Have you been following Don Draper, Peggy Olson, and all the other Mad Men characters on Twitter?
Now there's a place where you can follow more than 60 characters in one place: Mad Men on Twitter!
Keep up with Don, Betty, Peggy, Pete, Roger, and Joan... plus an array of other memorable characters, including Guy Missing Foot, The Ant Farm, and Gene's Ghost.
I haven't watched The Simpsons in years, which is why this slipped past me last Halloween. For those of you who missed the 2008 "Treehouse of Horror" episode, it featured this brilliant spoof of the Mad Men opening sequence. Enjoy!
MAD MEN PLAYLISTS ADDED TO iTUNES
OCTOBER 28, 2009
The makers of Mad Men have collaborated on a series of special playlists for iTunes. Each playlist is inspired by one of the following characters: Betty Draper, Don Draper, Salvatore Romano, Roger Sterling, Joan Harris, Peggy Olson and Pete Campbell.
The choices are great, with Mad Men-era artists like Ella Fitzgerald, Smokey Robinson, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr. and the Platters. Of course, Sal's playlist also features Liberace, which is a cute touch. You can start downloading Mad Men playlists on iTunes today!
The period details that make Mad Men such a rich snapshot of the early 1960s aren't limited to the fashions, politics, vices, and social movements of the era. There's just as much (and even more) veracity to be found in the smallest details of the sets themselves – from the typewriters and candy bars to Don Draper's hat rack and Pete Campbell's record player.
Check out this multimedia tour of the minute decorative details of the Sterling Cooper offices, and get a sense of just how much work production designer Dan Bishop and set dresser Amy Wells have put into fully realizing the world the Mad Men inhabit:
Last night's episode of Mad Men was intense, to say the least. Now that Don has dropped his guard to Betty, what will become of their relationship? We have posted a full recap of "The Gypsy and the Hobo" here if you think you missed anything.
Halloween is almost here, Mad Men fans. Hopefully, you have been consulting our Mad Men Halloween Costume Guide for tips on how to have a fun, retro holiday! Speaking of vintage Halloween parties, does anyone remember this SNL skit from last year, featuring Jon Hamm?
Enjoy!
GOT A QUESTION FOR MATTHEW WEINER?
OCTOBER 21, 2009
Mad Men creator Matthew Weiner will be participating in a special Q&A during the Austin Film Festival tomorrow. This event will be covered by a writer at USA Today's Pop Candy, who is asking the public to send in questions to ask Weiner.
If you have a burning question you'd like to ask the head Mad Man, then email popcandy@usatoday.com -OR- reply to @popcandy on Twitter. Be sure to send it in no later than tomorrow, October 22 at noon ET.
Oh, and if you happen to be in the Austin area tomorrow, perhaps you will want to see the special event in person! Here are the details:
What: "Matthew Weiner Presents ... Mad Men" Description: Weiner screens one of his all-time favorite Mad Men eps! An interview will follow. When: Thursday, Oct. 22 at 6:15 p.m. Where: Alamo Drafthouse (The Ritz), 320 E. 6th St.
Bryan Batt recently talked to New York Magazine about the future of his Mad Men character, Sal. As we all know, a recent shocking episode saw Sal being fired from Sterling Cooper after he spurns the advances of an important client. Read what he has to say about Sal's fate:
This was a big week for Sal. What was your reaction when you read the script for the first time?
I was in shock. I really was in shock, but very quickly, Matt Weiner said to me, "This isn't The Sopranos. You are not whacked in the trunk of a car." I'm not dead, but to tell you the truth, I don't know what's going to happen.
Is he coming back to Sterling Cooper?
We have no idea. I know, isn't it scary? He could. There's a multitude of ways he could. And given Matt's brilliant mind, I mean, come on. I'm just wishing and hoping. But I love that episode. That was a great episode to be in. That script was genius. People ask me if Sal is coming back, and I honestly don't know.
A lot of people want Sal back.
Keep those cards and letters coming. Start that Facebook group! There's a million ways that he can come back, especially if time passes. Don does respect his talent. He is innocent. He did nothing wrong. Of course I would love to come back. It's a heavenly place to work. That last scene between Don and Sal was so telling.
Heartbreaking. Look what it said about Don. A lot of people were like, "Oh my God, Don." Even through his philandering and everything, they want to love Don. It was like a sucker punch.
If this were a Friends episode, it would be called "The One Where Betty Found the Box." Enjoy our full recap here and be sure to tell us what you thought about the episode here.
Behold, the special-edition Mad Men suit we mentioned last week, available exclusively from Brooks Brothers. This is the final product and only 250 will be available to the public.
You can purchase this gray, sharkskin beauty on October 19. Brooks Brothers claims the suits will be available throughout the rest of the show's season, though I assume they may sell out before the November 8 finale.
