ARTICLE: Channel 5's Dirty Harry Censorship
POSTED ON
BY Phil
I noticed that a recent terrestrial transmission [Channel 5 HD, Friday 26 August 2022 10:00pm] of Don Siegal's Dirty Harry (1971) has been edited for racial language.
During the scene where Chico Gonzales (Reni Santoni) first meets Harry, Chico discusses Harry's character with veteran cop De Georgio (John Mitchum). The following line changed from:
De Georgio: Ah that's one thing about our Harry, doesn't play any favorites! Harry hates everybody: Limeys, Micks, Hebes, Fat Dagos, Niggers, Honkies, Chinks, you name it.
to:
De Georgio: Ah that's one thing about our Harry, doesn't play any favorites! Harry hates everybody.
Later in the film Scorpio (Andrew Robinson) pays a character - credited as 'Big Black Man' (Raymond Johnson) - to beat him up so he can pin it on Harry. In the scene the following line is changed from:
Scorpio: Every penny's worth, you black son of a bitch!
to:
Scorpio: Every penny's worth!
When 'Big Black Man' then says, at the end of the beating, "This one's on the house!" and kicks Scorpio hard, context is lost due to the ommitance of Scorpio's previous line.
The censorship appears to emanate from Channel 5 management as recent broadcasts of The French Connection (1971) and The Taking of Pelham One Two Thee (1974), on BBC1 and Film4 respectively, both contain the 'N' word uncensored.