Douglas Fairbanks Jr. and Peter Fonda host an examination of the history of decency standards for movies from the early 1920s onwards.

Carl Brown and Annie McGairy are in love. Their Irish immigrant parents knew each other in the old country - and Carl's parents want better for their son than Annie, who was raised in the slums. When Annie runs away to marry Carl while he's at college, they have many difficulties, including a college Dean that frowns upon married couples, Carl's angry parents, Carl's jealousy, and Annie's own problems with her sexuality.

Richard Kimble is falsely convicted of his wife's murder and given the death penalty. En route to death row, Kimble's train derails and crashes, allowing him to escape and begin a cross-country search for the real killer, a "one-armed man". At the same time, Dr. Kimble is hounded by the authorities, most notably dogged by Police Lieutenant Philip Gerard.