It's time to start putting together your Halloween costume, and what better way to turn all the makeup-laden heads at the big party than to arrive in full Mad Men style? Imagine sauntering into the room as a suave Don Draper or swaying into the party as a voluptuous Joan Holloway. Better still: get a large group together and hit the town as the whole Sterling Cooper gang! Not only will you be the best-dressed revelers at the party, you also get to pull it off without all the fake blood and gore!*
January Jones is on the cover of November's GQ. I actually had to trim down the above image, as it might be a tad unsafe for work viewing. Depends on where you work, I suppose. The pictorial is very sexy and the interview is hilarious. Apparently, she used to date Ashton Kutcher. This is what she says about him:
“The guy I was dating when I first got to L.A. was not supportive of my acting,” she says. “He was like, I don’t think you’re going to be good at this. So—f*** you! He only has nice things to say now—if anything, I should thank him. Because the minute you tell me I can’t do something, that’s when I’m most motivated.”
For the whole article, visit GQ here or pick up the issue on newsstands!
OCTOBER 12, 2009 Mad Men's Christina Hendricks was wed yesterday in New York City. She married actor Geoffrey Arend at Il Buco, an Italian / Spanish restaurant. Fun fact: actor Vincent Kartheiser, who plays Pete, introduced Christina to her now-husband earlier this year.
Want to look like Don Draper when you stroll into the office? It might not be kosher to drink and smoke at your 9-to-5, but a sharp suit will always be in style. Mad Men's Emmy-winning costume director, Janie Bryant, is teaming up with Brooks Brothers to create a special Mad Men edition suit. The suit's design will be inspired by the stylish lotharios of Sterling Cooper, of course.
Brooksbrothers.com will start selling the Mad Men suit on October 19 and don't delay if you're interested in grabbing one. This is a very limited run -- only 250 will be made in total! Depending on the price tag, they might not last very long.
Big thanks to #1HotchFan, who told me about Jon Hamm's appearance this week on Late Show with David Letterman. He will be the first guest on Friday, October 9. So, set your DVRs to Letterman on CBS at 11:35pm ET/PT.
Hmm… do you think they will discuss the various romantic indiscretions on Mad Men? Might be a touchy subject right now for Dave!
The producers of Mad Men have gone to great lengths to place the fictional firm of Sterling Cooper in a very real 1960s Manhattan. That includes providing Sterling Cooper with a real-world location: 405 Madison Avenue.
(The address itself is fictional: on Madison Avenue between 47th and 48th streets there are only two buildings, which have the addresses of 400 and 401 Madison.)
A Google Maps view of this location today:
Ever-vigilant over the details, the producers have also made sure that the characters of Mad Men frequent the bars and restaurants in this area; Don even mentions to Roger in Season 2 that he's staying at The Roosevelt (which does happen to be the nearest hotel, just 2 blocks away).
Betty's current pet project is also no work of fiction: the Pleasantville Road Reservoir in Ossining, New York, is quite real:
Minor spoiler: One look and you can see that the large reservoir was indeed drained and water towers put up... so sooner or later, Betty's going to lose her battle with City Hall.
This week, Don Draper was voted "Most Influential Man of 2009" by AskMen.com. This is great publicity for the show and goodness knows I love watching this fascinating character, but this might be an alarming statement about the type of guy who reads AskMen.com.
After all, Draper is a man with serious psychological issues. Yes, he's smooth with the ladies and he is a damn good ad man, but should he really influence any man's way of life? I mean, he's not even really Don Draper!
Let's put things in perspective here: Barack Obama, leader of the free world, came in third. Third!
“In a turbulent 2009, men are seeking the stability of tradition in the masculine qualities that they imagine their fathers and grandfathers to have had,” James Bassil, Editor-in-Chief of AskMen.com said. “The character of Don Draper brings all these traits together."
Hey, he's masculine, all right. Did you see his guide to picking up women?
10 INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT CONRAD HILTON
OCTOBER 5, 2009
Conrad Hilton has become an important part of season three and, despite being the great-grandfather of Paris Hilton, the guy seems to be a real class act on the show. But what was the real "Connie" like? Below are 10 interesting facts about the legendary hotel magnate.
He was born in 1887 and was one of eight siblings.
He served as a Second Lietenant in World War I, although he didn't see much combat.
His hotel business started small in 1919, when he bought the Mobley Hotel in Cisco, Texas. Cisco, incidentally, had a population of 3,851 as of the 2000 census.
In 1925, he built his first high-rise hotel, the Dallas Hilton.
After buying up many hotels, he went bankrupt during the Great Depression, only to make a comeback in the 1950s and '60s.
His firstborn son, Conrad Hilton, Jr., was Elizabeth Taylor's first husband.
He was married three times. His second wife was Zsa Zsa Gabor, though that was in the '40s, so don't expect her to show up in Mad Men!
Just like Peggy said, he had a book. His autobiography, Be My Guest, was published in 1957. A copy of this book is placed in every Hilton Hotel room in the world.
