
the
Board
refused
to
grant
their
approval
to
the
picture
and,
again,
the
producers
of
the
film
took
them
to
court.
Predictably,
the
Board's
decision
was
upheld
after
what
was
described
as
a
"stirring
attack"
on
the
morals
of
the
picture
by
the
Board's
only
female
member
and
Oberholtzer’s
main
supporter
on
the
Board,
Katherine
Niver,
who
objected
to
the
image
being
set
of
the
young
women
in
the
film.
In
these
examples
it’s
easy
to
see
that
the
Board
of
Censor
objected
to
the
ridicule
of
the
upper
classes
by
the
motion
picture
industry
and
promoted
a
nativist-‐flavored
agenda
that
strong
measures
would
be
needed
to
keep
these
fearful
classes
in
check.
35
United States. Pennsylvania Board of Censor. Records of the Pennsylvania Department of Education. Legal Briefs
1915-1940. Harrisburg: Pennsylvania State Archives, 1916. Microfilm. RG-22
14. 14
|
P a g e
Part
III
-‐
Dr.
Ellis
P.
Oberholtzer:
The
Law
and
Order
Censor-‐
"Scenes
showing
the
modus
operandi
of
criminals,
which
are
suggestive
and
incite
to
evil
action,
such
as
murder...robbery...[or]
the
lighting
and
throwing
of
bombs...will
be
disapproved."
-‐
Section
5,
Standards
of
the
Pennsylvania
Board
of
Censor36
"Views
of
incendiaries,
burning,
wrecking
and
the
destruction
of
property,
which
many
put
like
actions
in
the
minds
of
those
evil
instincts,
or
may
degrade
the
morals
of
the
[people],
will
be
disapproved."
-‐
Section
23,
Standards
of
the
Pennsylvania
Board
of
Censor37
Outside
of
his
duties
on
the
Board,
Oberholtzer
grew
to
become
a
national
figure
for
motion
picture
censorship
and
someone
that
upper
class
America
could
look
to
preserve
law
and
order
among
the
working
classes.
In
his
1922
publication,
The
Morals
of
the
Movie,
Oberholtzer
stated
that
film
producers
had
an
obligation
to
the
public
to
provide
wholesome
subject
matter
for
their
films.
"There
is
a
belief...that
the
picture
producer
is
not
living
up
to
his
responsibilities,"
wrote
Oberholtzer,
"...Sometimes
he
is
deliberately
choosing
bad
subjects
so
that
he
can
advertise
this
fact
and
entice
[audiences]
into
his
theatres...to
stir...curiosity
about
the
seamy
side
of
life..."38
Oberholtzer
expanded
this
point
further
in
a
published
article,
stating
that
"[t]heir
film
stories
are
often
set
in
the
under-‐world
[and]
those
who
have
evil
instincts
see
all
manner
of
crime,
indeed
the
detailed
illustrations
of
feasible
methods
of
committing
it.
Keepers
are
told
by
the
inmates
of
reformatories
and
penitentiaries
that
they
36
Oberholtzer, Ellis Paxson. The Morals of the Movie. Philadelphia: Penn, 1922. 213. Print.
37
Oberholtzer 214
38
Oberholtzer 16
Figure
8:
Comedian
Charlie
Chaplin
bashes
a
police
officer
in
a
scene
from
his
1916
movie,
Police
(The
Library
of
Congress)
15. 15
|
P a g e
were
prompted
to
wrong-‐doing
by
looking
at
motion
pictures."39
While
Oberholtzer
returned
to
his
familiar
targets
of
melodramas
and
serialized
crime
pictures
to
explain
this
point,
he
is
also
especially
critical
of
slap-‐stick
comedies
and
the
drug
movie
(or
the
"enlightenment
films"
as
he
claims
some
producers
call
them)
when
it
comes
to
these
breakdowns
in
law
and
order.40
The
comedy
film
were
an
especially
guilty
target,
according
to
Oberholtzer,
when
considering
the
work
of
the
most
famous
comedian
of
his
day,
Charlie
Chaplin,
an
immigrant
Oberholtzer
had
publicly
called
"the
fool
of
American
democracy".41
"He
[Chaplin]
set
the
pace
for
other
movie
comedians,"
claimed
Oberholtzer,
"whose
aim...have
put
an
indelible
trademark
up
American
comedy
film."42
That
trademark,
alleged
Oberholtzer,
is
the
mark
of
lawless
behavior
and
a
complete
disrespect
for
the
American
forces
of
law
and
order,
easily
imitated
by
America’s
working
classes
.43
The
"enlightenment
films"
were
another
major
concern
for
Oberholtzer
which
popularization
an
underground
drugs
culture
with
substances
like
opium,
morphine,
and
cocaine
being
popularized
and
justified
by
movie
producers
as
"cautionary
tales"
complete
with
alleged
scientific
studies
and
police
testimony
as
backup.44
While
these
films
gave
rise
to
crime,
Oberholtzer
also
believed
that
these
movies
portrayed
the
forces
of
law
and
order
(such
as
the
police)
in
such
a
negative
light
that
it
would
cause
a
major
lack
of
respect
for
public
discipline
and
a
possible
breakdown
in
the
American
justice
system.
