Starting in 1913, one man determined which movies made it to theatres across British Columbia. The Censor of Moving Pictures decided what was a ‘decent’ film, and what was not. One of the first banned features was The Rattlesnake. The censor reasoned, “Snakes used throughout. Horrible, loathsome and nauseating in extreme.”
The BC Archives holds the records of the Censor of Moving Pictures. Archivist Rachel McRory shows how the documents provide a glimpse into BC's societal values over time.