The Moon is Blue / The Man With the Golden Arm

THE MOON IS BLUE, 1953, Otto Preminger Films, 99 min. Otto Preminger’s first independent production created a furor because of the use of such then-taboo words as “virgin,” “seduce,” “mistress,” and “pregnant.” Widely banned, the film opened in only a few theatres but became a huge hit. For the time, this romantic comedy about a bachelor (William Holden) who picks up a virginal actress (Maggie McNamara) took a disarmingly casual attitude toward sex.

THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN ARM, 1955, Otto Preminger Films, 119 min. Otto Preminger defied the Production Code for the second time with this first American film about drug addiction. Frank Sinatra plays a junkie jazz drummer and card sharp torn between love for his girlfriend (Kim Novak), a sad-eyed cashier in a strip club, and loyalty to his crippled wife (Eleanor Parker). Elmer Bernstein’s moody jazz score and Saul Bass’ seductive opening titles are memorable.