From my el jay of February 11:


Another interesting coincidence hit me when I started watching the second season a few days later.

From my el jay of Feb. 14:

Finally saw the Mad Men 3rd Season premier, which iTunes kinda screwed up for me (thanks for the work-around, Isaac).


I'm really impressed with two things they did in handling the budding gay issue of their closeted homo regular, Salvatore.

The first is the clever way they shot the start of him getting it on with the bellboy in an out-of-town hotel. The bellhop was in Sal's room fixing the A/C, and Salvatore takes out his billfold and flips through it looking for tip money.

The very tight shot is from Sal's point of view, looking down at his own hands and the money he's counting out. The bellboy's feet come into the shot, and you instantly know Sal realizes this boy has come into his physical space in a way that no straight man ever would.


Beyond being a really neat way to communicate the gay come-on, it struck me because of an incident I had a few years back. I was in Gelson's and saw these two young men shopping together. They could easily have been roommates, and not lovers. There was no hugging, no touching, they didn't look really gay or anything like that. But they kept getting in each other's space in a way that, even 38 years after Mad Men, no American straight male would do.

It was right then, watching these two boys be domestic together, that I realized I wanted a boyfriend and not a continuation of the string of fucbuddies and on-the-sides I'd gay dabbled with my entire life.

Had my first boyfriend a month or two later. And, though it didn't work out how I'd have liked, he's finally moved in with me. :D



Ok, the second thing I liked about the Gay on the Mad Men episode:

So, of course, Salvatore - who's always been too paranoid to act on his gay impulses lest he be caught ... get's spotted by the show's lead character, his superior at the agency, Don Draper - - as he's coming down the fire escape during the hotel fire that caused Sal's disappointing homo-interruptus, and spots Salvatore with the bellhop coming out of the bathroom in a state of improper undress.

Naturally, Sal's a little freaked. It's his greatest fear that if he's found out as a gay, his career will come to a crashing end. On the plane back to New York, he and Don are uncomfortably silent. Suddenly, Don turns to Sal and says with all seriousness, "I'm going to ask you something, and I want you to answer with complete honesty."

Sal gulps, and nods. And Don, after a pause, asks what he thinks of the advertising concept he's concocted for the client they were visiting in Baltimore.

It was such a smooth (and not uncomical) way for Don to communicate to Sal that he doesn't give a damn about him being gay, and he's not going to speak a word about it to anyone ... not even among themselves.

That was a really nice thing for Don to do, handled very expertly. Of course, on the same trip he also shacked up with a stewardess, cheating on his wife for the 83rd time after they just got back together from an adultery-motived separation (and while she's pregnant with their 3rd child).

Don's a complex character. Fuktard and Swell Guy.

I really like this show. The opener was better than many a 2nd season episode. So I'm re-hooked. And now, the addition of The Gay! WIN.

Though he's also telling Sal to keep it to himself. The new slogan is "limit your exposure." The exec producer has confirmed it was Don's way of saying Sal should avoid being publicly "out."

Telling Sal to avoid being publicly out is like telling me to like Disneyland. Pulease. I call shenanigans.

Though I don't doubt Don was trying to convey that as well.

If anyone has visited the official Mad Men site's "Mad Men Yourself" page, and liked the swank Shagesque artwork, here's a link to the artist's work.

Here's one she did of one of our favorite scenes from season 1:

Just wrapped up season one tonight - I'll probably pick up season two before the week is out - so delightful, dark, and nostalgic

I saw her stuff last season, and I was really impressed with her work. I've never seen an online campaign team actually tap a fan with an existing meme to help create something for official use. So as soon as I saw Mad Men Yourself, I knew I'd be using it as an example for clients, to show just how effective a talented fan with a meme can be.

We have one more Season 2 episode to watch; then we have all the Season 3 eps that have aired so far on the DVR.

I'm not really impressed with Season 3 so far. I'll watch the rest of it, but if it turns out as bleh as Season 2, I'm done with this once-promising show.

Last night's episode was grueling. OMG, American childbirth in 1962. No wonder I'm so fuctup.

Personally, I'm loving the show for its nostalgia factor (we're playing spaceman!), the writing is really good, but I keep getting plot lines mixed up with 30 Something. Where IS Miles Drentell?