Talk: Mad Men: March 2009
How I come across these things I never know, but three interesting things found this morning.....
First, I stumbled upon Robert Longo's "Men in the City" series, from which the Mad Men opening sequence surely was derived.....
http://robertlongo.com/work/gallery/1118
Then, Mad Men found its way into a lineup of "Truthful T.V. Title Cards" (scroll down to see)......
http://glark.org/truthful-tv-title-cards/
And, finally, "Getting 'Mad Men' Hair".....
http://themoment.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/10/29/look-the-part-getting-mad-men-hair/
Dry Manhattan
March 31, 2009 11:26am
Does anyone know when Season III begins? Can't seem to find that info anywhere. Thanks.
Ruth
March 31, 2009 9:35am
This was an earlier post and I know it will get buried so I am going to repaet my response.
Several times on the show, the phrase "blowing up bridges" as been mentioned. Someone questioned its' meaning.
The times I have heard it I instantly thought of the 58-60 movie "The Bridge on the River Kwai"
Bottom line is that it is a group of men who destroy their work when they see its' effect on the bigger picture.
Maybe it is a guy thing-but sounds plausible to me
Gavin Hastings
March 30, 2009 8:42am
This show is moving WAT too fast...soon Don will be on oxygen and Betty will be burning her bra....and most of us know how this is going to end anyway (just go visit your 75 year old neighbors). Season 3 and it is already time for Vietnam and LBJ.
All the actors are better looking "in character"...Jon is a nice looking suburban guy, but Don is hot. January Jones is a very pretty woman you could meet anywhere, but Betty Draper is an icon. I would treat a trip to trip to the studio as a make-over, and that would be my new look.
The Draper television needs to leave the livingroom. Nothing defined status in the 50's and 60's like tv placement. Growing up, my and my friends families televisions were in the den or even the basement. Living rooms were anything BUT about living. They were for entertaining...and I can still hear mothers all over the neighborhood shouting..."Get OUT of that livingroom!"
Most women I have talked to think Don is a good-looking rat, but most men think he is a very good husband and father.
Don should have told Betty to Kiss his A**. He is becoming a wimp.
This show needs to follow up better on secondary characters: the priest, Jimmy Barrett, and Rachel Menken.
I am sorry for posting several times incorrectly-I haven't quite gotten the hang of this site.
Gavin Hastings
March 29, 2009 6:23pm
Gavin Hastings
March 29, 2009 4:24pm
The sets on Mad Men are Wonderful-Pete and Trudy's, the office, hey, even Peggy's.
What I don't understand is why the Draper home is such a mess...Every room is uniformly bad! The bedroom is a mish-mash of bad cast offs, the kitchen is awful and nothing goes with anything in the dining or living rooms. And worst of all-the exterior in no way reflects the horrors waiting inside! (actually the exterior looks early 70's Colonial)
Remember Don sitting in the peach and blue bathroom? That bath in no way is from the same house!
For a couple making big bucks in the early 1960's-their home should be a biit more Rob and Laura Petrie. It looks like a home inhabited by fifty-somethings rather than a couple on the rise.
The set decorators did such a fantastic job on all the other sets-This one is a disappointment. Maybe it was intended to be lackluster, but Betty would know better than to hang sheer Priscillas with that French Provincal headboard. The entire room should be turqoise with white Drexel Touraine furnishings . Those plaques over the bed are plastic and I am sure they were redeemed with 4 books of S&H Green Stamps in 1960. Betty and Don don't sit at home licking stamps!
If the Drapers have no taste-Betty certainly would have hired a decorator.
Gavin Hastings
March 29, 2009 1:30pm
The sets on Mad Men are Wonderful-Pete and Trudy's, the office, hey, even Peggy's.
What I don't understand is why the Draper home is such a mess...Every room is uniformly bad! The bedroom is a mish-mash of bad cast offs, the kitchen is awful and nothing goes with anything in the dining or living rooms. And worst of all-the exterior in no way reflects the horrors waiting inside! (actually the exterior looks early 70's Colonial)
Remember Don sitting in the peach and blue bathroom? That bath in no way is from the same house!
For a couple making big bucks in the early 1960's-their home should be a biit more Rob and Laura Petrie. It looks like a home inhabited by fifty-somethings rather than a couple on the rise.
