- I see a title for this piece
in the form of a quote ad.
You all know what a quote ad is.
"Extraordinary," says the Times.
"Beautiful," says the News.
Well, I would have something that says,
quote: "Dreadful," says the Daily News.
"Degrading," says the Morning Times.
"Deplorable," says the Evening Journal.
"And get out of town" says
the chief of police (laughs)
- So he said, "You better
keep your mouth shut,
"you big b*stard."
He says, "Or I'll knock hell outta ya."
And so I figured, "Well,
if this guy is gonna knock
"hell out of me when I get downstairs,
"I'd better get him right here."
(laughing)
So I jumped on top of him,
right there and there,
and I bit him on top of the head,
and we rolled down the balcony stairs,
and I kept biting him on the head.
- I'm recording history.
- [Dan] You know, you
oughta write for Bob Hope.
- I am recording history
and this is how it happened
and what happened and you've had...
- Listen, I might've called
her a (train whistle)
but not a (bell dinging)
(laughing)
Ya know, that's my name.
I call people (train
whistle) not (bell dinging)
- There goes PBS (laughs)
I have always said that
when they're talking
about exploitation film
that you can shock them,
you can make them laugh,
you can make them cry.
You can do any damn thing
in the world you want
to them except bore them
and that's the cardinal
sin in the film business,
or in show business per se.
But I always said that
maybe two or three days
after Mr. Edison made
these tintypes gallup,
some enterprising guy got his girlfriend
to take off her clothes and shot the film
and sex in the cinema was born.
And it's been around a long, long time.
(dramatic music)
- Abraham Lincoln once said
"You may fool all the people
some of the time.
You can even fool some of
the people all the time
but you can't fool all
the people all the time."
Of course, there have always been those
who thought that they should try.
When I was a kid back in
the days when movie screens
commanded more attention
than any other form
of entertainment, there were
some fearless perpetrators
of hokum and hype who
traveled the highways
and the byways hoping to fool everyone
into seeing their picture show.
They promised a lot.
Uncut, uncensored, unashamed.
They papered the town with
handbills selling sin, sex
and salvation, not
necessarily in that order.
They were called road
showmen, celluloid salesmen
and The 40 Thieves.
And for the most part, their
product was called awful,
degrading and deplorable.
Our look back at these movies
will reveal some surprises.
They were sold in an age of innocence
with three magic words, for adults only.
- And don't forget I
treated you nice, right?
Was I fresh with you?
See, okay get dressed.
- [Ned] They were called
exploitation films made
and pedaled by intrepid itinerate showmen
who collected the wages of sin.
- Hey you.
You ain't allowed to park in the street
and make googly eyes.
- Oh, gee mister, when a fella has to goo,
he just has to goo.
- Well, goo on and get out of here
or I might forget I was young myself once.
- [Ned] These men were
first and foremost salesmen.
Without hesitation, they catered
to the socially forbidden
and frowned upon appetites
of the American public.
All the no-nos of proper
behavior were yes, yes
to these producers of sensationalism.
And these films were sensational
in the context of that time
and place in America's past.
Good people could attend these films,
be titillated some of the
time and still come away
with their moral sense
of indignation intact.
- There, that'll end that
disgraceful performance.
- [Ned] Morally correct
behavior was always the message
of these movies and the fact that they had
to show wrongdoers and sinners in action
to illustrate the point
was well, obviously necessary.
- This is a crime, two of these girls
are nothing but youngsters.
- In their infancy, moving pictures
were themselves a curiosity,
but even then the exploiteers looked
for material that was daring.
(sensual music)
The kiss from the play The Widow Jones
was considered vulgar
and the dance performed
by Fatima at the 1896 Chicago World's Fair
was compassionately
censored at some shows,
though censorship at that
time was the exception,
certainly not the rule.
(mellow flute music)
Short films, many with little or no story
were produced for gentlemen only screens.
They were not stag films,
they were just excuses
to show ladies in various
stages of undress.
(mellow flute music)
In Forbidden Daughters,
a young lady learns
that her husband is being seduced
by an African princess and she sets off
to bring him back.
Seeking help from a local sheik,
she witnesses a fit of
jealousy in his harem.
(mellow flute music)
Becoming more involved than a lady should,
finds herself imprisoned.
(sensual music)
The sheik finds her irresistible,
perhaps because she's the only
one around with clothes on.
(mellow flute music)
But she escapes to the jungle
and stumbles upon her
husband and the princess.
(sensual music)
Her passion aroused, she
strips off her clothes
and demands her husband
choose between them.
(sensual music)
These early silent skin pictures were
to become important tools
for the road showmen
but we'll explore more on that later.
The producers of exploitation mostly came
from small towns on the carnival circuits.
Their show business dreams inspired
by bright midway lights
and cotton candy substance.
David Friedman and Dan Sonny
are two surviving members
of that breed.
- Dan Sonny and the Sonny family
probably the most important single group
in the history of the exploitation film.
You all know how his
father Louis Sonny in 1921
captured Roy Gardner, the most wanted man
in the United States and
Pantages put the old man
on the stage as Officer Sonny,
the man who captured Roy Gardner.
- [Narrator] This is Roy Gardner,
always a front page headliner.
But his last press notice
that of his sentence
was the one most welcome to the public.
- [Roy] I have made many grave errors.
I broke the law; I went to prison.
I paid what society
considers a just penalty.
I paid the hard way.
But now I want to again
become a respected citizen.
I hope I may and I know I will.
- Mr. Sonny, I don't know
how to begin to thank you
for what you've done for me
and I'll do everything humanly possible
to justify the confidence
that you have placed in me.
(marching music)
- [Man] But as he lies upon his prison cot
his mind cannot cease
counting the days, the hours,
the minutes, the seconds to the instant
when that chair will
claim him for his home.
