Redrup v. New York
Encyclopedia
Redrup v. New York, was a May 8, 1967 ruling by the Supreme Court of the United States
, widely regarded as the end of American
censorship of written fiction. Robert Redrup was a Times Square
newsstand clerk who sold two of William Hamling
's Greenleaf Classics paperback
pulp
sex novels
, Lust Pool and Shame Agent, to a plainclothes police
officer. He was tried and convicted in 1965.
With financial backing from Hamling, Redrup appealed his case to the Supreme Court where his conviction was overturned by 7-2. The court's final ruling affirmed that written materials that were neither sold to minors nor foisted on unwilling audiences were constitutionally protected, thereby de facto ending American censorship of written material. After this decision, the Supreme Court systematically and summarily reversed, without further opinion, scores of obscenity rulings involving paperback sex books.
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
, widely regarded as the end of American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
censorship of written fiction. Robert Redrup was a Times Square
Times Square
Times Square is a major commercial intersection in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, at the junction of Broadway and Seventh Avenue and stretching from West 42nd to West 47th Streets...
newsstand clerk who sold two of William Hamling
William Hamling (publisher)
William Lawrence Hamling was a Chicago-based publisher active from the 1950s into the 1970s.Hamling began as an author. His Shadow of the Sphinx is a horror novel about an ancient Egyptian sorceress. First published during the 1940s in Fantastic Adventures, it was described by Lin Carter as "the...
's Greenleaf Classics paperback
Paperback
Paperback, softback or softcover describe and refer to a book by the nature of its binding. The covers of such books are usually made of paper or paperboard, and are usually held together with glue rather than stitches or staples...
pulp
Pulp magazine
Pulp magazines , also collectively known as pulp fiction, refers to inexpensive fiction magazines published from 1896 through the 1950s. The typical pulp magazine was seven inches wide by ten inches high, half an inch thick, and 128 pages long...
sex novels
Erotica
Erotica are works of art, including literature, photography, film, sculpture and painting, that deal substantively with erotically stimulating or sexually arousing descriptions...
, Lust Pool and Shame Agent, to a plainclothes police
Police
The police is a personification of the state designated to put in practice the enforced law, protect property and reduce civil disorder in civilian matters. Their powers include the legitimized use of force...
officer. He was tried and convicted in 1965.
With financial backing from Hamling, Redrup appealed his case to the Supreme Court where his conviction was overturned by 7-2. The court's final ruling affirmed that written materials that were neither sold to minors nor foisted on unwilling audiences were constitutionally protected, thereby de facto ending American censorship of written material. After this decision, the Supreme Court systematically and summarily reversed, without further opinion, scores of obscenity rulings involving paperback sex books.
See also
- List of United States Supreme Court cases, volume 386
- List of United States Supreme Court cases by the Warren Court
- List of United States Supreme Court cases involving the First Amendment
- Roth v. United StatesRoth v. United StatesRoth v. United States, , along with its companion case, Alberts v. California, was a landmark case before the United States Supreme Court which redefined the Constitutional test for determining what constitutes obscene material unprotected by the First Amendment.- Prior history :Under the common...
, - Miller v. CaliforniaMiller v. CaliforniaMiller v. California, was an important United States Supreme Court case involving what constitutes unprotected obscenity for First Amendment purposes...
,