ARE YOU GLEN BISHOP/SALLY DRAPER, PETE CAMPBELL/PEGGY OLSON, DON DRAPER/JOAN HOLLOWAY, OR GENE HOFSTADT/ALICE COOPER? OR HOW OLD ARE YOU?*

In anticipation of Season 3, I'd like to help old and new fans of the show. We may speak the same language, but our interpretation of a word is predicated on our generation. To bridge this gap, I have developed the following self test to identify who you are. Hopefully, this will offer you some insight into yourself and help you communicate with other fans of this show. Simply choose your answer for each question, then tally up your score. The test is administered in the first Comment below:

A real Mad Woman

This Mad Men contest is such a great idea. I'm an Art Director in an ad agency myself (that's Salvatore's role) and I love this show. Shameless self-promotion: I'd love if you could give me 5 stars. It would be a thrill to step back in time in the ad world.

http://madmencastingcall.amctv.com/photos/view/298

Season 2 Marathon...

Is set for August 10? Isn't that a Monday?

Why is Pete the only one wearing grey; and cutting short the Emmys telecast

MsFabulous posted these beautiful new promo photos on an older thread today.

My question about that is, all the men are attired in brown ensembles (which coordinate with the ladies and their coral outfits), except Pete, who is attired in the traditional Mad Men steel grey.....

http://tvblog.ugo.com/tv/even-more-mad-men-season-3-promo-pics

What is the significance of this? Since nothing is accidental, what does this "clue" mean? (Also notice the marker tape on the floor of Bert's office!)

As much as Pete annoys and infuriates, it certainly would not be Mad Men without him!

Also, unrelated to this, Variety is reporting that the producers of the Emmy broadcast are finding it "necessary" to cut 15 or so minutes from the telecast, and cited Mad Men as one of the shows being considered as possibly not being "mainstream" enough...... (Seriously? What on earth are they talking about!!)

The plan to "time-shift" eight of the 28 award presentations during the live Primetime Emmycast is an effort to boost the kudocast's ratings by making more time to highlight mainstream TV hits and other viewer-friendly elements.

Emmycast exec producer Don Mischer said in a conference call Thursday that the decision to pre-tape eight award presentations in the 45 minutes prior to the 5 p.m. PT start of the live Sept. 20 telecast came after the TV Academy research conducted after last year's show found that viewers were tuning out "because the Emmys featured shows that viewers didn't know and weren't interest in," Mischer said.

That translates to a tug of war between the cable hits and critical darlings that have dominated the noms for years -- think "Mad Men," "Breaking Bad," "30 Rock," "Dexter" and "Damages" -- and the need to deliver strong ratings by highlighting broad-based hits like "American Idol," "CSI" and "Grey's Anatomy."

"We're trying to make the Emmys more relevant to mainstream viewers," Mischer said.

You can read the rest here...... http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118006675.html?categoryId=2161&cs=1

Who's holding markers on whom...and will they be able to collect?

Your Post

How to get Mad Men hair......

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xpa9Y-WWXmM

Hint about Joan in Season 3

http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/zap-mad-men-s3-pictures,0,6347111.photogallery?index=6

Hey Brylcreem - take note!

The styles exemplified in MadMen are classics and hair is no exception. The neat slick down look is simply awe inspiring and men's hair care product makers should take note - especially the maker of Brylcreem. We see shelves stocked with gels, creams, and pomades these days. This should be an advertising executives dream come true - spring board from the shows popularity and its emphasis on classic style, Brylcreem could see the brlycreem-look become de rigueur. Take note Brylcreem - strike while the iron is hot.

Episode 2 revisited

This is another one you can really dig into even though it's only the second episode.

There's 2 really good Roger lines, and I think everyone probably caught them immediatley, that I love:

When the parade for John Glenn is going on and Roger is a bit perturbed: "It's not like people were shooting at him". That's great, so Roger.

The other is right before Duck comes in to Roger and Cooper regarding American Airlines, Roger says, "Jets were made for dropping bombs on Moscow, not French cuisine". Later in 3 Sundays Paul gives Don a French cuisine menu.

In the same scene when they call Don in and Don is not down with the whole thing, I didn't see that as most people did. I think it's less of a direct moral issue and instead one about he doesn't like the idea of a drastic change of direction that SC appears to be making with this move. In other words I don't think it's about Mowhawk only, it's about the greater idea of philosophy change when something clearly works.

It's like later when they sign the deal in the merger in the finale, Cooper says "I don't think I heard the word client in there" and isn't exactly happy with the change. So it's a common theme slowly developing: the old way, Don, vs a new direction, Duck and youth etc; which actually really is in fact better?

At home during the card game with Francine and Carlton, when Betty speaks of Bobby cheating on the George Washington thing, Don says, "Why re-invent the wheel". It's kind of his theme for the day with what went on at work. Now, it could be incidental and instead an instrument to show the disconnect between Don and Betty. That could be the actual purpose but it does fit either way. I thought that was kind of interesting.

And speaking of that disconnect, Betty saying "I was more afraid of my father than going to sleep". Great foreshadowing of what is to come.

I wish I caught this before now but I just noticed it. Near the end when Pete shows up for the airline meeting, he tells his story about his father. It's an emotional story, it hangs in the air. You can't really react. The client only says something awkwardly like, "This is something I will pass on". Duck immediately senses the cue and closes the deal so to speak and says "Shall we grab a bite".

It's just like The Wheel. Remember after Don's emotional presentation, the weight of it hanging in the air afterward? Same thing. Then, the execs really had no response as well, so Duck sensed the cue and said "Good luck at your next meeting".

Last is at the very end when the lady of the evening as they say approaches Don, her saying basically I'm not your waitress but are you ok here, you've been sitting here a long time, etc. After Don says no to her and he leaves, I love the shot because you see so easily as Don leaves, in the background, a guy, ( I think kept in the shot purposely as Don passes him by [symbolic, as in Don attempting to pass "being that guy" by] ) who is alone with a drink and a smoke; seemingly waiting...

Elisabeth Moss interview

http://www.blackbookmag.com/article/elisabeth-moss-mad-style/9622

Unboxing the Mad Men Season-Three Press Kit!

Ran across this and thought I'd share.

http://nymag.com/daily/entertainment/2009/07/unboxing_the_mad_men_season_th.html?f=most-commented-vulture-7d5

Matt Weiners Legacy

Many times during interviews and commentaries our beloved Matt Weiner has made it clear he encourages all his writers to step up to be producers and eventual show-runners. During Season One the writer's assistant got to write and produce an episode. The same happened in Season Two, plus a long-time script supervisor directed an episode.

In The Hollywood Reporter of 30 July, it is announced that MM consulting producer and author of "The Inheritance" has a comedy, "Untitled" at the moment, in the works for HBO. Diane Keaton has signed as star and executive producer. Her character will be a Gloria Steinem-icon type. That sound so Mad Men.

This January Marti Noxon joined with talented writer/producer Dawn Parouse to form Grady Twins Productions. She will be the third executive producer. This show brings Diane Keaton to a TV series.

Just think, given the creative potential on the MM staff, what future projects we can anticipate from all these talented folks.

re: madmen yourself.

anyone having trouble downloading your madmen character? I make my character and click on download, continue and that's as far as it goes. any suggestions as to what i can do to get a complete download?

What year will it be?

I keep having nightmares that Season 3 takes place in 1967. . . nightmares! I'm hoping that it won't take place any later than 1964. I have a feeling that Mad Men won't go into the 1970s, and I don't want to rush to the end of the series!

"We have to get you a new daddy."

I am totally addicted to my Season 2 DVDs and have been watching them over and over again. I love it when I spot or hear something new.
So, when Bobby asks Don about his father and Don replies "he liked ham" I couldn't help but giggle during such a poignant scene.
Are you discovering any new gems? What are they?

some tidbits

Interesting tidbits from E!Online about the new season:

Jimmy in Miami: Any Mad Men scoop for the new season? It's been so long!
Many things transpire in the season three premiere of Mad Men, now that the British have taken over Sterling-Cooper, including some "restructurings" that put two fan faves in contention for the same job.

Sam in Atlanta: More Mad Men please!
Don Draper knows all your secrets. That's true as a general statement of fact, but, Salvatore Romano, we're talking about you in particular.

http://uk.eonline.com/uberblog/watch_with_kristin/b136303_spoiler_chat_will_mischa_barton_make_it.html

Sason Three Photos

So many!
http://www.zap2it.com/news/custom/photogallery/tv/zap-mad-men-s3-pictures,0,4164904.photogallery

Vintage Ads that take you back

I just found some great old ads. Duke University has posted. Go here to see them: http://library.duke.edu/digitalcollections/adviews/

"I don't want to lose all this"

I'm almost done with "A Night to Remember" again, and my title/subject line is what Don says to Betty after she's showered from her bender and scouring the house for clues and she comes down to him while he's sleeping on the couch. It's his only admission, while subconscious, the way Paul does to Joan after backing out of looking at Bert's painting with the rest of the boys: "I had nothing to do with it" ad Joan says "Thank you" because now she knows it happened. Don still tries to get Betty to pretend (I know what it is like to have people try to convince me that I wasn't really there for something I saw with my own eyes) and she walks away. I'm not one to easily get weepy, but I really related to Betty as she went though the suits, as she looked for clues. Watching this whole section made my respect for MW (and the writers) grow, because few men understand the despair women feel when they've been jilted by the man around whom their world revolves. So much of the story line really shows the kinds of situations women often end up in, just because men think of their needs and desires last. Go back to Maidenform, and the statement that bras are for men... we've come a long way, baby, but it takes the guts that Betty, Peggy, Joan and others if we're to break out of the roles set up for us. I've spent a life time bucking those presets, which has meant reaping rewards and sometimes paying high prices.

