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Jack Valenti of the Motion Picture Association of America has died. I used to regard him with some bitterness, thinking of him as one of the prudes keeping movies watered down, but apparently this may be unfair:

And he fended off lawmakers’ recurring campaigns to curb violence and sex on the screen, arguing for free expression. He devised the film-rating system precisely to avoid censorship by local review boards.

Though, I think he has sided too much with the conservative voices, which is a trend that seems to be only continuing since he stepped down a couple of years ago, and so we only get edited versions of American movies that Europeans get to enjoy uncut, like we're children. Sometimes life feels like a joke.


(Source: David M. Halbfinger for The New York Times)

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