"It
is
clear
that
our
39
Oberholtzer, Ellis P. "What Are The "Movies" Making of Our Children?" The World's Work 41 (1920): 251. Print
40
Oberholtzer, Ellis Paxson. The Morals of the Movie. Philadelphia: Penn, 1922. 40. Print.
41
Oberholtzer 73
42
Oberholtzer 73-74
43
Oberholtzer 74
44
Oberholtzer, Ellis Paxson. The Morals of the Movie. Philadelphia: Penn, 1922. 54. Print.
Figure
9:
The
popular
Keystone
Kops
from
a
lost
short
film,
cir.
1915
(The
Museum
of
Moving
Image,
New
York)
16. 16
|
P a g e
ordinary
police
and
constabulary
authorities
are
unable
to
exercise
a
suitable
care
over
the
moving
picture
house,"
wrote
Oberholtzer,
"Their
[primary]
duty
is
to
preserve
good
order
in
the
streets..."45
The
popular
Keystone
Kops
series
of
the
1910's
and
1920's
was
another
comedy
series
that
gave
Oberholtzer
fits
for
its
negative
portrayal
of
policemen.46
"The
policeman
and
every
other
officer
of
the
law
has
been
so
much
caricatured
that
by
this
time,
they
[are]
beyond
the
bounds
of…America's
respect,"
blasted
Oberholtzer.47
Such
disrespect
of
authority
and
instruction
on
crime,
gave
rise
to
even
more
concern
among
upper
class
Americans
about
movies
and
their
popularity
among
the
immigrant
and
working
class
populations.
When
looking
at
the
records
of
Pennsylvania
Board
of
Censor,
a
number
of
films
fit
into
this
category
of
wanting
to
preserve
law
and
order.
An
examination
sheet
from
the
Board
dated
August,
1917
details
requests
to
the
producers
of
a
movie
entitled
Charley's
Picnic
to
delete
scenes
of
characters
"fighting
with
police...”
There
is
also
a
notation
asking
for
the
removal
of
a
scene
where
a
major
character
"thumb[s]
his
nose"
at
an
officer.48
Another
legal
brief
dated
December
of
1915,
details
the
censoring
of
film
entitled
Sealed
Lips,
which
was
based
on
a
popular
novel
of
the
day
The
Silence
of
Dean
Maitland.
In
the
novel
and
film
adaptation,
a
clergyman
impregnates
a
young
woman
and
when
the
father
of
the
girl
finds
out
about
the
pregnancy,
he
attacks
the
clergymen
and
45
Oberholtzer, Ellis P. "The Censor and the Movie "Menace"" Ed. George Harvey. North American Review 212
(1920): 645. Print.
46
Arnesen, Eric. Encyclopedia of US Labor and Working-Class History. London: Routledge, 2006. 449. Print
47
Oberholtzer, Ellis Paxson. The Morals of the Movie. Philadelphia: Penn, 1922. 76-77. Print.
48
United States. Pennsylvania Board of Censor. Records of the Pennsylvania Department of Education. Rules,
Procedure, and Forms 1915-1956. Harrisburg: Pennsylvania State Archives, 1916. Microfilm. RG-22.
Figure
10:
A
still
from
an
Australian
remake
of
Sealed
Lips
called
The
Silence
of
Dean
Maitland
from
1934
(The
Museum
of
Moving
Image,
New
York)
17. 17
|
P a g e
is
killed
accidently
in
a
fall.
