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From Those Wonderful Folks Who Gave You Pearl Harbor: Front-Line Dispatches from the Advertising War Audiobook
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(3.01) - 307 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
Vividly reminiscent of the goings-on at Sterling Cooper—the late nights, the three-martini lunches, the sex on couches, and, of course, the actual work of plugging products—this is the story of what Madison Avenue was really like in the 1960s. A worldwide bestseller when first published in 1970, this frank, irreverent, and hilarious memoir is a one-of-a-kind cult classic.
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"Loved this. There's no structure, no real sense of progression, just one crazy story after another. It's a breeze to read, refreshingly schizophrenic and an interesting look at a time when advertising ruled the world. It's all different now, of course."
— Kai (4 out of 5 stars)
Quotes
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Reads like the transcript of a tape made at a bar or cocktail party with the recorder propped up next to the raconteur at the center of the crowd.
— Salon -
“Brilliant…Best enjoyed after a three-martini lunch.”
— GQ -
“Reads like the transcript of a tape made at a bar or cocktail party with the recorder propped up next to the raconteur at the center of the crowd.”
— Salon -
“When there was some debate about whether something was accurate or not, Jerry said ‘You’re not even close. It was so much worse than what you’re seeing on the show.’”
— Matthew Weiner, creator and executive producer of Mad Men
From Those Wonderful Folks Who Gave You Pearl Harbor Listener Reviews
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" I enjoyed this book. I would have enjoyed it even more had Mr. Femina not told most of the interesting/funny parts during his interview with Don Imus. I would have really enjoyed this book if I was entering or part of the advertising field. I would have really, really enjoyed it had I watched any episodes of Mad Men, supposedly loosely based on this book. Femina writes in a way that is easy to follow and light. At times the book could get confusing with the characters as so many were mentioned, then mentioned again later on. Overall the authors insight into human nature was amusing and i highly recommend this book for anyone in the business field. "
— Mike, 2/17/2014 -
" Never have seen an episode of Mad Men but if this is what it is like I can understand why it has been hailed as good television. The entire book reads like it is just you and the author holed up in some smoky bar, drinking scotch and listening to his tall tales of adventure. Some language and ideas startled me some until I remembered that this is written in 1969. Definitely shows it in its homophobic, and misogynistic wording. "
— Robin, 2/7/2014 -
" This picture of Mad Men era advertising is a lot less glamorous but also hilarious. Kind of like Liars Poker but for Madison ave instead of Wall St. "
— Benjy, 1/31/2014 -
" An inspiration for Mad Men, published in 1970. "
— Martha, 1/31/2014 -
" Disappointing, I'm afraid. Dude had an axe to grind. "
— Bob, 1/21/2014 -
" A nice little time capsule of a book, and nice back story for anyone interesting in the lives of the real "Mad Men." Not a thriller by any means, but not bad. "
— Jana, 1/20/2014 -
" Great period piece, and fascinating if you are a "Mad Men" fan... "
— Patti, 1/15/2014 -
" please see my review at theagencyreview.wordpress.com/pearl-h... "
— Martin, 12/16/2013 -
" Interesting stories, but I didn't care for the author's style. Could have been much better. "
— David, 11/6/2013 -
" A perfect companion to Madmen. The source of many of its characters and ideas. "
— Stuart, 11/2/2013 -
" Brilliant. An adman's must-have. "
— Shai, 5/17/2013 -
" Decent read about the ad business in the 60's. Was rather inconsistent, though, zipping back and forth between blathering about agencies nobody outside of advertising cares about adn actual amusing stories about the drunken psychopaths involved. "
— Cliff, 12/11/2012 -
" One of the books that got me into advertising. "
— Stuart, 11/9/2012 -
" The crazy world of sixties advertising, depicted by a man who was there. An obvious influence on "Mad Men," this book tells some behind-the-scenes secrets of advertising. It's a little repetitive, though, and lacks an abundance of stories behind specific ad campaigns. "
— Lee, 7/10/2012 -
" Apparently the basis for AMC TV's "Mad Men", it was a bunch of anecdotes told in a fairly conversational style. I think that I could write ad copy. "
— Woody, 12/24/2011 -
" I had to put it down after a while. The anecdotes were interesting but the book was written as if a guy in a bar was telling you all the stories and that got hard to read. The style was too conversational and lacked structure. "
— Petra, 10/3/2011 -
" Wow, this book was really awful. I've never seen Mad Men before, but I certainly hope it's better than this! "
— Erin, 7/31/2011 -
" A must read. A riot that puts you in a place and time. "
— Scott, 7/10/2011 -
" The rough basis for the TV show "Mad Men." If you are a fan of the television show, you'll get a kick out of this book. "
— Jon, 1/27/2011 -
" I haven't seen Mad Men but after reading this book I'll definitely take a look. "
— Christopher, 1/2/2011 -
" Great period piece, and fascinating if you are a "Mad Men" fan... "
— Patti, 12/24/2010 -
" Interesting stories, but I didn't care for the author's style. Could have been much better. "
— David, 9/25/2010 -
" Disappointing, I'm afraid. Dude had an axe to grind. "
— Bob, 8/21/2010 -
" The crazy world of sixties advertising, depicted by a man who was there. An obvious influence on "Mad Men," this book tells some behind-the-scenes secrets of advertising. It's a little repetitive, though, and lacks an abundance of stories behind specific ad campaigns. "
— Lee, 8/6/2010 -
" Offer a very humorous insight from Jerry Della Femina, a veteran in advertising industry. A good read. "
— Andi, 5/3/2008 -
" One of the books that got me into advertising. "
— Stuart, 1/6/2008 -
" An advertising person who takes his work seriously, but not himself. Now, that's rare. "
— Sanjay, 8/21/2007 -
" Semi-fascinating look into the good ol' days of ad agencies with execs drunk off their chair in the middle of the day, plotting out how to sell shit to anyone who breathes. once you get past all the machismo, alcoholic, schmoozy nonsense it's pretty heavy "
— Brianne, 8/21/2007
About the Authors
Jerry Della Femina has worked in the advertising industry for over fifty years, and he was an adviser on the first season of the hit television show Mad Men.
Charles Sopkin (1932–1994) was an author, book editor, and publisher. He graduated from Emory University and earned his master’s degree in journalism from Columbia University. A former managing editor for Doubleday and the owner of Seaview Books, his books include Seven Glorious Days, Seven Fun-Filled Nights and Money Talks!
About Peter Berkrot
Peter Berkrot, winner of Audie and Earphones Awards for narration, is a stage, screen, and television actor and acting coach. He has narrated over 450 works that span a range of genres, including fiction, nonfiction, thriller, and children’s titles. His audiobook credits include works of Alan Glynn, Eric Van Lustbader, Nora Roberts and Dean Koontz. In film and television, he appeared in Caddyshack, America’s Most Wanted, and Unsolved Mysteries. He performs in regional and New York theaters and directs the New Voices acting school.