In that episode, Betty is still trying to recover from what Jimmy told her, trying to cope and get by and put it in the past. Then the Heineken ploy comes along and it breaks the camel's back. To stand by her belief that Jimmy was right took a lot of guts. It meant letting her dreams (illusion) of the perfect life go. It was everything, and she stood by it.

And she was right.

I'm reliving a lot of pains and glories watching this amazing program. Gals, take a look at your lives and channel these powerhouses where you can. Like us, none of them are perfect, but they're not letting their gender entirely define them.

I can proudly say I've learned to find my own voice in a gender based society, and MM perhaps is a reminder that we can invent ourselves and make our own opportunities, without gender, hair color, age or finances to define us.

Seize it.

I am.

Does this 1960's magazine ad seem familiar?

Hey, maddicts...
Take a look at this scan of a genuine magazine ad, a 2-page spread, from the 1960's.

Does it seem at all familar to you? (Click link below)

http://dl1u.savefile.com/da251053a2413aa7a88df57554344d0a/mastercard-ad-1960_s.jpg

Vincent Kartheiser Collection

Hi!

I'm looking for a new home for my Vincent Kartheiser collection, including Alpha Dog Props. Check out the items:

http://www.geocities.com/wizardhauru/vincentkartheiser.html
http://www.geocities.com/wizardhauru/vincent-kartheiser1.html
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Any questions are welcome and I'll answer you as soon as I can.
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Thanks A LOT for your time,

Beatriz.

Maidenform

I'm watching "Maidenform" with the commentary by MW and it's very insightful. I had gotten the whole Marilyn vs. Jackie, but what I didn't pick up was the "Sexy Woman vs. Mom" theme.

- Betty feels sexy at the Country Club around Arthur until the kids come in
- Don finds Bobbie sexy until he finds out she has a son (and later a daughter)
- Don is disgusted with Betty being sexy in her yellow bikini because she's a mother

I think this sets up the ending of S2 beautifully - Betty was beginning to have power with Don but oops, now she's pregnant again.

Yet more hints on the first ep

Good golly, the hints are coming out of the woodwork now. Here's an article from Cable360:

http://www.cable360.net/blog/?p=242

Mad Men Season 3 Begins With a Bang
Not to worry, I won't reveal plot details for the Mad Men season 3 opener (Aug 16, 10pm ET, AMC), except to say fasten your seat belts.

Matthew Weiner, who created the 1960s-set series, wrote this ep and his roots from The Sopranos show here. While I would never say anything is perfect television, this ep is close. There's not a wasted word or moment in the entire opening episode. It's that tight. Nothing, not even the choice of music, is insignificant. Like a wonderful piece of classical music, themes are introduced, developed, re-worked and then return later.

Close watching will yield hidden treasures. I'll admit, I viewed this episode twice, in quick succession, and was captivated even more the second time than during the first quite enthralling go-round. Like The Sopranos, there's so much to take in, gestures, costumes, small bits of dialogue that seem insignificant are not. There's an homage to Hitchcock, a whack at today's recession spoken in the board room of London Fog almost 50 years ago and as I said above, the music is key.

Addicts of this series probably already know the tag line for this season is "change," and that hits you squarely, and relatively soon in the episode. As you might recall, the ad agency Sterling Cooper was going through some changes late last season. But hang on, some other changes are far more significant than that.

Fortunately, of course, what hasn't changed is the superior writing, acting and characters. In fact, there are a few new characters in this episode who promise to add some deliciously juicy complexity to the already strained world of Mad Men. Yes, these are the times before the World Wide Web, but Weiner craftily has woven a web of intrigue that hopefully will sizzle for weeks. OK, can you wait until mid August?

Daily News article on Season 3: warm milk at 4 a.m. and more

In the opening scene of the new season for AMC's "Mad Men," Jon Hamm's Don Draper stands alone by the stove at the some dark early hour of the morning, heating milk in a copper bottom Revere Ware pan.

For fans of "Mad Men," which returns Aug. 16, this is a comforting moment - and not because of the milk, though warm milk at 4 a.m. has its own value.

The reassurance comes from the copper bottom Revere Ware and its stature in the "Mad Men" world of the 1960s.

Cooks like copper pans because copper diffuses heat more evenly. But copper tarnishes if you look at it cross-eyed, so all-copper pans require too much care for a busy family kitchen.

Revere solved this problem by coating only the bottoms with copper, thus providing the even heat while reducing the need for copper cleaner.

Copper bottom Revere Ware is a kitchen icon of the 1960s, and its presence here reassures us that creator Matthew Weiner is still paying attention to detail.

In a show as intense and cerebral - okay, some say simply slow-moving - as this one, that attention is critical. Better yet, Weiner's aim is true: Betsy Draper's kitchen would have had copper bottom Revere Ware.

As with many shows that have sent critics into initial spasms of ecstasy, from "The Sopranos" to "Lost," the third season of "Mad Men" has the potential to become a minefield because backlash is waiting at every step.

For starters, the thrill of discovery has passed. Quite the opposite, now the show faces comparisons to its own past, which may be only a couple of years distant, but wears the mantle of legend.

"That's okay," some viewers will inevitably say this year. "But it was better in season one."

There's no way around that. "The Simpsons" heard it. "American Idol" heard it. "Saturday Night Live" hears it all the time.

And sometimes it's true. Weiner's challenge is that it not be true for "Mad Men," which is why he needs to mind the details.

He seems to be on the case.

In the Aug. 16 episode, viewers can watch for a small pin. They can watch London Fog become more than a raincoat.

Weiner also uses an series of small vignettes to illustrate the impact of a British firm taking over the Sterling Cooper agency.

In the shadow of that game-changer, he offers the first hints of how things are going for Peggy (Elisabeth Moss) now that she has her own office. He also suggests Sal (Bryan Batt) could have the same kind of pivotal season this year that Peggy had last year.

"I go to a lot of places," Don Draper remarks at one point, "and keep ending up someplace I've already been."

He doesn't say it like that has to be a bad thing.

dhinckley@nydailynews.com

http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/tv/2009/07/28/2009-07-28_details_key_to_how_mad_men_pans_out.html

Saw the first MM Poster on a bus bench! Have they begun popping up in your area?

I did a double take. So glad to see it. Hope they go all out. Like I said last season about how they advertised Gossip Girl---Billboards Galore, Sides of Buses, and pictures and captions sexy and smart and exciting. I hope Matt got the deal he wanted on advertising. Let's give a shout out!!!

Hamm and Affleck

Exciting News Flash!!! Tonight The Hollywood Reporter states that as soon as Mad Men Season 3 finishes production Jon Hamm will go to Boston to start production in September of the feature film "The Town"

Ben Affleck, an Oscar winner, will write the script, direct and co-star. Rebecca Hall will also co-star.

The movie is based on "Prince of Thieves" Jon Hamm will play a dedicated FBI agent on the trail of a notorious criminal played by Affleck, who is infatuated with a character played by Hall. Hamm thinks she will lead him to Affleck.

This sounds so exciting and a significant career step for the very talented Jon Hamm.

Now we can be thinking about all this while waiting until MM returns on 16 August!

This is fun...

You may have seen this already, but if not check it out!

http://nymag.com/daily/entertainment/2009/07/mad_menize_yourself.html?mid=agenda--20090727

Jon VS John

on mad men who do you prefer

Jon Hamm or John Slattery

Don or Roger

Don Draper is coming to Baltimore

From The Baltimore Sun

http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/entertainment/zontv/2009/07/mad_men_amc_season_three_don_d.html

Now here's some good TV news for local viewers: Baltimore is featured prominently in the premiere epsiode of Season 3 of AMC's Mad Men, last year's winner of the Emmy as the best drama on television. Mark your calendars for 10 p.m. Aug. 16.

In sending out the screener, the producers asked that plot points not be revealed. With the web being the web someone is sure to violate that request. But it won't be me. I love the series and like the writer-prooducers too much. This is one of the few dramatically rich viewing experiences left on TV, and I don't want to spoil one bit of viewer pleasure.

But I can talk a bit about the Baltimore stuff. At the heart of the season opener is a business trip Don Draper (Jon Hamm) and Salvatore Romano (Bryan Batt) take to Baltimore to do a little hand holding with one of their clients, the father and son running London Fog. The episode is titled "Out of Town," and it is written by series creator Matthew Weiner, who spent part of his childhood in Baltimore and attended Park School. (Robin Veith, an Emmy-nominated writer on the series, was promoted this season to executive story editor. She grew up in Baltimore.) Photo courtesy of AMC

As the title suggests, the trip to Baltimore dominates the episode with Draper and Romano eating dinner at Haussner's, spending a night at the Belvedere Hotel and the next day at the London Fog factory.

