Three things I didn’t know:
1. Season One:
EARLY in Season 1 of the AMC series “Mad Men,” Don Draper, the mysterious advertising executive at the core of the show, was seen at home emptying can after can of Fielding beer. Bloggers afflicted with the fact-checking gene quickly noted that there was no Fielding beer in the United States at the time.
“That was a huge mistake,” said Gay Perello, the show’s prop master since the second season. “I hated that label. Hated it.”
2. Season Two:
Occasionally, expediency dictates a decision. When an accounts executive was sent a case of gin by some British colleagues last season, Ms. Perello chose Tanqueray, though Beefeater then dominated the London dry gin market in the United States. “Tanqueray has not changed their bottle,” she explained. “With Beefeater, the bottles are completely different than they were. And I needed 12 bottles.”
3. Season Three:
EW caught the presence of the compact Oxford English Dictionary, first published in 1971.
27 Responses to “Some goofs we didn't catch”
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Hey Deborah…It's not a Mad Men goof…but since you're a James Bond fan, I thought I'd throw in this mistake from 2006's "Casino Royale" (which, I'm guessing you may have already known about, but here it is anyway):
In "Casino Royale" Bond orders a drink containing "three measures of Gordon's; one of vodka; half a measure of Kina Lillet. Shake it over ice, and add a thin slice of lemon peel."
This is taken from the 1953 novel. However, according to Wikipedia: "Because Kina Lillet has not been available since the 1960s (the name was changed to "Lillet Blanc", in the 1980s the quantity of quinine in the product was reduced, removing its bitter aftertaste), its mention in the recipe in the movies is anachronistic."
Matt, thanks! My thoughts are: (a) Not a goof, but a purposeful nod to the novel, a bit of nostalgia that is not realistic but doesn't have to be, being as it's a James Bond movie.
(b) For JB info, feel free to comment at my JB blog: http://blog.jamesbondfanbook.com
At least when it's a prop, the Mad Men Anachronism Apologists don't swoop in with a tortured, convuloted, pretzel-logic "reason" The God Matt has made No Mistake.
And thanks to Jared Price for that tongue-in-cheek, all-purpose response to pretzel-logic Anachronism Apologists, that the situation was created by a "nervous young man named McFly."
They put in so damn much effort getting 99.9% of all the objects accurate, that I'm more than happy to accept the occasional oddity. At least you know they care.
In The Mountain King, the second to last episode of season 2, there's a prop anachronism in Anna Draper's house. Don takes Meditations in an Emergency by Frank O'Hara off Anna's shelf, and if you play the scene in slow motion, you can read the other titles on the shelf. (Yes, I know, I'm obsessed.)
Anyway, along with an edition of Sherlock Holmes, there's a book by Scott Turow entitled "Law of Our Fathers," a novel that was not written until 1996!
Let me rationalize a bit on behalf of the show's writers…ha!
My only guess is that the novel resonates with the theme of the second season. (There are flashbacks to the 60s in the novel.) Turow's book has an epigraph written by one of the novel's characters, Michael Frain. Could describe the series. Here's the book's epigraph:
"Those of us born in the years of bounty after World War II knew we had a different outlook than earlier generations of Americans. Blinkered by need, they had come of age with narrower commitments–to the glory of God, the glee of acquisition, or the mean little business of survival. But we took seriously the promise of the Declaration of Independence that the birthright of America was not merely life or liberty, but the pursuit of happiness. Personally as a child, I always assumed that was the point of growing up. So I'd feel better than I did then. Which leaves us with the awful doomed inquiry of our middle years, the harpy's voice that whispers in dreams, at sunrise, at those unforeseen instants of drilling isolation: Is this as happy as I will ever be? Do I have the right to just a little more? Or is there nothing better that I should hope for?"
Hello, KitH; I had your email scheduled for tomorrow's post. I guess now I don't need to?
But since I kept you waiting so long, I'll do it anyway.
The prop/set people are so good they almost had me convinced that the Compact OED was out then, even though I remember my folks being so happy when it came out in the 70s.
@ Kisses in the Hallway
It's a simple matter of L-Space.
Ann-Margret was not 24 or 25 years old when BYE BYE BIRDIE hit the theaters.