Horror turns to madness
and then they come for him.
He's stopped counting
now, oh, let it be over,
let it be over.
The seconds now seem like years;
time is going backward not forward.
His entire life with all
it's prime passes quickly
through his flaming brain
until the fatal moment arrives,
the signal is given, the switch is thrown
and now he knows the all merciful Father.
He knows, he knows, crime
never pays, crime never pays,
crime never...
And the rest is silent.
(marching music)
- I was producing pictures here.
I had my producers,
Willis Kent and J D Kennis
and George Weiss producing pictures
for me here in my office
and I would put up the
money for these guys.
So I produced maybe one or
two or three pictures a year
and I would sell state rights.
And Dave for the Chicago territory,
he would buy my pictures
for the Chicago territory.
They would be producing
pictures in Chicago
and he would sell his pictures to me
for my 11 Western states.
And so I'm getting a little up in age
and I'm getting tired of working.
So I asked Dave, I said,
"Why don't you come into Los Angeles
"and I got an office for you
"and you get out of that cold
territory there in Chicago
"and travel in Hollywood
and be a gentleman."
(upbeat piano music)
- [Ned] These producers wore many hats
and often appeared in their
films as much to save money
as to indulge their acting skills.
Dan Sonny is the bartender in this scene
while Dave Friedman places
a bet over the phone.
(receiver clicks)
- [Customer] Thanks, Joe.
How you doin' tonight, Maria?
- Oh I'm fine baby.
(dance music)
- [Bartender] Another double, Maria?
- Believe me, I could use one.
I'm in no mood for these
crappy books tonight.
- Yeah.
- I guess you and I are
about the only ones left
in exploitation of The 40 Thieves
and 'cause I'm the youngest
of the old generation
and you're kind of the...
- That's right and I'm the oldest.
- In the middle, no you're not,
you weren't the oldest, I mean.
- Well, I don't know of anybody any older.
- [Ned] While a few of
the exploitation films
could be favorably compared
to the Hollywood B pictures
of the period, on
average, these productions
lacked any resemblance
to mainstream movies.
They were produced for
the least possible cost
in the shortest period of time.
And the results clearly showed on screen.
This unremarkable production written by
and featuring Lenny
Bruce nicely illustrates
two standards of the genre,
cheap sets and bad acting.
Note, the bar in this
nightclub, a few stools,
one bottle and some glasses
on a shelf, hardly realistic.
As for the acting, well
judge for yourself.
- I'm getting bored.
- Well, how'd you like
to take a trip baby?
- A trip?
Sounds good, where to?
- Hawaii, of course.
- What do you mean a trip to Hawaii?
- Here, I'll show you.
Hey, Jack, this guy wants to take a trip.
- To Hawaii?
(slow dance music)
- Hey Betty, what's going on?
What gives what this Hawaii bit?
- When a gal kisses a guy,
she likes a little privacy.
That's why the palm tree is there.
- Why do they call it going to Hawaii?
- Where do palm trees
remind you of, stupid?
- Oh, I get it, palm trees, Hawaii.
- Oh, what a brain, what a brain.
- What a trip, what a trip
- [Ned] On location, the
same conditions prevailed.
If it was a smoggy day,
the script would be changed
to accommodate the view or the lack of it.
Welcome to LA.
- [Reporter] Awaited me down there.
But quickly...
- [Ned] This young reporter is reflecting
on an earlier meeting with her editor.
- [Reporter] A man who both
fascinated and frightened me.
- [Ned] The publication
must be in trouble,
note the bookcase.
Maybe nobody reads books,
but this is ridiculous.
- Mr. Hanson.
- Yes.
- You sent for me?
- Oh yes, I did Miss Sloan.
I wanted to have a little talk with you,
very confidential.
You see for some time now,
I've been thinking about you.
- Why, what would you
be thinking about me?
- You'd be surprised.
- Oh.
(door bell buzzes)
- Just a minute.
- [Ned] The criteria for
appearing in these movies
was more a willingness
to wear skimpy clothes
than an ability to act.
And any excuse to get out
of their clothes would do.
- Hello.
- Oh, hello, come on in.
Sit down and make yourself comfortable.
- Thanks.
Gee, it's hot.
I think I'll shed this
while we sit and chat.
- Cigarette?
- Yes, thanks.
Thank you.
- Well, what brings you
out on such a warm day?
- Oh, I just thought you might like
to take a ride down to the beach.
- Can't, my sugar daddy
may come over today.
- Why doesn't he come
around in the evenings
like other fellas?
- (chuckles) This guy can't; he's married.
- Well, stand him up.
One time won't hurt him.
- Not this guy.
He might blow up and I don't
wanna go back to hashing.
- Oh, there are other jobs.
- Yeah, but I can't get them.
I'm not strong enough
for riveting or welding
and I'm not smart enough
to be a stenographer
or a bookkeeper.
So I'll just stick to this old goof
until some nice young guy
comes along that I can marry.
(phone rings)
That's him now.
Hello?
Well, yes, honey, come right up.
I've been hoping you'd come over today.
Sure, I've been lonely without you.
Well, of course I do.
Okay.
He's down at the corner
drugstore, coming right up.
- Ooh, I better get back to my apartment
before he gets here.
Bye now.
- Bye.
(door opens)
(door closes)
Oh, honey, I'm so glad to see you.
- Please, darling don't go too far.
Remember you're a lady.
- Hi ya, Joan, how about a date?
Come on honey, I'll show you a good time.
- All right, buddy, out ya go.
Come on, get out (stools clattering)
(old man shouting indistinctly)
- You talk a lot about wanting a family
but don't you know that
talk won't get you anywhere?
- What?
- You better get that gigolo
out before I get there
or I'll kick him out myself.