In
the
end,
the
clergyman's
best
friend
gets
the
blame
for
the
father's
death
and
goes
to
jail
for
twenty
years
while
the
clergymen
lives
a
successful
life.
In
the
Board's
unnamed
legal
brief,
Sealed
Lips
is
characterized
as
a
film
"calculated
to
inspire
contempt
for
the
administration
of
justice"
while
also
calling
for
major
deletions
to
the
film,
which
the
Court
of
Common
Pleas
eventually
obliged.49
In
Oberholtzer's
mind,
the
movie
industry
must
support
the
social
agenda
of
the
traditional
American
family
to
these
new
immigrant
citizens,
vales
of
the
home,
the
school,
and
the
church,
when
considering
their
film
topics
and
it
is
the
job
of
the
censor
to
make
sure
that
happens.
"He
[the
movie
producer]
is
not
a
teacher...or
a
moralist,"
wrote
Oberholtzer,
"...he
is
wanting
in
the
most
rudimentary
sense
of
social
responsibility
with
reference
to
his
fellow
man."50
To
Saylor,
this
is
related
to
Progressivism,
however,
an
argument
can
be
made
to
the
class-‐based
and
nativist
sentiments
of
the
time
and
a
desire
to
preserve
the
status
quo
as
it
stood.
49
United States. Pennsylvania Board of Censor. Records of the Pennsylvania Department of Education. Legal Briefs
1915-1940. Harrisburg: Pennsylvania State Archives, 1916. Microfilm. RG-22
50
Oberholtzer, Ellis Paxson. The Morals of the Movie. Philadelphia: Penn, 1922. 41. Print.
18. 18
|
P a g e
Part
IV
-‐
Dr.
Ellis
P.
Oberholtzer:
The
Anti-‐Feminist?
–
"Pictures
and
part
of
pictures,
dealing
with
abortion...will
be
disapproved.
These
will
include
themes
and
incidents
having
to
do
with..."birth
control"...and
similar
subjects"
-‐
Section
8,
Standards
of
the
Pennsylvania
Board
of
Censor51
"Views
of
women...will
not
be
disapproved
as
such,
but
when
women
are
shown
in
suggestive
positions
or
their
manner...is
suggestive
or
degrading,
such
scenes
will
be
disapproved."
-‐
Section
20,
Standards
of
the
Pennsylvania
Board
of
Censor52
The
act
that
created
the
Pennsylvania
Board
of
was
very
specific
in
who
would
serve,
gender-‐
wise,
on
this
panel
-‐
two
men
and
one
woman.53
While
Oberholtzer's
personal
papers
offer
little
insight
into
his
views
on
women
in
general,
historians
have
been
left
to
wonder
what
Oberholtzer's
true
thoughts
on
femininity
were.
Was
he
unduly
biased
towards
women's
because
of
his
own
mother's
background
in
the
suffrage
movement?
Did
Oberholtzer's
views
of
women
soften
after
working
with
a
capable
female
censor,
Mrs.
Katherine
A.
Niver,
who
he
politically
supported?
Such
questions
are
hard
to
pinpoint
for
"Oberholtzer
the
man",
but
the
views
of
women
presented
by
"Oberholtzer
the
censor"
are
very
clear
when
put
into
the
context
of
his
class
status.
In
a
publication
he
wrote
early
in
his
career
entitled
The
New
Man:
A
Chronicle
of
Modern
Times,
Oberholtzer
offers
some
possible
insight
into
his
feelings
on
women.
Created
as
a
kind
of
modern-‐day
version
of
Plato's
Republic,
Oberholtzer's
characters
engage
in
a
philosophical
discussion
of
the
role
of
women
in
modern
American
society.
As
one
character
phrases
it,
while
they
are
all
members
of
a
"great
upper
class"
where
men
and
women
have
equal
access
to
51
Oberholtzer, Ellis P. Preface. The Morals of the Movie. Philadelphia: Penn, 1922. 213. Print.
52
Oberholtzer 215.
53
United States. Pennsylvania House of Representatives. Journal of the House of Representatives of the
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Part III. Harrisburg: Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, 1916. 3205. Print.
Figure
11:
Sara
Louisa
Vickers
Oberholtzer,
mother
of
the
famed
censor,
from
1898
(The
Historical
Society
of
Pennsylvania,
Philadelphia)
19. 19
|
P a g e
education
and
betterment,
the
"intellectual
forces
of
women
will
show
a
lower
average
than
the
intellectual
force
of
men
of
the
same
class"
in
almost
every
instance.
