MovieChat Forums > Salesman (2021) Discussion > Did anyone else happen to notice....

Did anyone else happen to notice....


About 1 hour and 10 minutes in, when Brennan and the Rabbit went to a sales call, just before they got to the door, there was a baby on the porch all by itself? This was the woman who said she was not interested and Brennan complained then why did she leave her name with the church? You only get a small glimpse of the baby but it was alone as soon as they walked up to the door and when they were through, the woman shut the door, thinking nothing that a baby was by itself out there, especially with two strangers there? I know this was over 40 years ago and times were different, but come on? Also, how did these guys make any money? I know the bibles were expensive in today's dollars but they were asking for small amounts per week for those who could not afford the books all at once. I doubt they were paid full commission up front until the entire book was paid for? Also, most of what they made seemed to go to cigarettes and gas for those land cruisers they drove around from house to house. Not to mention all the booze that Brennan looked like he must have helped himself to when the cameral was not on him.

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I found that hilarious.

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Salesman was on last night on TCM.

I read your post earlier and I watched for that scene.

And thanks for that "heads up" Santo.

I saw the (goofy looking) baby sitting in a baby seat on the edge of the porch. He looked pretty happy. But I did notice that the salesmen walk right past him. Not even paying any attention to the baby. Like the baby did not even exist.

But that was the last of seeing the baby. When they left, I was hopping to see the baby again...but no luck.

It looked like there was a brief edit? Maybe?

But what was Weird, by todays standard, is that the baby was on the porch....all by itself...with the main door closed.



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I noticed it, too, but I think it wasn't all that unusual, especially in a small neighborhood. I'm betting that the mom (or whoever) was taking the general advice to have the baby get some fresh air and sunshine outdoors. This was far from neglect; it was probably thought of as good care. I don't think people would have thought of kidnappings, as these folks would have been too poor to pay any ransom. Anyway, I'm giving the benefit of a doubt, but I know in previous generations leaving babies in strollers outside wasn't that unusual. A different time, to be sure!

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Yup, and in high rise apartments in larger cities they even suspended baby cages out of windows:

http://northernstar-online.com/images/blog/jan-2012-babycage.jpg

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The baby was probably the youngest of the dozen the woman had-a back then,she probably wished someone would walk off with it....these were Bible salesmen,so the customer had to be Christian or Catholic.Abortion was still illegal,chances are the kid wouldn't be missed.

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I finally saw the baby!!!! All the previous posts cracked me up. I think it would have been normal to put a baby on the porch to get sunlight and sensory stimulation but jeez at least use the screen door so you can hear if it cries or falls.

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I didn't notice the baby, maybe I'll watch it again to catch it.

They made money (if they made any) over time. That same reason is why stores sell large dollar items over time payments. Now, that might have been mostly transferred to some lending agency, but the same ideas are at play. I'm sure they made a lot more money being able to offer the Bibles on time than they would have if all the customers had to pay full price upfront. It didn't look like anyone in the film could/would have just put out that much money at one time.

Also, gas was not expensive back then. I remember in the mid to late 70s the news predicted gas would go above 50 cents a gallon and would never go back below 1/2 dollar a gallon again. Of course, very few people thought he knew what he was talking about.

In 1975 I paid $2.00 for a carton of name brand popular cigarettes.

Also, being a millionaire back then meant you were richer than most people could ever dream about, much less ever be. Although, for most, not pocket money today, it isn't the same at all.

Life is like Wikipedia: There are no Facts, Just Popular Opinion

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I'm watching it on youtube and I don't see any baby on the porch around the 1:10 mark?

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It's when Brennan and the Rabbit walk up to the house in Florida and the lady says she was not interested. The baby is on the porch, looks to be the left hand side of the porch as they walk up to the door. It may not be exactly 1 hr/10 min on YouTube but the baby is there.

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You wanna see a porch baby? Here's yer porch baby: https://youtu.be/kLMDkGmwSa0?t=4521.

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Thanks! Definitely see the porch baby there.

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It's at 1:15:25 ... just sitting there chillaxing lol

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