- Wait a minute, Mr. Crane.
I've got to find a girlfriend.
- Tonight?
- Delighted, sure.
- You're the gigolo.
- Well, of course, what
else did you expect?
- You're not gonna try
to take advantage of me
or anything like that?
- Most certainly not.
- There must be something
wrong with this script.
- Oh yes, the script.
(thudding)
The producers had a basic
formula, which was built
on two simple rules, the
lowest possible price
and the highest possible
titillation factor.
The subject matter was anything
that mainstream Hollywood
wouldn't or couldn't touch.
- Well mainstream of
course meant the accepted.
That means in the motion picture business
when you're talking
mainstream, you're talking MGM,
Paramount, Warner
Brothers, 20th Century Fox,
United Artists, et cetera.
When you're talking Main Street,
you're talking about the
films that the Dan Sonnys
and the Willis Kents and the J D Kendises
and the Dave Friedmans
and the Herschel Lewises
and the Kroger Babb's
made that had no idea
of ever playing those palaces uptown
and those fine theaters in Westwood
or the East Side of New
York or Skokie outside
of Chicago, but played the
Skid Row scratch houses
and played some remote
drive-ins out in the sticks.
And those were Main Street movies
as opposed to mainstream movies.
- That's a good explanation of it.
You did it real good.
- Well, thank you, Dan.
(somber music)
- [Ned] The stories could be lumped
into four categories.
The first we'll call
Antisocial Traditions,
titles such as Polygamy and
Child Bride are good examples.
Such subjects were too controversial
for the major studios to handle.
(car door slams)
- Darling.
(mellow music)
- Are you really glad to see me?
- Why didn't you tell me you were coming?
- I just couldn't stay another
minute down there in the city
with you up here in this
godforsaken country.
(mellow music)
- You know why I stay here.
- But you promised that
when I became established
in my profession you'd marry me.
- Yes, I know.
- Well, now I'm assistant
district attorney.
You can't stall me this time.
- Oh, I am proud of you Charles,
but I haven't accomplished
what I set out to do.
- You're wasting your time.
- Charles, I'm going to
fight for these people
until the state realizes
that child marriage must be stopped.
- Who brought her here?
- I did.
She's all right; she
wants to go the route.
- What's the idea, try to
pull any fast stuff on me.
- I'm not.
If you don't think so, watch
her go for the reefers.
(mellow music)
- Oh, thank you.
(mellow music)
- [Ned] The second category
we call Antisocial Behavior
which generally means
elicit substances abuse.
(mellow music)
- Ooh, they're strong, aren't they?
- Oh, a little.
- And everybody pays for
them too, don't they?
- Yes.
- People of my generation
and Dan's generation
that saw marijuana films
when we were in our teens,
boy, that's why we were
never marijuana users.
To a large extent, these
pictures may have been corny
and they may have been high
camp by today's standards.
But that is, I think
that the fact that people
of our generation always
thought that if you smoked
a marijuana joint, the next
thing you were gonna do
would be sticking a needle in your arm
because that's what
these pictures told us.
- At the end, all of
them got big dark eyes,
circles under their eyes.
- Or they wind up in an opium den.
- And they're dying.
(Dave laughs)
So, it was nothing but an education.
(Dave laughs)
And every time I hear about
somebody smoking marijuana,
it scares me, it really does.
- [Ned] Promiscuous Behavior
describes the third category
and the youngsters always
learn their wild behavior
from the adults.
- Okay, folks, the party's on.
- What happened, did he walk out on her?
- [Woman] No, he walked in on her.
- [Man] Uh-oh.
- And they say Marion's
a block of the old chip.
- Thank goodness I don't
have to worry about my Beth.
She's a model youngster.
(teenagers chattering)
- [Man] You lost, Beth,
off with one more piece.
(group clamoring)
- [Man] It won't be long now.
(train chugging)
- [Ned] Our last category
is Sexual Ignorance.
What you don't know can't hurt you
or gee willikers, maybe it can.
(train wheels clacking)
- I wish we'd waited over a day
and driven home with the Gordons.
- We've been all through that.
I have to get home today
for business reasons.
Besides, we promised Joan she could go
to the school dance tonight.
- I wonder whether we're wise
in letting her attend dances.
I think she's entirely too young.
- [Father] There's nothing wrong in that.
- I suppose you think
there's nothing wrong
in letting her see things like that.
- Like what?
- Like that.
- Hey, Pop, have a little shot of bourbon?
- No, thank you.
(train wheels clacking)
- How about you, baby?
- Thanks, I'd love it.
- Seeing them isn't gonna hurt her any.
- You know you're awfully far away.
Why don't you be more sociable
and come on over here?
- Suits me.
(train wheels clacking)
- Pour another little drink.
- What are we waiting for?
- [Man] Okay.
- I could stand a little drink myself.
- Dan Blake, how can you
look at things like that
without being shocked?
(dramatic music)
- [Ned] Titles were extremely important
to these showmen.
Having little or nothing
to sell the pictures,
they sold the titles.
Usually the tamer the picture,
the more sensational the title
and if a title in some
communities was too risque,
they had a second more acceptable
title ready to replace it.
(dramatic music)
Many pictures were also
shot with alternate scenes
to meet the moral standards
of conservative communities.
The tame version would add clothing
and remove suggestive dialogue.
- Well, then you should've heard him beat.
- Oh, I always get frightened
when they get angry.
- [Ned] Watch what happens
between the pillow throwing
and the phone ringing in the two versions.
(phone rings)
- Nevermind, I'll get it.
Hello?
- [Ned] Note the additional dialogue
in the daring version.
- (indistinct) commit m*rder.
- You know, sometimes they even try it.
- Well, anyway, there we were.
So finally, I said to him,
"Look, what do you want for $10?"
