The Washington times., 1932-11-08


was present at the National
Theater on Sunday night as Off
cial observer and censor of the
Vanities and so far as I have been
able to discover found nothing
which called for blue penciling.
Tie VanitieS, Of course, are
Smutty, but inaSmuch as most of
the Carroll confections are coated
with a coarse and common veneer
and count upon a livid display of
physical charms as box office
allure, I suspect audiences have
come to accept Producer Carroll
as the chief Broadway exhibition
iSt.
Barrister Keogh, who appears to
be District Attorney Leo Rover's
favorite censor, has very definite
ideas on the moral quality Of
public entertainment. He feels
land this reflection Is unofficial,
but close to correct) that the
movie audiences and those gath.
cred to watch the sophisticated
revue diversions constitute sep
arate and distinct segmentS of the
amusement public. It is a distinc-
ton, think, worth making.
AS rule I agree with the Rover
standard Of censorship. It approx
imates that applied by City Censor
John M. Casey, of Boston, only
last week retired after % years of
faithful service in the interests of
a clean stage. Censor Casey took
with him a purse of $1,000 in gold
contributed by the theater man,
ayers as a tribute to impartial
though rigid enforcement of the
moral code,
District Attorney Rover did be-
come unduly alarmed over the
possible harmful influence of
Mae Vests Constant Sinner"
with the playgoing public. He
dispatched his active and plant
assistant, Mr.. Keogh, to the
Belasco Theater with definite
and positive instructions to close
down the offending drama In
this particular case the District
Attorney was encouraged and
probably inspired by a vigorous
protest from Capitol Hill. Mae
West, having spent short and
mournful siege at Blackwell's
Island for few public perform
ances in New York of dirty
play, was not disposed to become
chronic offender and so she
disregarded the advice of the
Shubert lawyers and yielded to
the Rover edict.
Since then Censor Keogh
threatened to climb upon the
stage and unceremoniously halt
an F Street dance which he con-
sidered extensively suggestive, ar
rived at another movie house
fortified with a warrant for a
comic whose vulgarities were fla
grantly indecent. In both cases
official argument was sufficient
10 G1ICCG TG1OIIHS.
There was a time when it was
the custom Of one Of our most
prominent producing organiza-
tions to present its revue attrac-
tions on Sunday night in Wash
ington with a degree Of undress
and a pornographic display de-
signed to excite gasps. Having
awakened the natives to the point
where tongues were busily wag-
ging on Monday the fair exhibits
would be ordered to don more
wardrobe for the rest of the week
and by the time that official eyes
got around to inspection the
revues were demure and harm
less. This system worked for
quite a few seasons until orders
were finally given to cease and
desist from such shoddy practices.
It can be said here that the
constant vigilance and super
vision Of what is presented on
local stages makes the censor's
task generally that Of an agree
able suggestor. For managers,
and entertainers too, have grad
ually come to understand that
what goes on Broadway is not
necessarily the kind of material
suitable for the mixed movie