He died of natural causes in 1979 at the age of 91.
Only one of his four children were included in his will. His daughter Francesca received $10,000 and the bulk of his estate was left to the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation. His son, Barron, later contested the will and won a renegotiation.
Halfway through Season 3, Mad Men has already reached the summer of 1963 – echoes of the Eisenhower era are dying fast, the Kennedy years are down to their last few months, and the cultural and political upheaval of the mid-1960s lurks around every corner.
And Mad Men's Masters of Allusion seem not to be holding back when it comes to layering on the symbolism and foreshadowing of what's to come. Just within the last 3 or 4 episodes, we've seen a serious increase in the the use of metaphor, in some cases with all the sublety of a sledgehammer:
The blood splatters It's been pointed out that the mincing of Guy's foot may foreshadow the impending JFK assassination, though I wonder if the bloody mutilation of a young man with a bright future (and the gore spraying all over the clean white shirts of his colleagues) is more of an allusion to the looming violence and horrors of Vietnam, which at this point the young men and women of Sterling Cooper can scarcely begin to imagine...
Joan's dress Now this seems more representative of President Kennedy's death, with Joan's blood-stained green dress standing in for the now-iconic pink ensemble that Jackie wore on November 22, 1963. And in many ways, Joan's heroic actions at the moment of crisis also mirror those of the First Lady.
The ant farm A jai alai mishap shatters one of the office's most memorable fixtures and pointed metaphors. The iconic microcosm of an efficient and orderly (and, I'm sure Moneypenny would remark, supremely gynocratic) society is permanently disrupted. And for good measure, Joan has to go in and gas the survivors. Hard not to see this as a blatant representation of the short-term outlook for the Establishment (and with it, Madison Avenue).
The eclipse "Staring at the sun" — an oblique allusion to Icarus? Have the characters all become so focused on their own obsessions that they're blinded to the inevitable catastrophe that awaits them if they don't change course? Don and his almost pathological resistance to being under contract, the unsettling crescendo of Peggy's "liberation," Joan's unshakable pride, Roger's blinders regarding his young new bride, Pete's eternal dissatisfaction, and Betty's... well, Betty.
The snake When Harold and Saint John from PPL give Lane a box with a mysterious "token of appreciation" inside, you can almost hear the time bomb ticking. And even though the embalmed reptile lurking inside doesn't literally leap out at him, you very quickly get the sense that what you're witnessing is a classical, almost biblical, method of assassination. As Lane aptly remarks later, "I feel like I just attended my own funeral." And just in case the point isn't quite hammered home, Don throws in a dead-snake metaphor for Connie later on.
The fainting couch Was Betty so taken by the story of how Victorian women needed a place to collapse, or was it just that someone (an attentive gentleman, no less) took the time to remark that it was something she needed? In any case, the symbolism of her placing her bulky, gaudy impulse buy smack over the hearth (both literally and figuratively) of her recently redecorated home is considerably less than subtle.
What other instances of foreshadowing have you detected? Add a comment and let us know!
While Betty Draper gets into politics on Mad Men, so has the actress who plays her. January Jones headed to Washington this week to lobby for the Shark Conservation Act of 2009. Jones is a big ocean advocate and celebrity spokesperson for Oceana.
“We should be scared for sharks, not of them," says January Jones. "The survival of sharks and the health of our oceans depend on it.”
The Shark Conservation Act was first introduced by Senator John Kerry in April. It would outlaw shark finning, which is the act of cutting off a shark's fin while it's still in the ocean. After a shark is finned, the body is discarded in the water and often still alive. The Act would require that all sharks be brought to land whole.
That's right, Don Draper has been reinvented as a felt muppet. It's clips like these that make parenting so much easier when you're up too early, coffee cup in hand, watching Sesame Street with the kids.
AMY_C
Grasshopper
The Platters
Psycho
GREEN-ARROW
Bourbon on the Rocks
Dean Martin
Dr. Strangelove
EGUY
Brandy Alexander
Sam Cooke
To Kill a Mockingbird
ALEXBERG
Gin & Tonic
Frank Sinatra
Goldfinger
MDASHES
Manhattan
The Kinks
Vertigo
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Mad Men creator Matthew Weiner will be participating in a special Q&A during the Austin Film Festival tomorrow. This event will be covered by a writer at USA Today's 
Bryan Batt recently talked to New York Magazine about the future of his Mad Men character, Sal. As we all know, a recent shocking episode saw Sal being fired from Sterling Cooper after he spurns the advances of an important client. Read what he has to say about Sal's fate: 
OCTOBER 15, 2009
Big thanks to 
This week, Don Draper was voted "
Conrad Hilton has become an important part of season three and, despite being the great-grandfather of Paris Hilton, the guy seems to be a real class act on the show. But what was the real "Connie" like? Below are 10 interesting facts about the legendary hotel magnate. 