Thought
women
will
continue
to
advance
in
knowledge
and
status,
they
will
never
be
equal
to
men,
concludes
Oberholtzer's
characters.54
Is
Oberholtzer
underlying
his
writing
with
his
own
personal
thoughts?
54
Oberholtzer, Ellis Paxson. The New Man: A Chronicle of the Modern Times. Philadelphia: Levytype, 1897. 450-
59. Print.
20. 20
|
P a g e
In
his
1922
publication,
The
Morals
of
the
Movie,
Oberholtzer
gives
little
insight
into
his
thoughts
of
female
actresses
or
directors,
but
he
is
very
critical
of
the
amount
of
sex
being
portrayed
in
motion
pictures
and
how
it
might
affect
the
image
of
women
overall
in
society.
Calling
these
films
"sex
pictures",
Oberholtzer
chastises
the
motion
picture
industry
for
trying
to
pawn
these
films
off
as
"educational",
warning
young
women
not
to
betray
the
pure
image
of
their
gender.55
Oberholtzer
is
equally
critical
of
movie
producers
using
women's
issues
to
sensationalize
their
movies
such
as
films
about
female
diseases,
sexual
intercourse,
or
abortion.
"These
[sexual]
scenes
are
introduced
for
entertainment,"
wrote
Oberholtzer,
"Someone
sees
value
in
them
for
general
sale...and
he
takes
them
out
on
circuit
for
gain."56
While
it
is
easy
to
agree
with
Oberholtzer's
objections
to
the
amount
of
sex
on
the
screen
as
Saylor
points
out,
what
is
not
often
realized
is
the
huge
role
that
movie
houses
and
motion
pictures
played
in
the
women's
suffrage
movement
for
recruitment
and
publication
purposes.
Whereas
movie
theatres
acted
as
socialization
center
for
immigrants
and
the
working
class,
they
also
served
as
a
political
center
outside
the
social
norms
for
women.57
Unlike
the
playhouse
or
theater
of
their
parent's
generation
where
tradition
dictated
a
women's
place,
movie
houses
were
much
more
liberal,
allowing
both
single
and
married
women
of
all
classes
to
freely
intermix
as
well
as
take
an
active
role
in
presentation
of
films
and
the
discussion
of
topics.
Women's
rights
leaders
often
persuaded
theater
owners
to
show
films
with
pro-‐suffrage
themes
and
several
women
became
important
actresses,
55
Oberholtzer, Ellis Paxson. The Morals of the Movie. Philadelphia: Penn, 1922. 30-31. Print.
56
Oberholtzer 36.
57
Ross, Steven Joseph. Working-Class Hollywood: Silent Film and the Shaping of Class in America. Princeton, NJ:
Princeton UP, 1998. 26-27. Print.
21. 21
|
P a g e
producers,
or
even
directors
in
the
early
motion
picture
industry.58
While
Oberholtzer
doesn't
completely
dismiss
such
activities,
one
can
see
how
the
upper
class'
view
of
suffragettes
may
have
caused
him
a
few
tough
decisions
on
the
Board
of
Censor.
"The
good
which
can
occur
from
instructing
the
young
about
such
[topics]
under
proper
circumstances
I
would
not
underrate,"
Oberholtzer
admits,
"...but
to
cry
sex
[or
gender
rights]...from
the
highest
places...is
in
my
judgment
contrary
to
public
policy."59
58
Ross 27.
59
Oberholtzer, Ellis Paxson. The Morals of the Movie. Philadelphia: Penn, 1922. 39. Print.
22. 22
|
P a g e
When
examining
the
records
of
the
Pennsylvania
Board
of
Censor,
one
movie
in
particular
jumps
out
as
the
ultimate
limit
to
Oberholtzer's
"tolerance"
for
women's
issues
in
film.
