Basket of Kisses

Q: How much did I love Peggy’s head peeking over the wall?
A: So, so much.

Okay so first thing is, what a sight gag. It was absolutely hilarious, and it just kept going. But second thing, what I loved about it, is how entirely plausible it was. Because of course Peggy would be up there trying to see what’s going on. She can hear everything; she’s now spoken with Allison so she knows there’s some dirt there—she’s dying to know what comes next. So yes, gimme a sight gag, but if it doesn’t make sense, it’s stupid. This one makes perfect sense ergo, as is the case with all things Mad Men, does not insult my intelligence.

Remember that Peggy climbed up on the kitchen counter in Three Sundays. What you may not remember is how important that moment was to Matt—they actually did not have time to get the shot the day they filmed the scene, and had to go back and do it separately. He wanted to show Peggy as full of life—radiant, which is what Father Gil responded to. Everything about her in that sequence was so much more natural than we’d seen in Season One—there she was, among her family, truly in her comfort zone (even if she would deny it to be so).

But also, Peggy is the youngest, and she’s little. I ran this whole thing by Deb–I’m 5’2″ish, and can’t reach a damn thing, and I can’t tell you how many times I climbed up in my mom’s kitchen cabinets. Deb is only a couple inches taller, but it was enough of a difference—she never climbed the counter.

Now in real life, Lizzie is about 5’4″, and Audrey Wasilewski, who plays her sister Anita, strikes me as rather diminutive. So really I think it was about showing, more so than Peggy’s littleness, her youthfulness as compared to the matronly-at-a-too-young-age Anita.

Regardless, what we know is that Peggy is a climber. And I just adore that kind of follow-through.

I spoke with Elisabeth Moss on Wednesday, September 30. After the interview was over, I could only be grateful that we’d met before, because this was not the way to make a first impression. First, for reasons beyond my control, I was late calling. When I did call, Elisabeth was in Central Park; it was a beautiful fall day, the first day that really felt like fall, and she was enjoying the weather. Unfortunately, she wasn’t enjoying the cell reception; my first call to her didn’t go through. Subsequently, we were cut off at least twice, and she faded into buzz several times, with me saying “Elisabeth? Eee-liiiiisabeth? Are you theeeeeeere?” Three minutes into our call, the batteries on my recorder died. So did the replacements. So the rest of the interview was done with me taking my famously fast dictation (I could so work at Sterling Cooper).

Following are a couple of my favorite excerpts followed by a full transcript.

About doing Speed-the-Plow on Broadway: The discipline of doing something over and over; the physicality of that, allowed me to come back to Mad Men and feel fresh.

About “What if this is my time?”: The reason it resonates, is because it applies to women in the 21st century as well. Should I be working harder, should I be working less? Should I be more of a mother, should I be less of a mother? It’s a question everyone balances, no matter what decade you’re in.

About sleeping with Duck: If someone just told her she was beautiful or attractive, she would shrug it off and think it wasn’t true. But when he flatters her professionally, and tells her she’s needed, that’s what gets to her.

About fitting in: She’s never fit in. She’s not part of the boys, she’s not part of the girls she’s not really a mom”she’s trying to find out who she is. She’s also experienced a tremendous amount of loss.

About Basket of Kisses: We like to support Basket of Kisses. You guys have been there with us from the beginning, and it feels like you’re one of us.

Transcript follows: (more…)

Back in October, I covered the MM Revue (“A Night on the Town w/ MM”) for The Basket when it played at the El Rey Theater in Los Angeles. I was amazed at the Mad talent of the Mad cast, and received one of THE thrills of my life when Robert Morse planted one on yours truly — without my having to lobby for it. No lie. He just grabbed me, and kissed me. And I’m not even cute. Well, not that cute. We all have our moments…

So the popularity of that October event spawned a repeat, which played this past Tuesday in Vegas. Essentially, it was the same show, but with the added talents of Rich Sommer, Julie McNiven, Audrey Wasilewski (Peggy’s sister Anita) and a cameo stage appearance by Christina Hendricks. (more…)

This is a chat between Deborah Lipp and Matthew Weiner on Monday, January 19 12, 2009, the day after Mad Men won the Golden Globe award for Best Television Drama. It was before he signed the contract with Lionsgate, as you’ll see.