I will say nothing about what happens at any of their stops. But it is sexy, deep, complicated and fabulous. I loved this show from the first five minutes of the pilot, and I was infatuated all over again 30 seconds into the opener of Season 3.

While it is set on Madison Avenue in the 1960s and absolutely steeped in authentic period detail, Weiner and his staff of writers like Veith have managed to make Mad Men speak more eloquently than any other TV drama to America today.

Season 2 ended with the Sterling Cooper advertising agency being taken over by the British firm of Putnam, Powell and Lowe. And now the downsizing begins. The level or anxiety, fear and anger at Sterling Cooper will seem all too familiar to many viewers today.

Therapy with Dr. Wayne

I hope all of you have had as productive an off-season as I have had. My premature withdrawal from the blog did have some unexpected benefits such as higher productivity at work (and thereby keeping my job) and more time to focus on my self-improvement. Dr. Arnold Wayne and I have done some intensive therapy work in the off season. This, and the electroshock treatments have really altered my view of life and I have a whole new attitude. I am happy to share my personal affairs with you, my trusted confidants.

As is his practice, Dr. Wayne has told Don all about our sessions. I am sure if I had anything to worry about, Don would intervene because who would know better about living an enlightened life than Mr. Madison Avenue himself, Dick Whitman.

While Dr. Wayne has made sure my mind is healthy, Dr. Greg Harris is making sure my body is sound too. He has me on a diet and a regular exercise regimen. Unfortunately, his bedside manner is a bit disturbing, to say the least. He makes me nervous when we are alone in his examination room, especially when he says, "I'll make you healthy whether you like it or not. This is what you want, don't you?" I have a prostate exam coming up and I must admit to a bit of trepidation.

As part of my rehabilitation, the good Dr. Wayne has encouraged me to continue writing. Under his care, I think my writing has really improved. I've provided a sample below:

Review from everyview.com

I reviewed season two on this review blog here. I hope you all will find it to be of at least respectable quality.

http://www.everyview.com/2009/07/27/dvd-review-mad-men-season-two/

Season 2 DVD set

I was thrilled to find that among the special features in the set are historical perspectives of the time!! I'm getting my history fix! I watched Part 1 of the evolution of the Women's Movement last night.
Any other Maddicts out there enjoying this too?

Top 10 Concerns of Maddicts Between Seasons 2 & 3

To all the contributors to the AMC Mad Men website: thank you for keeping this blog so interesting. My last official post, dated May 4, 2009, tipped off official Season 3 start date of August 16, 2009 a good month before the official announcement (see http://blogs.amctv.com/mad-men/talk/2009/05/season-3---augu.php) I apologize for the empty topic yesterday.
Enough with the preamble. Straight from the Ed Sullivan Theater in New York, the top 10 Concerns of Maddicts Between Seasons 2 & 3:
10. Why can't they show reruns of Season 2 at a reasonable hour?
9. What happened to all of the other creative, funny people that used to contribute to the blog?
8. Why does the advertising on this web site mysteriously change in response to my thoughts and words?
7. Who are all these new people and haven't they ever watched this show or are they just AMC employees?
6. Why does AMC insist on taking two minutes away from the greatest show in the history of mankind?
5. Why doesn't (insert "Mad Men", "Matt Weiner", "Jon Hamm", "Elizabeth Moss", "I", et. al.) get the respect he/she/I deserve(s)?
4. Why am I always being viciously attacked by those whose opinions differ from mine?
3. Why do they have to show commercials?
2. Why am I ignored by the AMC staff response to my constant inquiries?
And the number one concern of Maddicts between seasons 2 & 3 is . . .
1. When does Season Three Start?

Mitch

Am I missing something? Who is this "Mitch" that everyone refers to at Sterling Cooper? I don't recall ever seeing his character.

Banana Republic/Mad Men Contest

I think this is one of the few times I've encountered US-based contests which allow Canadian residents to enter. How did they get around this?

Anyway, I've entered and here I am:

http://madmencastingcall.amctv.com/photos/view/234/

Topic Title

Your Post

Season One vs. Season Two

Caveat: I'm a newcomer to Mad Men and have finished S1 and just started S2 last night.

After watching the first few episodes of S2, I found myself deeply annoyed with the dialogue and general pacing of the drama. Abandoning MM's intriguing and believable characters, the dialogue now seems to be overrun by metaphor with no concern as to whether the characters remain intact. Indeed, the writing remains brilliant, but I can't help but feel that the very intricate and tight-knit world created in S1 has been sacrificed for a fast-paced, action-packed TV show that blends in a bit too comfortably with the rest.

Furthermore, the product placement has gone over the top into camp.

What does everyone else think about S1 vs. S2? I seem to be alone, as the critics raved on about S2, but I feel as if something magical is now missing...

Watching Season 1 and 2 again

Hi fellow Maddicts!! I feel like the prodigal Forum fan. My applause to all Maddicts who hung in there during this very long break between seasons!
I just finished watching Season 1 again, and will be starting on 2 soon. I love the Season 2 box, the white shirt with the Menken's label!
Anyway, it was great to see Season 1 again. I have some different perspectives about the season. Maybe it's because it's been a while, or maybe I understand the meaning of the first episodes more having seen the 2nd season.
Any other Maddicts feel the same way?

Flashback again?

IMDB's listing for the first episode, "Out of Town" includes cast members playing Archie and Abigail Whitman. Sounds like a flashback to me. Given the title, does anyone think it might be Don/Dick going "out of town" for some Whitman family business?

Busy Bryan

From sfgate.com:

Bryan Batt,
who plays art director Salvatore Romano on AMC's "Mad Men," is publishing a home decor book. Publishers Marketplace says the book is due out in the fall of 2011. In addition to being an actor, Batt, an interior designer, co-owns Hazelnut, a shop in New Orleans.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/07/24/RVT018TUG1.DTL#ixzz0MIS3dEIh

Technical Glitches

I'm having a problem playing the
Season 3 videos. I have a Mac Ibook. The ads run okay but the then the video that runs is choppy and quits half way through. Is anyone else having this problem and is there a solution?

The dateing game

OK all here is the dating game. tell us what character from the show would be your prefect date and why?

1) who is your date?

2) why him or her?

3) Describe your perfect date with him or her?

4) what would you say you like most about him or her?

5) if you were to give him or her a pet name what would it be and why?

6) would you see him or her again for something long term and why?

Season 3 Video With Comments from Matt W. and Cast

I am wondering about the set where Christina is shown sitting on the couch. She is wearing a green dress. There is greenish colored phone on the end table and a round white wood coffee table with a glass insert in the middle. Does this set look familar to anyone? I don't recall it, but that means nothing, as my memory is like Swiss cheese, it has so many holes in it.

Very interesting video, with lots of teases. I can hardly wait for the singing and dancing promised by Vincent K. Wait, was he joking? 'Cause I could totally see Roger in his boxers and sock garters doing the Can-Can with a couple of twins. (The movie "Can-Can" came out in 1960, and Harry Crane mentions plans to "buy tickets" to this film, which played a reserved-seat roadshow engagement in New York City.)

Mad Love

season two left us with allot of unanswered question about the love lives of the employees at Sterling Cooper. what I wanna know is what im sure all of you Maddicts are dyeing to know.

Where are they now?

will Roger still be with Jane or go back to Joan?

Will Joan go threw the marriage even though her fiance raped her?

And last we knew Peat and trudy were spliting up

and what of the offices lonely heats like Peggy Salvador and Paul?

Id like to hear you thoughts

Jon and John fan questions

Ok gang, I can't get the video of their response to our questions, all I get in the video is the Clorox thing over and over on an endless loop.

Can some of the regulars who caught it give a basic synopsis?

What I really want to know is, I'm the one who asked them if the drunken Roger punch on Don was an ad lib because the look on Jon/Don's face is priceless afterward.

When it was put up they print : Want to know how they really feel about working together? Or how much they get to improvise -- including that punch Roger delivered to Don's arm in "Six Month Leave"?

So they mention what I asked and I'm just curious of the answer but I can't get the vid.

Lil help....

My trip to Banana Republic

Yesterday I stopped by The Banana near my home. The report: The clothing was a bit inconsistent. Some of the dresses had distinct features of the early 1960s: Sheathes, cap sleeves, some princess seams. There were short-sleeved, frilly blouses. Pencil skirts. Even vintage-style jewelry at prices that would have made my mother faint when she bought the real thing some 50 years ago. The men's suits were a disconnect: The stores feature posters of Don Draper, draped, if you'll pardon the pun, in exquisitely tailored suits, sparkling white shirts and narrow ties. The suits at Banana were not nearly of the bespoke quality worn by the talented Mr. Draper. I acknowledge that there must be a concession to current style, and that there is a severely limited audience for pure Kennedy-era fashion. I do wish there could have been a bit more of an effort in the clothing design, fabrication, as well as the merchandising. There were no in-store screenings of the program, and the music blaring from the store's speakers was strictly modern. It would have been fun for the corporate music vendor to have inserted a few tunes from the late 1950s-early 1960s, just to create more of a Mad Men vibe.