The
movie
was
a
1916
release
entitled
Where
are
My
Children?,
which
dealt
with
the
issues
of
female
contraception
and
abortion.60
Such
topics
were
central
in
the
debate
over
women's
rights
in
early
Twentieth
Century
America
stemming
in
part
from
the
trial
of
Margaret
Sanger
for
disobeying
New
York
contraception
laws
to
the
public
criticism
of
the
unfair
nature
of
contraception
help,
which
was
open
to
women
of
wealth
and
privilege,
but
not
to
their
neighbors
of
lower
origin.61
The
brainchild
of
female
director
Lois
Weber,
who
used
her
movies
to
speak
to
women's
issues,
the
film
told
the
story
of
a
prominent
district
attorney
who
is
prosecuting
a
doctor
for
providing
illegal
contraception
when
he
discovers
that
his
wife
has
been
a
regular
client
of
the
accused
doctor,
even
receiving
abortions
from
him.
Enraged,
he
confronts
his
wife,
threatening
her
with
charges
of
manslaughter
for
their
unborn
children.62
The
film
was
deemed
too
controversial
for
show
in
many
states
and
Oberholtzer,
in
testimony
before
the
Pennsylvania
Court
of
Common
Pleas,
called
the
film
"unspeakably
vile"
and
lead
the
charge
to
ban
it,
claiming
that
it
"tended
to
debase
or
corrupt
[the]
morals
[of
young
women]".63
In
response,
Weber's
production
company
took
the
Board
to
court,
but
withdrew
their
appeal
after
their
"educational"
defense
was
gutted
when
the
Board's
lawyers
entered
60
Mahar, Karen Ward. Women Filmmakers in Early Hollywood. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins UP, 2006. 96-97. Print.
61
Mahar 97.
62
Ross, Steven Joseph. Working-Class Hollywood: Silent Film and the Shaping of Class in America. Princeton, NJ:
Princeton UP, 1998. 97. Print.
63
United States. Pennsylvania Board of Censor. Records of the Pennsylvania Department of Education. Rules,
Procedure, and Forms 1915-1956. Harrisburg: Pennsylvania State Archives, 1916. Microfilm. RG-22.
Figure
13:
The
title
card
for
the
Lois
Weber
film
Where
Are
My
Children?
(The
Museum
of
Moving
Image,
New
York)
Figure
12:
Female
film
director
Lois
Weber
(The
Historical
Society
of
Pennsylvania,
Philadelphia)
23. 23
|
P a g e
into
evidents
excerpts
from
the
pro-‐contraception
book
Birth
Control,
which
Weber
had
used
as
her
inspiration
for
the
movie.64
These
selection
was
further
heightened
with
the
showing
of
one
of
the
movie's
scenes
where
the
death
of
a
lower
class
servant
girl
is
due
to
a
purposefully
botched
abortion.
Fearful
of
the
social
impact
among
Pennsylvania's
lower
classes,
such
testimony
did
not
sit
well
with
the
Court
ensuring
that
even
if
producers
has
continued
with
their
case,
defeat
was
a
foregone
conclusion.65
While
Oberholtzer's
true
feelings
on
women's
right
might
remain
a
topic
of
debate,
it
is
clear
that
there
were
limits
to
Oberholtzer's
open-‐mindedness
on
feminist
topics
when
they
went
against
established
social
norms
of
the
time.
64
United States. Pennsylvania Board of Censor. Records of the Pennsylvania Department of Education. Rules,
Procedure, and Forms 1915-1956. Harrisburg: Pennsylvania State Archives, 1916. Microfilm. RG-22.
65
United States. Pennsylvania Board of Censor. Records of the Pennsylvania Department of Education. Rules,
Procedure, and Forms 1915-1956. Harrisburg: Pennsylvania State Archives, 1916. Microfilm. RG-22
24. 24
|
P a g e
Part
V
-‐
Dr.
Ellis
P.
Oberholtzer:
The
Political
Player-‐
"The
Board
shall
consist
of
three
residents
and
citizens
of
Pennsylvania...well
qualified
by
education
and
experience
to
act
as
censors
under
this
act."
-‐
Section
3,
Pennsylvania
Law
for
Censorship
of
Moving
Pictures66
"The
[members
of
the
Board]
before
assuming
the
duties...shall
take
and
subscribe
the
oath
prescribed
by
the
Constitution
of
Pennsylvania,
and
shall
enter
into
bond
with
the
Commonwealth..."