And before I could do a thing about it,
he laid a 20 right in my lap.
- With his hand still on it, no doubt.
- Now look, honey, live
and let live is my motto.
Besides he wasn't such a bad guy
once you got to know him.
- But if he wasn't a
gentleman, when did you say no?
- Who said no?
(laughs)
The wolf I was with last night
was certainly no Galahad, oh no.
- How would you know?
- I was there, I was there.
(phone rings)
- [Ned] Of course today
even the daring version
would probably be rated G.
- Hello?
- Wait a minute, it's the appointment desk
for your date tonight.
- Let's have it.
This is Rita, sh**t.
Where'd you say to meet him?
616, The Pickwick Arms, 7:30 tonight.
What'd you say his name was?
Ralph Singer and he likes...
What did you say his name was?
That's what I thought you said.
Ralph Singer, the big palooka,
you bet I'll be there.
(receiver clatters)
Oh, how do you like that?
I'll m*rder him, that's what I'll do.
- What's eating you?
- The first night he's home in six months
and does he ask me to go out?
Well, does he?
- No?
- No, no is right.
Instead he calls an
escort girl for a date.
- Well, so a guy's a
guy and a date's a date.
Who is he?
- Who is he?
Who do you think he is?
He's my husband.
(somber music)
- [Ned] Respectability
was not the only reason
for a picture to have
multiple titles and scenes.
Obviously this title was added later,
it was a matter of economics.
- That was part of road showing was
that you changed the title ever.
You couldn't afford to make a new picture
every three months but you
could afford a new main title.
And nobody knew that.
Again, I say I never had anybody
ask for their money back.
- No, I'd have it to them.
(laughing)
My dad made a picture, Maniac,
and it didn't do any business
and so we just put a
title on the front of it
and called it Sex Maniac
and we k*lled 'em.
It was a big, big moneymaker.
- Is that the one where you
pop the eye out of that cat?
- No, I didn't do it, I (stammers)
(Dave laughing)
- [Dave] You had to find
a one-eyed cat though.
- [Dan] Yeah, we had
to find a one eyed cat.
- [Dave] You were only a kid.
- [Dan] They put a marble in the cat's eye
and they popped a marble
out of the cat's eye
and the people seen that.
And they really actually
thought that somebody
popped the cat's eye out.
- [Dave] Where'd you find a one-eyed cat?
- [Dan] But I was about 15
when that picture was made.
- [Dave] Yeah, but you
were the one that went out
and found a one-eyed cat.
- [Dan] Well, I thought I
was with the guy anyway.
- Why?
It's nothin' like an oyster or a grape.
(laughs maniacally)
But the gleam is gone (laughs maniacally)
- [Ned] While these pictures always had
some moral message to
convey to the audience,
it wasn't the message
that brought the people
and their money into the theaters.
Any opportunity to get
skin into the action
was vital to the lifeblood
of these showmen.
And sometimes the method
was blatantly obvious.
If the gown didn't fall off the shoulder,
the actor had to help it along.
(sensual music)
(applause)
(man laughing)
- Well, you're not leaving
the camp so soon, are you?
- Why no, what makes you think that?
- You've got your clothes on.
Hurry up and take them off.
It isn't nice to keep me
waiting for breakfast, is it?
- I didn't understand.
You haven't got the time on you?
- Well, hardly, but I'll go and find out
if you want me to.
(dramatic music)
- Oh boy, maybe I'm wrong.
Maybe he is a real count after all.
- The Sonny family,
Friedman, Esper, Kendis, Foy.
These are some of the names
that put the X in exploitation.
But when it came to selling
these illicit pictures,
they all acknowledged one as The King.
His name was Kroger Babb and he invented
or employed every gimmick
and trick in the business
to draw attention to his shows.
- (laughing) Well, Kroger
had a marvelous sense
of humor, no question about it.
And he was fun to be with.
And as soon as he entered
a room, things lightened up
because his presence was
felt very very acutely.
He was a personality
that you'd never forget.
- When it came down to basic communication
with the great American masses,
Kroger Babb was the
absolute master of this art.
It wasn't a matter of talking to dilatants
or sophisticates or pseudo sophisticates,
it was just talking to our
fellow citizens out there
in a language they could understand.
And Krog had this down to a science.
And wherever he went, whatever
he said, whatever he wrote,
they listened, they
read and they responded.
And that was Kroger Babb.
- It was wonderful (laughs)
Never a dull moment and he was
very easy to get along with.
I don't recall Kroger ever in
all the years we were married,
ever telling me you can't do that, never.
He never told me that I
couldn't do any certain thing.
And of course, Kroger
thought money was to spend
and I had a different feeling about it.
And it's a good thing I did
because otherwise I'd
probably be on welfare today
because he could not keep a dollar.
- I would say by 1956,
when I became associated
with Modern Film Distributors in Chicago,
Kroger was one of the
partners in this firm
and then two years
later we bought him out.
At that point between
film rental and book sales
on this little picture that
had cost him $44,000 to make
in 1944, he had grossed, had come into,
through his hands
somewhere over $90 million.
- We had to argue with
them to raise their price
from 35 cents to 50 cents.
Believe me, in some places
it was a stormy session.
They didn't wanna charge 50 cents
'cause they said people
wouldn't come at 50 cents.
If people had come, if
the grosses at five, six
and seven dollars were added up,
I would say that the grosses
on Mom and Dad probably would equal
or exceed any picture
that's showing today.
(bell rings)
(train whistles)
- Most all of us that were ever
in the road show business
came out of small towns.
Kroger came out of Wilmington, Ohio,
Dan came out of Centralia, Washington.
Dwayne Esper came out of
some little town in Missouri.
Yeah, basically we were a bunch
of country boys, is what it was.
This is your life Dave Friedman (laughs)
- And you've never been in a big city?
