| Wednesday, August 25, 2004 |
| A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE CULTURE WARS |
(abstracted from EMAG)
***** 399 B.C. SOCRATES is condemened for corrupting the youth of Athens by teaching individuality.Drinks hemlock. No wonder his pupil Plato would later advocate censorship.
***** 1534 MARTIN LUTHER translates the Old Testament into German for common folks. The Bible stays on the best seller lists for the next 470 years.
***** 1541 MICHAELANGELO unveils nude figures on Sistine Chapel fresco; Pope Pius IV later has loincloths drawn over the dangly bits.
***** 1789 BILL OF RIGHTS secures freedom of speech, religion, and the press--- though nine years later; the Alien and Sedidition Acts threaten imprisonment for improper political speech.
***** 1863 EDOUARD MANET'S nude painting Le Dejeuner sur L'Herbe(like 1865's Olympia) scandalizes Paris society. Such prudes, those French!.
***** 1915 D.W. GRIFFITH's pro KKK film "The Birth of a Nation"debuts, becoming the most frequently banned in history (at least until 2001's Freddy Got Fingered)
***** 1950 Sen. Joe McCarthy's anti Commie crusade begins, leading to House hearing to out Reds in Hollywood. Hundreds are blacklisted.
***** 1955 the Devils Music made them do it; Florida police instruct Elvis Presley to stand still while he performs; in '57, ABC drops Alan Freeds's The Big Beat after Frankie Lymon dances with a white girl.
***** 1964 LOUIS MALLE's film the Lover's leads Supreme Court justice Potter Stewart to declare of obscenity: "I know it when I see it," Which suggests it's possible he looked frequently.
*****1966 ELIZABETH TAYLOR shocks moviegoers by saying "gooddamn" and "Bugger" in Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolf?
***** 1972 MAUDE chooses abortion; George Carlin records seven dirty words you can't say on air (but we can't revel 'em)
***** 1981 CHARLES ROCKET is fired after saying the F--word
during a Saturday Night Live broadcast. Great career move, Chuck!
***** 1991 WAL-MART refuses to sell "adult"material. Except guns and ammuntion.
***** 1992 CANDIDATE BILL CLINTON likens rapper Sister Souljah to former Klansman David Duke; Madonna publishes Sex. Chief complaint: the graphic photo book's shabby binding.
***** 1993 NYPD BLUE is a hit despite 57 ABC affiliates' refusal to air the nudity-laced debut. Somehow, Dennis Franz becomes a sex symbol.
***** 1995 TWO OAKLAHOMA teens go on a murderous spree after repeatedly viewing Natural Born Killers,, prompting a (failed) lawsuit against Oliver Stone.
***** 1997-98 ELLEN season 4: She's gay. Ellen season 5: She's canceled!
***** 1999 V-CHIP promoted by then Vice President Al Gore, debuts, allowing parents to limit their children's consumption of sensitive TV material. It remains in limited use. As does Al Gore.
***** 2004 JANET JACKSON'S super bowl performance with Justin Timberlake gives new meaning to the term OVEREXPOSURE |
| posted by infraternam meam @ 4:05 PM |
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| About Me |
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Name: infraternam meam
Home: Chicago, United States
About Me: I am now at the prime of my life
and have been married for the past 25 years.
Sickly at times, but wants to see the elixir vita,
so that I will be able to see my grandchildren from my two boys.
See my complete profile
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