This documentary from Albert and David Maysles follows the bitter rivalry of four door-to-door salesmen working for the Mid-American Bible Company: Paul "The Badger" Brennan, Charles "The Gipper" McDevitt, James "The Rabbit" Baker and Raymond "The Bull" Martos. Times are tough for this hard-living quartet, who spend their days traveling through small-town America, trying their best to peddle gold-leaf Bibles to an apathetic crowd of lower-middle-class housewives and elderly couples.
Direction
Maysles brothers invented 'don't look away' cinema.
Editing
Charlotte Zwerin's invisible hand shapes raw chaos.
Director
David Maysles
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Direct Cinema emerged as a reaction to staged documentaries; the Maysles believed the camera disappeared if you waited long enough.
The salesmen's real nicknames came from their actual company; the Maysles didn't invent 'The Badger.' Life wrote that script.
US