- No.
- Say you've got something
to look forward to.
I love it.
The hurrying crowds all going places.
It makes you feel like you were really
in the stream of life,
really doing big things.
Why you can just feel the
throb of the metropolis.
- I quit road showin' in 1941.
- Yeah, but you didn't
have an attraction like Mom
and Dad with those books.
- No, no, no.
You guys were big.
You guys were big.
- So how come you got all the money?
- Yeah, I don't know.
(Dave laughs)
- The subjects might've been different
but the structure of these
movies was basically the same.
(dramatic music)
Most exploitation films would begin
with a written prologue
spelling out the subject
for the audience.
Then early on the evil
element would be introduced.
It might be a backward tradition, drug use
or simply a man eyeing an innocent girl.
- Come on, give me one.
- I haven't got anymore.
They're all gone.
You know, those things cost money
and you don't give me enough.
- Well, I'll get some more
money for you tomorrow.
- Well, I haven't got any more reefers.
Would you like something stronger?
- What kind of a kick does it have?
- See what you think.
- You've got purple hair.
- Let's go dancing.
Let's go, come on (tires screeching)
- Oh Ricky, look out,
there's a car coming.
- Watch me give him a shave.
(woman screams)
(metal grinding)
(lively music)
- Say, Tommy, who's the little blonde
over there in the green dress?
- You mean the one
dancing with Alan Curtis?
- Who's Alan Curtis?
- The one dancing with the
girl in the green dress.
- Yeah, yeah.
- That's Dave Blake's kid sister, Joan.
- Gee, she looks like Miss America to me.
(lively music)
- Hey, how do you like that?
That's the one I was telling you about.
- Very nice.
(women chattering)
- Back in a minute, honey.
Hello, Marky, I'm awful jumpy today.
Are you holding?
(women chattering)
I've been telling you,
Marky, she's a nice kid.
She's only working here
'cause she needs the dough.
Marky, did you hear what I asked?
- I've had my eye on that for a long time.
- Layoff, Marky, she's the kind that works
to help support a brother, wants him
to have a decent education.
- [Woman] And we have that
also in size 12 through 14.
It comes in the pink.
- [Ned] Once we know the evil,
the innocent must be exposed
to it for the first time.
(romantic music)
- I'm sorry, honey.
I just couldn't help it.
- You shouldn't have done it.
I've never been kissed like that before.
- Yeah, well I feel honored.
(romantic music)
(water burbling)
(scratching)
- [Man] Jenny.
(water burbling)
Look what I brought ya.
Now listen, Jenny, I'm
going to be your husband
(laughing)
- [Woman] Tickle, tickle, tickle.
- Well, the lady really is alive.
Had me worried for a while.
- Rita always gets fun out of things.
- [Man] Don't you?
- I guess maybe I'm too busy
trying to make a living.
I help send my brother to college.
- Yeah, so I heard.
What you need maybe is a
little education yourself.
Learn to relax.
Let your hair down.
You got a lot of class, charm.
With a guy like me you
might even go places.
I know a lot of people.
The right kind.
You might even call me
a sort of Santa Claus.
I could turn your life into a nice,
big, beautiful sleigh ride.
Enough dough to put your
brother through college twice.
- You make living sound attractive.
- Oh, here, try one of mine.
Go ahead, it won't hurt you.
(ominous music)
- Here, have a drink.
(laughing)
- No, Marky, maybe for somebody else,
but not for me.
- Ah, what are you worried about?
You're over 21.
You got a mind of your own.
I think you're the type that
can take it or leave it.
(dramatic music)
- Hey, fellas, Anne's gonna join the club.
Come on, we can't miss this.
- [Man] That's a good girl.
- Don't be a poor sport, Anne.
It's fun;you'll love it.
- Well, maybe one puff won't hurt me,
Sure, you know I wouldn't steer you wrong.
(dramatic music)
- I thought you were a sport.
(lively music)
Course if you're afraid.
(lively music)
That's better;that's more like it.
I know you'll like, really you will.
Now just take a puff of that.
(lively music)
(laughing loudly)
(romantic music)
- Joan, I'm crazy about you.
(romantic music)
- I like you, too, Jack.
- Ya know, you look mighty
sharp in the moonlight.
- Please don't, Jack.
- Look, Joan, if you
love me and you want me
to care a lot for you,
you've gotta put your faith
and trust in me.
When two people like us see each other
for the first time we know,
we know that we're in love.
Well it takes couples,
well they go together
for years and they never realize how much
they care for each other.
Isn't that right?
- Yes.
(sweeping music)
(somber music)
- [Ned] The damage is done
and the innocent trapped.
Note the use of music for emphasis
- Dear Joan, it was just a month ago today
that I met you, yet the
four weeks since I left
seem more like four years, I...
(ominous music)
It was just a month ago
today that I met you.
A month?
(ominous music)
(indistinct)
(ominous music)
- Mom?
- Yes, dear?
- Do you have a book on
hygiene that I could read?
- What?
- You know, a book about marriage
and having babies and things like that.
- Why Joan dear, such a question.
You're not married yet.
And I don't want you thinking
about such things until you are.
Whatever put that idea into your head?
- Well, I...
I heard some of the girls talking
about having babies and, well,
I've wondered because I
don't know much about it.
- Well, there'll be plenty of time
for you to know all about
it after you are married.
In the meantime, I want you to walk away
from any girls you hear
talking about such things.
- But mother.
- Now run along, dear,
and don't bother me.
I'm late already.
(ominous music)
(sweeping music)
(somber music)
- I mustn't go to pieces, I mustn't.
There must be some way out of this.
- You've got to see him and tell him.
- No I couldn't.
- Why honey, when he knows
he'll wanna do the right thing.
He couldn't walk out on you now.
