Chariton, an aspirational official & pornography

Iowa's Republican attorney general, Norman A. Erbe (1919-2000), had his sights set on the Iowa governor's mansion back  in 1959.

The incumbent, Democrat Herschel C. Loveless, who unseated Chariton's own Leo Hoegh in 1958, had launched a run for the U.S. Senate and was not seeking re-election. 

There were no obvious strong contenders in either party for the 1960 nominations.

So quite naturally there were those in both parties who accused Erbe of grandstanding to burnish his image when he launched a drive to cleanse Iowa newsstands of pornography on Sept. 1, 1959.

Erbe had been an active participant in the the research that produced a list of 42 magazines that henceforth would be forbidden. These were, Erbe said, lascivious journals that were a contributing factor to juvenile delinquency. All fell into what then was called the "girlie" category or featured images of naturalists of both genders in their birthday suits. Here's the list:

Ace, Adam, Bare, Capers, Casbah, Dazale, Escapde, Figure,  Art, Gala, Gent, Glance, Good Humor Girls, Harlem,  Hit, High, Hi Life, Jem, Knight, Lark,  Monsieur, Mermaid, Model Studies, Nudist Views, Nuggett, Peril, Pose, Plush, Rogue, Scene for Men,  Scamp, Sizzle, Sprite, Stockings, Sun and Health, Sun Bathers, Sunshine and Health, Swank, The Dude, Tomcat, Vuew and Zest.

Erbe's deputies in this pursuit of pornography were to be Iowa's 99 county attorneys, so after his Sept. 1 unveiling news conference, the Iowa Highway Patrol was enlisted to transport lists and instructions to those gentlemen statewide, including Lucas County.

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The Chariton Herald-Patriot of Thursday, Sept. 3, was able to report on its front page: "No Magazines on Erbe List Found Locally."

"County Attorney Richard D. Morr reported today that a check of newsstands in Lucas county by County Sheriff Wayne Swanson revealed no violations of the ban put into effect by Norman Erbe, Iowa attorney general, this week.

"Only one of the 42 magazines on the Erbe list was found in the county newsstands and it was not for sale but was listed for return to the wholesaler."

The Herald-Patriot added, "Lucas county newsstands started a voluntary censorship of objectionable publications several months ago at the request of the Chariton Woman's Club."

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Wholesalers and retailers statewide cooperated, although Erbe's directive was challenged in court by those who contended that he had exceeded his authority by appointing himself the state's chief censor. 

During February of 1960, a federal district judge upheld the legality of Erbe's move --- and although that decision was challenged in a higher court, the situation in Iowa remained unchanged through the November election.

Erbe was successful that fall, defeating Democrat Edward J. McManus in the gubernatorial race. And Evan Hultman, also a Republican, was elected to replace Erbe as attorney general. 

Hultman announced early on that while he intended to be tough on pornography, neither he nor the state's county attorneys were going to function thereafter as censors. The court challenge to Erbe's plan was dropped after Hultman made that declaration. And Governor-elect Erbe lost interest in pornography.

Erbe, as governor, was a one-term wonder. He was blown out of the political water by Democrat Harold E. Hughes during 1962.