DOCUMENT: Crime

A Pre-Giuliani Sex Crackdown

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A Pre-Giuliani Sex Crackdown

Long before Mayor Rudolph Giuliani began his current puritanical purge of topless clubs and adult theaters, New York City officials had a problem with sex. In fact, 70 years ago police busted actress Mae West and a troupe of performers for staging an "impure drama" called "Sex." Here's a funny 1927 NYPD affidavit describing West's alleged transgressions in her role as hooker Margie Lamont. In Giuliani's New York, where Disney now rules the Deuce, the bawdy actress would be as unpopular as the neighborhood squeegee guy. (7 pages)