Technology and Culture, the Film Reader Book

Very informative history of the Production Code Administration who monitored content in Hollywood films from 1934 to the early 1960s. The book also focuses on Joseph Breen, the man responsible for the operation running so effectively. I figured him to be an uptight bluenose, by he was actually a very intelligent, rational person who commanded the respect of the major studios.

I see that some of the other reviews rate it really low, but it is well researched and sourced. In the 1930s, the "moral values" of society were much more strict than they are now and American film was on the verge of being regulated by the government. Joseph Breen and the PCA were the compromise the studios made to prevent regulations at the Federal level. The author points out how once the US entered the War, the Code started becoming outdated and Breen was off base in his failure to waiver, eventually appearing ridiculous with some of his actions in the post-War era.