Bristow - Ambitions

It is of course just coincidence that this desire to be outside is born on a hot and stuffy day when the stultifying boredom of the office is getting to him.

And he expands on the theme in the next strip with a demonstration of every salesman's most important technique.

Apart from starting out of the window Bristow does not actually do anything about becoming a sales rep - except once, in the pages of Bristow (1966) where he actually answers a job advertisement for a sales rep. Taking his place with the hundreds of other buying clerks, he does get an interview but his lack of experience is the fatal flaw in the plan. However he certainly seems to have mastered the lingo Strip 3320

Strip 3320 was published in the Evening Standard in November 1971 and in Bristow (1972) and Bristow's Guide to Living. This scan was taken from the Melbourne Age, published in January 1972, where it has been renumbered 3223

Bristow is friends with Sampson of Sales, whose lavish and alcohol-fuelled lifestyle he envies, Strip 1139

Strip 1139 was published in the Evening Standard in September 1964. This is the redrawn version from Bristow (1966)

, and respects the firm’s top salesman Mr. Gabby strip 2706

Strip 2706 was published in the Evening Standard in November 1969 and in Bristow (1970)

But he won’t get a job with C-Ps as a salesman, even when a golden opportunity appears.

strip 3888

Strip 3888 was published in the Evening Standard in September 1973. This version is from the Sydney Morning Herald published September 1973.

There are too many clerks in line.

Chief Buyer

There is always the faint chance that Bristow might actually get a job with another employer as a sales rep – if he stays with Chester-Perry’s then his ambitions must be confined to the buying department. This means that he has to focus on becoming Chief Buyer. It is possible that, should Fudge retire and Pilkington be headhunted, and the Ebola virus is rampant in Costing and a terrorist group assassinate Hewitt and Jones runs away with Miss Pretty etc. etc. that Bristow might get the job. For a slightly more realistic appraisal see Buying Department

Business executive

One of Bristow's longest-lived ambitions is to become a successful executive, a powerful tycoon who mixes casually with the heads of industry and self-made millionaires. He first explores the possibilities when playing with Pilkington’s spectacles strip 86

Strip 86 was published in the Evening Standard in June 1962. Scan taken from microfiche, apologies for quality.

but soon discards mere dressing up for something much more important – the self-help manual for the thrusting businessman called Space at the Summit. Introduced in July 1962 this invaluable treatise becomes his essential, everyday reading and dominates his thinking. Lesson one is the importance of making contacts. Bristow begins vetting everyone he meets on the daily commuter train to work and as strip 149

Strip 149 was published in the Evening Standard in August 1962. Scan is from microfiche, apologies for poor quality

shows it soon pays off

The self-made millionaire seems perennially short of cash – fortunately Bristow is happy to lend him the odd half-crown. Trouble is, he is not the only contact-seeker plying the carriages strip 179

Strip 179 was published in the Evening Standard in September 1962. Scan is from microfiche, apologies for quality

Further inspirations from Space at the Summit include the importance of health (Bristow finds that all the reading gives him a headache), the importance of good handwriting (Bristow's unreadable and blotch-ridden script does not bode well) and the need to be ruthless, hard and calculating. On top of this is the vital necessity of being money-conscious. Ah yes.. strip 568

Strip 568 was published in the Evening Standard in December 1962 . Scan is from microfiche, apologies for quality

Then a whole new approach:

I've been reading this book
It says behind every successful man there is a woman
A charming, witty and gracious wife is a valuable asset to the aspiring executive
What I need is a charming, witty and gracious wife
Question: where to start?
Telephone switchboard or typing pool?

strip 706 (warning: very low quality)

Strip 706 was published in the Evening Standard in May 1963. Scan is from microfiche, apologies for very poor quality

Bristow’s continuing quest for a suitable female partner is covered in more detail in Bristow's Romances.

In later years he seems less obsessed with making it as a businessman and is more concerned with hanging on as a buying clerk. But if only he could get clean away from the world of business. He could – if he could make it as a best-selling author.

Best-selling author

Strip 3814 was published in the Evening Standard in June 1973 and in Bristow Extra. This version is from the Melbourne Age, July 1973

Bristow's unique contribution to world literature is dealt with in Writings. There is no obvious reason as to why he thinks he can achieve success this way. From day one in his job at C-Ps he picked up his pen (using the firm’s ink) and paper (courtesy of Stores) and got stuck in. The rest is history. He has a most impressive list of potential publications to his name. Alas, none have actually been published yet, due to the callous arrogance of that well-known firm of hack publishers Heap and Trotwood but it is surely just a matter of time.

