Filtered Morality: Theatrical Film Sanitization in Utah County, Utah, 1960s-1980s
| dc.contributor.advisor | Alilunas, Peter | |
| dc.contributor.author | Cowley, Brent | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2024-01-09T21:06:55Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2024-01-09T21:06:55Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2024-01-09 | |
| dc.description.abstract | This dissertation examines a history of theatrical film sanitization in Utah County, Utah, primarily from the 1960s to the 1980s. Regional censorship boards throughout the Hollywood Production Code era labored to ensure that film content corresponded with the moral standards within a region. However, the rise of the MPAA rating system and U.S. Supreme Court obscenity rulings in the 1970s changed how society consumed films. These changes were problematic for citizens of Utah County, most of whom were members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormon/LDS), who are warned against viewing film content considered “obscene.” In the 1960s, city-wide obscenity ordinances were passed to regulate the influx of films with objectionable content. Citizen groups and decency commissions were instrumental to this regulation as they pressured the enforcement of the ordinances. City attorneys required edits, banned films, and prosecuted those that violated the ordinances. Despite these efforts, many citizens attended films considered objectionable, especially when local media reported on “obscene” films. After several ordinances were tested in court and lost, a new battle was waged. The roles were reversed once citizens outside the majority sought autonomy to view edited versions of films without constraint. As a result of the culture’s deep interest in the arts and popular entertainment, there soon came a desire for many citizens to seek sanitized versions of mainstream movies rather than prohibiting them. These efforts reestablished a self-imposed regional “Production Code,” allowing citizens the autonomy to view films adapted to their own standards. This intense interest eventually established Utah County as the unofficial headquarters of film sanitization companies worldwide. This research expands upon the limited academic study of regional film regulatory organizations after the 1970s. It is argued that cultural policies influenced by BYU culture (extreme interest in arts, divinity, and community) resulted in continued regulation of Hollywood films long past the Hollywood Production Code era. It is argued that such cultural policies and media coverage often created more interest in the movie they were trying to ban. A historical exploration of the theatrical regulation of Utah County assists in arguing how BYU culture was instrumental in shaping the cultural policies that influenced not only theatrical film sanitization but, eventually, film filtering technologies standard today. | en_US |
| dc.identifier.uri | https://hdl.handle.net/1794/29072 | |
| dc.language.iso | en_US | |
| dc.publisher | University of Oregon | |
| dc.rights | All Rights Reserved. | |
| dc.subject | Autonomy | en_US |
| dc.subject | BYU Culture | en_US |
| dc.subject | Cultural Policies | en_US |
| dc.subject | Film Censorship & Sanitization | en_US |
| dc.subject | Theatrical Film Regulation | en_US |
| dc.subject | Utah County | en_US |
| dc.title | Filtered Morality: Theatrical Film Sanitization in Utah County, Utah, 1960s-1980s | |
| dc.type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation | |
| thesis.degree.discipline | School of Journalism and Communication | |
| thesis.degree.grantor | University of Oregon | |
| thesis.degree.level | doctoral | |
| thesis.degree.name | Ph.D. |
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