Sales Talk

In Short

This inventive science-fiction story follows Big Bill Bennett, a disillusioned salesman who flees Earth in a time-traveling spaceship accompanied by his wife, Molly, and their two fox terriers. As they drift toward the "heat-death" of the universe, they encounter a dying, god-like intelligence that wants to strike a bargain: it will provide them with a new, perfected Earth if they use their ship’s energy to restart the universe. It is a witty, offbeat look at human nature, ambition, and the absurdity of playing the ultimate "mark."

The Story

Bill Bennett, a man who finds his career in sewing-machine sales beneath him, decides he has had enough of a world he believes is destined for ruin. Armed with a time-machine inherited from his eccentric uncle, he and his wife, Molly, pack their few belongings and their two fox terriers, Is and Was, into a ramshackle rocket-ship. They intend to skip ahead to a future where life is easier, but a technical failure mid-voyage sends them hurtling toward the end of time—a silent, empty void where the universe itself is cooling toward absolute entropy.

Trapped in the void, the couple begins to hear a persistent, yammering voice inside their heads. The entity—a supreme, ancient intelligence—is desperate to communicate before it fades into nothingness. It reveals itself as the remnants of all life-force that once existed. Fearing its own permanent death, the entity offers Bill a deal: if he and Molly act as the catalyst to dump their ship’s energy into the void, they can jumpstart a new universe. The entity promises to arrange a "matrix" that will eventually lead to the recreation of Earth and all human life.

Bill is initially cynical, viewing the entity as a crotchety, manipulative salesman just like those he left behind. However, the stakes change when the entity begins to bargain, realizing it has misidentified the true masters of the ship. It believes the dogs, Is and Was, are the real intelligences and that the humans are merely their pets. The entity promises that in the new universe, dogs will evolve as the dominant, supreme species. Molly, who longs for a bit of the world they left behind, encourages Bill to reconsider.

The two humans realize that the entity is senile and confused, hallucinating the nature of its audience. By playing along, they see a chance to reshape reality to their own liking, though not necessarily the one the entity expects. Bill ultimately agrees to the bargain, not because he believes the entity’s grand promises, but because he recognizes that every salesman—even a cosmic one—eventually makes a deal. The story concludes with the couple agreeing to the "sale," effectively gambling the future of a new universe on a whim, proving that even at the end of time, a good sales pitch remains impossible to resist.

How It Unfolds

The decision to leave Bill quits his job in a fit of pique, convinced that Earth is an arsenal destined for destruction. He recruits his wife, Molly, and their two fox terriers to join him in escaping to the future.

The voyage goes wrong After boarding his late uncle’s time-traveling spaceship, Bill accidentally causes a catastrophic malfunction. The pointer snaps to an extreme setting, flinging them millions of years per second toward the total heat-death of the universe.

The voice in the dark As the universe fades into an empty, violet void, a screeching, gnarled voice begins to plague their minds. The entity struggles to synchronize its thoughts with the humans, causing them physical distress and mounting fear.

The cosmic sales pitch The entity reveals its identity as the Supreme Intelligence and explains that it is dying. It begs the couple to use their ship’s fuel to restart the universe, promising a return to the world they lost.

The realization Bill and Molly deduce that the entity is confused, mistaking the dogs for the true rulers of the ship. They decide to play along with the entity’s bargain, agreeing to set the matrix for a new universe where dogs become the dominant species.

The People

Bill Bennett is a career salesman who views his human peers with weary disdain. He is desperate to escape a world he thinks is going to the "dogs," a phrase he uses with genuine irony. He is initially fearful of the cosmic voice, but his professional instincts eventually kick in; he treats the entity like a difficult client, eventually realizing that he is just as susceptible to a "sales talk" as anyone else.

Molly Bennett is Bill’s devoted, adaptable wife. She is the anchor of their small party, managing the practicalities of life on the ship, such as sewing jackets for the dogs. While Bill is the skeptic, Molly provides the emotional support and gentle encouragement that keeps him grounded. She is the one who ultimately embraces the idea of the "resurrection" of the world, even if it comes through a bizarre cosmic deal.

Is and Was are the two wire-haired fox terriers who become the unexpected center of the cosmic drama. They are treated as sentient, intuitive participants by the Supreme Intelligence, which perceives them as the true power on the ship. Their behavior—howling at the void or shivering at the presence of the voice—dictates the couple’s ability to communicate with the entity.

In Its Own Voice

"Bennett, the salesman, gave a lot of thought to a world that was going to the dogs."

Bill’s frustration with contemporary society sets the stage for his decision to flee to a different epoch.

"He's a fall guy for a good sales talk."

This final reflection on the nature of a salesman captures the irony of Bill’s ultimate decision to accept the entity's deal.

What It's Really About

At its core, the book is a dark, humorous satire on the act of selling and the nature of human dissatisfaction. It explores the idea that no matter how far one travels—even to the end of time—one cannot escape the dynamics of persuasion and ego. The "Supreme Intelligence" is not a majestic god but a desperate, aging salesman trying to secure its own legacy, which resonates with Bill’s own experience in his mundane job. The story asks whether a "perfect" version of the past is worth creating if the process is rooted in manipulation, and whether human beings are ever truly capable of escaping their own nature, or if they are doomed to repeat the same cycles of trade, desire, and belief.

Why Read It Today

Readers who enjoy mid-century pulp science fiction will find this a fascinating, quick-witted curiosity. It captures the 1950s voice—with its specific slang and casual, often dated assumptions about domestic roles—while presenting a concept that feels surprisingly modern in its cynicism.

The story is best approached as a lighthearted, absurdist romp rather than a hard science-fiction endeavor. Its strength lies in its pacing and the sheer absurdity of the premise; the dialogue between a man trying to quit his job and a dying universe-god is genuinely funny. However, readers should be prepared for the period-specific attitudes regarding the wife’s role and the somewhat loose approach to the physics of time travel.

The charm of the book is that it doesn't take its own grandiloquent themes too seriously. If you have ever felt that life was just one long sales pitch you didn't ask to hear, you will likely find Bill’s journey through the end of time both relatable and darkly amusing. It is a brief, punchy read that lingers because of its central, ridiculous image: a man, his wife, and two dogs negotiating the fate of the entire universe over a matter-converter.