You will see him?
- Anne, I'll have to tell you,
I can't marry you for awhile;I'm not free.
- [Anne] Oh.
- That's the only reason
I suggested what I did.
Go through with this honey.
And then in a little while everything
will be all right for us.
Won't you trust me?
- Oh Mary, give me a kiss, Mary.
- [Mary] No, don't.
Please let me go.
- [Man] Oh Mary.
- [Mary] No.
Leave me alone.
Leave me alone.
Go away.
- [Man] Mary, you're (mumbles)
Leave me alone.
Oh, leave me alone.
(Mary grunts)
- [Man] Everything's over.
- [Mary] Leave me be (screams)
(man grunts)
(Mary screaming)
(g*n fires)
(ominous music)
(scuffling)
(g*n fires)
(ominous music)
- Drake!
(ominous music)
(g*n fires)
(gasps)
(g*n fires repeatedly)
(sirens blaring)
(scuffling)
(women screaming)
(sirens blaring)
(scuffling)
(sirens blaring)
(scuffling)
(sirens blaring)
(scuffling)
- Come to many of these parties?
- No, I've never been to one before.
Aren't they exciting?
- Yes.
- [Man] Come on, Pat, come on.
Let's go, come on.
- [Ned] Entertainment was treated
like a separate component
of these pictures.
There were pianos, jitterbug dancers
and even nightclub acts.
Party dancers were supposed
to represent shocking
behavior and immorality.
And of course they gave
the producers a chance
to show some uncovered
legs or skimpy clothes.
But most of this entertainment
was merely filler.
Though it could be rather bizarre.
(lively music)
- Right this way, ladies and
gentlemen, and see Fatima.
(lively music)
- Dance with me (laughs)
(bouncy piano music)
(singer scatting)
- Boy, look at that girl go.
- Mmm-hmm, is she hot.
(sultry music)
(applause)
(lively music)
(lively marching music)
(castanets clacking)
(lively music)
(horn blows)
- [Man] The wild bull of Poppa.
(castanets clacking)
(lively music)
(crowd shouting and cheering)
(somber music)
(cymbal clangs)
(applause)
(mellow music)
(symbol clangs)
(applause)
(drum roll)
(applause)
(mellow music)
(mellow music)
(mellow piano music)
- Say, that's beautiful.
(mellow piano music)
Something I'd like to do my ballet to.
- My new concerto.
Get in the mood and
start from the beginning.
- Faster (breathing heavily)
(rapid piano music)
Play faster.
(classical piano music)
Play faster.
(classical piano music)
Stop that racket, stop it.
♪ So I'm sad and melancholy ♪
♪ For I would rather be ♪
♪ A bum on Broadway than
an angel in the sky ♪
- I wish that fellow wouldn't be
forever singing those corny songs.
- Hey, corny or not, the
acts were needed as filler.
Let's get back to the story.
The damage is done.
Now it's time to find
fault or place blame.
- Mary Lou, I think I'm in trouble.
- Joan, no.
- Yes.
(somber music)
- Oh, David, I'm in trouble (sobs)
- What?
- What's wrong?
- Well, Joan...
Joan's in trouble.
- You mean she's?
- Yes.
I've just had the shock of my life.
Joan is, is in trouble.
- Trouble?
What sort of trouble?
- Sexual trouble.
(somber music)
- How would you know about it?
- You mean to tell me that
you let your daughter go
and visit Helen without even
knowing where she lives?
- Well, yes.
She said she'd write in a few days.
- But all we know about Helen is
that she ran away to marry
a man she had never seen.
A man she met through a
matrimonial agency advertisement.
- Yes, I, I guess that is so.
- Don't you know that some
of those agencies are
the worst kind of traps?
That many of their
customers are criminals,
morons, white slavers, or people
who are mentally or physically diseased?
- No, I've never given it a thought.
- Oh, you American mothers
with your bridge parties and beauty shops
and your silly flirtations.
Wasting your lives and
neglecting your duties,
letting your children run wild
for lack of sensible parental supervision.
- Oh, you don't know American children.
They're spoiled and
disobedient and drunken.
- Drunken, yes.
Drunk with the exuberance of youth
and sheer joy of living.
There is nothing really wrong
with the children of today.
Nothing that proper environment
and congenial home life wouldn't correct.
- What do you expect us
modern mothers to do?
- Quit trying to be butterflies.
Get back to the business of being mothers
like your mother and your grandmother
and generations of mothers before them.
- I haven't been devoting enough time
to just being a mother.
- Oh, no Mother, it isn't
your fault, it's mine.
- Oh I've been so stupid.
It's all my fault.
I should have realized
something was wrong.
- Don't blame yourself, Joan.
I should have told you.
- Whatever Margie did last night
or whatever caused her to do what she did,
I'm sure it was my fault, not hers.
- I can't believe it.
I can't believe it.
I always trusted Anne so.
- But blindly I'm afraid, Mrs. Dixon,
like too many mothers.
Our boys and girls today
need more than trust.
They need the armor of knowledge,
of intelligent sex
instruction, to protect them.
Thanks.
- Who was the boy?
I'll have him arrested.
- They didn't tell me his name
and I didn't ask, after
all why blame the boy?
- But you wouldn't blame
such a scandalous thing
on an innocent young girl like Joan?
- No, I wouldn't blame her any more
than I would the boy.
- Well then who would you blame??
- I'd blame you Mrs. Blake.
You and every parent who
neglects the sacred duty
of telling their children the real truth.
Why were your children afraid to come
to you in their trouble?
Why did they have to
come to me for advice?
Remember this, Mrs. Blake,
when your children have to go
to someone else for advice,
you've fallen down on your job.
- What can we do, Carl?
- Yes, what can we do?
The whole town will know about this.
