This clip is a powerful reminder of the power of nostalgia. Don Draper does 2 things comedians might want to take note of, first he leads his audience into his story as if it were their own. Second, he tells them what “IT” is and how they should feel about it.
Certainly Don garners the opposite effect that a comic is looking for, but he uses the same literary tools comics use.
Clip and image from Mad Men S1:E13 “The Wheel” (18 Oct. 2007 – A&E) Available on Netflix
This is my favorite movie clip in the entire world! It’s from the movie Glengarry Glen Ross (1992) which is an adaptation of a play by David Mamet which won a Pulitzer Prize in 1984.
The scene is of real estate salesmen getting a “kick in the ass” type motivational speech from a much more successful peer. This clip is fascinating to me because the context translates to almost all professions. Change real estate salesmen to comedian and the parallels are staggering. The speech is powerful, it’s easy to feel offended for the recipients of such a harsh beratement. I don’t post this clip because i think its important to be “like” the Alec Baldwin character or to even like him. At the opening of the clip, he asks if everyone is there and Kevin Spacey’s character says all but one. The guy who isn’t in the room is the Al Pacino character. He’s across the street trying to close a sale. When I watched the clip as I wrote this I realized the importance of NOT being in the room. You should watch the movie!
Available on Netflix!
Adrian Cosby (totally unrelated) 