10 Classic Hollywood Scenes That Caused a Scandal

Welcome to MsMojo, and today were counting down our picks for the old Hollywood moments that flew in the face of censors and industry standards. For this list, well be looking mostly at movies that violated or somehow slipped past the Production Code that dictated what could be shown on screen between 1934 and 1968.

#10: The Monsters Capture

Bride of Frankenstein (1935)

As head of the Production Code Administration, Joseph Breen had the ability to take a hatchet to the films campy screenplay even after it had begun shooting. He had warned James Whale, the director, to curb any overtly religious allusions in the story of Dr. Frankenstein and his creature. But for everything Whale cut, it seems like plenty of covert instances made it into the film. The movie makes a pretty obvious reference to the story of Christ and the crucifixion in the scene when the Monster is captured by the villagers. This violates the Codes rules about how to depict religious imagery, though it received no comment by Breen. The film still faced further cuts in several local and international markets.

#9: Preoccupied With Sex

The Moon Is Blue (1953)

This romantic comedy is incredibly blunt when it comes to sex and adult relationships. Early in the film, William Holden meets his match in the incredibly honest actress played by Maggie McNamara. She asks him point blank if hes going to seduce her. He takes her up to his apartment, where she is pretty cavalier about topics like infidelity and virginity. The movie so outraged the Code office that they refused to give it a seal of approval. This wouldve been a disaster in the late 30s or 1940s, but United Artists released the film anyway, and it actually became a hit, helping to erode the influence of the Production Code.

#8: The Ending (Along with Everything Else)

Some Like It Hot (1959)

Billy Wilders gender-bending comedy might seem pretty tame by todays standards. But having stars Jack Lemmon and Tony Curtis dress in womens clothes was risky. This act would have fallen under what the Production Code called sex perversion, and the movies now-legendary final moments would also fall under that same label. An eccentric older man has fallen for Jack Lemmons drag character, Daphne, and has proposed marriage. Forced to reveal himself, it turns out his enamored suitor isnt bothered at all. Scandalous as it may have been with the censors, who refused to give it a seal of approval, the audiences loved it.

#7: The Model

Draculas Daughter (1936)

The Hays Code had existed for years before it was finally enforced around 1934. Universals monster movies had thrived in that Pre-Code era, but after the Breen Office became more powerful around 1934, those movies became a lot less daring. Draculas Daughter was a notable exception. In one scene, the movies vampire, Countess Zaleska, brings a female model to her home and has her disrobe for a portrait. The Countess lingering gaze is pretty unmistakable. This was all even after the script was rewritten to adhere to censorship guidelines. Most of their notes had to do with the young model, Lilis degree of nudity on screen.

#6: A Tortured Coming Out

The Childrens Hour (1961)

Hollywood had already adapted this Lillian Hellman play in the 1930s. That version removed any notion of queerness. This version stays truer to the text. Audrey Hepburn and Shirley MacLaine play teachers whose lives and careers are torn apart when a child starts a rumor that they are lovers. The accusation isnt true, but MacLaines character does end up coming out. Her characters painful revelation never uses the word gay explicitly, but given how anguished and disgusted she is with herself, thats probably why the MPAA let it slide. The Childrens Hour doesnt just make being gay look miserable, it makes it look unbearable.

#5: Jane Russells Assets

The Outlaw (1943)

Howard Hughes was known for his renegade approach to life and work. As director of The Outlaw, he knew he was making a western for a more adult audience. His aim to showcase star Jane Russells body was a success. Hughes had to make several cuts to scenes that featured a little too much of his new star, but it still wasnt enough. Scenes of Russells bust being prominently displayed got him in trouble with the Code and lost him his distributor. Hughes released it independently and had to drum up his own publicity from the surrounding scandal before it could receive a wider release years later.

#4: Frankies Relapse

The Man with the Golden Arm (1956)

Frank Sinatras punishing performance as Frankie, a musician suffering from substance use disorder, is a distressing watch even 70 years after its release. The Man with the Golden Arm never actually names the illicit substance behind his downfall but its easy to guess. Frankies relapse near the end of the film breaks major rules of the Production Code, including rules about depicting the use and trafficking of drugs. But its also incredibly upfront and authentic in a way thats still affecting. The Code fought the movie every step of the way, but eventually gave it the seal of approval six years after its initial release.

#3: A Proposition

The Pawnbroker (1964)

Released nearly two decades after the end of the Second World War, this movie follows a Holocaust survivor plagued by traumatic memories of his experiences. It broke several of the remaining Code rules explicitly, featuring an explicitly gay character, scenes of sex work, and most controversial of all, female nudity. A scene sees Thelma Oliver, playing a sex worker, offering a trade with Rod Steigers title character. She is seen half-nude, a novelty for the time. Because this film deals unflinchingly with its subject matter, the Codes initial objections to its content were waived in deference to the seriousness of the material.

#2: I Dont Give a Damn

Gone with the Wind (1939)

Theres a lot thats controversial about Gone with the Wind, and that was true even at the time of its release. Its romanticization of the Old South, and the racism that entails, is not what got it cited by the Production Code. Childbirth was banned even if shown in silhouette. The scene where Melanie gives birth in Atlanta clearly broke that rule. Scarlett OHaras self-defense murder of a Yankee soldier was incredibly graphic for the time, another big no-no. But the movies immortal dialogue, spoken by Clark Gables Rhett Butler, gave censors the most headache. The Code only relented on the word damn because it was a quotation straight from the book, a convenient caveat in the rules.

#1: The Shower Scene

Psycho (1960)

From the opening scene, Alfred Hitchcocks suspense masterpiece had censors nervous. Showing two unmarried people in bed together was a huge transgression already, but they had other things to worry about. The shower murder sequence begins with the taboo image of a flushing toilet. Although theres no explicit mention of toilets in the Code, this was considered a groundbreaking moment in itself. But in 1960, the Code took graphic murders and nudity absolutely off the table. Hitchcocks rapid editing and strategic concealment of wounds and body parts presented a dilemma. Psycho doesnt really show anything. Most of it lives in the minds of its audience. Its a masterclass in cinematic technique and a massive trolling of the weakening Production Code itself.

Did you already know about any of these scandalous movies? Tell us in the comments.