I'll never be able to face
the women of my club again.
We'll be ruined.
- Mrs. Blake, if I were
you, I'd stop thinking
about myself and give Joan some
of the consideration a girl has a right
to expect from her mother.
(dramatic music)
- Hold it.
The theaters are no longer on Main Street
and the team no longer
travels with the picture.
But back then, this was
when the road showmen
showed they were showmen.
(somber music)
(sweeping music)
- Well, it's gone.
It's been gone, I guess,
15 or 20 years now.
And it's just about like
maybe another 2000 theaters
just like it in towns like this
all over the United States.
They've all now gone down to the malls
on the edges of town with
the big multi screens.
But these were the theaters,
these are the little theaters
on Main Street where we used to road show.
This was the kind of
theater we'd be playing Mom
and Dad in and on a typical day,
say at seven o'clock in the evening,
the theater would be full
of women and teenage girls
and there'd be a line of men
and teenage boys stretched down to the end
of the block waiting to get in.
And right at a crucial
point in the picture,
a title would come on.
And we'd say, we pause in our presentation
to introduce the eminent hygiene
commentator, Elliot Forbes.
And Mr. Forbes would walk out on the stage
and say thank you ladies
for your warm reception.
And today I am here to
peel aside the veils
of sexual ignorance that too long
have overcrowded this fair city.
- We sold this book,
which was a sex manual.
And we had two separate books
one for women and one for men.
And the authorization is given as
or the author's name
is given as M.A. Horn.
And I wasn't married at the time
and my name was Mildred Horn
but Kroger said nobody
will buy a book written
by a woman on sex.
Said, look, put down M.A. Horn
and they won't know whether
you're a man or a woman.
- $1.00 a copy $2.00 for the set.
Now think of it for less than the cost
of a carton of cigarettes,
every home in America can own a set
of these vitally important books.
And I believe with all my heart that a set
of these books belongs
on the living room desk
or the bedside table of
every home in America.
For just one of these
books can save a young man
from the horror of venereal disease
or a young woman from the
shame of unwed motherhood.
Then there's no telling
how much they're worth.
Through the efforts of the
Women's Research Guild,
these books are offered to
you tonight at a fraction
of their actual cost of printing
and handling and distribution.
My agents will now pass up and
down the aisles amongst you.
If you care to take home a set
of these books, please do so.
And I'd like to close, wishing
you all a very long life,
a very happy life, but above
all a very healthy life.
Thank you, good night, and God bless you.
I mean, oh, it was, it was unbelievable.
- God, Dave got up one night
and his wife bought a book from him.
(laughing)
- [Ned] Finally, it comes time
for the no longer innocent
to pay for his or her misdeeds.
After all, wrongdoers
always get their due.
- [Woman] I hope you'll be happy.
- Well, I will I guess.
- [Man] Good luck to you.
(ominous music)
- Laura, I'll be taking my wife home now.
- Oh Mummy, I don't want to go.
- Jenny, you're my wife now
and it's time to go home.
It's gettin' late.
(somber music)
Oh Mummy.
(somber music)
(clanking)
- Your Honor, in this case
the state waives trial
of the defendant Ralph Wiley.
It is convinced that he is hopelessly
and incurably insane, a condition caused
by the drug marijuana,
to which he was addicted.
It is recommended, Your Honor,
that the defendant be
placed at an institution
for the criminally insane for
the rest of his natural life.
- Oh but surely there must
be something you can do.
- I have done everything,
but there's no use.
We were too late, a clumsy
unsanitary operation,
aggravated by some terrific shock.
- Oh, my baby (sobbing)
- Daddy.
Daddy.
(somber music)
- Hello, Mom.
- Darling.
(somber music)
- Hello, Dad.
- Hello, chicken.
- Hey ya, Butch.
- Hi.
(somber music)
- Thanks, God, for taking
care of Little Butch.
(somber music)
(wild music)
(glass shattering)
(woman screams)
(woman screams)
(man screams)
(glass shattering)
(door creaking)
(ominous music)
(screams)
(screams)
- (screams) It's Daddy!
(screams)
(screams)
(screams)
(screams)
(thudding)
(woman screams)
- Get it out of me (indistinct)
- What was in that hypo?
- Well we know what's in these pictures.
Having shown us all this sin
and wild behavior, the
producers will now remind us,
once more, who is responsible
and how we can prevent
it from happening again.
- In many ways you parents are just
as guilty as he is.
Granted that they are.
But will locking these youngsters up
with habitual criminals
make them better citizens?
Look at them.
Those two boys, do they look
like hardened criminals?
Is it necessary to serve the ends
of justice by sending them up?
And these two girls will
prison make them better women?
I don't think so.
You know it won't.
Give them a chance.
Give them a chance to lead honest lives.
Then perhaps I can feel, well I will feel,
that my boy died for a very good cause.
- Mr. District Attorney, I have a sister
that I know will be glad
to give Lily a home.
If she wants it, would
you like that, honey?
- I would.
- Oh, poor lamb.
- And I'll see that our sons go
to work on a farm to help with the crops.
- And I'll go back to
my folks in Michigan.
- The solution lies more with the mothers
and fathers than it does with the courts.
I do all I can for them.
Give me those notes.
Citizens must become more deeply conscious
of the importance of
family life in our country.
- Yes, that happened right
here to your neighbors.
It is not too much to
say that in your hands
lies the possibility of averting
other tragedies like it.
We must work untiringly
so that our children
are obliged to learn the
truth, because it is only
through knowledge that we
can safely protect them.
Failing this, the next tragedy may be that
of your daughter or your son
or yours or yours or yours.
- And now friends you've
seen the entire production.
If you agree that these
pictures have been bold
and shocking enough that
you've learned a very
worthwhile lesson from them,
I wish you'd show the
management your appreciation
at this time by your applause.
