Harry Thomason
On a near perfect Sunday afternoon, hundreds gathered in the grand hall of the Clinton Presidential Center to hear Harry Thomason tell a tale or two.
Thomason, most famous for being a Hollywood producer, was in Little Rock to promote his new book, “Brother Dog” and is subtitled as “Southern Tales & Hollywood Adventures.”
An Arkansas native, Thomason grew up in Hampton, or the part of the state known as L.A. or lower Arkansas. So maybe ending up in Los Angeles wasn’t that much of a stretch for Thomason but first he had to get there and that was the majority of his nearly one hour talk was on.
“This book is about growing up in this region,” Thomason told the crowd. “Everything ties back to Arkansas. I love this part of the country. I love Little Rock. I love Arkansas.”
Despite his L.A. roots, a career in Hollywood looked like a longshot for a football coach and art teacher at Little McClellan High School. Nevertheless, Thomason had a dream and thought that making television commercials might be the way to break in.
“I read in the paper,” Thomason said, “that a guy runs an insurance company here, Frank, Frank Whitbeck and he’s going to run for governor, and I thought, ‘I could start out by doing commercials for this guy’.”
So Thomason drove from southwest Little Rock to downtown and went to the Brandon Agency, then the city’s premier advertising firm run by Jim Brandon.
“I walked in the front door.” Thomason said. “I told her I want to shoot Frank Whitbeck’s commercials and I taught art, so I brought some storyboards with me, to show them the kind of stuff to do.”
After a fraught few minutes where Thomason could hear some of the goings on behind a frosted glass door, Brandon agreed to meet and that’s when Thomason made his pitch and told Brandon the magic words: “If it doesn’t work, I’ll pay you back for the spot.”
And with that, Thomason’s second career began and he produced, along with his wife, Linda Bloodworth Thomason, produced television hits like Designing Women, Evening Shade and the TV mini-series, The Blue and the Gray, filmed almost entirely in Arkansas and featured, among others, Gregory Peck as President Abraham Lincoln.
Thomason also stayed active in politics and in a very big way.
A certified F.O.B. — Friend of Bill — Thomason produced “The Man from Hope” for then presidential candidate and Arkansas Gov. Bill Clinton.
The movie was made for the 1992 Democratic National Convention and showcased Clinton to a national audience.
It also worked.
Clinton was elected President — twice — and Thomason and his wife became one of Hollywood’s power couples.
As for Whitbeck and the gubernatorial campaign commercial that started it all, he lost the 1968 Democratic nomination in a crowded field with the eventual winner, Marion Crank, losing to incumbent Gov. Winthrop Rockefeller.
Also coming up as part of the Clinton School Speaker series is Van Jensen and Nate Powell at 6:30 p.m. this Thursday, Nov. 19, at the Ron Robinson Theater. The event is free but reservations are suggested and they can be had by emailing publicprograms@clintonschool.
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Image courtesy of the Pryor Center