The set decorators did such a fantastic job on all the other sets-This one is a disappointment. Maybe it was intended to be lackluster, but Betty would know better than to hang sheer Priscillas with that French Provincal headboard. The entire room should be turqoise with white Drexel Touraine furnishings . Those plaques over the bed are plastic and I am sure they were redeemed with 4 books of S&H Green Stamps in 1960. Betty and Don don't sit at home licking stamps!
If the Drapers have no taste-Betty certainly would have hired a decorator.
Gavin Hastings
March 29, 2009 1:30pm
The sets on Mad Men are Wonderful-Pete and Trudy's, the office, hey, even Peggy's.
What I don't understand is why the Draper home is such a mess...Every room is uniformly bad! The bedroom is a mish-mash of bad cast offs, the kitchen is awful and nothing goes with anything in the dining or living rooms. And worst of all-the exterior in no way reflects the horrors waiting inside! (actually the exterior looks early 70's Colonial)
Remember Don sitting in the peach and blue bathroom? That bath in no way is from the same house!
For a couple making big bucks in the early 1960's-their home should be a biit more Rob and Laura Petrie. It looks like a home inhabited by fifty-somethings rather than a couple on the rise.
The set decorators did such a fantastic job on all the other sets-This one is a disappointment. Maybe it was intended to be lackluster, but Betty would know better than to hang sheer Priscillas with that French Provincal headboard. The entire room should be turqoise with white Drexel Touraine furnishings . Those plaques over the bed are plastic and I am sure they were redeemed with 4 books of S&H Green Stamps in 1960. Betty and Don don't sit at home licking stamps!
If the Drapers have no taste-Betty certainly would have hired a decorator.
Gavin Hastings
March 29, 2009 1:29pm
Almost everything has been said about Mad men. I just would like to give my point of view:
What I like in Mad men:
There is no gun, no barbaric violence, the deamlike light of the 50-60's movies, the glamour, Betty, Joan, Betty, Betty, Betty, Betty, Betty... her dresses, her smiles, her cry, her tears of happiness, her screams, her looks, her expressions, her sadness, her feminity...)
Great pictures of Betty: http://comments.blogs.amctv.com/mt/mt-search.cgi?blog_id=12&tag=january%20jones&limit=20
What I hate:
Too much cigarettes (fortunetly the TV set can not spread odors, otherwise Betty and the others would smell like the anus), too much alcohol (is Man Men a rude advertisement for J&B and the tobacco industry for stupid people ?), too much easy and bad sex, not enough outdoor scenes (all around the USA or the world) (I like travel when I watch a movie) (1)
Suggestions:
More long scenes with Betty, more long face to face dialogues beetween Betty and Don (when you like an actress or somebody else, who like to look at her, to listen to her, for a long time, you like to see how she lives, you like to see her breathing, walking, laugthing, crying, screaming, eating, taking a bath, having sex, having fun...)
Thank you.
_____________
(1) Ads attack smoking's 'glamour' in movies, TV
Posted 5/2/2004 8:59 PM Updated 5/2/2004 9:02 PM
The latest "Truth" anti-tobacco ad targets entertainment companies for encouraging teen smoking."
http://www.usatoday.com/money/advertising/adtrack/2004-05-02-track-side_x.htm
FrenchFan
March 28, 2009 10:41am
I find it curious that the open thread for this particular episode generated only 8 comments. The open threads for episodes 1 and 2 had 73 comments each. The subsequent episodes all generated comments in the hundreds on each open thread, culminating in 878 comments on episode 12, The Mountain King. What was it about this one episode that caused so few comments? It was re-played last Sunday night, and again no one seems interested in commenting. Quite a bit happened in this episode, not the least of which was the introduction to the Barretts. Why so few comments?
zerelda
March 26, 2009 4:40pm
Help! I'm in love with the paint color in the Draper's foyer, and have been searching for the paint name/manufacturer (I think foyer is the right term; the area when you first walk in the house). It's a light blue, but not too bright, and I just am flummoxed as to how to find it!! i would be eternally grateful to anyone who could tell me anu info on it! Thanks!!
collchris2003
March 26, 2009 9:41am
http://www.zap2it.com/movies/news/zap-jon-hamm-will-howl,0,6210099.story
katie
March 25, 2009 5:56pm
http://nymag.com/daily/entertainment/2009/03/mad_mens_bryan_batt_has_no_pla.html?mid=agenda--20090325
katie
March 25, 2009 4:59pm
I'm just a fan from Hungary, and I'm very love this series! I'm hardly waiting for the next season! Congratulations for the awards and have a lot of lucky! Don you are the best!!!
