Devil's Weed Certificate of Censorship and Censorship Committee forms   Save
Ohio Division of Film Censorship Collection
Description: These documents relate to the film "The Devil's Weed." Hallmark Productions in Wilmington, Ohio, submitted the film for review in 1950; the company asserted that the film showed students the consequences of marijuana use and discouraged students from trying the drug. The censorship board banned the film, arguing that the film promoted drug use by teenagers. First is a one-page certificate of censorship for "The Devil's Weed." The document, which measures 14" x 8.25" (35.56 x 20.96 cm), notes that the film was rejected "on account of being harmful." Also included are three censorship committee review forms, on which committee members recorded recommendations for rejecting the film. Their reasons for rejection included: "fails in educational intent," "suggestive scenes of negative moral value," and "not amusing or entertaining." The forms are one page each and measure 8.5" x 11" (21.59 x 27.94 cm). The Ohio Division of Film Censorship, which was established as a unit of the Ohio Department of Education in the 1910s and continued through the 1950s, evaluated hundreds of movies prior to release. The "Devil's Weed" case went to the Ohio Supreme Court in June 1950. It was the third time the state court reviewed a decision of the censorship board. In all three instances, the court upheld the decision of the censorship board to ban the films. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om1407_1168308_001
Subjects: Ohio Government; Arts and Entertainment; Censorship; Marijuana; Educational films; Social guidance films
Places: Wilmington (Ohio); Clinton County (Ohio); Columbus (Ohio); Franklin County (Ohio)