pillow underwear, talking bush doll?
Many people who were involved with the project are still upset with Mr. Bush. “He refused to let go of his ‘man-pillow underwear,’ even though we pointed out that it would essentially just be a cloth diaper,” said one of the lead designers. “His absolute favorite idea was the ‘pillow sweat suit,’” said a Dallas venture capitalist who was pressured by the former president to invest in the project. “Bush ordered the design guys to come up with a pillow sweat suit sample, which he loved and ended up wearing every single day for two months straight. He looked like a 65-year-old version of the Michelin Man.”
One Dallas businessman who reluctantly invested in the “43” line said that Mr. Bush still owes him nearly $300,000. “He keeps telling me he’s a little short on cash right now,” said the investor. “Last time we talked he said he’d be able to pay me back in July … when the birthday check from his mom arrives.”
The “43” clothing line isn’t Mr. Bush’s only post-presidency business venture that has failed to meet expectations. Consumers were confused in October of last year, for example, when the former president released a battery-operated talking Bush doll which, when the string was pulled, said either “Tear Down This Wall,” “Go Ahead Make My Day” or “Who Let the Dogs Out.” The Bush Doll was market-tested in several Houston area Wal-Mart stores and then quietly pulled from the shelves due to poor sales. “I told him that everyone knows those phrases aren’t his,” said one disgruntled investor. “But he just narrowed his eyes, gave me that glare of his and then said ‘you’re either with the me and my doll or you’re with the terrorists.’”
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