From: helenhayward82@hotmail.com   
      
   Yeah, we've looked at that idea in several films. Often the idea of   
   homosexuality and the foreign are linked, creating an opposite to the   
   reassured masculine ideals of the heterosexual American (especially in   
   such Bogart films as 'The Maltese Falcon' and 'The Big Sleep').   
      
   The walking stick bit is quite humorous, the suggestiveness of it is so   
   obvious and yet things like that got past the censorship because there   
   were no rules against a person putting a stick to his mouth etc. There   
   are many examples of double entendres and suggestive things that make   
   films of that time so interesting, I think, saying so much more than   
   films often do these days by showing them more explicitly.   
      
   Helen   
      
      
   Mark D. wrote:   
      
      
   > Yeah! Me!   
   >   
   > Re. censorship: I wonder if you've had a look at the portrayal of 'Joel   
   > Cairo' (Peter Lorre) in 'The Maltese Falcon': the film tries desperately   
   > hard to signal to us that he's not only *gay* but also that he has the hots   
   > *for Sam Spade personally*. It's worth a watch, if you haven't seen it...   
   >   
   > And also if you *have* seen it but didn't notice what he does with *that   
   > walking-stick*...   
   >   
   > M.   
   >   
   >   
   >   
      
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