Incest, explicit violence, homosexual rape—all presented in graphic clarity for general movie audiences. The fight for artistic freedom in Hollywood movies reached a boiling point when Bob Guccione combined traditional and adult filmmaking values in 1979’s controversial Caligula. Guccione, the publisher of Penthouse, was passionate about taking his First Amendment battles out of the bedroom and into the courtroom.
Through his determination and four-year legal battle, the film was distributed worldwide and now celebrates its 40th anniversary while achieving cult status. This is the story of the making of the film, its distribution, and its social and cultural impact.

William Hawes is a professor at the Jack J. Valenti School of Communication, University of Houston. He has extensive experience in producing, managing and teaching in the fields of radio, film and television, and has written two books on television performing.

William Hawes
Format: softcover (6 x 9)
Pages: 262
Bibliographic Info: 73 photos, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2009
pISBN: 978-0-7864-3986-7
eISBN: 978-0-7864-5240-8
Imprint: McFarland

Acknowledgments      v

Preface      1

1. Divine Metamorphosis      5

2. Tablets and Parchment      42

3. A Movie Marriage      77

4. Editions of Caligula      120

5. Release, History and Impact      190

Chapter Notes      229

Bibliography      237

Index      245

“well-documented”—The Daily Cougar; “one of the few books to deal seriously with the genre of pornographic film”—Video Watchdog.