Sex Madness is a 1938 American exploitation film directed by Dwain Esper, along the lines of Reefer Madness, supposedly to warn teenagers and young adults of the dangers of venereal diseases, specifically syphilis. This exploitation film belongs to the social guidance genre of quasi-documentary narratives, which exhort young adults to follow particular moral and social prescriptions related to sexuality and drug use. The film centers on Paul Lorenz, a "concerned citizen" alarmed at the spread of venereal diseases such as syphilis and gonorrhea.

Reefer Madness is an American public service announcement and exploitation film about drug use and abuse. It was originally titled Tell Your Children, and it has been known by the titles The Burning Question, Dope Addict, Doped Youth, and Love Madness as well. In the film, aspiring high school students are enticed by pushers to try marijuana. They become addicted and engage in criminal activities such as a hit and run accident, manslaughter, murder, conspiracy to murder and attempted rape. They suffer hallucinations, descend into manic-depressive episodes and insanity, and associate with organized crime. One character commits suicide. The film was produced in 1936 by mainstream independent filmmaker George Hirliman. It was financed by a church group and intended to be shown to parents as a morality tale about the dangers of cannabis use.

Dark City is a 1950 American film noir crime film starring Charlton Heston, Lizabeth Scott, Viveca Lindfors, Dean Jagger, Don DeFore, Ed Begley, Jack Webb and Harry Morgan. It was produced by Hal B. Wallis and directed by William Dieterle. This was Heston's first appearance in a professional film production, following his participation in David Bradley's amateur Peer Gynt (1941) and the educational, Chicago-based Julius Caesar (1950). In later interviews, Heston called Dark City "definitely not an 'A' picture, but a pretty good 'B'". Webb and Morgan later costarred in the police drama television series Dragnet.