Putney Swope [Obama]

Internet Movie Database ^

[ml/nj]

Dark satire in which the token black man on the executive board of an advertising firm is accidentally put in charge. Renaming the business "Truth and Soul, Inc.", he replaces the tight regime of monied white ad men with his militant brothers. Soon afterwards, however, the power that comes with its position takes its toll on Putney...

[ml/nj]

Something someone said on the radio yesterday remided me of this movie, "Putney Swope," from 1969.

I haven't seen it since, but my recollection is that Putney was the token black on the board of a NYC advertising firm. During a board meeting at the beginning of the movie the chairman of the board dies; and the board members move to elect a new chairman. Guided only by the rule that each cannot vote for himself and each member's thought that if they didn't vote for Putney, he would get no votes and that would be embarassing for the board, Putney is unanamously elected as the new chairman. Putney institutes the type of "change" at the advertising firm that might be the harbinger of "change" we can expect from Obama. The advertising firm is completely remade. Only a token white is retained; the others are let go. I don't really remember how it ended. This little review makes it sound as if it didn't end well; and why would it if you get rid of everyone with experience and replace them with people armed with little more than buzzwords and BS.

ML/NJ

[hosepipe]

Putney Swope is/was the harbinger of Zimbabwe and South Africa.. where exactly that scenario exists.. and other place in Africa too.. Ghetto governance..

[Pinetop]

Yes, Obama has reminded me of Putney Swope—a hilarious satire made by Robert Downey, Sr.

[Alter Kaker]

I'm not sure I understand, and I've seen Putney Swope (which is hilarious). You're saying you think Obama wants to appoint an all-black cabinet and replace the Secret Service with the Black Panthers?

I think that's silly fear-mongering. The real issue is that he'd appoint an all liberal cabinet.

[wideawake]

You might enjoy this reference, Borges.

[coydog]

In 1933, many Jews thought that concerns about Hitler were alarmist.

[Alter Kaker]

In 1933, many Jews thought that concerns about Hitler were alarmist.

True. However, since 1933 a lot of people have been concerned about a lot of things, and yet we've still not had another Hitler. Today I'm concerned about the stock market. Does that make the stock market Hitler?

[ml/nj]

You're saying you think Obama wants to appoint an all-black cabinet and replace the Secret Service with the Black Panthers?

I haven't a clue what Obama would do if elected. I really don't care what color people are who are competent. I'm not sure competence was the guide in the movie and I doubt it would be in any Obama (bite my tongue) Administration.

ML/NJ

[ml/nj]

yet we've still not had another Hitler

Your naivete reminds me of an ad for a book about the USSR that I saw a long time ago in National Review. It said, "This book makes The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich seem like restoration comedy. And after Stalin came Mao.

ML/NJ

[pennboricua]

there is an even better movie it is called Burn with Marlon Brando as the main character it came out in 1969,
small island taken over by people who have no idea about running a government and the aftermath, somewhat like Haiti, and hopefully not us.

[Disambiguator]

One of the commercials from the movie.

[Borges]

Clever.

[Alter Kaker]

Your naivete reminds me of an ad for a book about the USSR that I saw a long time ago in National Review. It said, "This book makes The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich seem like restoration comedy.

And Nazi Germany and Soviet Russia were categorically different. Stalin and Mao were monsters, but very different monsters than Hitler. For one thing, neither waged open, aggressive war against the West.

There are some people who see the next Hitler lurking around every corner. Those people are lunatics.

There are lots of bad and evil men out there, but there's been only one Hitler.

[Alouette]

However, since 1933 a lot of people have been concerned about a lot of things, and yet we've still not had another Hitler.

Mao Tse Tung. Fidel Castro. Pol Pot. Robert Mugabe.

[okie01]

...if you get rid of everyone with experience and replace them with people armed with little more than buzzwords and BS.

Sounds like most advertising agencies after any reorganization to me...

(I can say it. I once ran an advertising agency...)

[AZLiberty]

Putney institutes the type of "change" at the advertising firm that might be the harbinger of "change" we can expect from Obama. The advertising firm is completely remade. Only a token white is retained; the others are let go. I don't really remember how it ended. This little review makes it sound as if it didn't end well; and why would it if you get rid of everyone with experience and replace them with people armed with little more than buzzwords and BS.

This sounds just like what Mugabe did to Zimbabwe.

[aruanan]

There are lots of bad and evil men out there, but there's been only one Hitler.

You have basically an irrelevant distinction. What made Hitler bad wasn't his war of aggression against the West (like the Muslims), but his ideologically-generated genocide. In this, Hitler is a pea in a pod with Stalin, Mao, Pol Pot, and all the various anti-West mullahs.

[jjr153]

Not Black Panthers but Farrakhan’s Nation of Islam thugs.

[Alter Kaker]

Robert Mugabe is another Hitler? what?

Mugabe's a tinpot ruinous thug, no question, but Hitler? That's absurd.

Where is the Birkenau of Bulawayo? The Sobibor of Salisbury? What countries has Mugabe conquered and enslaved?

The comparison is ridiculous. Tinpot dictators are a dime a dozen.

[rrr51]

Your analogy does not quite fit. Swope was actually a good guy who hated Madison Avenue and the Advertising business. His goal was to drive all the good people away from Madison Avenue so they could find meaningful careers in other fields. He kept all the incompetents, knowing that Madison Avenue was the right place for them.

Obama on the contrary probably does not have such pure motives.