Basket of Kisses

In one of the strangest editorials I’ve seen, HuffPost columnist Adam Hanft complains that Mad Men’s research staff shouldn’t be using the New York Public Library.

Christina Hendricks as N’avi. And the Fug Girls adore Christina when she isn’t blue. The overdone story on Christina reaches ABC News:

Whether she wants to or not, she’s touched on a collective desire for a healthy conception of beauty. Give the girl more magazine covers — give her ad campaigns, give her more roles, give her more press. Considering the attention her latest one has gotten all over the Internet, it’s clear the people want it.

Mad Men/30 Rock slash fic. Prepare to be horrified.

Basketcase Greg H. sent us this clip of beardy Hamm predicting a US Olympic hockey win. Speaking of the Olympics; Jon Hamm and Johnny Weir at the same party. My brain exploded.

Speaking of the Olympics, Hamm is here photographed in what may very well be the scarf our own seagirl made for him!

Bryan Batt will be performing in Cabaret Gourmet 2010 in New York on March 8. Bryan also talks to New York Magazine about his future book projects.

The University of Illinois held a Mad Men symposium. Damn, that would’ve been fun!

Betty Draper is quoted in an article on the psychology and health impact of boredom.

Christina Hendricks and Alison Brie are Sports Illustrated’s “Lovely Lady of the Day” on consecutive days.

Alison Brie talks about Mad Men and Community with TV Squad. She’s also interviewed by the AV Club (h/t Basketcase not Bridget).

Charles Shaughnessy won Celebrity Jeopardy, defeating MSNBC’s Chris Matthews and Californication’s David Duchovny.

Backstage at the WGAs, Matt Weiner expresses anxiety about Season 4. Oh, Matt, those of us who know you know that you’ll come through just great!

Mad Men is credited with increasing the popularity of whiskey. (I’m a vodka girl, myself. –Deborah)

Lawyers suggest that Mad Men couldn’t air on broadcast television.

Matt Weiner gave pre-Globes interviews to the Fort Worth Telegram’s Pop Blog.  and the Dallas Morning News.  Matt also pops up in an L.A. Times piece on TV’s auteurs.

Basketcase SmilerG passes along a link to “The Century of the Self,” a four-part BBC documentary about Sigmund Freud and his nephew Edward Bernays, who was the first to use psychological techniques in advertising.

Matt Weiner says don’t imitate Don Draper. Duh.

Photographer Michael Williams passes along a preview of a Mad Men-themed shoot coming in April to Haute Doll magazine.

The Daily Mail has a fresh interview with January Jones that is a lot more open-feeling than most of these.

AMC is developing a miniseries about White House scandals of the past. They are also doing The Walking Dead, which is about zombies.

Mad Men is an example of the importance of the business lunch, and there’s a new book about that very thing.

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Go Fug Yourself doesn’t like January’s face on the cover of GQ. While acknowledging no one is looking at her face. They also refer to a hairstyle they love as “very Betty Draper Goes to Rome.” Ha!

GQ Director of Photography Dora Somosi blogged about the controversy over JJ’s GQ photos, (which also made Page 6) invoking Seinfeld.

Cityfile interviews Vincent Kartheiser. I have to say that VK may be the single most interesting interview subject in the Mad Men cast. You never know what he’ll say!

Rachel Shukert offers awesome unsolicited advice to Betty. AWE. SOME.

TV Guide interviews Bryan Batt. So does the Vulture. And here’s the House Beautiful photo that he mentions to the Vulture.

GQ interviews Janie Bryant. It’s much…tamer than their interview with January Jones, but very engaging.

Cathy, the comic strip, notices the Mad Men influence on fashion (thanks Basketcase Sheila). [fixed]

Here is an awesome interview of Scott Buckwald, Mad Men propmaster, in Collectors Weekly. There is juice on all sorts of prop items, including the whole Selectric thing, food, and more. There is one prop discussed that I don’t recognize as having ever been on the show, so it may be a slight spoiler for an ad campaign.

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The Fug Girls think Elisabeth Moss looks old in her gown. I agree that it isn’t gorgeous on Elisabeth; it’s wrinkly and staid. That said, I think she slams the neutral tone, and I like it better on her than the red she wore to the Golden Globes. I was watching Shoot the other night, and Janie Bryant, in her commentary, pointed out how bad Joan’s red dress looks on Peggy; “it’s a bad color for her,” Janie said. Elisabeth looked lovely at the Globes, but the red washed her out. Here, her delicate complexion doesn’t compete with the dress, but it’s not a good dress.

They did the “Fug or Fab” thing for January Jones, and their audience loved her look. It’s a great dress, which would have been better with a necklace or bolder earrings, or more of a hairstyle, and without the near-raccoon eye makeup. Just sayin’.

The Go Fug Yourself Liveblogging included this gem:

4:01 p.m. Jennifer Westfeldt is in gray, which is pretty on her, but I can’t see the entire thing. We never noticed before how much she looks like Lisa Kudrow from some angles. Hamm is charming — we feel sort of bad for Jennifer; it must be weird to have dated him for over a decade, and yet all of a sudden everyone in town wants to straddle her man and ride him like a bronco. Flattering, but weird.

I don’t think I’m going to find anyone criticizing Christina Hendricks, because, wow.

