July 10 marks the 100th anniversary of the start of the Scopes “Monkey” Trial, when science and religion was put on trial in a small town in rural Tennessee. Paducah Film Society is screening “Inherit the Wind,” a film inspired by those events at Maiden Alley Cinema Thursday evening. Historian, author, and retired Kentucky Supreme Court Justice Bill Cunningham is giving a presentation preceding the film on the history of what’s known as the Trial of the Century and the man - John T. Scopes - who inspired the film.
Cunningham said while Scopes lived in southern Illinois, Louisiana, and Texas, he was a Paducah native and that’s where he called home.
“He was a true Paducahan. He was born and raised in Paducah, came back there and has family there, and he's buried there. John Scopes, in reality, was a much livelier and much entertaining person than the Scopes that is depicted in the movie ‘Inherit the Wind,’” he said. “I'm always a little bit particular about West Kentucky getting overlooked and not being given credit, not only for historical events, but also for people. John Scopes was an unusual person, very courageous, and he belonged to us.”
Cunningham said that Scopes was a partier in his younger days and that his journey from Paducah to the small town of Dayton, Tennessee was both interesting and ironic.
“John was a party guy. He loved to smoke. And back then, if you were a smoker, you were considered a party guy. He loved to smoke, drank a little bit, partied, a lively individual, and was well liked by everybody. When he got out of the University of Kentucky, he came back to Paducah to take a year off and make a little money,” he said. “And the University of Kentucky placement for people, for teachers, found this job down in Dayton, Tennessee, who needed a football coach. And then his sister Lela heard about it and said, ‘this would be a good place for you, because it's a really slow moving small town in the middle of nowhere, and in no way you can get into trouble.’ So that's where he went.”
Little did they know that Scopes taking the position in eastern Tennessee would lead to one of the biggest trials of the day and for the 20th century. Cunningham said that the town depicted in the film “Inherit the Wind” is not very accurate to what the town was really like for Scopes.
“He goes down there, and everybody loved him, and he loved the town. It's a much better community, and his relationship is not accurately depicted in the movie,” said Cunningham. “And in fact, after this whole thing went away, they were looking forward to having him come back and teach that fall, but he made other plans. Like a lot of things, you know, fate plays a role, and he just kind of fell in these circumstances. And he was a perfect match for the issue.”
According to Cunningham’s research, the community and the public were not initially interested in the case that charged Scopes with allegedly teaching the theory of evolution in a Tennessee classroom against a state law that was enacted earlier that same year. He said it only became a media spectacle after the arrival of two titans of the legal world.
“That’s the interesting thing about it; nobody really cared, except the ACLU. Nobody wanted to pass this law, but they passed it just to appease the loud and vociferous fundamentalists, but nobody thought it would be enforced. Nobody knew anything about it and it wasn't enforced. It wasn't it wasn't this prosecution pushing it initially,” Cunningham said. “The ACLU wanted to test this law, take it to the Supreme Court and all that. So they had to kind of fabricate this case down in Dayton. The trial itself became a farce, for show biz, and it wouldn't have captured everybody's imagination, except it attracted two legal giants of the day.”
Those legal giants came in the form of former Senator and Secretary of State William Jennings Bryan to lead the prosecution and Clarence Darrow, a renowned lawyer and legal mind from the American Civil Liberties Union.
Cunningham said while the theatrics of the trial were memorable and made for a good film adaptation, the events in “Inherit the Wind” are more exaggerated than reality.
“It was turned into entertainment. And, of course, Hollywood took it. I don't even think you see these damned ‘based on true story’ labels. It will usually get in the ballpark exactly. I don't think this makes any contention. It just says “Inherit the Wind,” and it doesn't even use the names of the real characters. It's a very good movie in and of itself, but it's not good history.”
Cunningham said the trial itself was not good for either side of the legal battle. He said that both sides had their own agendas outside of the facts or details of the case, and instead were motivated by ideological agendas.
“Unfortunately, it has turned out to be all that people remember about William Jennings Bryan or Clarence Darrow. Neither one should have gone to Dayton. They didn't help themselves. Bryan was a great American. He stood up for the little people. He was loved by all. He was a senator, Secretary of State,” said Cunningham. “His big flaw was he was a little bigoted when it came to religious views, but was not unkind. In fact, he told John Scopes he was going to pay his fine if he got a fine and not to worry about it. And [Bryan] died just a few days after that, and that was the legacy.”
Cunningham said that Darrow was not immune to criticism either. He said that Darrow’s lack of religious views led him on a mission to humiliate believers.
“Clarence was an atheist, which is okay with most people. You can believe or not believe what you want to. But he took that case on to try to lampoon those religious people and make fun of them. And he kind of took atheism on his own time and like a crusade tried to make a monkey out of William Jennings Bryan, who was very popular,” said Cunningham. “So Darrow’s reputation wasn't enhanced. It wasn't a good criminal case. The defense wanted John Scopes convicted, because if he wasn't convicted, it would never make its way to the US Supreme Court. They wanted to appeal.”
Cunningham said the trial ended with a conviction of Scopes and a fine of $100 ordered by the judge. But he said that neither the jury nor the judge wanted to convict the young man they’d come to like in their community.
“They didn't want to convict him. That's how well liked he was. And Clarence Darrow, and basically almost asked them. Eventually they rule he's guilty but they didn't set a penalty. And everybody is worn out,” he said. “The judge just said, ‘Hell, I'll put the penalty myself.’”
Cunningham will be presenting on the history of the Scopes “Monkey” Trial prior to the Paducah Film Society’s screening of “Inherit the Wind” on Thursday, July 10 at 7:00 p.m. at Maiden Alley Cinema.
More information about tickets and other events can be found on the Paducah Film Society's Facebook page.
