Did you know that when two people smoke cigarettes in 1940's movies the implication was that they were having sex.
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The remarkable Disney animated feature
Fantasia (1940) was slightly controversial for its depiction of bare-breasted centaurettes (without nipples) in the
Pastoral Symphony segment.
Alfred Hitchcock's Best Picture-winning film
Rebecca (1940) (his first American film) depicted subtle hints of affectionate lesbianism
They Drive By Night (1940) Due to the Code's restrictions on language and depictions of sexual behavior, some films resorted to using double entendres to pass the ratings board.
A conversation at a truck stop counter with sexy waitress Cassie Hartley (Ann Sheridan) was dripping with sexual overtones:
John Huston's classic film noir
The Maltese Falcon (1941) had one of the more memorable entrances of a homosexual character in a film. It was also one of the first instances of an obviously 'gay' character appearing on screen.
two faced woman, The film's suggestive and immoral sexuality (adultery) and Garbo's low-cut gowns were condemned by the Legion of Decency. Reportedly, it was the first major Hollywood studio release to be condemned as such. The picture was accused of having an "immoral and un-Christian attitude toward marriage and its obligations; with impudently suggestive scenes, dialogues and situations; suggestive costumes." Marketing tauted that the "new Garbo" would appear in a bathing suit, sport a bobbed haircut, be shown skiing, and would also dance a sexy rhumba ("la chica choca"). Unwittingly, the film was advertised with the slogan:
Andy Hardy's Double Life (1942)
This was the thirteenth of sixteen Andy Hardy-related films.
A fashion model originally, Esther Williams was showcased in her first film in a small role as one of Mickey Rooney's love interests - Sheila Brooks.
When the college-bound freshman first met Sheila in the film's pool sequence, she was stunning in a sexy, two-piece white bathing suit. She explained that she was a psychology major doing research on "reflexes" - and she surprised him with a kiss. The two also went swimming underwater, when she swam up behind him and gave him another kiss.
During their conversation pool-side, he complimented her on her looks: "I'm not kiddin'. Honest, you're the best-looking girl I ever met in my life." He then asked for a date:
When the Hays Code was in full force, Hollywood films had to resort to metaphoric sex, imagery, and double entendres. Smoking became very sexualized in many films, such as
Now, Voyager (1942).
In this one,
the shared use of cigarettes served as a metaphor for the sex act, between:
- Charlotte Vale (Bette Davis), a transformed ugly duckling and Boston spinster
- Jerry Durrance (Paul Henreid), her suitor, a single father
Jerry often performed a seductive two cigarette trick - he placed two cigarettes in his mouth, lighted both of them, and then passed one to Charlotte.
Etc. etc.
