When Frank Sinatra first saw that he was being offered the lead role in Otto Preminger's The Man With the Golden Arm, he didn't think twice about accepting it. Even though he hadn't completely read the script, he figured that a prestige picture directed by the legendary Otto Preminger was sure to be a no-brainer. Instead, he ended up finding himself at the center of a media firestorm in 1955.
While the story about a drug addict was a bit edgy, it didn't glamorize drug addiction, so neither United Artists nor Otto Preminger suspected that the film would get rejected by the MPAA. In the pre-ratings era, movies were not given ratings; instead, they either were approved or rejected. Typically, a film that showed the bad side of addiction or crime would get an easy approval. Otto, United Artists and Frank Sinatra had no reason to suspect that the film would get rejected. Otto warned United Artists that he would take a hard line, wanting to release the film, regardless of whether it got the appropriate approvals. UA agreed to support the film and Otto forced the MPAA's hand; they announced that the film would not receive a seal. UA resigned from the MPAA and sent the film out without a seal.
Despite this setback, the film was able to find theaters willing to show it. Frank Sinatra, who was becoming more conservative, was uncomfortable with the situation, as most films released this way were "stag" films. He soon forgot his reservations when the film became a huge success and he received a nomination for a Best Actor Oscar. This film would eventually be one of the things that would break the stranglehold of the Hayes Office. It would finally receive full approval in 1961 and lead to the establishment of the current rating system.