Brain surgery

As the Blondini brothers commence work we get an early hint of what must be his least likely ambition strip 3294

Strip 3294 was published in the Evening Standard in October 1971 and in Bristow (1972) and in The Big Big Big Bristow Book. This scan is from the Sydney Morning Herald, November 1973

The drive behind it is explained a little later in strip 4021

Strip 4021 was published in the Evening Standard in February 1974 and in Bristow Extra. This scan is from the Melbourne Age, March 1974.

This actually has a very rare reference to Bristow's parents. They appear to have instilled in their son a respect for work but in the sense that you respect people who do it, not in the sense that you do it yourself. Bristow does not consider it necessary to do anything in order to be a brain surgeon, just so long as he can master the essentials contained in that key work of reference Brain Surgery for Beginners. But what bad luck that, just when he is able to impress the gorgeous Miss Pretty of Kleenaphone, brain surgery becomes his achilles heel strip 4521

Strip 4521 should have been published in the Evening Standard on 27 November 1975 but the paper did not appear that day. It was published in Living Death in the Buying Department. This scan is from the Sydney Morning Herald, December 1975.

Actually he develops a more realistic attitude demonstrating his superior knowledge of cutting-edge medical research to the old-fashioned Jones see strip

This strip was published in The Bg Big Big Bristow Book. Publication date in the Evening Standard has not yet been ascertained, but almost certainly between 1995 and 1998.

. But some time after he takes a step back, admitting that maybe there is a little more effort required than he is prepared to give strip 10502

Strip 10502 was published in the Evening Standard around July 1999

Everyone knows about this ambition and rather quaintly, when long-lost colleagues meet up with Bristow they always assume he has made it. True he may be rather scruffily dressed but then as a brain surgeon who does a bit of clerking on the side, he is only keeping in character.

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Mr. Bristow
Bristow's Ambitions
	He is thoroughly lazy. He delights in wasting every one of the eight hours a day that he spends in the employment of the Chester-Perry company. And yet he is also ambitious, quite amazingly so. In the early strips he is driven by a lust to get on, to achieve status and wealth and to lord it over his fellow buying clerks. Sometimes he gives way to a much more realistic understanding of his situation but the old optimism always resurfaces. He just needs that one big break and he is on his way. Let us review these ambitions, in increasing order of improbability. Sales rep Bristow has always worked indoors and in a clerical capacity. But quite suddenly he realises that his true destiny lies outside, bowling along country lanes in his two-seater car, selling to his faithful customers or winning over new ones through sheer force of personality. He can tell the jokes. He can get in the drinks. He just needs a chance. It is of course just coincidence that this desire to be outside is born on a hot and stuffy day when the stultifying boredom of the office is getting to him. Strip 671 was published in the Evening Standard in April 1963. Scan from microfiche so apologies for quality. And he expands on the theme in the next strip with a demonstration of every salesman's most important technique. Strip 672 was published in the Evening Standard in April 1963. Scan from microfiche so apologies for quality Apart from starting out of the window Bristow does not actually do anything about becoming a sales rep - except once, in the pages of Bristow (1966) where he actually answers a job advertisement for a sales rep. Taking his place with the hundreds of other buying clerks, he does get an interview but his lack of experience is the fatal flaw in the plan. However he certainly seems to have mastered the lingo Strip 3320 Strip 3320 was published in the Evening Standard in November 1971 and in Bristow (1972) and Bristow's Guide to Living. This scan was taken from the Melbourne Age, published in January 1972, where it has been renumbered 3223 Bristow is friends with Sampson of Sales, whose lavish and alcohol-fuelled lifestyle he envies, Strip 1139 Strip 1139 was published in the Evening Standard in September 1964. This is the redrawn version from Bristow (1966) , and respects the firm’s top salesman Mr. Gabby strip 2706 Strip 2706 was published in the Evening Standard in November 1969 and in Bristow (1970) . But he won’t get a job with C-Ps as a salesman, even when a golden opportunity appears. strip 3888 Strip 3888 was published in the Evening Standard in September 1973. This version is from the Sydney Morning Herald published September 1973. There are too many clerks in line. Chief Buyer There is always the faint chance that Bristow might actually get a job with another employer as a sales rep – if he stays with Chester-Perry’s then his ambitions must be confined to the buying department. This means that he has to focus on becoming Chief Buyer. It is possible that, should Fudge retire and Pilkington be headhunted, and the Ebola virus is rampant in Costing and a terrorist group assassinate Hewitt and Jones runs away with Miss Pretty etc. etc. that Bristow might get the job. For a slightly more realistic appraisal see Buying Department Business executive One of Bristow's longest-lived ambitions is to become a successful executive, a powerful tycoon who mixes casually with the heads of industry and self-made millionaires. He first explores the possibilities when playing with Pilkington’s spectacles strip 86 Strip 86 was published in the Evening Standard in June 1962. Scan taken from microfiche, apologies for quality. but soon discards mere dressing up for something much more important – the self-help manual for the thrusting businessman called Space at the Summit. Introduced in July 1962 this invaluable treatise becomes his essential, everyday reading and dominates his thinking. Lesson one is the importance of making contacts. Bristow begins vetting everyone he meets on the daily commuter train to work and as strip 149 Strip 149 was published in the Evening Standard in August 1962. Scan is from microfiche, apologies for poor quality shows it soon pays off The self-made millionaire seems perennially short of cash – fortunately Bristow is happy to lend him the odd half-crown. Trouble is, he is not the only contact-seeker plying the carriages strip 179 Strip 179 was published in the Evening Standard in September 1962. Scan is from microfiche, apologies for quality Further inspirations from Space at the Summit include the importance of health (Bristow finds that all the reading gives him a headache), the importance of good handwriting (Bristow's unreadable and blotch-ridden script does not bode well) and the need to be ruthless, hard and calculating. On top of this is the vital necessity of being money-conscious. Ah yes.. strip 568 Strip 568 was published in the Evening Standard in December 1962 . Scan is from microfiche, apologies for quality Then a whole new approach: I've been reading this book It says behind every successful man there is a woman A charming, witty and gracious wife is a valuable asset to the aspiring executive What I need is a charming, witty and gracious wife Question: where to start? Telephone switchboard or typing pool? strip 706 (warning: very low quality) Strip 706 was published in the Evening Standard in May 1963. Scan is from microfiche, apologies for very poor quality Bristow’s continuing quest for a suitable female partner is covered in more detail in Bristow's Romances. In later years he seems less obsessed with making it as a businessman and is more concerned with hanging on as a buying clerk. But if only he could get clean away from the world of business. He could – if he could make it as a best-selling author. Best-selling author Strip 3814 was published in the Evening Standard in June 1973 and in Bristow Extra. This version is from the Melbourne Age, July 1973 Bristow's unique contribution to world literature is dealt with in Writings. There is no obvious reason as to why he thinks he can achieve success this way. From day one in his job at C-Ps he picked up his pen (using the firm’s ink) and paper (courtesy of Stores) and got stuck in. The rest is history. He has a most impressive list of potential publications to his name. Alas, none have actually been published yet, due to the callous arrogance of that well-known firm of hack publishers Heap and Trotwood but it is surely just a matter of time. Brain surgery As the Blondini brothers commence work we get an early hint of what must be his least likely ambition strip 3294 Strip 3294 was published in the Evening Standard in October 1971 and in Bristow (1972) and in The Big Big Big Bristow Book. This scan is from the Sydney Morning Herald, November 1973 The drive behind it is explained a little later in strip 4021 Strip 4021 was published in the Evening Standard in February 1974 and in Bristow Extra. This scan is from the Melbourne Age, March 1974. . This actually has a very rare reference to Bristow's parents. They appear to have instilled in their son a respect for work but in the sense that you respect people who do it, not in the sense that you do it yourself. Bristow does not consider it necessary to do anything in order to be a brain surgeon, just so long as he can master the essentials contained in that key work of reference Brain Surgery for Beginners. But what bad luck that, just when he is able to impress the gorgeous Miss Pretty of Kleenaphone, brain surgery becomes his achilles heel strip 4521 Strip 4521 should have been published in the Evening Standard on 27 November 1975 but the paper did not appear that day. It was published in Living Death in the Buying Department. This scan is from the Sydney Morning Herald, December 1975. Actually he develops a more realistic attitude demonstrating his superior knowledge of cutting-edge medical research to the old-fashioned Jones see strip This strip was published in The Bg Big Big Bristow Book. Publication date in the Evening Standard has not yet been ascertained, but almost certainly between 1995 and 1998. . But some time after he takes a step back, admitting that maybe there is a little more effort required than he is prepared to give strip 10502 Strip 10502 was published in the Evening Standard around July 1999 Everyone knows about this ambition and rather quaintly, when long-lost colleagues meet up with Bristow they always assume he has made it. True he may be rather scruffily dressed but then as a brain surgeon who does a bit of clerking on the side, he is only keeping in character. Top