John D. MacDonald's fiction was not frequently, or successfully, adapted for film and television. There was a decent film adaptation of
A Flash of Green, starring Ed Harris, and
Cape Fear, of course, both versions, was based on JDM's 1957 novel
The Executioners.
A story of JDM's, however, called "Hangover," was adapted into an episode of
The Alfred Hitchcock Hour in 1962. I just read it--it's reprinted in a collection titled
End of the Tiger. It's a perfect little story: an advertising man wakes up with a colossal hangover, its physical nature described spot-on by JDM, and as he slowly pieces together the previous night his memories take him from bad to worse to nightmarish.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2eunhKHuyZTWTLHzX9RWIUc9OfIQe68H3F0f9SU2ycnPebdb9qMAydt4AmvyPj1kFK38HGYhQsjsXe8O-x1i_krQUb9B8AQC5ba21I1Nb18N9qJwzm8gYaAg7FoDm1yECabZIJIsiZKI/s400/endtiger.jpg)
The television adaptation--it's available on
Hulu--is pretty faithful, although it adds a subplot involving another woman. Tony Randall plays Hadley Purvis, a Manhattan advertising man, who is an unrepentant smarmy drunk. We see him wreck an important meeting for his firm, pick up a gorgeous Jayne Mansfield at a bar (that part was very unbelievable) and eventually (spoilers herein) discover that he's done away with his wife in the midst of a blackout.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_0o1PMc2OIMSLRNlG7CWgQwkjsh_gUvT3xQtWnjS_0H5JRXw5t9m9YVoX6p5J8mYzXymdJi9Xk4XeiCebwtx8WvWzFVvIpspIV3VWU-gF6Pf8cWDfcKz0W8FM_pFO3KaaZD565mHxDeI/s400/hangover3.jpg)
The episode goes on a little too long but it's well worth watching, especially if you're a
Mad Men fan. The office scenes, with their mid-century furniture and brylcreemed men, are great. Also of note: I am not overly familiar with Jayne Mansfield's career. I feel like I know more about her sad fate and her daughter (Mariska Hargitay) than her actual filmwork but she's pretty delectable in "Hangover," particularly with her short hair-do. Maybe I'll check out her other collaboration with Tony Randall,
Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?