The staff, on the other hand, was a delight. The manager, who reminded me of Bryan Batt, is a confirmed Maddict. He and I spent about 15 minutes educating the younger sales associates about the finer points of the show. He handed me the Season I and II DVDs he'd brought in to show his staff during their breaks. He noted that I was one of the first people to request the Style Guide, and was thrilled I actually wanted one. I feel that he and I did a decent job in evangelizing the show.

Reports across America, anyone?

Check that Zippo USB!

Nice article on the MM Season 3 press kit - don't you just wish you were on the receiving end of such a goodie? It even includes a DVD of the first episode. Sigh.

http://nymag.com/daily/entertainment/2009/07/unboxing_the_mad_men_season_th.html

It's a Mad House!

If you, like me and some other Maddicts who shall remain nameless, are around the bend over MM, take a look at my floorplan of the Draper home. Here's the link: http://s644.photobucket.com/albums/uu170/mambodeb/?action=view¤t=floorplan.jpg
I'll post the link again in my comment below with some descriptive commentary. Lord help me! :-)

Oh My God ......Could we use some comic relief......

This..... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l31MSpojWTA

And this......

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1jn3KCZEqxc

JUST SAYIN'......

Mad Men Contest

Anyone out there having a problem when you get your friends to vote for you???? My friends have complained that when they click on the link of my picture, it says they have already voted when they haven't! This thing is rigged and I can't find an e-mail address to let these contest promoters know.

July Movie Mad-ness

Well, here we are Maddicts! It is July, a year has passed, and we have survived the interlude between the end of one season and the beginning of another!

Season 3 will begin in a couple of weeks and (with this post) we'll discuss the final group of movies on our "Movie Mad-ness" schedule. I want to thank each and every one who posted on our Mad-ness thread or just read it every month. You are all an amazing group, and your input was appreciated.

This last thread will be the discussion of two movies: "How to Succeed in Business without Really Trying" and "Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum." And, ...the actress discussed this month will be Irene Dunn.

If you can remember, begin by reminding everyone where the movies and actress were mentioned during the series, and then incorporate your personal comments to drive our discussion.

Once again....thanx for allowing me to stick out my neck every month to lead our discussions. I'm just a fellow Maddict (like you) waiting for the new season to start.... You made it much more enjoyable....

Let's have a premiere party on August 16th in L.A.

Hey Maddicts I'm back in L.A. Anyone care to join me for some drinks and a screening of MAD MEN???

Women and 1963 Part II

Anyone care to Post!

Background events 1963

Elsewhere someone posted that Janaury Jones had said the season begins with Betty 7 months pregnant. If so, we're in the spring of 1963. What events might be mentioned or reflected indirectly in the storyline?

April 12 1963 - Bob Dylan performed at Town Hall. Maybe Kurt and Peggy go to the concert?
Lunch counter protests begin in Birmingham, Alabama. How will Carla react? Will we see any awareness of civil rights demonstrations among the staff at SC?
The Burton/Taylor affair - echoes at SC?
Gordon Cooper in orbit (May) - another trip to California?

Rich Sommer interview re "The Storm" miniseries and Mad Men

Sounds like we're starting with a bang:

Excerpt:
"IGN: I know Matt likes to keep his secrets, but is there anything you can say about the new season?

Sommer: Oh gosh... Hmm... I can only give you some general tone thoughts. The thing that I noticed is, when we came back with our second season, we had no idea if there was going to be a second season. We knew we needed to get more viewers, and we didn't know if they were going to be able to put the money behind it. So when they did, that first episode of the second season felt to me like kind of a celebration - like, "Hey guys, we're back and isn't this great that we're back?!" This year, there's no such fanfare. The door is kicked down immediately, and the s**t hits the fan right away. It just starts. And I think it assumes you are along in the story. It assumes that you have been there for every single episode of the first two seasons and that for this 27th episode, we're all kind of on the same page as it rages through. It's great. It's awesome."

No spoliers but boy the whole cast knows how to tease. The entire interview starts at http://tv.ign.com/articles/100/1005737p1.html

Don Draper's wristwatch?

In season one, what is the name of the wristwatch that Don Draper wore? I've looked everywhere and absolutely cannot find it.

Mad Men Contest

Well, I've officially entered the Mad Men Casting Call contest. Since this is Mad Men we're talking about, I'm not ashamed to a little self-advertising. If you think I have Mad Men style, you can vote:

http://madmencastingcall.amctv.com/photos/view/54

Peggy and Pete's Baby

Okay, I am extremely embarrassed to post this because I follow Mad Men to the n-th degree, but there is one MAJOR plot point that I just can't figure out. I'm not sure if its because I'm numb in the head or if it is actually something that is purposely not clear.

What is the deal with the babies? Are all those kids Peggy's sister's kids or is one of them Peggy's? She has said, and her sister has insinuated that she "gave the baby away" so I want to believe that she gave the baby to "the state", but what is the point in showing all those kids and their interaction with Peggy?

Topic Title

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January Jones interview

JJ has a brief interview at the PEOPLE site: http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20292550,00.html

Funny - she says Betty spends most of her time working with kids, the dog - and Jon Hamm, who's sort of in the same class, lol. Nice to see her laugh; she seems so much younger than Betty.

AMC looks to turn art into cash

Ooo ooo!!

For anyone with the slightest curiosity about the back-end goings on, please give this a whirl.....

From ..... http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/entertainmentnewsbuzz/2009/07/amc-looks-to-turn-art-into-cash-.html

AMC looks to turn art into cash

02:36 PM PT, Jul 20 2009

AMC, which last week broke its own year-old record by earning 23 Emmy Award nominations, is translating that critical success to its bottom line. The cable network, which for years ran nothing but movies and only started carrying commercials in 2001, has done a remarkable job of remaking itself.

But it hasn't been cheap. Rerunning "Cool Hand Luke" a few dozen times may cost only $300,000, but producing a season of "Mad Men" and "Breaking Bad" is more like $30 million. The network isn't resting on its laurels. It has another pricey series -- the political thriller "Rubicon" -- in the works next summer and a mini-series remake of "The Prisoner" for November.

AMC, owned by Cablevision Systems Corp.'s Rainbow Media, has already seen strong growth in ad revenue. Charlie Collier, president and general manager of AMC says the network's ad dollars have grown by 50% since 2006 when it first started its push into original programming. While Collier wouldn't cough up real numbers, industry research firm SNL Kagan says AMC took in about $208 million in ad revenue last year, compared to $144 million in 2005.

The next challenge for AMC is to get distributors to pay more to carry the channel. According to Kagan, AMC gets about 23 cents per-subscriber from cable and satellite operators. That's a far cry from the more than 40 cents per-subscriber that FX and USA pull in.

AMC may have to get Don Draper of "Mad Men" out there to personally sell the network if it wants to play in that league. For starters, even though its shows are critical favorites and award winners, they do not get the ratings of shows such as "The Closer" on TNT, FX's "Rescue Me" and USA's "Burn Notice."

Furthermore, like most cable networks, AMC's deals with its distributors are staggered. In other words, they don't all come up at once. The plus side to that is if a network is struggling, it doesn't face of slew of cable and satellite operators looking to lower the price. The downside is if a network is hot, as is the case with AMC, a lot of distributors still have sweet deals.

AMC recently wrapped up long-term deals with cable giants Comcast and Cox that helped it boost its distribution fee and will soon start talking with satellite broadcaster DirecTV. Collier would only say that with success comes a "better position" and "better deals."

For Don Draper's sake, let's hope so.

-- Joe Flint

Matt Weiner GQ Interview

Took a gander over to Basket of Kisses this evening, and thought the people here would like to read this, too.

Exclusive Matt Weiner scoop juice from GQ!

July 20, 2009 By: Deborah Lipp

http://www.lippsisters.com/

We were lucky enough to get this awesome Matt Weiner interview-ette from GQ.com a day ahead of schedule (thank you, lovely sourceperson!).

These are all Matt Weiner quotes:

"Roger's love for Jane put the company in play, and Roger used Don as an excuse to get out of his marriage. Don thought the whole thing was a betrayal. So they have issues to work out."

"Time has passed. I won't say how much, but the guys are definitely at different points in their lives."

"I fought AMC cutting two minutes of the show. I love advertising. I write about advertising. I am an advocate of AMC making money. But an extra ad is a very limited financial reward for altering a show that put AMC on the map. Also, you are fighting the TiVo! Why give people less show?"

"The Cuban Missile Crisis created a situation where the characters could die tomorrow. Of course, some of them - like Betty - don't even notice and just want to deal with their own problems."

"This season will be thematically different than what we've done before, but it's the same people in the same world. Pete is there. Peggy is there. I want people who love the show to say, 'Oh, my gosh, I'm so glad to be back with these people. What's going to happen?'"

"You're Garbage!"

