Cinema: Mundelein Message

In Rome last week to celebrate the 25th anniversary of his Episcopal consecration George Cardinal Mundelein of Chicago gave his views about the cinema industry and the Legion of Decency which he helped to further last spring. Said this Prince of the Church:

”We are going to give the movie producers a chance to see what they can do. We do not want to put the movies out of business.

”We don’t like the Mae West type. . . . The kind of film in which Will Rogers, Janet Gaynor and Victor Moore appear is what we have in mind.

“We are going to remain organized. In my diocese we have 650,000 signatures of adults without asking promises from the youths.”

Since 2,000,000 pious Catholics pledged themselves to avoid indecent pictures, attendance at U. S. cinema theatres has been from 10% to 30% above last year’s. The cause of the rise is a subject for dispute. Legion of Decency adherents hold that since midsummer, pictures have been cleaner, hence better patronized by obedient Catholics. Cynical opponents suggest that the Legion of Decency has aided indecent pictures by advertising them. To impartial observers it seemed that the increase in cinema attendance had less to do with the Legion of Decency’s campaign than with the facts that producers have definitely improved the entertainment quality of their product, that cinemaddicts have more money and more leisure to spend on better pictures.

In Philadelphia, Denis Cardinal Dougherty last week said: “Cardinal Mundelein’s views are not obligatory on other bishops. . . . Unless the Holy See orders otherwise, the boycott on motion picture theatres will continue in this diocese.”