She was 21 years old when she shot the film. She was barely 22 years old at the time of this particular episode.
@ Deborah Lipp
Whoops! Sorry about that! I figured it got lost in the mix, is all. You guys probably get a ton of mail!
Hey Rosie… I don't know if the reference to Ann-Margret's age is technically a mistake since it's presented as Peggy's opinion not necessarily fact.
I doubt Peggy had studied up on Ann-Margret. She didn't know her exact age & didn't really care.
Peggy was being sarcastic about somebody she saw as trying too hard to sell herself to the camera.
The Tanqueray isn't necessarily a "goof" either.
Plus, it's the good stuff.
Right. Tanqueray isn't a goof. I had it clear before, and then I reformatted the post to include the OED thing, and it got muddy.
"Peggy was being sarcastic about somebody she saw as trying too hard to sell herself to the camera."
I think that Peggy's view of Ann-Margret in that scene was pretty off.
I also remember reading somewhere that Chevron Oil wasn't really Chevron Oil in 63 so Ken shouldn't of been given an account for them.
I have only recently discovered and joined Basket of Kisses, so I haven't read all of the posts, but I've watched Mad Men since the series premiere. I am blown away by Matt Weiner's attention to detail!
In the first two seasons, I have only caught (what I would consider goofs), just twice.
One is the sound of the dial tone, that has been heard in some episodes. In the early 60s, the dial tone would have sounded more like a “buzz,†than the “hum†tone we all know now.
The other goof has to do with the use of the term "Holy Spirit" instead of "Holy Ghost". That change was part of liturgical reforms instituted by the Catholic Church, in the wake of the Second Vatican Council, which closed in late 1965.
Mad Men really IS simply awesome television!
Welcome, Smiler. We have documented very few goofs, and they have been much discussed. I am interested that neither of yours have been mentioned in the past. Congratulations!
In "Bye Bye Birdie" Kim, the character played by 21-year-old Anne-Margret, is a high school senior of 17.
That movie was released only in 70mm Super Panavision road show in April 1963, so no 16mm Cinemascope sound prints were made until months later. There is no way SC/PPL could be looking at the movie in their offices.
In 301 the TWA flight attendants and flight crew member were drinking while in uniform. That simply did not happen. They would have changed some clothing in their hotel before eating.
I am sure Mad Men research knows all this and a decision was made that the story points were more important than pedantic accuracy. "When the legend is better story, print the legend" If enough time has passed belief (verisimilitude) passes for fact.
Re the OED, I have the two volume set from about 1979. The three volume set, with supplement was in the shot. I could swear that wasn't out until sometime in the 90's.
For some reason I just noticed it right away.
I don't remember what episode it was but there was a small scene between Peggy and Joan. After giving Peggy some negative news, Joan followed it up with something like "You know what they say. “The medium is the message". The book "The Medium is the Message" by Marshall McLuhan, who coined the phrase, was not published until 1967. McLuhan's concept may have been around before 1967 but it probably was something Joan wouldn’t have known about in 1962. If I’m wrong please enlighten me.
Oh, did anyone notice that the plaid wallpaper in the Draper kitchen is very similar (same?) to the plaid wallpaper where Dick’s birthmother gives birth?
The McLuhan goof has been much documented & discussed. The wallpaper is interesting.
I'm pretty certain there wasn't Chevron Oil until about 1984, but I'd have to look into it more. If I'm correct, Ken has a lot of time to prep for that account!
Sorry, Ignore that repeat post. I didn't think my phone posted it last night!
Honey, your butt called.
Don's mother's wallpaper is the same because it's an impressionistic effect; it's the same room. When Don falls down the stairs in season one, the scene he looks at has his dining room wallpaper. MW said in the commentary that they didn't have money to build a set, so they did it this way.
I noticed the OED, too, for some reason. It comes with a magnifying mirror in a drawer. I still use the mirror.
I think Columbia would have prepared 16mm prints before release, and sometimes they weren't cinemascope, although the 35mm prints were. Maybe this was some kind of viewing tape.
While I was watching the DVD Season 2 there is a scene with Betty at riding stables. She is having a conversation and the chin strap to her hat is under her chin and at other angles there is no chin strap. Then the chin strap is on again and the scene finishes with the chin strap off.