In eager anticipation of Season 3, I'm re-watching Season 2 (as I'm sure most of you have done). Tonight, I arrived at the mid-season episode "The Gold Violin", and Jimmy Barrett's condemnation of Don.

"I got everything I wanted... and you? You got Bobbie. Plenty of people have had that."

Denial Draper returns once again, looking shocked at the accusations. But he would be silenced by Jimmy's prophetic next words: "You're garbage. And you know it!"

Looking back, I think this is the true turning point of Season 2, and perhaps Don Draper's entire story-arc so far. Condemned by a man who's profession is putting on a show to entertain people, Draper can no longer pretend that there's anything honest about his life.

How did Patrick Fischler not get nominated for a Guest Actor award? He really delivers a home-run performance in this and his other appearances in Season 2.

I can definitely say this was one of my favorite moments of the series so far. Undoubtedly, Weiner and Co. will top it this season!

Salvatore in season 3

for all you Salvatore fans out there who are wondering as much as I am about what lies in store for our favorite mad men in the closet. I for one hope that while i don't expect Sal to come out of the closet I would like to see him start a relationship with another man.

what do you think? every one else on the show has had an affair should Salvatore?

new season three photos

Instyle has season three stills of Betty, Joan and Peggy. Betty looks like a cross between Grace Kelly and Jackie Kennedy.

http://www.instyle.com/instyle/package/general/photos/0,,20164507_20292240_20646279,00.html

As Bert Cooper says, "Who Cares?"

Because the writing of MM is so excellent, I start accepting each episode with suspended disbelief. For the length of an episode I accept SC/MM logic.

Last night a few of my friends were over at my home. Most had worked with me from 1959 until the early 1980s doing briefing presentations for the aerospace industry. I had a department doing classified briefings under my supervision with a major movie studio.

I decided to show the group "Jet Set." Several of the guys were concerned that at the last moment Don could replace Paul, apparently using the same badges. In 1962 and for many years thereafter the sort of details shown in the graphics of the meeting were classified. Anyone attending needed a clearance. The finger prints of Lt. Don Draper and Pvt. Dick Witman would have been on file. Nobody ever received even a minimum clearance without a finger print check. Assuming that check came back clean, then they would receive security training.

Nobody attending such a presentation about missiles would even think about a conversation with strangers at their hotel.

In those days the bosses were largely WWII vets of secret projects. They took real pride in keeping secrets, especially stellar/inertial navigation vital to all USA guided missiles of that era.

My attitude is "Who cares?" What do the rest of the MM fans think?

Thinking about Season 3. . . .

With less than four weeks to go, I've been thinking a lot about the characters I hope make a come back, and those who I wouldn't miss. I'd love to see Freddy return, and it's always interesting when Rachel Menken-Katz and Glenn Bishop re-enter the scene. And if Mona is back in any way, that will make for some great drama. As much as I love Mark Moses, I really don't care to see Duck again (unless he's living on the street and sees Chauncey walk by with his new family). I also wouldn't miss Arthur from the stables.

Who are you hoping to see and who are you hoping to miss?

My Top 10

I like the list on the blog, but I've made my own.

10) Glen walking in on Betty in the bathroom.
9) Helen slapping Betty in the produce aisle.
8) Peggy opening up the door of the bedroom and there being more than one kid.
7) Peggy walking into the police station with bail money.
6) Roger puking.
5) Midge dumping the TV out the window.
4) Rachel Menkin and her husband at the bar.
3) Peggy in the ER finding out she's pregnant.
2) Betty shooting the pigeons.
1) Don and Bobbie at Lutece.

Yours?

Advertising Mad Men

Another interesting article about how Mad Men is advertised.
http://www.newyorker.com/talk/2009/07/27/090727ta_talk_schulman
It mentions that Jon Hamm did have to sit in water for hours for that poster!

bert jansch

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Hell No, We Won

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Season 2 Commentaries

My Season 2 DVD set, which I pre-ordered the day that was possible, arrived at my place on Wednesday, 15 July. I was not sure the DVD would have 2 commentaries per episode. That is the case, plus some other really interesting extras on Disc 1 & 2.
Anticipating arrival of the DVD set I re-watched all Season 2 that I recorded. So, my first priority was to play the commentaries, starting with the writers, then immediately the same episode with cast.
Last night I got to "Six Month Leave" comments by John Slattery and Joel Murray. This is an absolute hoot. Enjoy it and then you will understand the disclaimer that Lions Gate does not endorse expressed opinions! It is a shame that as of today that was the last of "Freddy Rumsen" Of course Joel being the youngest Murray brother has always been funny and tells great tall tales. John S is as funny.

Because I was already familiar with the events of each episode and some dialogue I noticed details on screen better than before.
Within reason all the technical departments do a marvelous job in the spirit of the period. It does not take me out of the period to see street lights well ahead of their time, or modern 3 prong grounded outlets before they were retro-fitted in Mid-Town Manhattan. At least they found a stables close to their studio free of palm trees!
What did surprise me was to suddenly see Don and Pete in the SC offices wearing jackets apparently without breast pockets and for sure without pocket squares. The summer of 1962 I was in Manhattan several days each week. For summer I had bought 3 single-breasted suits, all with pockets and worn with pocket squares since I did not want my NYC clients to think people from California were less formal.
I will accept Jane B's research about this. Perhaps I did not notice. In an early commentary it was mentioned Duck still dressed in the English tradition with a vest, yet more often it is Roger in a vest and Duck single-breasted. I have to assume it is deliberate that Duck's jackets are not well-fitted or tailored, unlike Roger and Don who appear to have excellent bespoke tailors.

Mad Men in Other Languages

I am currently vacationing in a French-speaking location and imagine my surprise and delight to stumble upon Mad Men on the Canal Plus Satellite channel. The episode was the Gold Violin. Madame and Monsieur Draper were enjoying their new blue Cadillac and Joan was chewing out Jane in rapid fire French. What fun. Vive les Mad Men!!

Season 3 Predictions

I know we've already done a lot of these but with just four weeks to go to Season 3 let's start again!

My predictions:

1) First episode is the birth of the baby. It's another girl, much to the dismay of both Sally and Betty. Don wants to name her Anna. (I'm watching Season 2 Ep. 1 and Betty is giving away all her baby clothes...)

2. SC is back to being just SC after the failed merger attempt. Lois is still on the switchboard, plotting her revenge.

3. Duck is out of SC - and I think he he's actually gay (we never did see him with a woman...)

4. Pete is in the midst of a divorce and is going to pretty much have nothing since he got nothing from his father. Trudy will get to keep the apartment and he'll be in a pit. Trudy will be with whats-his-name, her first, then one who put Pete's article in Boy's Life. Pete will be trying to get Peggy to want him but she is SO over him (and she's still secretly in love with Father Blues Singer).

5. Joan's married and unhappy because he wants her to quit her job and she refuses.

6. Jane will be pressuring Roger to get married and he'll be hemming and hawing. He's still in love with Mona and still in deep lust with with Joan. Jane's been great but now she's a real person and he just doesn't want to deal with it.

7. We will most definitely hear from Anna Draper. Don will pass her off as a cousin or sister-in-law or something but Betty won't buy it. Betty is going to slowly learn about Dick Whitman.

8. I like the theories about Helen Bishop and hope more comes of this story!

9. Francine is going to have an affair.

10. Betty's dad is going to die and there will be some real fireworks between her and Gloria!

I have to just throw this in - I don't think Betty got knocked up on the floor of her Dad's house - I think it was earlier and that's why she hurled in the new caddy.

Don/Dick and Helen

I recently read some of the threads on this site about Don and Helen's interactions with each other and found them to be very interesting. They do seem to have some sort of past, that is for sure. I then watched season 1 all over again in preparation for the upcoming season 3 and found something that threw me back big time.

Watching episode 112 "Noxon vs Kennedy", I got to the scene where Don/Dick is on the train as he sees Adam notice him on the train. Right after this, a woman asks him if he knew the man well and he responds, "Not really". She then consoles him and takes him away to buy him a drink and maybe more.

I ask any of you to watch this scene and tell me if it doesn't look like Helen 10 years earlier. Maybe I am reading too much into it, but I really think it might be her. This would explain their odd interactions (both know each other but don't really know where from and don't want to bring it up). Let me know your thoughts.

season 3 promo

I was looking at this promo here
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q__D-4NAqc8
If you go to 21 seconds in it shows Don in what looks like a hotel room with a blonde woman who is not Betty. I don't remember this scene from the show. Does anyone else?

Hooray August 16 is just around the corner!!Where are you going to watch the First Episode of Season 3??

I Think We Los Angeleans should meet somewhere and have a premier watching party?? How about it?????

1964

Since this forum has become such an incredible voice for us for this era, I had to share my experiences about seeing Paul McCartney live, this week. I have the incredible fortune to have a friend who works on the Letterman show and therefore, I was there on Wednesday when Paul perfomed. Just the historic aspect alone was incredible. Seeing him on the stage of the Ed Sullivan Theater again, up close and personal. After the talking segments, we, the audience went outside and were right out front under the marquee where Paul and his amazing band perfomed. The show that night showcased 2 songs; we and about 7,000 other people who lined the streets were treated to a mini-concert for over 20 minutes. Fantastic. You can go to the Letterman website and actually see the entire thing.) I actually was so close, I waved to Paul and he waved back. I felt like I was 12 years old!

