Boy, not one, but two sexual scenes in this episode! But they were unnerving for me especially the last scene of him roughly tying up Bobbi. Any moment I thought he was going to rape her for cryin out loud. Don Draper is wickedly sexy but at times I feel he goes too far. Just like when he was in the bathroom shaving when his daughter was trying to talk to him and he was lost in yaya land. That and the tieing up scene are signs of it.

We don't really know why Don is involved with Bobbi. Is he losing control? Or is his involvment with her part of a plan which is yet to be revealed. He feels nothing for her and, at times, seems to be repulsed by her. Something else is going on here ... we just don't know what.

Don's bedroom problems in episode one could have been the result of the medication he was on for high B/P and stress. Phenobarbitol is not exactly Viagra. I forget what the B/P meds were that the doctor perscribed.

Also, did you see how he barely acknowledged his wife when she was standing there in the sexy lingerie? He passed by her and went into the bathroom while she walked over and un-made the bed. It was all very perfunctory.

BTW, I don't mean to imply that he is interested in Bobbi now. I think that after he saw Rachael he decided that there was no reason to fight his dark sexual urges any longer. He didn't need to 'save' himself for her since it was clear she had moved on. In the car on the way to the beach he told Bobbi he was numb and in bed with her in the last episode when she asked him if he had set the afternoon aside for her, the look in his eyes said loud & clear that he was only in it for himself. She just happened to be around & willing each time. Funny, it all started when he was trying to salvage the account. I wonder what lengths he'll go to save it now and after he sees Barrett make a play for Betty as they are leading us to believe. We've seen him use Betty before, but will he now?

Hi Beachdaze66! The prescriptions that were given for the treatment of hypertension did often lead to impotence (A.K.A. erectile dysfunction). When I was a new RN there were many male patients who would stop taking these medications due to this side effect.
They are more effective with generally less of those side effects today.
I don't remember the MD giving Don a script for an anti-stress med. If he did, those can not only increase the chance for ED, but, can cause a decrease in libido.
I think a big contributing factor in Don's case is the alcohol he drinks.
Also, psychological issues can cause ED. In the Valentine's Day episode, I also thought that Don's problem may have been related to Betty (looking sexy) being the aggressor, he isn't used to that with her. Evidently quite a few Maddicts feel he has this wife/mother, image of Betty, and can't see her as sexy or slutty. I agree. She has to be the perfect wifey, mommy, and pure as "Ivory Snow Flakes".

Someone mentioned the fact that the woman Bobbi referred to in bed with Don worked at Random House. I thought, hmmm, Random House, random encounter also?!

I know Random House was a publisher in New York at the time. Wouldn't it be a kick if they were publishing a Korean War hero book and the Donner/Dickker was in it? WOW! That's out there!!

Calgon, take me away!!

While we know that Don Draper is really Dick Whitman, and even with Pete's assertions, the real Don Draper was, I recall an engineer. I'm an old HR exec. and had not one, but two people (at different times) assume someone else's ID and credentials. Both of them got caught quite by accident - in one case the real "Michael" turned out to be a woman - really! What I think the Dick did was assume the total ID of Don Draper; name background, education, etc. and simply say that he was no longer interested in engineering or his father made him study it, but he really wanted to be a photographer, etc. It's believable and has happened.

I thought the laugh of the night was when Bobby, Don's little boy asked what his (DD's) father liked to eat, and Don said "Ham." Or was that Hamm? (:>D)

Greetings. Let's take your points one by one:

"We know that Don had no interest in Bobbi before seeing Rachael other than to keep the account & everyone involved happy."

No. We don't know that. He may have started with Bobbi in order to keep everyone happy, but he's shown us that if she snaps her fingers, he won't instantly jump into her bed to keep her happy. He is getting something out of this, and it may simply be that he's feeling like a man.

Seeing Rachael certainly galvanized him to go to the sea with Bobbi, but Don has always been sexually attracted in his "Daytime" mask as an ad man to strong women with their own ideas and minds. Betty is his "night-time woman"--the beautiful homekeeper and mother of children; he wants her to be the soft woman. But all his mistresses have been strong, independent women.

