Definition

1. Proper noun:
   • William Harrison Hays: A United States lawyer and politician who served as the first president of the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America (MPPDA). He is best known for formulating the "Hays Code," a set of industry moral guidelines that dictated the content of American films from 1930 to 1966.

Usage Examples

• Proper noun:
  • William Harrison Hays was appointed to clean up Hollywood's image.
  • The Hays Code, created by William Harrison Hays, heavily censored film content for decades.

Advanced Usage

• "The Hays Office": A common reference to the MPPDA under Hays's leadership, which enforced the production code.

  • Filmmakers had to submit their scripts to the Hays Office for approval.

• "Pre-Code Hollywood": Refers to the period in American cinema before the strict enforcement of the Hays Code in 1934.

  • Pre-Code Hollywood films often featured content that would later be banned by the Hays Code.

Variants and Related Words

• Hays Code (noun): The common name for the Motion Picture Production Code formulated under William H. Hays.

  • The Hays Code prohibited the depiction of explicit violence and sexuality.

• Hays Office (noun): The popular term for the MPPDA during Hays's tenure.

  • Studio executives frequently negotiated with the Hays Office.

Synonyms

• Censor: (noun) An official who examines material for suppression. Hays was a de facto chief censor for the film industry.
• Morals czar: (informal noun) A person who enforces standards of morality, a role Hays was perceived to have.

Related Phrases

• To be Hays-Code compliant: To adhere to the moral standards of the Hays Code.
  • The film's ending was altered to be Hays-Code compliant.

Related Idioms

• "As strict as the Hays Code": Used to describe something as being very morally rigid or restrictive.
  • Their school's dress code is as strict as the Hays Code.

Noun

1. United States lawyer and politician who formulated a production code that prescribed the moral content of United States films from 1930 to 1966 (1879-1954)