-‐
Section
10,
Pennsylvania
Law
for
Censorship
of
Moving
Pictures67
"The
type
of
[person]
who
is
adapted
for
this
branch
of
service
should
not
be
hard
to
discover,
"
wrote
Oberholtzer,
"without
any
question
members
of
such
Boards
should
not
be
politicians...Though
they
may
fill
every
other
department
of
government
with
riff-‐raff
of
the
political
party,
here
is
one
place...
where
there
is
room
for
only
the
finest
judgment
and
the
highest
probity."68
While
such
sentiments
are
admirable,
the
Board
of
Censor
itself
was
anything
but
a
non-‐political
player.
If
there
is
an
area
of
agreement
with
Saylor,
it
is
that
from
its
members
to
the
movies
it
chose
to
edit,
politics
was
influential
in
the
Board's
decision-‐making
process
under
Oberholtzer.
While
Saylor
makes
light
of
this
topic,
the
influence
of
politics
on
Oberholtzer
goes
much
deeper
than
simple
objectivity.
Oberholtzer's
appointment
to
the
Board
in
1915
was
the
subject
of
political
whispering
from
the
start
and
he
openly
admitted
that
his
appointment
was
due
to
his
friendship
with
Governor
Brumbaugh,
who
Oberholtzer
had
worked
under
during
his
time
in
the
Philadelphia
public
school
system.69
The
other
66
Oberholtzer, Ellis Paxson. The Morals of the Movie. Philadelphia: Penn, 1922. 205. Print.
67
Oberholtzer 207
68
Oberholtzer 179-180
69
Aronson, Michael. Nickelodeon City: Pittsburgh at the Movies, 1905-1929. Pittsburgh, PA: University of
Pittsburgh, 2008. 172. Print.
Figure
14:
The
facade
of
the
Pennsylvania
State
Capital
prior
to
its
dedication
in
1906
(Pennsylvania
State
Archives,
Harrisburg)
25. 25
|
P a g e
original
members
of
the
Board,
J.L.
Breitinger
and
Katherine
Niver,
were
equally
well
politically
connected.
Breitinger
was
a
fundraiser
for
the
Republican
Party
and
Niver
was
the
wife
of
an
influential
Pittsburgh
editor
and
a
friend
of
former
Governor
Tener's
wife,
the
man
who
original
signed
the
movie
censorship
bill
into
law.70
From
the
start,
the
Board
would
be
fighting
political
battles
not
only
with
the
state
and
the
movie
industry,
but
among
each
other.
Oberholtzer
openly
despised
Breitinger's
continued
political
activities
and
lobbied
to
have
him
replaced,
which
eventually
happened
in
1917.
"[Breitinger's
removal]
was
brought
about
for
the
reason
that
his
political
activities
were
preventing
the
Board
from
giving
the
State
the
best
service,"
testified
Oberholtzer.71
Obviously
anyone
preserved
as
an
obstacle
to
the
business
of
the
Board,
became
an
enemy
in
Oberholtzer's
mind,
even
if
it
included
members
of
the
General
Assembly.
In
April
of
1917,
a
bill
was
proposed
by
State
Senator
Charles
Snyder
that
would
lessen
the
power
of
the
Board
by
making
it
reportable
to
Auditor
General's
office.72
Incensed,
Oberholtzer
began
a
letter
writing
campaign
to
friendly
members
of
the
Senate,
urging
them
to
vote
the
measure
down.
His
efforts
ultimately
proved
successful.
The
Board
even
went
so
far
as
to
curry
political
favors
from
other
branches
of
the
state
government,
such
as
the
courts
(who
provided
regular
support
through
their
rulings),
and
from
the
local
political
districts
themselves
by
the
placement
of
their
offices
and
screening
rooms.73
Outside
of
Harrisburg,
Oberholtzer
saw
the
motion
picture
industry
as
a
political
monster
unto
itself
and
vowed
to
keep
politically
charged
topics
out
of
Pennsylvania's
movie
houses.
"They
[the
motion
picture
industry]
revile
politics
and
yet
they
enter
it...[bringing]
themselves
face
to
face
with
the
very
condition
which
they
profess
to
abhor,"
blasted
Oberholtzer.74
He
proposed
the
idea
of
a
Federal
70
Aronson 171-172
71
Oberholtzer, Ellis P. Letter to Miss Emily P. Bissell. 8 Mar. 1917. MS. The Historical Society of Pennsylvania,
Philadelphia, PA.
72
United States. Pennsylvania State Senate. Journal of the Senate of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Part I.
Harrisburg: Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, 1917. Print. 1213.
