''Putney Swope'' is a 1969 American

satirical Satire is a genre of the visual arts, visual, literature, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently Nonfiction, non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ...

comedy film The comedy film is a film genre that emphasizes humor. These films are designed to amuse audiences and make them laugh. Films in this genre typically have a happy ending, with dark comedy being an exception to this rule. Comedy is one of the o ...

written and directed by

Robert Downey Sr. Robert John Downey Sr. ( Elias Jr.; June 24, 1936 – July 7, 2021) was an American film director, screenwriter and actor. He was known for writing and directing the underground film '' Putney Swope'' (1969), a satire on the New York Madison Ave ...

, and starring Arnold Johnson as the title character, a black advertising executive. The film satirizes the advertising world, the portrayal of race in

Hollywood films The cinema of the United States, primarily associated with major film studios collectively referred to as Hollywood, Los Angeles, Hollywood, has significantly influenced the global film industry since the early 20th century. Classical Holly ...

and the nature of

corporate corruption In criminology, corporate crime refers to crimes committed either by a corporation (i.e., a business entity having a separate legal personality from the natural persons that manage its activities), or by individuals acting on behalf of a corpor ...

. In 2016, the film was selected for preservation in the United States

National Film Registry The National Film Registry (NFR) is the United States National Film Preservation Board's (NFPB) collection of films selected for preservation (library and archival science), preservation, each selected for its cultural, historical, and aestheti ...

by the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law o ...

as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".

Plot

Putney Swope (Arnold Johnson, voiced by Robert Downey Sr.), the only black man on the executive board of an advertising firm, is inadvertently put in charge after the sudden death of the

chairman of the board The chair, also chairman, chairwoman, or chairperson, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a Board of directors, board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by ...

. Prevented by the company by-laws from voting for themselves, board members vote by

secret ballot The secret ballot, also known as the Australian ballot, is a voting method in which a voter's identity in an election or a referendum is anonymous. This forestalls attempts to influence the voter by intimidation, blackmailing, and potential vote ...

for Putney under the assumption that he won't win. Renaming the business "Truth and Soul, Inc.", Swope replaces all but one of the white employees with black employees and insists they no longer accept business from companies that produce

alcohol Alcohol may refer to: Common uses * Alcohol (chemistry), a class of compounds * Ethanol, one of several alcohols, commonly known as alcohol in everyday life ** Alcohol (drug), intoxicant found in alcoholic beverages ** Alcoholic beverage, an alco ...

tobacco Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...

toy guns Toy guns are toys which imitate gun, real guns, but are designed for recreational sport or casual play by children. From hand-carved wooden replicas to factory-produced pop guns and cap guns, toy guns come in all sizes, prices and materials suc ...

. Throughout the movie, a series of bizarre, surreal ads for

breakfast cereal Breakfast cereal is a category of food, including food products, made from food processing, processed cereal, cereal grains, that are eaten as part of breakfast or as a snack food, primarily in Western societies. Although warm, cooked cereals li ...

air conditioners Air conditioning, often abbreviated as A/C (US) or air con (UK), is the process of removing heat from an enclosed space to achieve a more comfortable interior temperature, and in some cases, also controlling the humidity of internal air. Air c ...

, skin cream, and

airliners An airliner is a type of airplane for transporting passengers and air cargo. Such aircraft are most often operated by airlines. The modern and most common variant of the airliner is a long, tube shaped, and jet powered aircraft. The largest o ...

are shown, often featuring

obscenity An obscenity is any utterance or act that strongly offends the prevalent morality of the time. It is derived from the Latin , , "boding ill; disgusting; indecent", of uncertain etymology. Generally, the term can be used to indicate strong moral ...

