Contractual restrictions on future employment are likely only a secondary concern for Draper. Several times, he has stated ambivalence about remaining in advertising, and Sterling expressed his doubts about Don's commitment. As a practical matter, he has turned his back on his marriage commitment, his service committment, his brother, his children and multiple lovers. Don leaves when it suites his purpose, he would likley depart SC, legal contract notwithstanding.

The constraint Don fears is his latitude to operate in the SC context. Absent the threat of flight, the senior partners would be more demanding, and less tolerant of his behavior. Don's ability to flee would remain, but his operating environment would be more constrictive prior to any sudden departure.

Which he basically tried to do with Rachel, so perhaps it was always percolating in his mind. I also think that Don was not fully "Don" when he married Betty – he was still perfecting his persona. He knew Anna could have destroyed his whole world, and there would still be a chance his ruse would be uncovered. Marrying a rich girl like Betty, who would have a hard time breaking her marriage contract even with proof of his fraud, might have also seemed like a good fallback. Had he been found out, her family might be concerned enough about their name to cover it up.

By the time we get to Seven Twenty Three, though, Don is fully his persona, and knows he's pretty much set in it. Knowing he can succeed on his own is only going to make him less likely to want the SC contract.

It's easier to cheat on a woman than on a job. You can have affairs, and if you're careful, avoid getting caught, but the ad game is a small world.

@8 gypsy, I agree about the money. I also wonder, given the difficulties Betty's had with the professional men she's gone to in the capacity as a client (the shrink, the family lawyer) they all dismissed and pooh-poohed her and patted her on the head like a silly little girl. The one time she was even slightly taken seriously was when she was with Henry at the lawyers and even then he did most of the talking. Given the ease with which women were dismissed it seems like she might have even had a difficult time finding a PI who would even touch a case like that. It sounds so wild, even though we know it is true. I wonder if even in more "normal" investigations, if it was easier for men to hire a PI to investigate adultery than females.

I also wonder how seriously the DoD would take such an accusation mostly based on what third-parties might say. Even if they did find old friends or distant relatives of Don Draper other than Anna, I wonder how much their statements would hold water, especially with her in Don's pocket. It would make DoD look pretty silly though and they might want to bury it. I suppose if they did had dental records and were truly inclined to really look into it and maybe if someone with Henry's political connections asked them to look into it, they might but it seems like one of those things that would be filed under "T" for too much trouble and trash. Now maybe if Betty and Pete started talking and he provided whatever his friend dug up, or if Henry has a contact like Pete did that could also get the ball rolling. Then again even if they used that evidence, and decided to try to convict Don if the story made them look bad they might go after Pete's friend b/c you are only supposed to access such information on a need to know basis, not b/c your friend is curious about their boss' service record and you certainly don't release such information to people who aren't even remotely connected to the government, with no security clearance and really have no need to know. Just idle speculation though, it might make for an intersting story line but then it would take things wayyyy far from the premise of Madison Avenue ad execs.

The key word here is "contract." While there were marriage contracts in the Jewish faith for centuries, and while they were a tradition among the wealthy families of Europe, there were very few pre-nups in the United States back in the early 1960s. Don most likely would have refused to sign one. But if it were modern times, and the Drapers had one, he might be less inclined to cheat if he knew it would cost him.

I'm sure it didn't take long for him to cheat on her, it was suggested that Midge had been around awhile when season 1 started. And we know Betty was aware of it before Francine put it in her head.

Well, Betty knows his secret NOW, but she didn't on 7/23.

But regardless, I'm curious to know whether Betty really COULD have hired an investigator without Don knowing about it. I got the feeling that Don controlled all the finances in the marriage, like many men did in 1963. How would Betty have paid for an investigator without him knowing? Even assuming that for the period when she threw Don out of the house in S2 and she took control of things, I always sort of imagined it went back to status quo ante once he came back. I recall the conversation they had when she was testing him about the cash in the drawer – "Betts, you have $200 in your account, just go to the bank" — implying that he gives her an allowance, and keeps track of these things.

Do you think Betty ever felt she could spend money without Don finding out about it?