Christina Hendricks, Holy Wow

Added: Nathaniel at The Film Experience is doing a series based on the list I provided.

Meet Draper Daniels, a real life Mad Man and one of Matt Weiner’s inspirations.

Season 1 is being offered Free On Demand. Check your cable offerings. And thanks to Basketcase Stephanie for the head’s up.

Christina Hendricks got fugged again. But we love her.

Basketcase Frank Bullitt found us a vintage Pan-Am site. You can buy Glenn’s bag!

Someone has an 8 minute YouTube of arrivals at the Mad Men premiere, featuring our own hullaballoo hugging on Jon Hamm. Thanks Shelly!

The not-the-cover Vanity Fair spread. Whoa. Also, the making of the Vanity Fair photo shoot (video).

Esquire “endorses” January Jones. They also “appreciate” the supporting women of Mad Men.

AMC has a Mad Men drink guide, with recipes. Now I know how to make Don an Old Fashioned.

Mad Men style versus Woodstock. (more…)

The Hollywood Reporter collates critics picks for the Emmys. Robert Bianco of USA Today likes Mad Men for Drama and January Jones for Lead Actress in a Drama. Joanne Ostrow of the Denver Post wants Slattery for Supporting Actor. Matt Roush (TV Guide), sees Mad Men for Drama and either Jones or Elisabeth Moss for Actress. Mo Ryan of the Chicago Tribune supports Mad Men (as ever), January Jones, and Jon Hamm.

Eric Deggans reprints a meditation on Don Draper as distant father, in honor of Father’s Day, of course.

The Boston Globe asks us to “imagine how different Betty Draper’s life would have been if she only had a blog” for a piece on “bad parenting.”

The Boston Globe also explores pregnancy and teen pregnancy on television, briefly mentioning Mad Men.

More on AMC’s new marketing strategies.

An article on vintage geek chic mentions Don Draper’s sweater vest.
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Go Fug Yourself is letting you vote on Christina’s outfit today. Hurry on over and tell them our redheaded girl rocks the jumpsuit.

Another Janie Bryant interview, this time with Elle. I love her!

The New York Times addresses the gloom & doom that is network TV, and mentions Mad Men in the shift towards cable.

There’s actually a quorum of NY Times writers going at it, talking about what’s good and bad about TV. And there’s a YouTube of Don’s “Carousel” speech to illustrate why cable roolz.

I know, this Go Fug Yourself entry looks like it has nothing to do with Mad Men, but read it. Read what Jessica is naming her first born. BWAH!

Cable roolz, network droolz may just become its own category.

Richard Linnett of Media Post claims (without attribution) that Matt Weiner said he was inspired by Revolutionary Road. Which is weird, given how he actually said the exact opposite.

Where the hell is Dale? Making this movie, it turns out.

Season 2, which starts re-airing on AMC this Sunday, seems to have an official DVD release date: July 7, 2009.

Season 2 is also under way in the UK; The Guardian is providing “Notes from the Break Room” you can compare with BoK’s Season 2 analyses.

Colin Hanks (a.k.a. Fr. Gill) thanks Matt Weiner and Mad Men for starting a “whole new chapter” in his career.

Patrick Fischler (a.k.a. Jimmy Barrett) turned up as part of the Dharma Initiative in this week’s episode of Lost.

Jon Hamm wants to be all over Comedy Central.

Breaking Bad star Bryan Cranston tells TV Week that the Mad Men pilot convinced him that AMC was serious about original programming.

The Sterling Cooper staff will cheer a new study showing that commercials make TV programs more enjoyable to watch. Or maybe not; Don Draper has never cared much for research.

This edition of Mad News prepared by Deborah and Karl.

They fugged Maggie Siff for her Mad Men Revue costume. Twice. And this time they not only fugged the dress, but dinged her for wearing it twice.

So I wrote to them and said:

Honestly, I can’t believe you guys. Maggie Siff was wearing a COSTUME back in October for a musical revue the cast of Mad Men did in LA. And she was wearing the SAME costume last night for the SAME musical revue in Vegas.

Hello? Costume! Just saying.

Kisses,

Deborah

And look! They added an addendum:

** Oh, bless, apparently the Mad Men revue she’s performing in above was ALSO performed in October, hence the repeat outfit. So now the question is: Whom is she bribing in order to GET them to dress her like a potential Hamm-enticing beanbag chair?

I am Teh Famous.

Matt Weiner has been nominated for a Director’s Guild of America award for Meditations in an Emergency. Also nominated is Alan Taylor for The Mountain King. (Also, an episode of Lost, of In Treatment, and of The Wire. Whatever.) The Hollywood Reporter helpfully points out that this is only the second television episode Matt ever directed. Pretty damn impressive.

Jennifer Aniston wants a Mad Men cameo.

Numerous articles are reporting on AMC president Charles Collier’s remarks on the TV critic’s tour. He says season 3 will be back in the summer and Matt Weiner is still negotiating with Lionsgate. People, this isn’t news. “Will be back” we knew over a month ago, when the actors signed, and “still negotiating” is the very definition of “not news.” Like, our header even knows that! Of some interest is the vitriol poured out by “Anonymous” commentator(s) at Alan Sepinwall’s palce. All about Weiner’s evil ego (as bad as Sorkin! Oh the humanity!).

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