After $1,500,000 worth of ballyhoo, the costliest (some $6,000,000) and longest (134 minutes) horse opera ever made was finally being shown to the public. In Los Angeles, David 0. Selznick's Technicolored Duel in the Sun was running simultaneously in two theaters. Local reviewers found the extravaganza a titillating blend of wild oats and tame, well-worn plot, in which virtue emerged triumphant, but low-bodiced vice seemed to have all the fun. Nevertheless, the furor was up to Selznick's expectations—if not quite the kind of furor he had paid his advertising money for.
Archbishop John J. Cantwell of Los Angeles warned Roman Catholics that they may not "with a free conscience" see Duel, It was "morally offensive and spiritually depressing." Another churchman deplored the "shouting piety" of Walter Huston playing the "Sin Killer." The city's Federation of Protestant Churches charged that "wrongdoing was shown to win every conflict with the right." The Catholic Tidings, describing Duel's heroine, Jennifer Jones, as "unduly if not indecently exposed," called the film "far worse, in a moral sense" than Howard Hughes's outlawed The Outlaw.
Selznick was first "surprised," then "upset" at the complaints. He had Johnston office approval before releasing the picture, had not shown it to the Legion of Decency only because a Technicolor strike had delayed prints of it until too late. Moreover, the film had not yet been distributed nationally. Selznick murmured that there might be some revisions. But an extended ban by the Catholic Church would mean plenty of trouble. Duel, already expensively delayed, could not be held up and revised if it was to gross the $20,000,000 that Selznick expected.
The furor might also interfere with Selznick's more important plans to form his own distributing company (TIME, Dec. 23). Unlike Hughes, to whom movies are just a sideline, Selznick was in no position to capitalize, publicity-wise, on the objections of church organizations. Theater owners might refuse to show Duel rather than risk their displeasure, a decision which would cost Selznick about $2,000,000 in New York City alone.
At week's end, while Selznick claimed that Duel's grosses in Los Angeles were running some 25% better than Gone With the Wind, he was still undecided on the next move. "After all," he said hopefully, "the Legion of Decency hasn't even seen the picture and it isn't classified yet. The archbishop merely issued a warning."
From its sizable British market, Hollywood got another rebuff last week. Said Sir Stafford Cripps, president of the export-conscious Board of Trade: "I am certain there are millions of [British] filmgoers who are anxious to see the best films from other countries. But there are limits to our appetite, both quantity and quality, and we also feel that exchange implies reciprocity." Unless Hollywood exports improve, he warned, Britain may well restrict them by imposing quotas and tariffs.