Because of its stereotypical racist themes and celebration of the KKK, screenings of Griffith's controversial The Birth of a Nation (1915) were met with protest. It was the first film that was treated as a major cultural event, with theaters charging an unprecedented two dollars per ticket. Due in part to its objectionable content, the film's notoriety and the atmosphere surrounding this "event" film generated immense box-office appeal and led to its profitable success in many cities. By 1920, it had grossed more than $60 million. The offensive film also had caused many groups to file petitions, write protest documents, successfully request the excising of questionable scenes, appeal to legislatures, meet with mayors and governors, picket theaters, suppress film showings, and organize protest marches in an effort to ban the film. The NAACP published a 47-page pamphlet titled "Fighting a Vicious Film: Protest Against The Birth of a Nation," in which they referred to the film as "three miles of filth." And W. E. B. Du Bois published scathing reviews in The Crisis. Race riots reached their peak in the North in 1919.