Last night, I went to his first of 3 concerts he's giving here in NYC at Citi Field. Again, historic, since the Beatles introduced rock 'n roll to Shea stadium in 1965. it's been 45 years since I saw The Beatles on Ed Sullivan, screaming and crying in front of the TV along with the rest of young female America in 1964. The concert last night was beyond amazing. To say all this was worth the wait, is an understatement. This experience was so beyond nostalgia. It cut right to where we live. This music was the zeitgeist and soundtrack of our lives. If it felt like this to us, I can only imagine what this experience must be for Paul, given the losses in his life.

And at the very least, he looks fantastic and is STILL the cute Beatle! He is 67(!) and can still rock big time.

Thank you for letting me share these thoughts. They will be with me forever.

And that's the way it was

Walter Cronkite has died at age 92. For those of us who remember only 3 networks and 15 minute news reports, he was as much a part of television as anyone. He anchored the cbS Evening News from 1962 - 1981, all those eventful years. RIP Uncle Walt.

I'll Take Hamm

I am a bibliophile. Anything having to do with the written word is my passion. I personally own a library of 800+ books, so you must admit I have it pretty bad. (None of that Kindle stuff for me....I want to hold it and turn pages and fall asleep with the book because I just couldn't put it down.) :)

Reading has expanded my life in many ways. Writing to Oprah about one of her book club selections landed me on her show as a book club guest. (It was a grand evening and the topic of another conversation....) During the taping, we ladies spoke with many of her producers about the book, the book discussion, and discussing books. One of the things I made sure I told them I was interested in was what people had sitting on their nightstands to read. I was delighted when Oprah included this idea as a monthly column in O Magazine. It's always been on of my favorite columns ("The Reading Room") and is the first one I turn to when my issue arrives in the mail.

This month's (August '09) O magazine has Jon Hamm taking us into the Reading Room to share the five favorite books from his personal bookshelf. He shares a window into his mind, and really shows he is more than a pretty face.

"The star of Mad Men (and self-professed science guy) is happy to log off YouTube and delve into a primer on string theory, a play about the history of physics, or a novel by one of his generation's finest writers.

I'm not going to tell you the names of the five books (including his favorite play) because I want you to read the article. (I'm not sure if it's available online, but you can read the article while waiting in the grocery checkout line.:)) I'd never heard of any of the titles, but they sound interesting and are authored by the rising stars of the new generation.

Now, when the camera pans deep into Don's eyes, I'll understand more clearly why there is more than a vacant stare in return. Let me know if you've read any of the books or agree with his choices. Even better, what are the five books that have 'made a difference' to you?

Season 3 premiere interview with Bryan Batt

Tuesday, July 14, 2009 ·

Mad Men's Bryan Batt: Season Premiere "Doesn't Lull You Back... a Lot Happens"

By ADAM BRYANT
TV GUIDE

It's been a long eight months since we last glimpsed the goings-on inside Mad Men's Sterling Cooper, but Bryan Batt promises that rabid "Maddicts" will be rewarded for their patience.

"I haven't seen [the finished product] yet, but just based on the script, it's really an exciting first episode," Batt tells TVGuide.com. "It doesn't lull you back into the period. Really, a lot happens, and I just can't wait to see what people think because it's one of the best. It's interesting, it's smart... It's just more great Mad Men coming your way."

Batt says his character, closeted art director Salvatore Romano, is pretty much in the same place he was last season. Of course, those 13 episodes were a roller coaster for Sal, who, despite being married, actively crushed on coworker/fellow artist Ken Cosgrove. Batt, however, points to the scene in which Sterling Cooper's European up-and-comer, Kurt, shamelessly comes out to his colleagues as one of the toughest he filmed.

"There were so many emotions going on in that one scene," Batt says. "There was a combination of, "Can I ever do this?" and some, "Look at the young kid who has the balls to do it." Then, you put on the nice coat of self-loathing and you've got it.

"We took many takes of that scene," he says, "and our editors are so brilliant in really picking up our performances. I owe them a lot for that, because the take I thought they should have used ended up on the cutting room floor."

So, everyone wants to know: Is a Sal-Kurt hookup on the horizon? Don't bet on it, now or maybe ever.

"People come up to me and ask when Sal is coming out. And I say to them, "To what?" Batt says. "In 1960 and 1962, what was there for him to come out to? There was no gay movement, and he's so closeted he got married. This is not a guy who's going to be running down Fifth Avenue with a rainbow flag anytime soon."

Like most of the Mad Men camp, Batt keeps details closely guarded. But he did reveal that one of the first storylines series creator Matt Weiner ever discussed with him during preparation for the pilot comes to fruition this year. "It's interesting that it didn't pan out until now, even though it's the first thing he ever told me about."

What can Batt tell us about his character's trajectory this season? "I think it's all new for Sal," he says. "In the first six episodes, I have two with really good storylines, and I think people who follow Sal are going to be very excited. It's fun.

"We all live in that world where everyone's got a secret," he adds. "And this year the audience finds out a little more about everybody. It's typical Mad Men -- what you expect to happen doesn't happen. But what does is pretty damn exciting."

http://www2.seattlepi.com/articles/408117.html

Shocking!

Some great new videos in the video section of this site. Watch the 10 most shocking moments!!! At the end of #1 the cast mentions how something shocking will happen in the first couple of episodes of S3. I absolutely can not wait!

New Mad Men poster

Wow - what a poster! See http://popwatch.ew.com/popwatch/2009/07/new-mad-men-poster.html for the picture.

Emmy Nominations

Who hoo! Three big ones: best drama, lead actor in a drama (Jon Hamm) and lead actress in a drama (Elisabeth Moss). Also outstanding supporting actor, John Slattery, and 4 episodes nominated for writing: A Night to Remember, Six Month Leave, The Jet Set, and Meditations in an Emergency.

The award show itself is September 20th. Additional nominations: casting, art direction (The Jet Set), cinematography (The New Girl), costumes (Meditations In An Emergency), directing (The Jet Set), hairstyling (The Gold Violin), make-up, non-prosthetic (The Jet Set), single camera picture editing (Maidenform).

Spotted - Bryan Batt in Atlanta this past Sunday

Greetings fellow Maddicts.
I had the pleasure of meeting and talking to Bryan Batt yet AGAIN here in the ATL.
I have been working as a temporary market associate in the Atlanta Gift Mart for the big July Gift Show. I was assisting a buyer who was from Thibodaux,Louisiana. We started talking about New Orleans and I asked him if he'd been to the shop Hazelnut on Magazine Street.It's the shop that Bryan owns with a partner,He said that he went to school with Bryan and that he was going to be coming to the show and the showroom I was working in to buy.
Later in the day I walked across the hall and there was Bryan with his partner and another Hazelnut buyer. I went over and introduced myself and said I met you in New York @ P.J. Clarke's when we were having our Maddicts party. He was so kind and gracious and said he remembered me.(he was probably being polite,but I've got the photo's to verify).He said they had just finished shooting Episode 8 and that he was headed back to L.A. on Monday to resume filming.He told me he couldn't say anything thing but that we are all going to be in for a fantastic season.I guess Matt doesn't give them a lot of details,so they don't the eventual outcome.
He told me to tell y'all Thank You for watching Mad Men and being loyal.
What a sweet and gracious man ! He was wearing pale pink Bermuda's and a white polo shirt,looking very casual cool.
I hope Mad Men cleans up with the Emmy nominations. It's going to be a great season and it will be sort of a reunion for me since I haven't been active on the site.I'm sure I'll be watching the Episode over and over looking for subtle clues and just plain quenching my thirst for some Mad Men.

Spotted - Bryan Batt in Atlanta

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Women and 1963

Believe it or not I was dreaming MM last night. There was a big, agency-wide meeting held in a large meeting hall, with overflow into rooms off to the side. Up front were the SC execs, department heads, junior VPs and managers. Further back were (male) sales and support people. In a side room were the secretaries and clerical staff including the switchboard operators. Finally, way back in the rear were the janitors, elevator operators and maintenance workers, including a young Puerto Rican fellow in a bow tie who was getting grief from the others. I had the sense it was late August or early September 1963 and people were greeting each other like they'd been on vacation. Thre was talk among several of moving, buying houses in newer (better) neighborhoods. Early in the dream, Don (at home) had heard noises in the fireplace and found a nest of squirrels which he disposed of. Betty was very dissatisfied with the house (or herself?) and I felt they would be moving as well.

What got me on the topic was that in the dream several of the ladies were passing around a magazine (Woman's Day?) with one of those "Are you unhappy with your life?" articles that suggest changing your hair color or wardrobe will perk you right up. Looking around for period examples of those things, I came across this:

Two significant events broke the silence in the national media and mark the year 1963 as the beginning of vigorous growth in communication network-building among women. In that year women succeeded in making the issue of women's rights a public issue in two major ways.