or nudity. Swope's leadership style is eccentric and erratic, with him frequently firing employees after taking their ideas. The success of the business draws attention from the United States government and the President (Pepi Hermine), who is in the pocket of the owner of the "Borman Six", an automobile company. The president orders Swope to create an advertisement for their new automobile. Swope attempts to create an advertisement, but it goes poorly when an overweight actress tips the car over and crashes it. Incensed, the president of the Borman Six demands it not be put on TV, but Swope refuses and airs it anyway. Afterwards, Truth & Soul is swarmed with demonstrators, protesting the vulgarity and obscenity of Truth and Soul's advertisements. The president meets with Swope (dressed as Fidel Castro), who tells Swope it is "discrimination" to not advertise alcohol, cigarettes, or toy guns, and that the demonstrations will continue unless he relents. In a board meeting, Swope tells the board that they will begin creating advertisements for alcohol, cigarettes, and toy guns, to which the members of the board react with outrage and accuse him of selling out. Swope later mentions to his bodyguard that this was a test to see if his followers would stick to their ideals. He orders his guards to split up the company's money evenly to everyone, except to one employee known as the Arab, who has been critical of Swope's leadership throughout the film. The board members return to Swope and say they have changed their mind, and are happy to advertise whatever he wants to sell. Disillusioned, Swope silently walks away, leaving them to squabble over a glass bin full of the company's money. The Arab, upon finding out he is not receiving any, sets the money on fire with a

Molotov cocktail A Molotov cocktail (among several other names – ''see '') is a hand-thrown incendiary weapon consisting of a frangible container filled with flammable substances and equipped with a Fuse (explosives), fuse (typically a glass bottle filled wit ...

, which burns as the credits roll.

Cast

(as listed in the end credits by order of appearance) * Stan Gottlieb as Nathan (credited as Stanley Gottlieb) *

Allen Garfield Allen Garfield (born Allen Goorwitz; November 22, 1939 – April 7, 2020) was an American film and television actor. Early life Garfield was born in Newark, New Jersey, to a Jewish family, the son of Alice (née Lavroff) and Philip Goorwitz. He ...

as Elias Jr. * Archie Russell as Joker * Ramon Gordon as Bissinger * Bert Lawrence as Hawker * Joe Madden as Mr. Syllables (credited as Joe Engler) * Arnold Johnson as Putney Swope ** Voice dubbed by

* David Kirk as Elias Sr. * Don George as Mr. Cards * Buddy Butler as Putney's Bodyguard * Vincent Hamill as Man In White Suit * Tom Odachi as Wing Soney * Ching Yeh as Wing Soney Jr. * Spunky-Funk Johnson as Mr. Major * Joe Fields as Pittsburgh Willie * Norman Schreiber as Messenger * Robert Staats as "Mr. War Toys" *

Alan Abel Alan Irwin Abel (August 2, 1924 – September 14, 2018) was an American hoaxer, writer, and mockumentary filmmaker famous for several hoaxes that became media circuses. Education and early career Abel was born to a Jewish family in Zanesville ...

as "Mr. Lucky" * Sol Brawerman as "Mr. Dinkleberry" * Ben Israel as "Mr. Pit Stop" * Mel Brooks as "Mr. Forget It" (not to be confused with

Mel Brooks Melvin James Brooks (né Kaminsky; born June 28, 1926) is an American actor, comedian, filmmaker, and songwriter. With a career spanning over seven decades, he is known as a writer and director of a variety of successful broad farces and parodie ...

