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Jerry Della Femina
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From Those Wonderful Folks Who Gave You Pearl Harbor: Front-Line Dispatches from the Advertising War Audio CD – Unabridged, October 27, 2010

by Jerry Della Femina (Author), Charles Sopkin (Author), Peter Berkrot (Narrator)
4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 149 ratings
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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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  1. Language
    English
  2. Publisher
    Tantor Audio
  3. Publication date
    October 27, 2010
  4. Dimensions
    6.7 x 0.9 x 6.4 inches
  5. ISBN-10
    1400149894
  6. ISBN-13
    978-1400149896
  7. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"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

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Tantor Audio; Library - Unabridged CD edition (October 27, 2010)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1400149894
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1400149896
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 9.1 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.7 x 0.9 x 6.4 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 149 ratings

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Jerry Della Femina

Jerry Della Femina

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Customer reviews

4.2 out of 5 stars
4.2 out of 5
149 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Tweed Scott
5.0 out of 5 stars Couldn't be happier
Reviewed in the United States on July 29, 2011
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I read this book over 30 years ago. I loved it then and I loved it this time. This edition is a reprint of the original. I was in the broadcasting industry for over 30 years and was able to use some of the information in the book in my own career. It is look behind the advertising agency curtain. There you will find many characters who mentally operate at many levels simultaneously. They are creative and at the same time so paranoid about surviving the stress and competition that it takes over their lives. The stress is unbelievable. These people are just different. Success is measured by how much money you can bill or how long you can coddle a client into staying with your agency. The pressure is relentless. Let's face it; pushing your desk out a different set of windows to keep from hurting some one on the ground many floors below doesn't mean you have cracked up or are insane; no it indicates just the opposite. what other business is THAT logical?
One of the reasons I loved watching the 'Mad Men' series was because I had read this book years ago. It wasn't until I got this edition that I found the producers used this book to help them develop that series. Jerry Della Femina, the author, serves up a finely tuned glimpse of the 50' & 60's Madison Ave. The Mad Men folks got it right and they got it right from This book. You'll learn who killed Speedy Alka Seltzer, who painted Braniff Airlines airplanes and who the wonderful folks who gave you Pearl Harbor are. This book is a hoot! I will never let it leave my library. Thanks Amazon for carrying this gem.
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JC
5.0 out of 5 stars Mad Men meets Hunter Thompson
Reviewed in the United States on April 9, 2011
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Great book. It's a bit dated, so it may not be relevant to those looking to learn about today's ad industry (I'm not in advertising, so I can't be sure about that), but it's hilarious. Feels like Mad Men if it were written by Hunter Thompson.
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Steve
4.0 out of 5 stars From those wonderful folks who gave you pearl harbor
Reviewed in the United States on August 31, 2011
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A witty trip down the rabbit hole of 1960's Madison Avenue advertising agencies. Jerry Della Femina's book tells about the almost unbelievable weirdness of the men in the grey flannel suits using their own words. The book is purported to be a main source of inspiration for the TV series 'Mad Men'. A hit when it was first published in 1970, and has not lost its humorous edge in the 40 plus years since - a fun read.
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Sulross-Grad
3.0 out of 5 stars Funny, But Dated
Reviewed in the United States on June 12, 2014
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I read this book many years ago, but lost my copy and decided to read it again. The humor ( as in "torches for dwarfs") is still sharp, but many references in the book are so dated from the 50's and 60's that they lack relevance, especially for younger readers. Still, as a historical insight into the advertising world at that time, I recommend it highly. It is well written by one of the real "Mad Men" in the industry. Had I rated this book in the early 80's when I first read it, I would have given it five stars, but it has lost some of its punch over the years.
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chris p.
5.0 out of 5 stars Great stories. One of my absolute favorite books.
Reviewed in the United States on October 8, 2010
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I loved this book. Even though it was written in 1970 it is a keenly insightful journey into the business of advertising from a man who is a legend.

NOTE OF CAUTION - There are anecdotes in this book that got me laughing so hard, tears were running down my face. This can cause problems if you are eating alone. People think you are either severely despondent, choking, or a nut job.

In any case, it is worth reading if you like to laugh while you learn.
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Brian Chevalier
5.0 out of 5 stars Love this! I heard about it once on TMZ ...
Reviewed in the United States on March 18, 2015
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Love this! I heard about it once on TMZ when Harvey said a story reminded him of this book. I googled it and bought it right away. I am a big fan of the mod culture and advertising both. It was like getting the real dirt on what Mad Men should be but can't be because it would either bore some people or be too racy. He does a great job of telling how some of the greatest ads can come down to the last second before they actually meet with a client and how crazy some of these employees really are. If you like Mad Men you'll love this book they based the TV show on!
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R.G. Belsky
5.0 out of 5 stars Still a fun read....
Reviewed in the United States on September 15, 2014
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This book was written a long time ago, and it was kind of a ground breaker of its time. Ripping the lid of secrecy off of the advertising business. I just re-read it again and it's still great. Dated in spots of course, but the energy and the edge of Della Femina's take on the business that we only know through Mad Men today is still spot on. The brilliant title comes from...well, read it yourself.
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sandra
4.0 out of 5 stars It's a pleasure
Reviewed in the United States on September 6, 2011
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A highly entertaining book providing insight on what it was like and the people caught up in the world of advertising Mad Men style.
Written in a smart and funny way, as you would expect from an ad-man and enjoyable. Not too complicated, good book before you go to bed, on your vacation or when waiting for your delayed flight....
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Top reviews from other countries

chiswickW4
5.0 out of 5 stars Classic
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 5, 2022
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A brilliant insider's view of Madison Avenue in the 1960s
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sanjay nirwan
5.0 out of 5 stars brilliant
Reviewed in India on August 11, 2014
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Brilliant book...you will fall out of your seats on the wit bumour and insights of the book on advertising
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Pallav Sharma
3.0 out of 5 stars Three Stars
Reviewed in India on December 15, 2014
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Good information but boring language
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"lao_ing"
5.0 out of 5 stars great book
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 7, 2003
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This is an extremely witty piece of writing about the advertising industry in America 20 odd years ago. I bought it second hand and it was being sold at about a tenner - rather steep for a reasonably small paperback, it was probably worth it despite the fifty cent pencil-marked price on the inside of the cover. Its chapter on creativity is good but won't give heaps of inspiration (unlike Alan Fletcher's Looking Sideways tome), but as you can see I recommend it nonetheless.
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billp
4.0 out of 5 stars Humorous and nostalgic tosh
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 25, 2019
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I read this in my London ad agency days in the 70s, had to re-read for the sake of nostalgia. It’s not worn as well as I’d hoped but is an irreverent and humorous collection of ego-centric anecdotes. Well worth a visit or revisit.

I’ve often reminisced, chuckling about the story of the toy gun packaging showing a kid dressed as a soldier hiding behind a mound brandishing the toy weapon contained in the box and the “mud not included” disclaimer on the box.
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