First, in 1963 Betty Friedan published The Feminine Mystique, exposing the role of the male-owned traditional women's magazines in limiting women's options. She pointed out that the last magazine article portraying women seeking an individual career identity was published in February, 1949. The editors of such magazines openly stated that women were not interested in national or international affairs and would therefore publish only information about the home and family.(2) The publication of The Feminine Mystique told women that other women shared their feelings of isolation and dissatisfaction with the limited role of women promoted by the mass media. For many years to come, this new consciousness laid the basis for collective action by women.

Second, 1963 was also the year in which the President's Commission on the Status of Women, appointed in 1961 by President John Fitzgerald Kennedy, publicly released its report American Women on October 11, 1963.(3) The public now was made aware of discrimination against women in the areas of education, home and community services, employment, social insurance and taxation, and legal, civil and political rights. Not only was the public made aware of discrimination against women but those involved in the Commission found their lives affected by their involvement. "I look back on this experience as an intensive consciousness-raising process leading directly to my involvement in the new women's movement that surfaced a few years later," recounted Pauli Murray.(4) The Commission arranged several consultations of which one was on the portrayal of women by the mass media attended by 29 representatives of mass media. Its Summary stated in part:

"Discussion opened on the charge by the chairman that the mass media are 'projecting, intentionally or unintentionally, an image (of women) that contains old myths, misconceptions, and even distortions, of a true image.'. . .
"Lorraine Hansberry (playwright) added that the image of women frequently portrayed is "the glorification of the courtesan, the notion of women as object and very little else." The uniform, shallow, even grotesque image in the commercials, she felt, undoubtedly plays a part in determining standards of womanhood for men of the younger generation.
"Gerri Major reported that her magazine (Ebony) attempted to give an honest picture of the Negro woman's aspirations, activities, and progress. Louis Cowan (mass media research) deplored that this story was not presented in the whole of the Nation's press."(5)

While no recommendations came out of this consultation it did indicate that mass media was now publicly under examination for its portrayal of women.

http://www.wifp.org/womensmediach2.html

I'm wondering if SC will be under the spotlight for its advertising.

By the way, Peggy was not at the meeting. She was off by herself, carrying a potted fern into her office. No idea what that means.

Season 2 obscurities and favorites

Ok gang dvd out today, so i figured I'd put up some talking points, little things i found interesting or puzzling last season just to offer up some fodder to get back in the swing of things and get some discussion going as the folks gear up for the next season. Some or most of these were probably mentioned before at some point but I'll put them up anyway to get some insight going as people kinda renew season 2. So gear up, this is a long one but I decided to mash them together in one thread rather than a ton of new ones and clog the board up.

For example, something that doesn't add up for me is the relationship between Sterling and Cooper. In the first season, Cooper points to a picture on the wall and says to Roger, "you were cute then". And this season when he meets with his sister, he says of Roger, "But I promised to take care of Roger".

I still think that Roger punch on Don in the bar was a complete ad lib, you have to look at Jon/Don's face afterward, priceless.

Did you catch when Don finally returns from Cali, he is the only one who mentions Peggy's new hair?

And when Peggy makes up the couch for Bobbie and they chat, Bobbie says to Peggy don't even try to be a man, be his peer. Isn't it right after that where Peggy now starts calling him Don?
Some believe it's part of the Peggy/Don bond, but I felt it was more about Peggy asserting herself as a peer in that benign Peggy kind of way.

I didn't catch this until later, but at the blood drive they had apparently registered any peripheral person they possibly can, Paul says..."Hollis has a novel". You can go either way with that.

Anyone notice how episode one began with Don in the Dr's office, and the finale began with Betty now in the Dr's office? Mean anything? Displaying the shift through the season of Don to Betty maybe. Or meaningless, I don't know.

Duck complaining to Harry about Maytag and the great agitator saying, "get your department in line or I'll gut it"... not knowing the department is only Harry.

A really little one is when Lois tells the guys about the merger, and then says they have to get her off the switchboard. There's the smallest little shot of her with a tiny smile right after. Even innocent little Lois is out to get something for herself. It's so obscure but i thought it was great because it's so right on point with the show.

And I loved after the Jimmy Barrett fiasco, Don was absent earlier and of couse used the old standby from last year "......I was at the printers".

Speaking of which, when Don was at the movie, you saw on the movie screen a hand making an imprint on the screen toward the viewer. It was just like season 1 when Harry was sleeping in the office, and he and Don chat, talking about how he always liked the first cave paintings in Lascaux, how the cave people would outine their hands on the rock as a signature.
I still can't figure what connection if any there is. On one hand it could be one of those things you think you see but actually has no relevance, or on the other hand it's way too coincidental.

You know the patented Don Draper power position, seated back, all confidence, arm over back of couch, other hand with drink? Did you catch after Betty tosses him, and father Gill starts playing at the end, we see Don in the SC kitchen, sitting with a beer not a drink, yet he's in that tiny little chair and his arm goes across the back, but this time it hangs limp at the elbow. Total symbollism, one of the best shots in both seasons.

My two favorite lines from season 2 are:
Betty complaining to Don about Bobby's behavior, "First the shenanigans with the washing machine, now this". Betty is hardly one to complain about shenanigans with a washing machine if you remember the time when she made it her boyfriend.

And my favorite line is from Anna sitting on the porch with Don: "You love her, you don't have to tell her everything"

10 reasons to get into 'Mad Men' right now

This is really fun reading, and has good information some of us might not know.

Also, the Maddicts got a complimentary mention!

Check it out!

http://www.seacoastonline.com/articles/20090713-ENTERTAIN-90713013

7. "Mad Men" fans rock.

In case the "One Pete is enough" Trojans campaign isn't illustration enough, drop by the AMC message boards now, and especially just after any "Mad Men" episode.

Fans are intelligent, insightful, witty, respectful, and know how to spell. This is not your kid's "American Idol" message board.

Spend five minutes just reading the comments and you'll ingest a dozen points you never would've considered from a group with almost alarming institutional knowledge of the show and its time period.

Down With Love

i dont know if anyone has ever seen this movie before, i had a few years ago, and i saw it again a few nights ago. it stars ewan mcgregor, renee zelwegger, david hyde pierce and the late tony randall, who is absolutely hilarious in this movie. it takes place in manhattan in 1962. it is very funny and light hearted, i'm sure everyone who saw it would enjoy it. very comedic take on the social issues of its day.

Season2 DVDset on sale today

All who have not pre-ordered, please buy and support our show. I can't wait to get mine just for the special features and the commentaries. Plus I can watch with no commercials. No adds for an admans show!

The passion of the smoke.....

This is a relatively retro piece, but might just be appropos, in terms of the state of the state of the show.

I still have my parents' huge collection of matchbooks from every restaurant and lounge they ever visited in the 60s. I treasure it as a tangible piece of their otherwise somewhat mysterious history together.

A private, youthful intimacy between them, places that don't exist any more, except in the memories of the people who were there.

Both my parents smoked, and all the smoking behaviors you describe were a big part of our household.

The best (and one of the only) photograph I have of them together is one snapped, post-dinner, at an elegant restaurant not unlike Lutece. An 8"x10" taken by someone selling them to diners, or perhaps as courtesy of the establishment. Not unlike the Drapers, my parents were young, beautiful, stylish and looked ecstatically happy.

Oh, and they were both elegantly holding cigarettes. In the 70s, Mom was a Viceroy smoker, and Dad was addicted to Benson & Hedges extra longs.... really not sure what they smoked in the 60s.

My mother was taught that a "nice girl" is never photographed with a cocktail or a cigarette in hand. So, in many of the older photographs of my mother, her arm is thrust straight out the side of the picture!

If you've ever sat in a room for any length of time with a collection of smokers, you begin to understand the relationship. These people aren't smoking smoke as much as they are "inhaling" emotions.

To watch the intent faces, the faraway eyes, the long, long silences, the deep inhale almost bordering on a sob, you would almost think it was a form of therapy for them....

Some schools of psychology believe that a smoker holds profound early grief in his or her lungs, thus explaining the attraction to the habit of inhaling, and also exhaling.

I'm a non-smoker but, I swear, if you spend enough time around smokers, it almost draws you in.... It looks so soothing and comforting, and yet so deliciously self-destructive at the same time....a masochistic pleasure...a sireeen....

My parents are both dead now, and will never know my children. Mom died of lung cancer - heart-shattering, and ugly....

.....and Dad of a massive stroke.

Lights on, nobody home. Imagine that moment, for one moment.

I still have my father's collection of elegant lighters from the 60s, although they are just for decoration and posterity now.

I never started smoking, because I knew, just by looking at it, that once I did, I would not be able to stop.

I would be a member of that exquisitely tortured club - an absolute prisoner.

Smoking looks so seductive to me. I've decided that, once I hit the age of 70-ish, or so, I'm going to go ahead and take it up.

What the hell.

I'll sit on my porch in my muumuus and ankle sox, and cackle at the kids going by.

And smoke.........

