Nuts 2 U

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The expression “nuts to you” dates to the 1930s and was commonly used as a derisive retort or dismissal. Perhaps due to the anatomical connotation for the word “nuts,” the phrase was singled out by the Hays Office as too profane for cinema after its inclusion in the 1940 film The Bank Dick. The Hays Office, or Production Code Administration, was a morality enforcement office created in 1934 through an agreement with major film studios, meant to regulate and censor content in films. This office predated the film rating system we know now and required studios to get their seal of approval on any film before the final cut made it to theaters. On this phrase, their order was brief: “Please eliminate the expression ‘nuts to you.’”