) * Louise Heath as Secretary * Barbara Clarke as Secretary * Catherine Lojacono as Lady Beaver * JohnJohn Robinson as Wayne * Charles Buffum as Director * Ron Palombo as Assistant Director * Wendy Appel as Script Girl * Antonio Fargas as The Arab (first credited screen role) * GeeGee Brown as Secretary * Vince Amaker as Wall Man * Al Green as Cowboy #1 * Chuck Ender as Cowboy #2 * Anthony Chisholm as Cowboy #3 * Walter Jones as Jim Keranga * Khaula Bakr as Mrs. Keranga * Melvia, Annette and Andrea Marshall as Little Kerangas * Laura Greene as Mrs. Swope * Ed Gordon as Mr. Victrola Cola * Eric Krupnik as Mark Focus * George Morgan as Mr. Token * Abdul Hakeim as Bouncer * Allan Arbus as Mr. Bad News * Jesse McDonald as Young Militant * C. Robert Scott as Militant #1 * Leopoldo Mandeville as Militant #2 * Vince Morgan Jr. as West Indian * Al Browne as Moderate * Marie Claire as Eugenie Ferlinger * William H. Boesen as Bert * Carol Farber as Secretary * Cerves McNeill as Youngblood * Carolyn Cardwell as Borman Six Girl * Charles Green as Myron X / Rufus * Pepi Hermine as President of The United States * Ruth Hermine as First Lady * Paul Storob as Secret Service Man * Lawrence Wolf as Mr. Borman Six * Jeff Lord as Mr. Bald * Tom Boya as Mr. O'Dinga * Major Cole as Idea Man #1 * David Butts as Idea Man #2 * Franklin Scott as Idea Man #3 * Paul Alladice as Idea Man #4 * Exit as Idea Man #5 * Ronnie Dyson as Face Off Boy * Shelley Plimpton as Face Off Girl * Elżbieta Czyżewska as Putney's Maid * Paulette Marron as Air Conditioner Girl * Delilah as Stewardess #1 * Carol Hobbs as Stewardess #2 * Birgitta as Stewardess #3 * Marco Helblim as Lucky Passenger * Grania as Interviewer * Peter Maloney as Putney's Chauffeur * Larry Greenfield as Lead Reporter * Marie Claire as Nun * Lloyd Kagin as Billy Reilly * Perry Gewirtz as Sonny Williams * Herbert Kerr as Bodyguard #2 * Hal Schochet as President Mimeo's Bodyguard * George Marshall as Mr. Executive * Donald Lev as Poet * William H. Boesen as Mr. Lunger * Fred Hirshhorn as Mr. Bourbon * Donahl Breitman as Mr. Ethereal Cereal * Peter Benson as Mr. Jingle

Production

In a

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for digital video disc or digital versatile disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any ki ...

interview, Downey claims that Johnson had great difficulty memorizing and giving his lines during filming. Downey says he was unconcerned as he had developed a plan to dub his own voice over Johnson's. Though the film is in black-and-white, the Truth and Soul commercials are in color.

Release

Poster controversy

The theatrical release poster showed a raised hand with the image of a girl replacing the out-thrust

middle finger The middle finger, long finger, second finger, third finger, toll finger or tall man is the third digit of the human hand, typically located between the index finger and the ring finger. It is typically the longest digit. In anatomy, it is al ...

. The ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

'' declined to print the advertisement, and it was not reprinted by the ''

Los Angeles Herald Examiner The ''Los Angeles Herald Examiner'' was a major Los Angeles daily newspaper, published in the afternoon from Monday to Friday and in the morning on Saturdays and Sundays. It was part of the Hearst Corporation, Hearst syndicate. It was formed w ...

'' after initial complaints. In Chicago, the ''

Tribune Tribune () was the title of various elected officials in ancient Rome. The two most important were the Tribune of the Plebs, tribunes of the plebs and the military tribunes. For most of Roman history, a college of ten tribunes of the plebs ac ...

'' and ''

Today Today (archaically to-day) may refer to: * The current day and calendar date ** Today is between and , subject to the local time zone * Now, the time that is perceived directly, present * The current, present era Arts, entertainment and m ...

'' refused to publish it, and it was pulled by the ''

Sun-Times The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily nonprofit newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has long held the second largest circulation among Chicago newspapers ...

'' and '' Daily News'', although they later published the advertisement without the girl as the middle finger.

Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert ( ; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American Film criticism, film critic, film historian, journalist, essayist, screenwriter and author. He wrote for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. Eber ...

was embarrassed by the ''Sun-Times'' censorship.

Box office

''Putney Swope'' opened on July 10, 1969, at Cinema II in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, grossing $32,281 in its first week. The film opened in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

on January 21, 1970, and set a house record of $16,000 at the 3 Penny Cinema in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

when it opened in February 1970; and, in Los Angeles, it was felt that the controversy boosted public interest.

Home media

The film was released on

on May 22, 2001, by Rhino Home Video. It received a Blu-ray on July 2, 2019, by Vinegar Syndrome.