Dia
diana
March 25, 2009 2:59pm
Why would they put the re-runs on at 12:00AM,?
jas495
March 22, 2009 11:08am
Here we go again, Maddicts!
As promised, I am posting the thread for our fifth Movie Mad-ness discussion! (July will be here before we know it!)
This month our discussion will be about the epic movie "Spartacus" and the movie star discussed will be the actress Marilyn Monroe.
This thread is created so that we can share our thoughts about the Oscar-winning movie and the tragic life of one of the industry's most beautiful actresses. Why did Matt Weiner bother to mention them in the series? What part did both play in '60s culture and what impact did they have on it? Were you alive at the time the movie was released? Tell us, where were you at the time you first saw it? Feel free to share any interesting or little-known facts related to the personal life or career of our featured actress. Even this month's movie includes interesting trivia about many of the actors, directors, and creative minds involved in bringing Spartacus to the screen, so don't forget to add those to the conversation. All these things will be welcome additions to our discussion this month!
I look forward to another lively discussion and will post my comments right along with you.
(...just a reminder, I am not an AMC moderator, just a fan like yourself!)
greytone
March 22, 2009 9:55am
This may seem pretty random...
But I'm pretty sure there was an episode, in either season 1 or 2, where someone makes a reference to David Halberstam (who was an influential writer/journalist, he wrote THE FIFTIES).
I really would like to know what episode that is in... please, anyone!?!?
I thought it was within a GROUP SCENE at the office...
I thought it was interesting, b/c I'm sure the writer has read that book... so I thought it was kind of a small shout out...
Just curious...
What episode, and if you're astute, at around what time is it at?
Thanks!
aliasdoe
March 19, 2009 4:47pm
Yes, we are having Hamm again. Jon Hamm is supposed to be on 30 Rock tonight. Liz Lemon is once again dating her neighbor, and she becomes aware that he is one of those people who are treated differently because of how they look. Since we all know Jon Hamm looks marvelous from any direction, I am guessing he is not treated too shabbily. I will be watching as I need my Don Draper fix any way I can get it. I think I will pretend that Don is once again on the outs with Betty and has rented an apartment in Liz' building. Since we know Don has a fondness for gorgeous brunettes, we can naturally assume he is interested in Liz. Also, he is hiding his true identity in order to investigate the Tracy Jordan show to decide which of the Sterling Cooper clients would be appropriate sponsors for the show. He does not want another Jimmy Barrett debacle on his hands, so he is working undercover this time. Don Draper, undercover operator......
zerelda
March 19, 2009 4:34pm
http://www.greenbaypressgazette.com/ic/blogs/channelsurfing/uploaded_images/mad-men-774581.jpg
Anyone know anything about this photo? Photography? What it was for? Looks like a Vanity Fair shoot... Love the styling.
jfleischmann
March 18, 2009 2:51pm
In (belated) honor of St. Patrick's Day (okay, that's a stretch), I found this detailed article about Canadian whiskey - or Rye - Donald Draper's drink of choice. It was a surprise that there are so many particulars.
Coincidentally, Canadian whiskey is also the main poison in a Dry Manhattan!
[ No need to thank me, Drink&Smoke {:) ]
Dry Manhattan
March 18, 2009 12:26pm
American television is always coming up with new versions of British programs. The Office is one example, and a very funny show it is. While watching it the other night, I got to wondering if the British ever take any of our programs and recast them with British actors and storylines. Naturally this led to my recasting Mad Men in my mind with British actors. For instance, Peter O'Toole to me would have made a wonderful Roger in his younger years, but now I can see him playing a very eccentric Bert Cooper. Diana Rigg would have made an excellent Mona or even better, a terrific Bobbie Barrett. I could easily envision Bob Hoskins playing Jimmie Barrett, the obnoxious comic married to a smart and sexy Diana Rigg. For Peggy, how about a young Lynn Redgrave or Rita Tushingham? I also fancy Colin Firth as Sal looking longly at Jude Law as Ken, but then again, I could really see Jude Law playing Pete. So, how about it Maddicts? Offer up your suggestions on Brits playing our favorite characters, and if you feel like it, throw in a few twists on the storyline as well. Is it Lady Betty, and if so, just how did a young lad from Liverpool manage to change his identity and marry the daughter of English nobility? Michael Caine as Don - will that Cockney accent slip out after one too many martinis?
zerelda
March 15, 2009 12:24pm
You've been asked to write the premiere of Mad Men - Season 3. What would it look like? What would you like to see? Who has changed? Who will never change? Who will stay? Who will go?
