Everything about The Moon Is Blue totally explained
The Moon Is Blue is a 1953
comedy film directed by
Otto Preminger which tells the story of a young girl who meets an architect in the
Empire State Building and quickly turns his life upside down. It stars
William Holden,
David Niven,
Maggie McNamara with
Dawn Addams in a supporting role and
Hardy Krüger in a cameo. The movie was adapted by
F. Hugh Herbert from his hit play of the same name. (The play opened on Mar 8, 1951 on
Broadway and starred
Barbara Bel Geddes and
Barry Nelson.)
It was nominated for
Academy Awards for
Best Actress in a Leading Role (Maggie McNamara),
Best Film Editing and
Best Music, Song (
Herschel Burke Gilbert and
Sylvia Fine for "The Moon Is Blue").
The film was condemned by the
Catholic Legion of Decency for its plot in which a young girl makes fun of her parents' concerns for her virtue. It was the first film to use the words "virgin",
"seduce" and "mistress" since the enactment of the strict
Production Code in mid-1934, and as a result was at first independently released, but achieved success and was nominated for several Oscars. Preminger's refusal to back down to get the film released helped to break down the Catholic censorship that had controlled Hollywood output since 1934.
The film was filmed in an
English language version and a
German language version. In
Die Jungfrau auf dem Dach the stars are
Johanna Matz,
Hardy Krüger,
Johannes Heesters and
Tom Tull. Krüger and Matz have brief roles in the English language version (the young German couple waiting to use the coin-operated telescope at the top of the
Empire State Building near the end of the film) while Holden and McNamara play the same roles in the German version.
This film was also the focus of an episode of
M*A*S*H, "The Moon is Not Blue." Having heard the controversy surrounding the film, the characters attempt to get the film shipped to their mobile hospital in Korea. They are determined to get their hands on this film, despite being warned not to get their expectations up by
Charles Winchester, who tells them not to put too much stock in the fact that the film is "
Banned in Boston" because Boston would ban
Pinocchio. One attempt to get the film backfires; they've the film switched with
State Fair, which they end up receiving themselves when their request for the film is approved. In the end, they do get to watch the film, and
Hawkeye Pierce complains that the film isn't the sexy film they'd been expecting.
Father Mulcahy points out that one of the characters did say "virgin," to which Pierce responds "That's because everyone was!" (Director Otto Preminger's brother Ingo had produced the
theatrical version of MASH).
Further Information
Get more info on 'The Moon Is Blue'.
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