Reception

The film holds a 69% "Fresh" score with an average rating of 5.7/10 on review aggregator

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...

, based on of 16 critics.

Legacy

The

Fishbone Fishbone is an American rock band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1979, the band plays a fusion of ska, punk, funk, metal, reggae, and soul. AllMusic has described the group as "one of the most distinctive and eclectic alternative ...

album " Truth and Soul" (1988) is named after the advertising agency in Putney Swope. Commenting on the cover design of the album, bassist Norwood Fisher said that, although the overall tone of the album was more serious than their previous releases, “We couldn’t completely lose our humor and decided to name the album after that movie.” The character Buck Swope from

Paul Thomas Anderson Paul Thomas Anderson (born June 26, 1970), also known by his initials PTA, is an American filmmaker. Often described as one of the most preeminent writer-directors of his generation, List of awards and nominations received by Paul Thomas Anders ...

's ''

Boogie Nights ''Boogie Nights'' is a 1997 American drama film written, directed, and co-produced by Paul Thomas Anderson. It is set in Los Angeles's San Fernando Valley and focuses on a young nightclub dishwasher who becomes a popular star of pornographic ...

'' (1997), portrayed by

Don Cheadle Donald Frank Cheadle Jr. (, ; born November 29, 1964) is an American actor. Known for his roles in film and television, he has received List of awards and nominations received by Don Cheadle, multiple accolades including two Golden Globe Award ...

, was named as a homage to this film. Downey also made a small cameo in ''Boogie Nights'' as the owner of a recording studio. The character Wing Soney, a Chinese businessman, was the inspiration for Cosmo, the Chinese man throwing firecrackers during the drug deal scene. Anderson, Louis C.K. and

Jim Jarmusch James Robert Jarmusch ( ; born January 22, 1953) is an American film director, screenwriter and musician. He has been a major proponent of independent film, independent cinema since the 1980s, directing films such as ''Stranger Than Paradise'' ...

have cited ''Putney Swope'' as an inspiration for their approach to filmmaking. The

Beastie Boys The Beastie Boys were an American Hip-hop, hip hop and Rap rock, rap rock group formed in New York City in 1979. They were composed of Ad-Rock, Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz (vocals, guitar), Adam Yauch, Adam "MCA" Yauch (vocals, bass), and Mike D, ...

song " Shadrach", from their 1989 album '' Paul's Boutique'', mentions the film in the lyric "Music for all and not just one people, and now we're gonna bust with the Putney Swope sequel". Film dialogue is sampled on

De La Soul De La Soul ( ) is an American hip hop music, hip hop group formed in the village of Amityville on Long Island, New York (state), New York in 1988. They are best known for their eclectic sampling, eccentric lyrics, and contributions to the evoluti ...

's 1989 song " The Magic Number", as well as

The Avalanches The Avalanches are an Australian electronic music group formed in Melbourne in 1997. They have released three studio albums, ''Since I Left You'' (2000), ''Wildflower (The Avalanches album), Wildflower'' (2016), and ''We Will Always Love You'' ...

' 2016 album ''

Wildflower A wildflower (or wild flower) is a flower that grows in the wild, rather than being intentionally seeded or planted. The term implies that the plant is neither a hybrid nor a selected cultivar that is any different from the native plant, eve ...

''. A black-and-white photo of the film's poster, which Sloan band member Jay Ferguson saw in a book, inspired the "quick and photocopy looking" look of the album cover for the band's 1999 album '' Between the Bridges''. ''Putney Swope'' was preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2019. It is currently available to stream on

Peacock Peafowl is a common name for two bird species of the genus '' Pavo'' and one species of the closely related genus '' Afropavo'' within the tribe Pavonini of the family Phasianidae (the pheasants and their allies). Male peafowl are referred t ...

References

External links

* * * {{Robert Downey Sr. 1969 films 1969 comedy films American black-and-white films American business films American comedy films American satirical films Films about advertising Films about businesspeople Films about race and ethnicity Films directed by Robert Downey Sr. Films set in New York City Films with screenplays by Robert Downey Sr. United States National Film Registry films 1960s English-language films 1960s American films