- Do you know that every time we used
to wear out a print there used
to be a big barrel near our
vaults with a lid on it.
You know, that clamp on.
And then we would wear
out a lot of prints.
We'd throw it in, in this big barrel.
- Steel barrel.
- Steel barrel, and just as
soon as it would get full
we would call the pickup
company that would deal
in this nitrate.
They would pick it up
and where do you think
they would throw it?
In the ocean.
Everything years ago
would go in the ocean.
Did you know that?
- Well, they would try to...
- [Dan] Everything would go in the ocean.
- They would try to reclaim
the silver out of it
but then they would
throw it, you're right,
they'd throw it.
- Later on it they threw it in the ocean.
- [Dave] Threw it in the ocean.
- And then they stopped that ocean sh*t.
- (laughs) Yeah, well the fish were dying.
Wait, well maybe the fish we're looking
at some of the pictures.
(women giggling)
- Why Joan Barry, you're naked.
(woman giggling)
- I fell in the lake, Ms. Frisbee.
While my clothes were drying, they burned.
- A likely story.
- The exploiteers didn't always worry
about the message in their films.
Many films were made strictly
to tantalize the audience.
These titles generally
produced during the 20s
and the 30s sometimes
had simple storylines
but most often the subject
matter was simply bare skin.
Elysia was the name of
an early nudist colony
that became the subject
of a Brian Foy film.
Naturally it demonstrated
the highly moral atmosphere
of such a place.
- Hello Mac.
- Good morning, Doctor.
- Son, you're going to be embarrassed.
- I've got to confess
that I am embarrassed.
- You don't grasp my meaning.
You're going to be embarrassed
if you keep your clothes on.
You'll continue to be embarrassed.
Self-conscious and the entire purpose
of your visit here will be lost.
On the other hand, remove them,
and in a very short space of time,
you will feel like one of us.
(bell ringing)
There's the call for breakfast.
(bell ringing)
By the way, where's Miss Kent?
Isn't she going to have breakfast with us?
- There she is.
- Wait a minute, come on son,
your coffee will be getting cold.
(group shouting)
- But Doctor, where's Miss Kent?
- Say, what's the matter
with your eyes, son?
There she is at the bat.
- Strike one.
(group yelling)
- [Man] Come on, throw it home, come on.
(group yelling)
- I wonder who the new
member is calling up.
- He's probably calling his tailor
to cancel his orders for a
couple of suits (chuckles)
- You have a perfect right to be proud
of the things you've done, Doctor.
- Thank you, well, I'll
take the first bucket.
Oh, Doctor, where's Miss Kent?
- Here I am; that can's taken.
(giggling)
- [Man] Now was that nice?
- No, but I couldn't resist it.
- It was great but another bucket full
would have drowned me.
(Miss Kent giggles)
- At this present moment no
one can definitely forecast
the future of nudism.
All that we do know is that
its growth has been tremendous
and among respectable people.
It is an idea that most people
either accept very heartily
and consider the greatest
innovation of their lives
or else they may reject
it equally heartily
and express contempt for not only the idea
but for all it's four
million adherents as well.
Perhaps on both sides there
is too much inclination
to jump at a conclusion.
Perhaps some who accept
it at once are actuated
by mere curiosity and look upon it
as a new way of enjoying
a surreptitious good time.
But unfortunately those folks fail
to realize that to enter a nudist group
they themselves must be unclothed
and that there is a
mental examination as well
as physical inspection coming to them.
(mellow music)
- [Ned] A New York court decision
later brought forth a flood
of nudist titles.
But by then a more permissive atmosphere
saw other types as well.
Burlesque films were
the easiest to produce
but also the hardest to
get into the theaters.
After all, there was no moral message
in the actions of the strippers.
The big name in striptease
movies was Tempest Storm.
This attraction was produced by Dan Sonny
and included a more evenly
proportioned Lily Sincere
who was best known for
putting her clothes back on.
(sensual music)
Conservative communities and censorship,
however, made all of
the early skin movies,
especially valuable to the road showmen.
They called them square up reels.
- These were, the square up reels,
they were used only to
keep the audience quiet
if they hadn't seen anything
in the main feature.
To square them up, you square a beef,
you make peace with them,
you make them happy.
That's what a square up reel was.
And girls of Lola Lola
and Hollywood Script Girl
are perfect examples.
These were all made in the late twenties
very early thirties and were taken around
by the road showmen.
Half the time if there were no problems
and in the main feature you
could show the bare breast
or maybe a bare behind you
didn't even have to use it.
(quirky music)
(trumpets sounding)
(sultry music)
- Now that we've seen it all,
are you surprised that
these films, in fact,
attracted large audiences?
They filled an obvious need.
I think these films are less
interesting for the content
than for the audiences
who went to see them.
And for the showmen who
provided the motivation.
With few exceptions, the
movies were pretty awful.
They were made to make money.
Yet having met these showmen,
their protestations to the contrary,
we found that their hearts were
greater than their wallets.
I think their motivation
was to razzle-dazzle
in good old carnival fashion.
The buck was a way of keeping score.
- Let me tell you one
thing about the...
All my years of exploitation,
and I think I can speak for Dan
who has even spent more
years in exploitation
and road showing, we may have done
some terrible, terrible
things to the American public
but I don't ever remember
one soul ever asking
for their money back.
- Well, nobody ever asked
me for their money back
or I'd have gave it to them.
(Dave laughs)
- In a pig's eye you'd
have given it to them.
(quirky music)
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Sex and Buttered Popcorn (1989)
Watch on Amazon Merchandise Collectables
Valentine's Day, Hot, Steamy, Sexy, Romantic Movie Collection.
Valentine's Day, Hot, Steamy, Sexy, Romantic Movie Collection.