Community TV censors had been fairly powerful again within the Fifties and Sixties, and barely reduce sitcoms a lot slack. That’s why Rob and Laura Petrie had been compelled to sleep in separate beds on The Dick Van Dyke Present. And likewise, presumably, why Rob by no means dropped any F-bombs whereas practically killing himself on that rattling ottoman week after week.
Considerably shockingly, even the squeaky clear household program Go away It to Beaver as soon as did battle with community censors, too. And one way or the other the dispute had completely nothing to do with the truth that Ward and June Cleaver named their son “Beaver.”
In what was initially imagined to be the very first episode of the present, “Captain Jack” discovered Beaver and Wally attempting to order a pet alligator from the again pages of a comic book ebook. When that plan fails, they as an alternative choose to acquire a gator from some sketchy native dirtbag, which apparently was simply one thing that children did again within the ‘50s.
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Additional proving that Episode Three of Go away It to Beaver actually ought to have begun with a go to from Little one Protecting Providers, the boys then swipe a few of their dad’s brandy to present to the alligator, and Beaver decides to strive some for himself.
Effectively, CBS’ Requirements and Practices Division took challenge with this specific episode and prevented it from airing — not as a result of it involved unique animal trafficking and a 7-year-old child getting day-drunk, however owing to 1 scene during which the gator is saved in a bathroom. That’s as a result of exhibiting bogs on tv simply wasn’t one thing that occurred in 1957.
The truth is, TV reveals weren’t even allowed to indicate bogs on the air. I suppose everyone simply assumed that characters like Lucy and Ricky Ricardo had been pissing out their home windows throughout each single business break?
As a result of Go away It to Beaver couldn’t work across the lavatory scenes, the creatives behind the present fought with the censors, and finally a compromise was struck. The scenes had been allowed to stay within the present, however solely the again of the bathroom tank may very well be proven on TV, not that scandalous bowl the place all of the soiled bits go, thus saving America’s youngsters from being traumatized by the sight of the ceramic object all of them used a number of instances every day.
As Jerry Mathers, the previous baby star who performed Beaver as soon as bragged to Fox Information, “Go away It to Beaver really set some precedents for the tv business. We had been the primary present to indicate a toilet.”
Because of these behind the scenes issues, one other episode (which by no means featured any journeys to the toilet) turned the primary to air that season.
Which meant that the toilet-heavy episode ended up being quantity two, fittingly sufficient.
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