Before Mad Men & Don Draper there was Vic Norman

Vic Norman is the hero of Frederic Wakeman's 1946 novel "The Hucksters". The story takes place in New York during WWII and Norman wants to get into advertising so he can make $25,000 a year and wear $35 hand-painted ties. In the movie he is played by none other than Clark Gable. His boss at the agency is Adolphe Menjou wearing the same perfect-fitting suit that Roger Stirling wears in Mad Men. I guess this is why account execs are always called "suits" in the business. The little 35 cent pocket book in my library says: "The whole story the movie didn't tell". Actually the movie is much better than the book thanks to the odious and tyrannical client played by Sydney Greenstreet. He terrifys everyone including Gable by insisting they be "on the beam" and say "check" when he demands approval. Of course there are too many women in Norman's life (just like Don Draper). But the advertising thinking in The Hucksters is very primitive. You'd never hear Draper come up with anything as limpid as "Love that soap" for Beautee Soap. But then this is the precursor to the creative revolution of the Mad Men era. One nice touch in the movie is when Norman/Gable gets up in a meeting and pours a jug of water on Greenstreet's head and walks out. Today we're all well acquainted with the world of advertising. Between focus groups, and messages bombarding us night and day, we have all become lunch for the advertisers who have made us easier to use. One odd and coincidental note for both stories. One of the stars of Mad Men is Jared Harris. The Hucksters is dedicated to Jed Harris. The moving finger writes and moves on, but not very far.