Drink&Smoke
March 15, 2009 9:49am
I'm wondering if the male cast wears Allen-Edmonds ... can anyone confirm?
heresiarh
March 13, 2009 10:20am
http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/f26c4046b0/lex-luthor-bailout-with-jon-hamm
MadMenSuze
March 12, 2009 6:32pm
Just curious as to what our fellow Maddicts are doing for St. Paddy's Day. Especially the New Yorkers and the Chicago people. Anyone from Boston that's an Irish Town.
Where is Johnny with his cute art work. He promised up more. I have an Irish blessing for Dashing Don Draper: May he be in Haven a half hour before the Devil knows he's dead.
Chelsea
March 12, 2009 12:34am
"Lex Luthor Bailout"
http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/f26c4046b0/lex-luthor-bailout-with-jon-hamm
katie
March 11, 2009 5:10pm
I just read that Elisabeth Moss will be in a movie with Sara Jessica Parker and Hugh Grant. It did not say when the movie would start filming. Have they started work on Season 3 of Mad Men? She will be a busy girl if she works on both projects at once.
zerelda
March 10, 2009 8:15pm
Tuesday, March 10 is Jon's 38th birthday. I'm sure there's a few folks on this board who want to wish him well.
Seagirl
March 10, 2009 1:09pm
Does anyone know how many more episodes of 30Rock Jon Hamm will appear in? When he was on Conan he said "several" until the end of the season.
Jamblermm
March 9, 2009 2:03pm
In interviews after the season ended. Matt Weiner mentioned that the plot outline for the season was broadly presented in the first episode. Watching last night you can plainly see the forshadowing of events: Working on the ad campaing for Mohawk Airlines- about escape about seeing the city receed behind you. Implications from Duck that Freddie Rumson is behind the curve and thus inappropriate to run account campains. Changes in account focus and direction at SC. Duck's fustration with essentially being under Don. Free and easy relationship between Pete and Peggy. Don dissappearing. Betty stepping out, but coming back to Don.
I was also struck by 2 things in the episode itself: Interaction with Duck showed that he was still unsure of his place at SC, he seemed to be trying to nail down how things work at SC. By the beginning of the ep, he had been with SC for at least 14months. Surely he would have been able to work things out within that timeframe ? Almost like we are being given backstory for what will come.
In serveral scenes, Don Draper demonstrated a masterfull command of the english language. How did an unwanted "whorechild" gain such a polished facility with words ? We know that he went from the farm to the army and did not attend college. He bounced around for a few years before getting into advertising in his mid 20's and he learned the business from an older Greek man while with a fur company. But where did his education come from ?
rl1856
March 9, 2009 9:14am
The main Blog shows a shot of Don coming fown the stairs at the RR station and at the bottom lists the new season as starting on July 27th at 10:00 eastern.
I've started my countdown.....!
Sandy
March 7, 2009 10:57pm
I just finished rewatching all of Season One and a lot of things have struck me:
1) Betty really was a good wife to Don and I'm ticked at how badly he treated her.
2) In "Shoot" Betty was looking at the picture of her life and realizing she had no way to define it, hence the "I DID do some modeling, you know" and why it crushed her when Don defined her as "just" a mother.
3) The men really are pigs.
NancyinOhio
March 7, 2009 8:28pm
I just finished rewatching all of Season One and a lot of things have struck me:
1) Betty really was a good wife to Don and I'm ticked at how badly he treated her.
2) In "Shoot" Betty was looking at the picture of her life and realizing she had no way to define it, hence the "I DID do some modeling, you know" and why it crushed her when Don defined her as "just" a mother.
3) The men really are pigs.
