On March 25, 1955 the U.S. Customs Department confiscated 520 copies of Allen Ginsberg's book Howl, which had been printed in England. Officials alleged that the book was obscene.
City Lights, a publishing company and bookstore in San Francisco owned by poet Lawrence Ferlinghetti, proceeded to publish the book in the fall of 1956. The publication led to Ferlinghetti's arrest on obscenity charges. Ferlinghetti was bailed out by the American Civil Liberties Union, which led the legal defense. Nine literary experts testified at the trial that the poem was not obscene, and Ferlinghetti was found not guilty.
I have discovered that non-governmental censorship exists today, in March of 2013. Exists and thrives by the hand of creators of supposed flawless poetry, poets who wield self-centered big sticks to feed an ever-growing mass of artificial ego.
Unaware, in their blindness, of the negative possibilities.
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WORD FOR TODAY
obscene [ahb-seen]
adjective
1. Offensive to accepted standards of decency or modesty.
2. Inciting lustful feelings; lewd.
3. Repulsive; disgusting.
4. So large in amount as to be objectionable or outrageous.
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Born Mar 25, 1947
Age: 65 years old
Age: 65 years old
Sir Elton Hercules John, CBE (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight), is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor.
In his four-decade career John has sold more than 250 million records, making him one of the most successful artists of all time. His single "Candle in the Wind 1997" has sold over 33 million copies worldwide, and is the best selling single in the history of the UK Singles Chart and the US Billboard Hot 100. He has more than 50 Top 40 hits, including seven consecutive No. 1 US albums, 56 Top 40 singles, 16 Top 10, four No. 2 hits, and nine No. 1 hits. He has won six Grammy Awards, four Brit Awards, an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award and a Tony Award. In 2004, Rolling Stone ranked him Number 49 on its list of the 100 greatest artists of all time.
Born Mar 25, 1965
Age: 47 years old
Age: 47 years old
Sarah Jessica Parker is an American actress, model, singer and producer. She is best known for her leading role as Carrie Bradshaw on the HBO television series Sex and the City (1998–2004). She played the same role in the 2008 feature film based on the show, Sex and the City: The Movie, and in its sequel, Sex and the City 2, which opened on May 26, 2010. Parker has also appeared in many other films.
Born March 25, 1918
Died April 23, 1995
Died April 23, 1995
Howard William Cosell (born Howard William Cohen) was an American sports journalist who was widely known for his blustery, cocksure personality. Cosell said of himself, "Arrogant, pompous, obnoxious, vain, cruel, verbose, a showoff. There's no question that I'm all of those things.
Cosell rose to prominence covering boxer Muhammad Ali, starting when he still fought under his birth name, Cassius Clay. The two seemed to be friends despite their very different personalities, and complemented each other in broadcasts. Cosell was one of the first sportscasters to refer to the boxer as Muhammad Ali after he changed his name and supported him when he refused to be inducted into the military.
Born Mar 25, 1934
Age: 78 years old
Age: 78 years old
Gloria Marie Steinem is an American feminist, journalist, and social and political activist who became nationally recognized as a leader of, and media spokeswoman for, the women's liberation movement in the late 1960s and 1970s.
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The only thing that is obscene is censorship.
--Craig Bruce
Women should be obscene and not heard.
Groucho Marx
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