Douglas Friedline (19572006) was a

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

-born political campaign director in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. Friedline worked exclusively with independent and third party candidates with the goal of breaking the two party oligopoly in American politics. Friedline gained most of his notoriety during the 1998 election of his home state in which he helped then professional wrestler Jesse Ventura become governor of Minnesota.

Political career

Doug Friedline is best known for his unorthodox and often irreverent style of advertising. In 1998 Friedline used action figures to represent candidate Jesse Ventura in a number of television spots. In radio ads Ventura was cast in the role of a

super hero A superhero or superheroine is a stock character that typically possesses ''superpowers'', abilities beyond those of ordinary people, and fits the role of the hero, typically using his or her powers to help the world become a better place, o ...

fighting special interests and the opposing candidates. Friedline used similar tactics again in the 2006 Florida Election when he masterminded a multimedia blitz for Reform Party candidate Max Linn. Television, internet, and newspaper spots featured Linn as a classic cartoon hero in the vein of

Superman Superman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, and debuted in the comic book ''Action Comics'' #1 (cover-dated June 1938 and publi ...

battling various incarnations of Republican candidate (and now governor)

Charlie Crist Charles Joseph Crist Jr. (; born July 24, 1956) is an American attorney and politician who served as the 44th governor of Florida from 2007 to 2011 and as the U.S. representative for from 2017 to 2022. Crist has been a member of the Democratic ...

. In 1999 Friedline spearheaded an exploratory committee for the Presidential run of

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...

. In 2001 Friedline took the role of campaign manager for Libertarian Party Candidate Mark Edgerton, who was running for governor of New Jersey after Friedline had moved from his native Minnesota to Chappaqua, New York. When the candidate was denied support from the national Libertarian Party, Friedline left to become campaign manager of recent independent NJ Gubernatorial candidate

Bill Schluter William Everett Schluter (November 5, 1927 – August 6, 2018) was an American Republican Party politician from New Jersey, who served in both houses of the New Jersey Legislature in two separate instances. Early life and career Schluter was bor ...

, who had been recognized as a long time New Jersey Republican State Senator. Friedline later worked in one form or another on political ventures involving

John McCain John Sidney McCain III (August 29, 1936 – August 25, 2018) was an American politician and United States Navy officer who served as a United States senator from Arizona from 1987 until his death in 2018. He previously served two terms ...

, the "Draft Springsteen For Senate Campaign "

Bruce Springsteen Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949) is an American singer and songwriter. He has released 21 studio albums, most of which feature his backing band, the E Street Band. Originally from the Jersey Shore, he is an originat ...

Ralph Nader Ralph Nader (; born February 27, 1934) is an American political activist, author, lecturer, and attorney noted for his involvement in consumer protection, environmentalism, and government reform causes. The son of Lebanese immigrants to the Un ...

Matt Ahearn Matthew Ahearn is an American politician, who served in the New Jersey General Assembly, where he represented the 38th legislative district from 2002 to 2004. Ahearn represented a district which covers an area between the Passaic and Hudson Riv ...

, Ted Glick, and

Joe Piscopo Joseph Charles John Piscopo ( ; born June 17, 1951) is an American actor, comedian and conservative radio talk show host. He was a cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1980 to 1984, where he played a variety of recurring characters. His f ...

Anytown, USA

Friedline played himself as an actor in the

documentary film A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional film, motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". Bill Nichols (film critic), Bil ...

'' Anytown, USA''. The film followed his attempts to get independent candidate Dave Musikant, enough votes as a write-in candidate to become Mayor of Bogota, New Jersey in the 2003, three-way election race.

Death

Friedline was found dead in his rented apartment just days after the completion of the Max Linn campaign in St. Petersburg, Florida, in November 2006. He had suffered a massive

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...

References

1957 births 2006 deaths American political consultants American campaign managers People from Minnesota {{Improve categories, date=July 2021