NancyinOhio
March 7, 2009 8:28pm
or has anyone else noticed that the ads on this forum seem to change depending on the thread topics? For instance, when Polar Bear's threads were getting a lot of comments, suddenly a big old polar bear ad appeared. Now we are discussing the many varieties of "Hamm", and the ads are all about cooking. Is it "just my imagination", as the song says?
zerelda
March 7, 2009 5:05pm
Oops...sorry...forgot the link...here it is:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EgztF8Fp160
katie
March 6, 2009 2:53pm
Have you seen this? Very, very funny and clever. Yet another great homage, but with a serious undertone about anti-Semitism in the 60's.
katie
March 6, 2009 2:52pm
Don't you love a good Hamm? So far we've had:
Smoked Hamm: All those meetings in smoke filled rooms, which also leads to
Spiced Hamm Those herbal cigarettes .....
Picnic Hamm: Don and Betty litter the park
Baked Hamm: Never sit around in the California Desert in a suit
Fried Hamm: Drunk as a skunk, which led to
Canned Hamm: Don in the klink after the car crash
Have I missed any, and what delectable Hamm dishes will Season 3 bring?
zerelda
March 6, 2009 9:00am
In the four years that we've been privy to the workings of Sterling Cooper, we've seen them deal with a number of accounts, (all, I think) listed here, in no particular order:
Menken's Dept Store Secor Laxatives
Lucky Strike Israeli Tourism
Belle Jolie Lipstick Utz Potato Chips
Clearasil Cartwright Double-sided Aluminum
The Relaxasizer Maytag
Mohawk Airlines Playtex
Bethlehem Steel American Airlines
Kodak Carousel Martinson's Coffee
Gillette Right Guard Gorton's Fish
Nixon Pres. Campaign Dr. Scholl's
Liberty Capital The Relaxasizer
They've managed to bungle, lose, or fail to win most of these accounts. In fact, one wonders how SC manages to stay in business. Two questions (feel free to answer one or both):
1. Do you agree with the opinion that SC is incompetent? Why or why not? And if so, what does this incompetence signify?
2. Is there a common thread or unifying element among these accounts/products; what is it? And what, if any, symbolism do these accounts/products hold? Or are they just products picked more or less at random by the writers?
Mambo Deb
March 4, 2009 3:55pm
you posted Ariel's song on my thread on first lines from books, but I neglected to respond then, so I will tell you now that reading it sent me to the bookcase for my copy of "The Tempest". I offer to you my favorite lines from Shakespeare's supposed last play:
"We are such stuff as dreams are made on, and our little life is rounded with sleep."
On reading them, I wonder how many people will immediately think of Humphrey Bogart and his Maltese Falcon......probably far more than those who think of Prospero and Ariel, don't you think?
Thanks for your post, as I enjoyed re-reading "The Tempest".
zerelda
March 2, 2009 6:19pm
I love this game - so for all the true Maddicts out there, let's do lines from Season One only. Rules are simple - in your response, repeat the line and say who said it to whom and in what situation. Bonus points if you know the episode name and number.
"Let's take this slow. I don't want to wake up tomorrow pregnant."
NancyinOhio
March 2, 2009 1:20pm
We've seen the many faces of Betty since Season 1: Stepford Betty, Psycho Betty, BB Gun Betty, Frederick's of Hollywood Betty, Evil Betty, Sex-Crazed Betty, and finally Looking for Mr. Goodbar Betty. Anyone want to hazard a guess what new incarnation of Betty will be on the agenda for Season 3?
jamm54
March 2, 2009 1:17am
Is it a certain person, the topics, artistic stimulation, self expression, frustration, nothing to do, loneliness, reaching out, hatred, love, loyalty to Mad Men, the characters, their stories, to be listened to by the powers that be or by friends made on the board , to be accepted....???? What?
Nora Paradiso
March 1, 2009 3:19pm
Where are you my friend?? I would like some input!! I do enjoy your very positive and informative postings. Are you o.k.?
Nora Paradiso
March 1, 2009 3:04pm
Every few days I read the new MM posts and their creative, appreciative answers. Unfortunately when it goes off topic, it feels like the post is being either hijacked or sabotaged.
I used to read past the boring banter in hopes of finding a gem but it's the same-o, sam-o and I have to stop before the posts are done. There may be quite a few posts but the same names for all of them. I've also noticed that as a result of the unrelated comments the post itself only lasts a day or two, making anyone else's response irrelevant.
Hopefully when Season 3 begins our witty, creative and resourceful posters will be back to keep the posts on topic and the
To quote SCfan "I'm just sayin."
485Madison
March 1, 2009 10:16am