73
Oberholtzer, Ellis P. Letter to William E. Crow, Esq. 14 Jan. 1918. MS. The Historical Society of Pennsylvania,
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
74
Oberholtzer, Ellis Paxson. The Morals of the Movie. Philadelphia: Penn, 1922. 155. Print.
26. 26
|
P a g e
Board
of
Censor,
creating
lists
of
movies
deemed
decent
for
national
viewership
(the
so-‐called
“white
lists”),
prepared
preliminary
Federal
legislation,
and
traveled
the
country
speaking
and
writing
on
the
benefits
of
movie
censorship.75
“I
have
spoken
in
many
parts
of
Pennsylvania
and
in
other
states
about
[this]
subject
and
we
have
gained
creditable
recognition
all
over
the
country..where
what
we
do
is
watched
and
followed,"
triumphantly
wrote
Oberholtzer.76
Two
examples
of
Oberholtzer's
political
agenda
on
the
Board's
work
can
be
seen
with
the
review
of
two
politically
charged
films,
1915's
The
Birth
of
a
Nation
and
1916's
War
Brides.
Long
considered
a
classic
of
American
cinema,
The
Birth
of
a
Nation
was
a
movie
that
cut
to
the
heart
of
Oberholtzer's
political
and
professional
experience,
especially
when
it
came
to
the
villainous
character
of
Austin
Stoneman,
widely
considered
to
be
based
on
fiery
Pennsylvania
Republican
Thaddeus
Stevens.
In
a
letter
written
to
the
owner
of
a
Philadelphia
movie
house,
Oberholtzer
expresses
satisfaction
that
the
Stevens-‐based
character
has
been
deleted
from
the
film
prior
to
its
release
in
Pennsylvania,
"I
am
glad
you
are
making
some
eliminations...so
that
the
memory
of
old
Thad
Stevens
will
not
be
quite
so
much
outraged
in
his
own
State..."77
Saylor
makes
the
argument
that
Oberholtzer
objected
to
the
negative
portrayal
of
Stevens
on
historical
grounds,
but
there
is
reason
to
believe
that
objections
were
also
made
out
of
political
necessity
as
well.
Pennsylvania
was
firmly
a
Republican
state
and
any
negative
portrayal
of
any
Republican
figure
could
have
inflamed
public
passions.
"If
the
press
is
a
large
factor
in
politics,"
warned
Oberholtzer,
"[than]
the
screen
may
be
a
yet
greater
one..."78
It
is
not
hard
to
see
Oberholtzer
dutifully
protecting
his
Republican
supporters
in
Harrisburg.
The
implications
of
the
1916
film
War
Brides
go
even
bigger.
Set
in
war-‐torn
Europe,
the
movie
focused
on
German
soldiers
attacking
and
raping
civilian
women.
While
Oberholtzer
was
not
known
as
a
friend
to
Pennsylvania's
German
75
Oberholtzer, Ellis P. "The Censor and the Movie "Menace"" Ed. George Harvey. North American Review 212
(1920): 641. Print.
76
Olberholtzer, Ellis P. Letter to the Senator Boies Penrose (R-PA). 14 Jan. 1918. MS. The Historical Society of
Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
77
Oberholtzer, Ellis P. Letter to Mr McSween, Cheastnut Street Opera House. 3 Sept. 1915. MS. Historical Society
of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
78
Oberholtzer, Ellis Paxson. The Morals of the Movie. Philadelphia: Penn, 1922. 173. Print.
27. 27
|
P a g e
population
(his
appointment
in
1915
had
been
criticized
due
to
anti-‐German
remarks
he
had
made
in
the
past),
the
Board
ordered
significant
cuts
to
the
film
before
it
was
granted
release.7980
Perhaps
this
could
be
seen
as
another
example
of
nativist
sentiment
until
two
years
later,
upon
America's
entry
into
World
War
I,
Federal
authorities
order
War
Brides
and
any
other
German
films
banned
completely,
fearful
that
they
would
"[run]
contrary
to
the
spirit
which
should
exist
in
this
country
in
its
present
crisis."81
Despite
this
Federal
order,
the
Board
was
encouraging
by
the
idea
of
using
motion
pictures
to
support
the
war
effort.
"Many
of
the
transcripts
in
film
of
war
conditions
in
Europe
awaken
enthusiasm..."
states
the
Board's
1917
report.
