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Thirty Seconds
In this tour de force, Arlen focuses on the people, extraordinary processes, and lunacies involved in the making of one thirty-second television commercial
- GenresNonfiction
211 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1980
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50 people want to read
About the author
Michael J. Arlen
16 books5 followersMichael J. Arlen is an Anglo-Armenian writer and former television critic of the The New Yorker. The son of the prominent Anglo-Armenian writer, Michael Arlen. He is the author of Exiles and the critically acclaimed Passage to Ararat, both of which are autobiographical narratives of Arlen's Armenian ancestry. He is also the author of Living Room War, a book on the Vietnam War's portrayal and the social culture of America in the media in the USA.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
October 27, 2017
Filming a tv commercial for AT&T (the famous Reach Out and Touch Someone ad)...
...from the first discussion between the director and his staff about the location of military base phones...
...to the private exchange between the ad agency exec and his wife after the first airing on The Johnny Carson Show.
The script, the auditions, the filming, the editing, THE PROBLEMS.
The New Yorker quality writing. A find!
...from the first discussion between the director and his staff about the location of military base phones...
...to the private exchange between the ad agency exec and his wife after the first airing on The Johnny Carson Show.
The script, the auditions, the filming, the editing, THE PROBLEMS.
The New Yorker quality writing. A find!
December 6, 2010
In general, I rate books as follows: 1 star, for books I couldn't even finish. 2 stars, for books which on some level fail to achieve what they set out to. 3 stars, for books which aren't great, but do accomplish what they set out to. 4 stars, for books that go beyond accomplishing their goals and actually add something to the world by their presence in it. 5 stars, for books which are superlatively excellent.
That's why, even though I do not care for this book at all, it still gets 3 stars. It sets out to be smarmy, popular tripe, and that's exactly what it is. It is the "story" of the production of the "Reach Out and Touch Someone" campaign for AT&T (back when most of us still called it "Ma Bell"), and it does give insight to the superficial reality (if one can call it that) of the advertising world of the day. It does so more in terms of mood than verifiable facts, however; it wouldn't make a very good source, because nothing in it is cited or referenced - it amounts to a sort of third-person memoir. It is written in a pithy, slightly ironic style that is quick and probably understandable at the 3rd grade reading level - also appropriate for the subject matter. It does portray the pettiness, the meaningless dickering, and the lack of artistry of the commercial advertising world minutely, but it will all seem rather dated to readers today.
That's why, even though I do not care for this book at all, it still gets 3 stars. It sets out to be smarmy, popular tripe, and that's exactly what it is. It is the "story" of the production of the "Reach Out and Touch Someone" campaign for AT&T (back when most of us still called it "Ma Bell"), and it does give insight to the superficial reality (if one can call it that) of the advertising world of the day. It does so more in terms of mood than verifiable facts, however; it wouldn't make a very good source, because nothing in it is cited or referenced - it amounts to a sort of third-person memoir. It is written in a pithy, slightly ironic style that is quick and probably understandable at the 3rd grade reading level - also appropriate for the subject matter. It does portray the pettiness, the meaningless dickering, and the lack of artistry of the commercial advertising world minutely, but it will all seem rather dated to readers today.
March 8, 2018
The blurbs on the book's cover promised "a hilarious, hugely entertaining look at the advertising industry" and "a series of finely perceived, artfully arranged vignettes" but I didn't even need their urging because the subject of advertising has always been of sure-fire interest to me.
Paradoxically-- for a book about professional persuaders-- this was an exception. Those vignettes seem blandly descriptive: for example, there's a lot of information about where each office is located and what its furniture is like. There's a phone call, followed by another phone call, followed by a meeting. Slow going for me.
For views of the advertising world from its wittiest participants, I recommend Jerry de la Femina and Stan Freberg.
Paradoxically-- for a book about professional persuaders-- this was an exception. Those vignettes seem blandly descriptive: for example, there's a lot of information about where each office is located and what its furniture is like. There's a phone call, followed by another phone call, followed by a meeting. Slow going for me.
For views of the advertising world from its wittiest participants, I recommend Jerry de la Femina and Stan Freberg.
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September 24, 2017A 12.0
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews