Proceedings from Philip Morris' 1989 national sales meeting held in Hawaii. Day 1, Reel 1: Begins with multimedia (music, video, dance) production with the conference theme, "Take Charge of Tomorrow." Corporate leadership and senior management give an overview of Philip Morris' sales performance since the previous national sales meeting held three years earlier and a general presentation of future goals. Topics mentioned include Philip Morris magazine, the importance of protecting the right to market their products, attempting to reach a 50% market share in the United States, and the demographics of smokers purchasing Philip Morris brands. Two spoofs featuring puppets of George and Barbara Bush and Lee Iacocca are interspersed with the presentations.
Day 1, Reel 2: Senior management review 1988 sales performance and discuss 1989 goals. Topics include brands (particularly Marlboro, Virginia Slims, Merit, Benson & Hedges, Cambridge and Alpine), market share, distribution mechanisms, pricing, market demographics (particularly young adults, Blacks, older smokers, and women), price value brands, supermarkets and convenience stores, competition with R.J. Reynolds, external threats (California excise tax), shelf space, and coupons. At the end of management's presentation there is a short video spoofing Surgeon General C. Everett Koop.
Day 1, Reel 3: Starts with a bell boy calling for Philip Morris and then a video segment spoofing Jesse Jackson. Guy Smith delivers address on the theme of the right to choose to smoke. He points to the anti-smoking movement's advocacy of smoking as a socially unacceptable behavior and the successes of that movement including the passage of Propositions 99 and 65 in California and increases in excise taxes nationally and locally. He goes on to associate the potential effect of the tobacco control movement with fascism and Nazism. While he is speaking there is a video presentation in the background. He exhorts the gathered sales force to view themselves as freedom fighters like Civil Rights Movement activists, soldiers in WWII, and astronauts in the Space Program. He emphasizes the importance of Philip Morris influencing public opinion through strengthening its relationship with mass media outlets, using celebrities as advocates, and the distribution of Philip Morris Magazine. Smith's presentation is followed by a short video spoofing Sylvester Stallone and a live musical and dance number, "Take Charge of Tomorrow."
Day 2, Reel 1: This session is set up as a morning television talk show "PM in the AM" with hosts sportscaster Dick Schapp, Deborah Norville, and Dave McCaulay. Issues covered include the recent sales force expansion, the Masters Program, and marketing Marlboro. Members of Philip Morris management are "interviewed." Interspersed throughout are cigarette commercials, television news coverage of PM sponsored events, and pretaped segments from the field.