"I had to wonder if he has used sex before to get an account or keep an account. Could this be how someone with no education (that we know of) and an abusive past got to such a high spot on the corporate ladder?"

I assume you've been watching this show from the beginning--did you miss all the times that Don has, almost magically and powerfully, created an ad that handed the Sterling-Cooper a huge account? Have you missed the fact that he's incredibly creative and smart? The fact that creating ads is his forté, and his genius (a lack of education never kept anyone from being a genius--nor getting an education later in life at night school come to that)? That he can command and delegate authority and get the best out of his troops? Or how about the fact that the head of the company KNOWS who he really is and doesn't care?

I seriously doubt he's slept his way to the top, though he *might* have gotten information on this or that job opening from someone he slept with--many people do. He has probably rarely if ever slept with people to maintain accounts--especially as in 99% of those cases the people in charge of those accounts would be men! And finally, of course a man, at that time in history, could raise up the corporate ladder, no matter his background, so long as he was white and protestant. Post WWII America was a place of enormous opportunities for white veterans with the government giving them free college educations and home loans for new homes. In addition, America had the biggest and fastest growing economy in the world at that time, and needed men for this new job market.

So opportunities that might not have been available to a Don pre-WWII because of his background were most certainly open to him post-WWII.

Remember as well that his boss is an Ayn Rand fan. He believes in individuality and the power of the individual. He believes in capitalism. So long as Don makes them money, the boss will reward him. Remember that the boss was willing to let Don fire Pete, who has that silver spoon background, because Pete was being disruptive.

So I don't think your thesis, about Don sleeping around to get where he is, holds water given all the evidence we've seen. That thesis gives no credit to what we've seen of Don's intelligence and astonishing creativity, nor does it take into account his boss' personality, or the times Don is living in and the opportunities it afforded white males. Most of all, it misses the point--why would an ad company care about such things? In advertising, appearance is always more important than reality.

MicheleKay, if the first episode featured the doctor's appointment in the morning and the date in the evening as I remember it then I doubt the medication had anything to do with Don's bedroom 'failure'. In those days we didn't have CVS on every corner and he doesn’t strike me as the kind to run out and fill a prescription right away and even if he did it wouldn't have had an immediate effect. His failure to perform was psychological. Rachel on the mind? Turned off by the black teddy which didn't wow him, but didn't seem to shock him either? Still reeling from the knowledge that his wife knows he was messing around? Stressed out from trying to behave? Finding it hard to get excited by just plain married sex no matter how hard she is trying to spice it up? Feeling old after the doc pointed out he needed meds and knowing that the agency is looking to bring in younger talent?

Oh who knows? Maybe it was just the meds and I am over thinking it again. This show is great, but it makes my head hurt [in a good way].

As I said already, I think his thing with Bobbi started as a way to keep the client happy and turned into something carnal after he saw Rachel. He was using her (Bobbi) as a release and it will be interesting to see where he will turn now that she has turned him off for good.

I thought his reaction was to Sally's phrase "I won't say anything" which is exactly what he wanted Bobbie to do in bed: not say anything.

And, Sally's reason: "so you won't cut yourself", i.e., she really cares about him but his relationship with Bobbi was aggressive and definitely not caring.

He disassociated because of the contrast he suddenly saw between what he was at work and at home: and he saw the "split" personality in his mirror?
Just a thought...

Just a note to add...
Don had the prescription(s) filled. He keeps his medications at work (at one time to keep it a secret from Betty) and I have seen him pop them in his mouth while he's in his office. (Does anyone else remember seeing him do this?)

greytone: Yes, I remember seeing Don take a pill in the office during one of his conversations with Roger.

thirteen: Great post! I think Don rose to the top through his sheer genius and hard work. He took the real Don Draper's credentials and ran with them. We don't even know if Dick Whitman was a high school graduate. But Don seems to read a lot, go to the movies, and do whatever he can to educate himself. Since the real Don Draper was already a college graduate, it's unlikely that Dick could have cashed in on the GI Bill for a higher education. I believe Don really went to The School of Hard Knocks. But, as you point out about Bert Cooper, who cares?

