Mad Men
In 2000, Matthew Weiner wrote the first draft of a pilot script for what would become Mad Men while working as a staff writer on Becker. David Chase read that script in 2002 and recruited Weiner to work on The Sopranos. Chase called the writing lively and noted it had something new to say about advertising in the 1960s. Weiner and his representatives at Industry Entertainment and ICM tried to sell the pilot to HBO, which expressed interest but insisted that Chase be executive producer. Chase declined despite his enthusiasm for the material. HBO CEO Richard Plepler later became a fan of the show and congratulated AMC on their success with it. In 2017 he named passing on Mad Men as his biggest regret from his time at HBO, calling it inexcusable and attributing the decision to hubris. Weiner then moved on to Showtime, which also passed. Lacking a suitable network buyer, they tabled sales efforts until years later when Ira Liss pitched the series to Christina Wayne, vice president of development at AMC. Ed Carroll, president of AMC Networks, said the network was looking for distinction in launching its first original series. They took a bet that quality would win out over formulaic mass appeal. Although Mad Men has been called AMC's first original series, it was preceded by Remember WENN, which ran from 1996 to 1998.
The pilot episode began filming on the 20th of April 2006, and was shot at Silvercup Studios in New York City and various locations around the city. Subsequent episodes were filmed at Los Angeles Center Studios. The writers amassed volumes of research on Mad Mens time period to make aspects like set design, costume design, and props historically accurate. Each episode had a budget between US$2, 2.5 million, with the pilot costing over $3 million. Weiner collaborated with cinematographer Phil Abraham and production designers Robert Shaw and Dan Bishop to develop a visual style influenced more by cinema than television. Alan Taylor directed the pilot and helped establish the series's visual tone. To cast an air of mystery around Don Draper, Taylor tended to shoot from behind him or frame him partially obscured. Many scenes set at Sterling Cooper were shot lower-than-eyeline to incorporate ceilings into the composition, reflecting photography and architecture of the period. Taylor felt neither steadicam nor handheld camera work would be appropriate to the visual grammar of that time. Accordingly, sets were designed to be practical for dolly work. On scenes featuring smoking, Weiner said doing this show without smoking would have been a joke. It would have been sanitary and phony.
Don Draper is a hard-drinking, chain-smoking executive who has achieved success in advertising while keeping his true identity hidden. It is revealed early in the series that Draper's real name is Richard Whitman. During the Korean War, Whitman assumed the identity of his CO, Lieutenant Don Draper, who was killed during an ambush. He married Betty Draper, with whom he had three children: Sally, Bobby, and Gene. He kept many things hidden from Betty, including his extensive history of adultery. As the series progresses, his highly calculated identity falls into a period of decline. Tim Goodman considers identity to be the shows leitmotiv, calling Don Draper a man who has been living a lie for a long time. He built himself to be a loner. Over the course of three seasons we watched him carry this existential angst through a fairy-tale life of his own creation. The agency of Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce is in the business of spinning them or at least warping the truth to sell product. Just like one of his campaigns, his whole identity is a sweet fabrication, a kind of candy floss spun out of opportunity, innuendo, and straight-up falsehood.
The show presents a workplace culture where it is frequently assumed that female employees are sexually available for their male bosses. Jokes about the desirability of ones wife dying are told by husbands in front of their own wives. Most of the main characters have cheated on their wives. Peggy Olson rises from being Dons secretary to being a copywriter with her own office. Marie Wilson wrote that it is difficult and painful to see the ways women and men dealt with each other and with power. It is painful because this behavior is not as far back in our past as we would like to think. Our daughters continually get the messages that power still comes through powerful men. Being pretty is still a quality that can get you on the ladder though it still wont take you to the top. The Los Angeles Times said the sexism was almost suffocating and not in the least fun to watch. But it is the force against which the most compelling female characters struggle. The interaction with everyday misogyny and condescension gives the characters purpose and shape. In 2013, President Obama said Peggy Olson gave him insight into how his strong-willed grandmother dealt with life in a mans world.
Mad Men received critical acclaim throughout its run and is generally included on critics lists of the greatest television shows of all time. The American Film Institute selected it as one of the top ten television programs in each year it aired: 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014, and was singled out for the Special Award in 2015. It was named the best television show of 2007 by the Television Critics Association and several national publications including the Chicago Tribune, The New York Times, Time, and TV Guide. Mad Men won many awards including 16 Emmys and 5 Golden Globes. It was also the first basic cable series to receive the Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series, winning it each year of its first four seasons from 2008 to 2011. On Metacritic, the first season scored 77/100; the second season scored 88/100; the third season scored 87/100; the fourth season scored 92/100; the fifth season scored 89/100; the sixth season scored 88/100; the seventh season part one scored 85/100; and the seventh season part two scored 83/100. In 2019, The Guardian ranked the show 3rd on its list of the 100 best TV shows of the 21st century.
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Common questions
Who wrote the pilot script for Mad Men in 2000?
Matthew Weiner wrote the first draft of a pilot script for Mad Men while working as a staff writer on Becker. David Chase read that script in 2002 and recruited Weiner to work on The Sopranos.
When did filming begin for the Mad Men pilot episode?
The pilot episode began filming on the 20th of April 2006 at Silvercup Studios in New York City. Subsequent episodes were filmed at Los Angeles Center Studios.
What is the real name of Don Draper in Mad Men?
It is revealed early in the series that Don Draper's real name is Richard Whitman. During the Korean War, Whitman assumed the identity of his CO Lieutenant Don Draper who was killed during an ambush.
How many Emmy Awards did Mad Men win overall?
Mad Men won many awards including 16 Emmys and 5 Golden Globes. It was also the first basic cable series to receive the Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series winning it each year from 2008 to 2011.
Which network originally passed on buying Mad Men before AMC picked it up?
HBO expressed interest but insisted that David Chase be executive producer which Chase declined despite his enthusiasm for the material. HBO CEO Richard Plepler later named passing on Mad Men as his biggest regret from his time at HBO.