Daily press. [volume] (Newport News, Va.) 1896-current, 1909-07-08
CEHSORs WILL BAR
MOST VICIOUS VIEWS

w.
knell OF the moving picture "shoeker
the name given to views showing
british extremes OF drunkenness, hor
rible crimes and unpleasant details G
vice including those views depicting
. Chinatown depravaties, such as led u
the recent Elsie. Eiegel murder whicl
heretofore have been shown in man.
parts of the country. was sounded
here today by the announcement tina
the censorship OF moving pictures
. which has been in operation here fol
several months is to be made nation
al in extent. Many of the leading
manufactures of films, including al
those associated in the Motion Picture
Patents Company, who control the
great majority of views on exhibition
have been submitting ALL films Of theii
manufacture to the local censor foi
some time. The new movement Is
intended to make this inspection in.
ciude all views manufactured or i'm
cessity for censorship by local boards
IN Otucf COMMUNITIES.
: Censorship bodies modelled on that
OF New York have come into exist
ence in many cities and as the next
step in the establishment Of a nation
al censorship these bodies are being
invited to cooperate with the New
York board by deiegating a repre-
sentive to act with the latter so that
when film has received the APPROX
al of the censors here it viii be ac-
cepted as satisfactory for exhibition
in any part of the country. The Peo-
pies Institute. which established the
New York censorship in conjunction
with the CITY Vigilance League, the
Public Education Association, the
Society for the Prevention of Crime
and other civic bodies. is taking the
lead in this movement and is inviting
the cooperation Of civic organizations
in all parts OF the country to make
the new plans effective II these plans
are carried out more than 900 NOV
ing picture theaters representing as
Investment of over $4,000, 900 will be
under direct authority OF the national
board OF censors so far as their ex-
hibits are concerned
Tire object in providing a censor
ship CT moving picture views is not
only to prevent the exhibition of i'm
proper scenes said John Collier, Sec
rotary of the board of censorship, in
explaining today the reasons for en-
larging the Boards sphere of activi-
ties. but also TO improve the general
tone and quality of these views which
are exhibited daily before an aggre-
gate audience a hundred times as
largely as that which attends all the
regular playhouses In the ountry
combined. Oh course attention is de-
voted primarily to presenting the dis
play of indecent degrading or sug-
gestive scenes. Farther than this,
however, the Influence of the Board
reacts upon the manufactures with
the result that a higher ana higher
standard is gradually being set for
this class of entertainment.
The censors have no hard and
fast rule in passing upon the pic
lures brought before them. Common
sense is about the only effective guide
In general, scenes depicting suicide.
drunkenness. crime and vice and
these which depend. upon suggestive
situations are frowned upon. TINS
does no mean that all views present
ing any of these are cut out, for they
may be incidental to an entirely
proper story told in picture form On
the ether hand picture of a sui
eide simply as a suicide, picture OF
q druken crime intended simply to
show drunkenness and crime, or a
picture OF a den Of vice simply to IL
iustrate vice can serve no good pur-
pose and may do much harm when
displayed before immature persons OF
those so unusual susceptibility Such
viSgs cannot have even the yirtHre
or realistic truth in their fsvoS for
IL Is obvious tnet no representation
of actual scenes OF this sort can be
made b. the camera and in most
cases they are cut and out fakes.
overdrawn to create, an effect CT hor-
rcr. As a matter OF fact little diff
Guilty has been experienced in eIimi-
mating such views and they are now
barred from all reputable moving
picture establishments. II is encour-
aging to note that clean comedy and
drama and views possessing education
al value have the greater degree OF
success"
The extent Of the operation OF the
beard CT censcrs in indicated by the
fact thai IN to the present time II
has examined nearly so miles OF
picture fins or approximately e,e00,-
600 separate pictures.