Thanks Thirteen and yes, I have seen them all. Thesis? No. Curious? Yes and that's why I put the question out there. A man's world to be sure and he is brilliant in it, but let's remember this thought came to me after seeing him use sex to keep the Utz account. It certainly wasn't his brilliant creative mind that got Bobbi as Barrett's manager to do what needed to be done to keep the Utz people happy. He slept with her and later sexually threatened her (how else would you describe that scene?) to get her to do what he wanted done. This could be a pattern with him and while women didn't run the world at the time, we've seen he'll use a woman (his own wife to name another) to get what he wants.

60's child, I agree the meds will have an impact I just wonder if he filled the prescription by the time of the date and if he had would they have had immediate effect? From what I've seen of Don I have to wonder too if he'd even bother to fill it. I know my husband leaves those things for me and Don strikes me as the same, but we know he didn't have Betty fill it or she would have known. I don't think he'd share that side of himself with anyone at the office either.

As always, just thinking aloud and glad to have other people chime in whether we agree or not. (-*

He slept with her and later sexually threatened her (how else would you describe that scene?)
I would describe that scene as Don showing her that she'd reached her limit in how far he'd let her push him and get her way. That negotiations were closed and if she wanted to play blackmail games, well, he could play them, too.

He was showing her that he was NOT her husband and could not, like her husband, be commanded like a pet dog. And I would say that this excited her very much--which I think Don knew it would. She wants a man who will push back. Don knew that anything less than that and she wouldn't get the message. Knowing how to negotiate is what I'd call it--exactly as he knew how to handle Pete when Pete threatened him last season.

This could be a pattern with him and while women didn't run the world at the time, we've seen he'll use a woman (his own wife to name another) to get what he wants.
I'm sorry, but it's absurd to say Don uses his wife to get what he wants because we've SEEN someone who REALLY uses his wife and Don isn't it. Pete is. Pete made his wife be nice to her old sexual flame to get a stupid story published!

Don would have NEVER done such a thing. When Betty is nice to Sterling, as any wife would be expected to be nice to her husband's boss, and Sterling comes onto Betty, Don takes revenge--Pete, on the other hand, is perfectly content to let his wife's old flame demoralize her if it gets him what he wants. Likewise, we know Pete married his wife for her money and rich father-in-law--who he brought in as a client!

Compare the two and try, just try to tell me that Don uses his wife to get what he wants! Don "uses" his wife only in so far as other men of his time and position used their wives: as show pieces, hostesses, as a way of keeping things, like dinners, civilized and pleasant. Expecting Betty to play the same role that every other man of Don's position and time would expect of a wife is hardly evidence of a "pattern" of using women to get to the top.

So what is Don's pattern? I believe the evidence shows that Don views intelligent, powerful women as an exciting challenge, and as part of the rarified atmosphere that comes with this position. They exist only in this lofty place--like the big office, the liquor, tailored suits and rich food. They are the caviar of women, if you will.

Let me point out something else: Don did not, in season one, say, "Gosh, I'm being blackmailed by, Pete, I'll sleep with his wife and she'll stop him!" nor, this season, "Gosh, we're having trouble with this actor, I'd better woo and sleep with his wife and she'll put the guy in his place." Bobbi came onto him and if she hadn't come onto him, you'd better believe--as evidenced in how Don handled Sterling's disrespect of him and his wife in season one, as evidenced by his promise to Bobbi that he'd "break" her husband if he didn't apologize--that Don would have found another way to solve the problem.

This is not a man who ever needs a woman to get what he wants--and comparing him to Pete really shows that. Having these women is like having an expensive car or an expensive dinner, evidence to Don that he's made it to the top and is entitled to such women. They're not a way to get what he wants, they are what he wants.

IMO, the only way for Don to relate to SAB sexually is to have side action. His series of bootie calls with Midge lasted at least 5 years. His romance with Rachel lasted several months. Just like this fling with Bobbi's lasting a few months. We may--or may not--find out how long his previously unmentioned affair with Sarah from Random House lasted.

Having said all that...I adore Don being highly sexual with women other than his wife. That last episode was a visual treat for me! Full Don Draper Treatment indeed!!

.....MichelleKay and 60schild....

