Don met Betty in NYC. Where she was model. He was copy writer for a fur company which Betty was modeling a blue russian fox coat. Don tried to persuade her to a date, and she refused him every time. Until one day he showed up at her apartment door with the coat in his hand. So BETTY was won over. Not with the coat, but that kept pursueing her. She liked him, and he eventually fell in love with her. This was established in season 1. We dont see a flashback, but we see Betty telling Francine about it, or her therapist. I cant remember. I am guessing Don came back to Cali to tell Anna he would need a divorce so that he can marry Betty legally. Don/Dick was not married to Anna. She was more of a mother/sister figure to him. She doesnt judge him, and she sets him straight on what he wants, and that is his family and his wife.

I haven't seen Peggy as dark and brooding; someone else posted that they thought she'd just recently taken up drinking and smoking, but not so. She shared a drink with the guys when she was first promoted by Don to copywriter (for the Belle Jolie account), had a drink at dinner out, etc. She has her own bar now, courtesy of Freddy. As for smoking, she's been shown doing that since 1st season as well.

One of the great still unanswered questions is how Don got from selling used cars to being a copywriter, and if this is how he first met Roger Sterling. Lots of unexplored territory still to be uncovered.

I am a recent watcher of Mad Men. What is the deal with Don/Dick? I am so confused!!!!!

Even though I have seen all episodes I had difficulty following this episode. It would have helped if there had been some transitioning for the flashbacks. -a lot of jumping around -

....Hi Anthony......Good post.

From the dialogue, it looks like Anna and Dick became fast friends almost right away..... and that they had been spending Christmases together for a while. Remember when he told her about wanting to marry Betty and have a family, Anna said something about that being wonderful, and "....I guess this will be our last Christmas together..."

And then Dick Whitman making the funny suggestion that Anna be his "cousin" at Christmases. Like you, I'm curious about those years Dick Whitman lived as Don Draper, before he met Betty. So far, all we know is he had a used car lot of his own, and worked for a fur company. I'm very curious how he got from that to where he is in advertising.

And I did notice Peggy is getting less and less "dewey-eyed" and more cynical and darker. The office, the inherited bar, the drinking in the middle of the day, the smoking, leading all the meetings and acting in Draper's stead.

What stood out about Peggy the most on this episode was how completely uninterested she was in Joan's wedding and engagement developments. She couldn't have cared less, and was in fact beaming over her own escalating career path.

Peggy has really become "one of the guys," and I just wonder what the flip side of that is, and if she will take the whole thing just a little too far.

Joan's face, sitting in that little, short secretary chair, was so heartbreaking. It's like she was just then getting the "memo" that everyone else got six months ago.

Hi Auburn Annie....I always enjoy your posts, but you are hard to find.

Hi Lee....Hang out here long enough, and you will have some answers. Just be patient and keep reading....you might have to go way back. A lot of this stuff has been repeated several times over, so there might be a little crankiness, but don't pay it any mind.

Lee - Rent the first season and watch it. All of this will make more sense.

I'm not worried about Peggy at all. I love watching her quietly move upward beyond what "the guys" think she is capable of. I can't remember the Jimmy Barrett's wife's name, but I do remember what she told her. You're not one of them, but use what you've got to be one of them. It is great character development.

Dry Manhattan - I don't think Peggy was disinterested in Joan at all. Her character is always very reserved and cautious. She is the only person that actually asked Joan questions and made positive comments about the doctor. Peggy has also taken advice from Joan on occasion. I see Peggy as a fox in sheep's clothing. I think she learns quickly, uses it to her advantage and is very quietly moving forward without gloating like the male characters do. For example, how many times have we heard the line, "I'm the HEAD of the television department!" A line said over and over to put forth the title to inflate his importance. Peggy could be partner some day done one quiet move at a time. Great name BTW. I should change my to Cosmopolitan.

Dry...
I wouldn't be so sure I'd classify Peggy as 'one of the boys.' Have you noticed the jealousy among the guys because she got Rumsen's old office? Harry even got vocal about it; Pete has other worries and isn't trying to undermine her. I think her next move will be a dodge. I think Don's return will teach her how to Duck. lol

greytone - I see what you're saying about Peggy. She's in a precarious position. She can't really be "one of the boys" even if she really tried, but she has no other females in the office that are above secretary status to bond with. She socializes a little with Joan and the other secretaries, but she can't afford to out of the loop with the guys either. She's a one-of-a-kind person at the office and she has no other person who can show her how to make her way. She does show loyalty to those who have helped her move up (Freddy, Don), and I think she'll back Don up when he returns to SC.

....hanna.....Right! She is on the front line. She succeeds for all the right reasons. She is gifted, ambitious, conservative, calculating, and fearless. AND, very importantly as Draper has said, she is liked and respected. It seems to come naturally, and it's kind of great to watch.

I guess greytone what I meant was that Peggy is taking hold and grabbing as big a "piece" of the action and power and the perks as any of the men, and then some.

Plus the drinking and smoking kind of reminds me of someone older, like Barbara Stanwyck or Joan Crawford or something more mannish and less coquettish.