Second Effort
Encyclopedia
Second Effort is a 1968 sales training film
starring Vince Lombardi
, the Hall of Fame
head coach
of the Green Bay Packers
. The film also featured veteran character actor
Ron Masak
and other members of the Green Bay Packers organization, including offensive lineman Jerry Kramer
. It has been cited as a "classic" and as the best-selling training film of all time. The film is still in use in leadership and management courses.
) who is trying to make a sales pitch to legendary NFL
coach Vince Lombardi
. Ron is not very good at his job, and fumbles ineffectually through his sales pitch. Coach Lombardi takes pity on him, and spends the rest of the film teaching him his personal philosophy, known as "The Second Effort". The sport of American football
is used as a metaphor, and lessons on the football field are applied to Ron's own job in sales. Many quotes and aphorisms commonly associated with Lombardi appear in the film, such as "mental toughness is the essential key to success" and "confidence is contagious, and so is the lack of it". Scenes take place in Lombardi's office and other locations around Lambeau Field
, the Packers home football stadium.
The film was designed to train and motivate salesmen. The industry that Ron, the salesman in the film, represents is intentionally left vague, so as to broaden the appeal of the film. It has been used by companies in many industries to train their sales force, but has also been used in other settings as a motivational film.
The film became something of signature film in sales training and corporate motivation, so much so that in 1969, one salesman complained of having been shown the film by his boss twelve times in one year. One reviewer in the Chicago Tribune
thought that Lombardi's performance "[rated] an Oscar for his role" in the film. The film itself has been the subject of an episode of the NFL Films
Presents television show, host Steve Sabol interviewed Ron Masak on the making of the film and on his memories of working with Vince Lombardi.
Second Effort was an international success as well. People who otherwise were unfamiliar with the sport American football were fans of it. Former Australia
n rugby league
player Terry Fearnley
was "mesmerized" by Second Effort after being shown the film as part of a corporate conference held by General Motors Holden
. He recommended the film to his friend, legendary rugby league coach Jack Gibson
. Gibson promptly cancelled a day of practices to show it to his team; they would go unbeaten for the next seven weeks. Inspired by Lombardi and the film, Fearnley and Gibson would travel to the U.S. to study under American football coaches, and would bring back training techniques that would revolutionize rugby league in Australia.
By 1988, twenty years after the film was released, Second Effort had sold 50,000 copies, astoundingly high for a short training film, a genre where even 1000 copies is considered successful. Producers of training films have called it "a classic" and "an amazing film" and have cited it as the benchmark film of the industry.
Training film
A training film is a form of educational film – a short subject documentary movie, that provides an introduction to a topic. Both narrative documentary and dramatisation styles may be used, sometimes both in the same production...
starring Vince Lombardi
Vince Lombardi
Vincent Thomas "Vince" Lombardi was an American football coach. He is best known as the head coach of the Green Bay Packers during the 1960s, where he led the team to three straight league championships and five in seven years, including winning the first two Super Bowls following the 1966 and...
, the Hall of Fame
Pro Football Hall of Fame
The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame of professional football in the United States with an emphasis on the National Football League . It opened in Canton, Ohio, on September 7, 1963, with 17 charter inductees...
head coach
Head coach
A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches...
of the Green Bay Packers
Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are an American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Packers are the current NFL champions...
. The film also featured veteran character actor
Character actor
A character actor is one who predominantly plays unusual or eccentric characters. The Oxford English Dictionary defines a character actor as "an actor who specializes in character parts", defining character part in turn as "an acting role displaying pronounced or unusual characteristics or...
Ron Masak
Ron Masak
Ron Masak is an American actor. He began on stage and much of his work is in theater. His first screen role was as the Harmonica Man in "The Purple Testament," an episode of The Twilight Zone in 1960...
and other members of the Green Bay Packers organization, including offensive lineman Jerry Kramer
Jerry Kramer
Gerald Louis "Jerry" Kramer is a former professional football player, author and sports commentator, best remembered for his 11-year NFL career with the Green Bay Packers as an offensive lineman...