I believe it was phenobarbitol prescribed.... i remember being surprised because that is an old-school seizure medicine which i wouldn't associate with treating blood pressure....

didn't know it was a cause of E.D.....what with the commercials these days, you'd think every man in america had it. who knew??

guessing the variety of pharmaceuticals available in those days was probably 1/10,000 of what it is now....

and i agree with whoever said that the Draper marriage is a little lacklustre. i also notice the different ways he treats his wife, as opposed to his latest dalliance.

i wonder if Draper is a sex addict? don't think that term even existed then....

First of all thirteen there is no need to use caps and get so worked up. Secondly, Don certainly has used Betty and you can try to 'talk' around that all you want, but it doesn't change the fact that she is being used by Don and he is doing it to get something he wants or needs. He brought her along to that dinner after being told by Bobbi that one way to get Barrett to do what you want him to do was to let him think he'd have a chance with your girlfriend/wife. Even she (Betty) knew she had a role to play that night when she asked if it was a dinner where she got to speak or not.

As for Pete, I think I'll wait and discuss his merits (or lack thereof) with someone who doesn't get so defensive & excitable.

she is being used by Don and he is doing it to get something he wants or needs. He brought her along to that dinner after being told by Bobbi that one way to get Barrett to do what you want him to do was to let him think he'd have a chance with your girlfriend/wife. Even she (Betty) knew she had a role to play that night when she asked if it was a dinner where she got to speak or not.

I'm sorry you think I was being "defensive and excitable"--I assure you, I wasn't. My use of caps was for emphasis. I'll be sure not to do that again. Undefensively, and unexcitedly, I'd like to make one last point here, and I hope you'll be gracious enough to not take offense and hear me out.

I don't believe it's "using" a person if they know about the game and are in agreement with it. Betty said, after the dinner, something like "I'm glad you're letting me help you with your work." The role Don asked her to play that night may not have been her favorite role, but she was willing to play it because she wanted to be more part of his life, and they agreed that she should be.

If she'd said, as Pete's wife did, "I don't want to do this," and he's brow-beaten her into it, Don wanting that advantage no matter how it hurt Betty, then I'd agree, Don was using her. Or if he'd made her have sex with Bobbi's husband in exchange for the apology, I'd certainly say he was really using Betty. But telling her what the score is--"I want you to make nice and flirt a little in order to sooth things"--and getting her to help him? That looks to me like a husband-wife partnership, not "using."

Understand, I'm willing to agree that Don does use people, as an artist might use tools, or a military man might use the men under his command (take Peggy, who he used to advise him on lipstick, then honorably employed seeing that she was advantageous). He uses both men and women in this way; I don't see that as quite the same as having sex to get to the top. When someone does that, it implies that they don't believe, or don't have, the ability to get what they want in any other way.

That Don has other ways of getting what he wants, however, and doesn't need women to get them, is amply proven by the dinner with Betty and Bobbi. The real negotiations that night went on between Don and Bobbi. Bobbi might have told Don to bring his wife for her husband, but she was lying when she said that her husband would apologize if he thought he could score with the wife. As Don quickly saw, Bobbi only wanted Betty there to distract her husband while she played blackmail games with Don. She flat out said her husband wasn't going to apologize, not unless Sterling Cooper paid up.

In the end, Betty gave Don no advantage at all. Take her away from the dinner...does anything change outside of the husband not having anyone to flirt with? The advantage Don had was in threatening to "break" the husband in a way that Bobbi sincerely believed. It had nothing at all to do with Betty's flirting with the husband; it had everything to do with Don being Don.

And so, I reiterate. This is not a man who needs a woman to get him what he wants (outside of the fact that in this particular case, only Bobbi could get the apology). But let me ask you this: Imagine for a moment that Don, in the whole of his life, could not not use a single woman to get anything he wanted. Just couldn't. Do you really think, given all we've been shown about him, that if he'd wanted to get to the top of that ladder, this disadvantage would have stopped him?

Now look at Pete. Take away his mother and her country club connections, take away his wife and her father-in-law who paid for their apartment, and made himself Pete's big client. Would Pete be at the top if you took away the women he's used to get what he wanted?