Article first published as Don Draper – Master Of Creative Deception on Blogcritics My accounts are bigger than yours. If you can’t outspend them, fool them. In the last episode, Pete Campbell’s maneuvers with his father-in-law turned a potentially devastating loss of Clearasil (due to a rather loosely defined conflict with Pond’s) into a full-blown big win for more of the company’s business. A $6 million dollar account that would strengthen Pete’s partnership role at Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce and also set him and Roger [read more]
Article first published as Mad Men: Let’s Party Like It’s 1965! on Blogcritics. Don Drinks (A Lot). Pete Pulls A Six Million Dollar Rabbit Out Of The Hat. 1965 was off to an eventful start for SCDP and episode four is chock full of the drama, tensions, and challenges prevalent at that time. Coincidentally, this particular episode takes place in February 1965, the very month that I started my first job at Benton & Bowles. Fortunately for me, the most drama and excitement that I [read more]
1965: A year of kinder, gentler Mad Men? Article first published as Mad Men 1964: A Magnificent Year on Blogcritics. SCDP celebrated its first Christmas with a mix of holiday cheer and consternation. A veteran creative returned with a new client attached, business was okay but not great, finances were tight, and the agency’s marquee talent, Don Draper, was struggling with self-doubt and drinking a bit too much, even for Don. Everyone was looking forward to the start of a new year, some big creative [read more]
SCDP’s Christmas Potpourri: A 2 Million Dollar Gift. A Party Dilemma. A Troubled Don Draper. Article first published as Mad Men Christmas: Reality Bites on Blogcritics. The first episode of season four gave us a glimpse into the beginnings of a new advertising agency with a familiar cast of characters and a few new faces. Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce seems to be off to an acceptable but not spectacular debut. While starting a new ad agency might have been relatively easy, building a successful, enduring [read more]
(Article first published as Starting An Ad Agency the Mad Men Way on Blogcritics.) Don Draper, Creative Director, Steps Out Front And Center Season four of Mad Men is off to a great start with the birth of a new Ad Agency. Episode 1, “Public Relations” provides a glimpse into some of the challenges and drama that were part of starting these new ventures in the Mad Men era. In looking at the show I have to remind myself that Mad Men is not a [read more]
AMC’s Mad Men has captured our attention and struck a responsive chord with millions of viewers. The Madison Avenue lifestyle of the ’60′s is front and center. The style and lifestyle of what was viewed as a exciting and glamorous business. I was interviewed recently by Kenya McCullum for an Examiner.com piece about the show. The Season 3 finale had just aired and Examiner was closing out its coverage of the season with a look ahead. Not at the next season. Today. Kenya is a [read more]
