Jane Alexander Quotes

It's true that obscenity is a matter of taste and in the eye of the beholder.

The standard of what offends 'the common conscience of the community' conflicts ... with the command of the First Amendment. ... Certainly that standard would not be an acceptable one if religion, economics, politics or philosophy were involved. How does it become a constitutional standard when literature treating with sex is concerned? Any test that turns on what is offensive to the community's standards is too loose, too capricious, too destructive of freedom of expression to be squared with the First Amendment. Under that test, juries can censor, suppress, and punish what they don't like, provided the matter relates to 'sexual impurity' or has a tendency to 'excite lustful thoughts.' This is community censorship in one of its worst forms...

But I could never make a judgement that something was obscene.

Obscenity is whatever happens to shock some elderly and ignorant magistrate.

Only ugliness is obscene.

So I wonder if anything should ever be off limits.

Right now I think censorship is necessary; the things they're doing and saying in films right now just shouldn't be allowed. There's no dignity anymore and I think that's very important.

They'll say, That's funny, but you can't do that on TV.

Certain things were deemed to be offensive. It was usually bad language.

Sex and obscenity are not synonymous.

If the First Amendment guarantee of freedom of speech and press is to mean anything, it must allow protests even against the moral code that the standard of the day sets for the community.

I'm always interested in what is seen as obscene or profane or unfit.

The CBFC is only mirroring society.

Sex and obscenity are not synonymous.

The whole problem with this idea of obscenity and indecency, and all of these things - bad language and whatever - it's all caused by one basic thing, and that is: religious superstition.

profanity and obscenity entitle people who don't want unpleasant information to close their ears and eyes to you.

Censorship feeds the dirty mind more than the four-letter word itself.

Sodomy is in the Bible, to be read in churches. I wouldn't rule it out of Mr. Bruce's act if he cares to comment on it.

I don't think there's one thing I've ever said on the radio that would have been found indecent or obscene.

There is a fine line between censorship and good taste and moral responsibility.

If you're politically correct, chances are you're not coming to one of my shows. I get to go onstage and say things that everybody thinks all the time, but can't say out loud.

We seem okay with violence, but nudity we race to criticize and censor.

I honestly don't understand the big fuss made over nudity and sex in films. It's silly.

I began in an era where four-letter words were not allowed.

Sex and obscenity are not synonymous. Obscene material is material which deals with sex in a manner appealing to prurient interest.