Men's Clothing

I was pleasd last season more of the male characters wore sheer nylon thick 'n thin socks which were very popular in the 50's thru the 70's. The first season it seemed only Roger and Pete were shown wearing them. It was also a possiblity Don might have worn them on episodes I missed or couldn't tell what kind of socks he was wearing. Also Roger was shown a couple of times wearing sock garters which would also have been very accurate for the time frame for the show. I'm also amazed how much attention to detail is shown in the women's clothing as well as the men's outer clothing but again in the shows time frame most men wore sleevelss athletic undershirts like Ken wears instead of the t-shirts all the other men tend to be wearing under their dress shirts. I konw these are small points for accuracy but are still important to getting the clothing as accurate as possible. I look forward to the upcoming 3rd season hoping we will continue to see more of the men wearing the sheer ribbed thick 'n thin dress socks and garters as well as the correct type of undershirts showing under their dress shirts. I'd be interested to know if others have these same opinions.

Don's drowning...

Check out the promotional posters for Season 3!
http://spoilertv.blogspot.com/2009/07/mad-men-season-3-promotional-photos.html

Falling Man and Mad Men

This is another topic that has been bugging me. It's dark, which is why I didn't bring it up sooner, but can't seem to let it go.....

What sayeth ye?

http://mediacommons.futureofthebook.org/imr/2009/04/14/falling-man-and-mad-men-154

Oh, the dramz.....the dramz.....

http://www.deadlinehollywooddaily.com/lions-gate-to-put-mark-rachesky-on-board-what-does-this-mean-for-icahn/

You think YOU have problems.

Yeah, he does.

janeeyre posted a great thread about Donald Draper. She queried "does he get away with too much?"

I hit a bitter streak just now, and the words of "Jimmy Barrett" just won't go away.....

"You're garbage, and you know it."

I'll just wallow in that, while you tawk amongst y'selves.

The New York Times Link

Hi all,
For some reason, the link to the Times' Mad Men marketing story did not post. Here it is:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/10/business/media/10adco.html

From the NYT: Marketers are Going "Mad"

Hi Maddicts,
Yesterday's New York Times featured a story: on the promotion blitz for Season Three. Companies such as Banana Republic, Clorox and the magazines Vanity Fair and Variety are partnering on some fun-sounding campaigns. My August Vanity Fair contains an insert featuring the cast of MM. Store visitors can receive a MM Style Guide (like we don't know it already!) and can enter a drawing to be a walk-on. Check it out!

While we're on the subject, what other marketers would you recommend to join the MM promotion bandwagon, and why? Let's steer clear of the obvious (alcohol, cigarettes, firearms, apparel, cosmetics, etc.) and get creative. How about a campaign for Trojans, with the slogan "One Pete is enough."

Next?

The house again.....

Today, kathiemarie posted something way back there about the house, and I realized it's been bugging me, and I'd like to bring it up just one more time before the new season.

Betty's Confession

I just rewatched Episode 13 S2 last night and realized that Betty really wanted to throw her infidelity in Don's face when she turned from the sink and told him she needed to talk to him. He turns off the radio, gives her, his full attention, they sit at the kitchen table, and Betty says there's something she needs to tell him. She chickened out (no pun intended) and reverted back to being Don's wife right then and there. She relenquished control of the marriage which she had been enjoying for several weeks with that lump in her throat and a resigned, "I'm pregnant." Betty fans do not despair, however, she's had a taste of power, and she likes it. Betty may become Don in Weiner's world of change!

Who the heck is Mitch?

I was watching some S1 episodes last night and all the guys were talking about Mitch's wife and how good looking she is. Then I remembered a number of times that Mitch was mentioned in other episodes, most notably when Harry gets his position as head of television he mentions something about Mitch not being happy. Does anyone know who the heck Mitch is??? There was a guy in episode 1 who never seemed to return... I wonder if that was Mitch. Thoughts???

Old School

Ok gang I'm hoping this works. I tried to post up 3 links and sometimes they show and sometimes they don't. So Whatever.

Anyway, the point is this: I'm a huge Joan Crawford fan, mmm love the Joan, and I stumbled across a youtube deal I think you folks would like. Be a fan or a non-fan of the Joan is ok, I'm talking about an obscure tv thing. I'm trying to post the link, it's Lucielle Ball and Joan Crawford together. I think that's cool.

If ofcourse it all shows up and the links work..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CGa4M0zmOLI&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PAjLqm5QWIk&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OsntZtKixtM&feature=related

only 40 days

Only 40 more days until the new season begins!!!

Don Draper and Helen Bishop Having an Affair?

Dry Manhatten placed a link on a Mad Men story written by Linsey King. Here is what she says:
When Helen first meets Don at the Draper house party, the two of them never acknowledge each other overtly, even when standing side by side. He's outside, standing by the playhouse, in an exceptionally dour mood. Helen sees him, comes out and addresses him without looking at him: "Interesting crowd in there," she smirks. Don shrugs, without looking over. They both stand a few feet apart looking straight ahead. Betty sees them outside side-by-side and asks Don to go pick up the cake. Don says nothing, but walks right in front of Helen without any acknowledgment, and with a look so blank you could swear he's a pod person.
It caught my eye on first viewing and on my second viewing I Tivo'd back and forth a few times to get a better look. Something is definitely going on. It was a calculated avoidance that was written into the script. OK, I thought, it's the typical avoidance ploy when people are attracted and later hook up.
Cut to the second time Helen interacts (or rather does not interact) with Don. Helen is sitting in the Draper living room talking with Betty. We hear the front door latch. Cut to Helen, sitting up straighter and turning to the door expectantly, with a perky smile lighting her face. Enter Don, who once again does not acknowledge Helen in even the most cursory manner. Then adopting yet again that over-the-top blank expression, walks silently up the stairs.
Hey, if they avoid each other any more, she'll be having his baby!
But wait: I am leaving out a third quasi-encounter: At the house party, Don has the movie camera and almost gleefully captures Helen as Carlton is putting the moves on her. When she sees Don filming, she waves and laughs broadly at him, as if they are the very best of friends. Huh?
Which leads me back to why did Helen move to Ossining? Could it be that Don (Dick) and Helen already know each other? We shall see what we shall see. Lindsey King

Could Glenn Bishop be Don Draper Jr.? Great find Dry!

Hot Rods!

So! Anyone think Don will take up building hot rods in S3? His interest in what the guys in CA were doing was more than just nostalgia over having sold them in the past. So could our white collar guy start having some blue collar fun? Would that cause tensions among the socialites in his future? You know - behaving "improperly" among the golf set... showing up at the country club with grease under his fingernails... that just got me thinking... Don it seems has made a decision to embrace his reality, instead of trying to invent a new one (like he would with each woman "Let's get married" to the beatnik, running off with Rachael, etc). Now what if he's pushed too hard into this country club set? I think that could seriously push him over the edge and back to his escapist ways. But maybe something like tinkering with hot rods would be his escapism.

Could anyone picture Pete, Roger or Burt actually doing such dirty manual labor? I wonder how that would go over with Betty who likes all the towels to be just so and probably likes moving towards the country club set, although I suspect she's not as shallow as some of them, and has her own rogue ways (pigeon, anyone?) as well. Any thoughts on all this? Also, if he got into building hot roads, any speculation on the style of his work or what sorts of mods he'd do?

Happy Fourth of July, Maddicts

Well, it is raining all over the Fourth of July festivities where I am. Probably no fireworks tonight. What a bummer. I even have on a new red, white, and blue T-shirt, too, and will have to put it away 'til next year. Rain, rain, rain. Yesterday was absolutely gorgeous, and I bet tomorrow will be, too. Oh, well, this is not the first rainy 4th I have experienced. At least I have not stepped with a bare foot on any hot sparkler wires. Did that often enough as a kid.

Let's have some memories of celebrating the 4th back when you were kids, Maddicts. Did you have those things called snakes, that you put on the sidewalk and lit? The ones that just curled up into smoky black rings? Were you allowed sparklers? I always loved those the best. Firecrackers and cherry bombs? Those were the favorites of my brothers.

I miss my grandma's cherry pies and potato salad. I can make pretty good potato salad but not as good as hers. Ice cold lemonade and ice tea - jugs set in big metal tubs full of ice. Homemade ice cream in those machines that had to be cranked by hand. Helping my mom spread old tablecloths on the picnic tables at the lake park. We always took our picnics down to the lake. We would have a grill going with hot dogs and hamburgers cooking. Somebody would always bring the baked beans. We kids would run wild until it was dusk, and we could light our sparklers. Then we would all sit on the blankets on the ground and watch the fireworks set off over the lake by the various clubs. Then home in the backseat of the somebody's car, usually hot and tired with mosquito bites. Sometimes, if we weren't too sleepy when we got home, we would get to sit out on the front steps in the dark with a popcicle. My brothers would always save a firecracker or two or a cherry bomb. One last loud blast before we hit the hay.

Season 2 DVD

The details for the Season 2 DVD, including who's doing the audio commentaries ---

http://dvdtimes.co.uk/content/id/71009/mad-men-season-2-r2uk-bd-in-july.html

FUN THREAD FROM LONG AGO...GOOD READING TO PASS SOME TIME TIL AUG.

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