Willy Loman changed to a "walrus." Subsequent productions used whichever version was appropriate to the actor playing Willy; Dustin Hoffman, for example, used the original. Loman's Brooklyn accent is part of the challenge of the role. In 1950, Miller described Loman as a man who upon hearing society's "thundering command to succeed" found himself staring at a failure in the mirror. The Amazon.com editorial review by Ali Davis states that "Willy Loman is a salesman desperately hustling for a living even as he slides into old age." Rovi Corporation's Matthew Tobey describes him as an everyman who has to cope with the
Doug Loman first eight seasons, Loman went to Japan to play in their professional baseball league. During his playing career, Loman was listed at a height of and a weight of . He batted and threw left-handed. During the January phase of the 1978 Major League Baseball draft, Loman was selected in the second round (33 overall) by the Milwaukee Brewers out of Bakersfield Junior College. He began his professional career that season in Milwaukee's minor league organization with the Class-A Burlington Bees of the Midwest League. With the Bees, Loman batted .244 with 100 hits, 23 doubles, four triples, 63 runs