Unclean Lips: Obscenity, Jews, and American Culture

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Unclean Lips THE GOLDSTEIN-GOREN SERIES IN AMERICAN JEWISH HISTORY General editor: Hasia R. Diner We Remember with Reverence and Love: American Jews and the Myth of Silence after the Holocaust, 1945–1962 Hasia R. Diner Is Diss a System? A Milt Gross Comic Reader Edited by Ari Y. Kelman All Together Different: Yiddish Socialists, Garment Workers, and the Labor Roots of Multiculturalism Daniel Katz Jews and Booze: Becoming American in the Age of Prohibition Marni Davis Jewish Radicals: A Documentary History Tony Michels 1929: Mapping the Jewish World Edited by Hasia R. Diner and Gennady Estraikh An Unusual Relationship: Evangelical Christians and Jews Yaakov Ariel Unclean Lips: Obscenity, Jews, and American Culture Josh Lambert a NEW YORK UNIVERSITY PRESS New York and London Unclean Lips JOSH LAMBERT Obscenity, Jews, and American Culture NEW YORK UNIVERSITY PRESS New York and London www.nyupress.org© 2014 by New York University All rights reserved References to Internet Websites (URLs) were accurate at the time of writing. Neither the author nor New York University Press is responsible for URLs that may have expired or changed since the manuscript was prepared. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Lambert, Joshua N. Unclean lips : obscenity, Jews, and American culture / Josh Lambert. pages cm Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-1-4798-7643-3 (cloth : alk. paper) 1. Pornography—Social aspects—United States. 2. Erotic comic books, strips, etc.—United States—History and criticism. 3. Obscenity (Law)—United States. 4. Censorship—United States. 5. Words, Obscene—Humor. 6. American fiction—20th century—History and criticism. 7. American fiction—Jewish authors—History and criticism. I. Title. HQ471.L225 2013 363.4’70973—dc23 2013019860 New York University Press books are printed on acid-free paper, and their binding materials are chosen for strength and durability. We strive to use environmentally responsible suppliers and materials to the greatest extent possible in publishing our books. Manufactured in the United States of America 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Also available as an ebook For Sara This page intentionally left blank ...