My experience with interviewing Matt is you maybe get one question in and then he’s off and running; full of thoughts, ideas, questions, answers, and joy. But this time he was less ebullient, a little tired after such a thrilling night. Our conversation was warm but perhaps less diverse than in the past.

You guys are not “the Internet.”

Deborah Lipp: How are you? Did you have a great night?
Matt Weiner: I am so happy, I can’t even tell you.
DL: We are pretty happy for you. And thank you so much for the mention!
MW: Why wouldn’t I? If I want to say shitty things about the Internet, I’ve got to say nice things about the Internet. You guys are not “the Internet.” I love it, it makes me very, very happy.
DL: Congratulations. You earned it, man.
MW: Thanks, thanks a lot. I’m really tired, I didn’t really sleep. I’m not talking to anyone today, so you can know that.
DL: Okay.
MW: And I don’t want to talk about the deal. We can talk about anything else.
DL: Well, I’m obligated to try.
MW: I talked about it last night, you can see what’s out there.
DL: So what would you like to say to your most loyal fan base, first?
MW: Thank you so much for supporting the show. I feel what I always wanted as an artist was to have an intimate relationship with the audience, and you have made that possible.
DL: : Wow. We love that it is so much your baby. It’s like an auteur thing, there’s a handful of people working on TV where you know it’s them. And Mad Men is you.
MW: Well, that’s very nice. If that’s me, that’s better than I thought I was. It’s a lot of people!
DL: : Well, sure!
(more…)

This is a chat between Deborah Lipp and Matthew Weiner on Monday, January 19 12, 2009, the day after Mad Men won the Golden Globe award for Best Television Drama. It was before he signed the contract with Lionsgate, as you’ll see.

My experience with interviewing Matt is you maybe get one question in and then he’s off and running; full of thoughts, ideas, questions, answers, and joy. But this time he was less ebullient, a little tired after such a thrilling night. Our conversation was warm but perhaps less diverse than in the past.

You guys are not “the Internet.”

Deborah Lipp: How are you? Did you have a great night?
Matt Weiner: I am so happy, I can’t even tell you.

DL: We are pretty happy for you. And thank you so much for the mention!
MW: Why wouldn’t I? If I want to say shitty things about the Internet, I’ve got to say nice things about the Internet. You guys are not “the Internet.” I love it, it makes me very, very happy.
DL: Congratulations. You earned it, man.
MW: Thanks, thanks a lot. I’m really tired, I didn’t really sleep. I’m not talking to anyone today, so you can know that.

DL: Okay.
MW: And I don’t want to talk about the deal. We can talk about anything else.
DL: Well, I’m obligated to try.
MW: I talked about it last night, you can see what’s out there.
DL: So what would you like to say to your most loyal fan base, first?

MW: Thank you so much for supporting the show. I feel what I always wanted as an artist was to have an intimate relationship with the audience, and you have made that possible.
DL: : Wow. We love that it is so much your baby. It’s like an auteur thing, there’s a handful of people working on TV where you know it’s them. And Mad Men is you.
MW: Well, that’s very nice. If that’s me, that’s better than I thought I was. It’s a lot of people!
DL: : Well, sure!

(more…)

for I have sinned. It’s been two weeks since my last confession.

This is how Peggy’s sister, Anita, begins her confession. She then admits to taking money at the laundromat and also taking the Lord’s name in vain. Anita then pauses, seems to ponder what she wants to say next, and then speaks again, hesitantly at first:

And I’m … I’m so angry, father … I’m so angry at my little sister. She’s causing my mother so much pain … She had a child out of wedlock. She seduced a married man. It’s a terrible sin, and she acts like it didn’t even happen. And I hate her for it. I feel so guilty about it … but everybody keeps falling all over themselves, trying to help her, and she goes on like nothing happened. Nothing at all.

So much there. In very few words a volume of subtext, pain, accusation, revenge, jealousy, and denial.

(more…)

(Blog note: Roberta and I wrote really similar posts at about the same time last night, so I’m splicing them together. This is our first attempt at a joint post so let’s see how it goes. ”Deborah)

The lovely and talented dansj pointed out that IMDb has some Season 2 episode cast up. Not surprising, as actors often enter that info themselves nowadays. On the other hand, let’s remind everyone again, that IMDb is not totally dependable, because anyone can contribute.

Keep in mind when perusing the pages that the main cast is on the main Mad Men page, episode pages only show guests, infrequently recurring cast, as well as writers, directors, and crew. (more…)