Later
records
for
the
Pennsylvania
Board
of
Censor
show
a
marked
uptick
in
the
amount
of
newsreel
stories
marked
for
a
approval
by
the
panel.82
Despite
Oberholtzer's
sizable
political
influence,
in
the
end
it
would
not
save
him.
When
Governor
William
P.
Sproul
took
office
in
1919,
the
film
industry
pushed
to
have
Oberholtzer
removed
from
the
Board.
Seeing
Oberholtzer
as
"too
heavy
a
political
load
to
carry",
Sproul
relieved
him
of
his
position
despite
a
massive
letter-‐writing
campaign
by
supporters
to
save
his
job.83
79
Mayer, B. J. Letter to Governor Martin Brumbough from the German-American Alliance of Pennsylvania. 19
May 1915. MS. The Historical Society of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
80
United States. Pennsylvania Board of Censor. Records of the Pennsylvania Department of Education. Rules,
Procedure, and Forms 1915-1956. Harrisburg: Pennsylvania State Archives, 1916. Microfilm. RG-22.
81
Brown, Francis S. (Pennsylvania Attorney General) Letter to Frank R. Shattuck, Philadelphia. 23 Oct. 1917. MS.
The Pennsylvania State Archives, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.
82
United States. Pennsylvania Board of Censor. Records of the Pennsylvania Department of Education. Rules,
Procedure, and Forms 1915-1956. Harrisburg: Pennsylvania State Archives, 1916. Microfilm. RG-22.
83
Hamilton, Clayton. "Movie, Censor, and Public." The New York Evening Post [New York City] 30 Dec. 1922:
128-32. Print.
Figure
15:
A
scene
from
the
1916
film
War
Brides
with
German
soldiers
storming
into
the
home
of
a
female
civilian
(The
Museum
of
Moving
Image,
New
York)
28. 28
|
P a g e
A
Final
Conclusion
–
Putting
Dr.
Oberholtzer
in
the
Context
of
his
Times:
While
Richard
Saylor
does
an
admirable
job
presenting
one
side
of
Dr.
Ellis
P.
Oberholtzer's
character,
it
is
obvious
there
is
much
more
to
this
man
than
just
a
loyal
and
morally
conscience
public
servant.
Oberholtzer
was
a
man
that
was
molded
by
the
times
he
lived
in
and
the
social
surroundings
that
defined
the
early
Twentieth
Century
in
America.
Issues
of
nativism,
class,
gender
roles,
and
social
order
massively
influenced
Oberholtzer’s
motivations
on
the
Pennsylvania
Board
of
Censor
and
his
view
of
feminism
in
society,
his
desire
to
preserve
law
and
order
in
the
streets,
and
his
anxiety
to
the
rising
tide
of
immigrant
and
working
class
furry
influenced
the
films
Oberholtzer
helped
censor
all
of
which
were
justified
by
a
moral
constitution.
His
quest
to
continue
such
work
would
lead
him
into
the
unsavory
world
of
politics,
a
world
that
would
give
him
great
influence,
but
would
eventually
cost
him
his
position.
While
Saylor’s
image
of
Oberholtzer
as
a
moral
crusader
should
not
be
completely
ignored
because
it
does
provide
a
certain
context
for
viewing
how
Oberholtzer
viewed
himself
and
his
time
period,
the
greater
influences
of
nativism
and
class
conflict
should
not
be
ignored.
To
omit
such
historical
evidence
from
the
great
narrative
of
history
is
neither
right
nor
safe,
because
it
changes
the
human
complexity
of
our
state's
leading
historical
figures.
While
the
issue
of
censorship
may
always
be
an
issue
that
is
debated
and
legislated
by
civic
authorities,
it
is
important
to
keep
in
the
back
of
our
minds
the
lessons
of
the
past
and
remember
how
societal
norms
plays
on
our
morals
and
our
decisions
of
right
and
wrong
for
they
will
be
remembered
for
posterity,
much
like
the
actions
of
Dr.
Ellis
P.
Oberholtzer.
29. 29
|
P a g e
Figure
16:
Official
Seal
of
Approval
of
the
Pennsylvania
Board
of
Censors.
This
seal
was
required
to
be
placed
at
the
head
of
each
film
shown
in
Pennsylvania
between
19
14
and
1956.
(Pennsylvania
State
Archives,
Harrisburg)