Because of Eve: The Story of Life (1948)

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One of the more notorious "sex hygiene" exploitation melodramas of the 1940s, Because of Eve began its long life in 1948 as The Story of Life. Bob (John Parker) and Sally (Wanda McKay) are expecting their first child when Sally learns that Bob had once suffered from venereal disease.… More One of the more notorious "sex hygiene" exploitation melodramas of the 1940s, Because of Eve began its long life in 1948 as The Story of Life. Bob (John Parker) and Sally (Wanda McKay) are expecting their first child when Sally learns that Bob had once suffered from venereal disease. Although kindly Dr. West (Joseph Crehan) assures the young woman that there is no remaining trace of the malady, Sally declares that she will sooner be married to a leper and storms out. Realizing that the couple needs education on the topic, the good doctor trots out two documentaries on venereal diseases and their effects and cures. Not only are Bob and Sally treated to these clinical films on screen but so were the paying customers who went to see the much ballyhooed Because of Eve. In most places, the screening then came to an abrupt halt as a certain "Mr. Alexander Leeds" proceeded to lecture the auditorium, while actresses dressed up as nurses sold pamflets with titles such as "Love and Marriage; As it Concerns the Modern Teenager," and "The Frigid Husband." Produced by one William Daniel Bacon (whom some careless historians have confused with famed cinematographer William Daniels), Because of Eve was "road-shown" for years around the country, often employing the so-called "four-walling" method of renting a local theater outright for a flat fee. Joseph Crehan, a dignified character actor who twice had played Ulysses S. Grant on film, acted essentially the same crusading doctor in the similar Street Corner (1948). Brunette Wanda McKay is today perhaps best remembered for her many roles in Monogram potboilers and such B-Westerns as The Medico of Painted Springs (1941) and The Royal Mounted Patrol (1941), both with Charles Starrett. Needless to say, Because of Eve was not exactly a shining moment in their careers. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, Rovi