The Connection

Unless you're a film buff you probably haven't heard of Shirley Clarke's 1961 movie The Connection. It was an experimental film, purporting to be actual footage of a group of heroin junkies waiting in an apartment for their dealer ("the connection") to show up. Though, of course, the supposed junkies were all actors, and the film was scripted.

But the movie's real claim to fame is that it was the first American film to ever use the word "shit." From wikipedia:

The film is significant in the history of film censorship, as Clarke and producer Lewis Allen had filed suit to be able to show the film in New York. (The film had already premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in 1961.) In that era, in New York, the State's Department of Education had a vote on the State's film licensing board, and they voted to deny a license, mainly on the grounds that the word "shit" was used repeatedly during the film, even though it was mostly used to refer to drugs.

The case went all the way to the New York State Court of Appeals (the state's highest court). The Court of Appeals affirmed the decision of the intermediate level Appellate Division, which had held that while 'vulgar', this usage could not be considered obscene. Ultimately, the film was not a success at the box office.


The trailer:



The full film:

     Posted By: Alex - Tue Nov 15, 2016
     Category: Movies | 1960s | Curses, Slurs, Insults, Vituperation, Libel and Slander





Comments
The first use of the F-word on live TV is said to have been by Paul Shaffer (from the Letterman Show), during a skit on SNL. I watched the sketch, which was unfortunately themed on the Beowulf epic poem. By the end, it did get pretty weird, wild and well, F-ed up.
Posted by Virtual on 11/15/16 at 05:07 PM
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