. It has been cited as a "classic" and as the best-selling training film of all time. The film is still in use in leadership and management courses.
Plot
The plot of the film centers around a salesman named Ron (portrayed by Ron MasakRon Masak
Ron Masak is an American actor. He began on stage and much of his work is in theater. His first screen role was as the Harmonica Man in "The Purple Testament," an episode of The Twilight Zone in 1960...
) who is trying to make a sales pitch to legendary NFL
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
coach Vince Lombardi
Vince Lombardi
Vincent Thomas "Vince" Lombardi was an American football coach. He is best known as the head coach of the Green Bay Packers during the 1960s, where he led the team to three straight league championships and five in seven years, including winning the first two Super Bowls following the 1966 and...
. Ron is not very good at his job, and fumbles ineffectually through his sales pitch. Coach Lombardi takes pity on him, and spends the rest of the film teaching him his personal philosophy, known as "The Second Effort". The sport of American football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
is used as a metaphor, and lessons on the football field are applied to Ron's own job in sales. Many quotes and aphorisms commonly associated with Lombardi appear in the film, such as "mental toughness is the essential key to success" and "confidence is contagious, and so is the lack of it". Scenes take place in Lombardi's office and other locations around Lambeau Field
Lambeau Field
Lambeau Field is an outdoor football stadium in Green Bay, Wisconsin, the home of the NFL's Green Bay Packers. Opened in 1957 as City Stadium, it replaced the original City Stadium as the Packers' home field...
, the Packers home football stadium.
The film was designed to train and motivate salesmen. The industry that Ron, the salesman in the film, represents is intentionally left vague, so as to broaden the appeal of the film. It has been used by companies in many industries to train their sales force, but has also been used in other settings as a motivational film.
Reception
Numerous sources have cited this as the best selling film of its type.The film became something of signature film in sales training and corporate motivation, so much so that in 1969, one salesman complained of having been shown the film by his boss twelve times in one year. One reviewer in the Chicago Tribune
Chicago Tribune
The Chicago Tribune is a major daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, and the flagship publication of the Tribune Company. Formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" , it remains the most read daily newspaper of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Great Lakes region and is...
thought that Lombardi's performance "[rated] an Oscar for his role" in the film. The film itself has been the subject of an episode of the NFL Films
NFL Films
NFL Films is a Mount Laurel, New Jersey-based company devoted to producing commercials, television programs, feature films, and documentaries on the National Football League, as well as other unrelated major events and awards shows...
Presents television show, host Steve Sabol interviewed Ron Masak on the making of the film and on his memories of working with Vince Lombardi.
Second Effort was an international success as well. People who otherwise were unfamiliar with the sport American football were fans of it. Former Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
player Terry Fearnley
Terry Fearnley
Terry Fearnley is an Australian former rugby league footballer and later coach. He was a long serving member of the NSWRFL's Eastern Suburbs team & , playing 144 matches for them at a bleak period in that club's existence. Injury kept him out of the 1960 grand final, one of the few successful...
was "mesmerized" by Second Effort after being shown the film as part of a corporate conference held by General Motors Holden
Holden
GM Holden Ltd is an automaker that operates in Australia, based in Port Melbourne, Victoria. The company was founded in 1856 as a saddlery manufacturer. In 1908 it moved into the automotive field, before becoming a subsidiary of the U.S.-based General Motors in 1931...
. He recommended the film to his friend, legendary rugby league coach Jack Gibson
Jack Gibson (rugby league)
Jack Arthur Gibson OAM was an Australian rugby league identity – a player, commentator and most notably a coach...
. Gibson promptly cancelled a day of practices to show it to his team; they would go unbeaten for the next seven weeks. Inspired by Lombardi and the film, Fearnley and Gibson would travel to the U.S. to study under American football coaches, and would bring back training techniques that would revolutionize rugby league in Australia.
By 1988, twenty years after the film was released, Second Effort had sold 50,000 copies, astoundingly high for a short training film, a genre where even 1000 copies is considered successful. Producers of training films have called it "a classic" and "an amazing film" and have cited it as the benchmark film of the industry.