MovieChat Forums > Paper Moon (1973) Discussion > A question about the Broadcast T.V. vers...

A question about the Broadcast T.V. version of 'Paper Moon'

posted 16 years ago by stevenbyczek
5 replies | jump to latest

Does anybody remember watching "Paper Moon" when it was first shown on broadcast T.V. back in the mid 1970's, and throughout the 1980's? If so, what kind of arrangements did they make for Tatum's line of dialogue: "I need to go to the sh*thouse!" Did they cut the scene out all together? Did they overdub a new word over: "sh*thouse?" Or did they turn down the sound for the offensive word itself?

Just curious.

Thank you in advance!

Cheers!

Sincerely, Steve B.

[–] shani-3 16 years ago

The line was dubbed over (by an obviously older Tatum!); she says "Daddy--I have to go to the bathroom."

You give a little love and it all comes back to you(La, la, la, la la la la!)

[–] moonspinner55 16 years ago

Actually, it was "Daddy, I need to go to the outhouse." But you're right, the dubbing voice they used was far too deep to be this little girl.

[–] stevenbyczek 16 years ago

Very interesting! Thank you very much!

My wife and I watched "Paper Moon" last night on "Turner Classic Movies." We enjoyed the film very much but were both surprised that they left in all the mild profanity including the "sh*thouse" line.

Cheers!

Sincerely, Steve B.

[–] moonspinner55 16 years ago

Seeing this film in the theater in '73 was a lot of fun--the audience really seemed to enjoy it, and that line you mention got a big roaring laugh. Incidentally, when CBS showed this film a few years later, they also dubbed over the "does she put out much?" line regarding Trixie. They actually took one of Imogene's lines about Trixie's dancing ("she shakes her ol' behind a little") and dropped that into a later scene when Addie asks her "what would Trixie do if somebody offered her $25 to (dubbed in) make it?" ... "You crazy! For that kind of money, that woman would (dubbed in) shakes her ol' behind a little in the middle of the road." Truly bizarre, but that was the way they mangled movies for television in those days.

[–] stevenbyczek 16 years ago

I never saw "Paper Moon" in the theater, but I imagine that the audience must have had a lot of fun watching it when it first came out in 1973.

That "Imogene line" insertion you described was very weird. Although I never saw "Paper Moon" on CBS, I have seen other movies that were shown on broadcast T.V. in the 1970's and 1980's, and they did a lot of strange things to cover up the profanity. I heard that "Midnight Cowboy" was massacred when first shown on broadcast T.V. back in the early 1970's. Over a half hour was removed from the film, and the majority of the dialogue in the remaining footage was "redubbed" to disguise the swear words.

Cheers!

Sincerely, Steve B.