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A Bit About the Mad Men and Vietnam
Dmitri Gheorgheni, Post Editor Started conversation Apr 8, 2013
In case you're interested, the US TV series about advertising, called 'Mad Men', is back for its sixth season. It started last night with a two-episode premiere, which we thoroughly enjoyed - although I've got to figure out how to adjust the contrast on that TV screen. The last scene was so dark, we couldn't figure out who Don Draper was in bed with. It turned out to be important to the plot.
Missing things like that is why I always read the excellent recaps the day after. Lots of internet buzz about that show. Some of it the usual whingeing - particularly from ladies who are heavily invested in the relationships of characters in the show. These reviewers should enjoy the fact that Megan, Don's Canadian wife, is now in a soap opera. But this show isn't a soap opera - it's a darn good drama, like a long, slow, epic novel written by a modern-day Tolstoy and presented in dramatic form. Lots of good history, lots of depth and imagery.
In case you're watching on Sky TV, or whatever, and haven't seen it yet, I won't do any spoiler stuff. Watch if you want to know who's sleeping with whom (just brighten the screen), or who died, or who's grown a beard/moustache/sideburns/dyed their hair, etc. Fashion victims abound. It's the beginning of 1968. There are colours you had tried to forget.
What was interesting to me was the opportunity for 'Mad Men' research again.
'Mad Men', of course, are 'Madison Avenue Men'. Advertisers with a flair for analysing the hopes, fears, and dreams of the public. Don Draper is their hero - except when he isn't. (Watch it, I won't tell.)
What were they advertising this week?
Koss headphones, for one thing. This was another company's baby, and it caused a problem. Follow this link to see real 1968 adverts for Koss headphones:
http://gothamist.com/2013/04/08/mad_men_season_6_premiere_from_koss.php
The problem was ears. And thereby hangs a tale.
These days, we all know that war is hell. In 1968, some people were just finding this out, courtesy of TV. But did a comedian go on the Johnny Carson Show and tell a tasteless joke involving grisly souvenirs of war?
I never watched the Carson Show, so I didn't know. Elektra said she didn't remember. Slate.com spent a week researching this, even calling the Carson people, who said they had no copies of the tapes from back then. An archivist from the Library of Congress confirmed that on that particular night, Phyllis DIller was guest host, but they, too, had no notes on the content. One doubted it. They contacted Matthew Weiner, the show's creator and writer. He admitted that he made it up, but added that disturbing Vietnam humour DID pop up at that time, and it caused advertisers to be leery. Very leery.
Some of the humour was pretty edgy:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TbVVbNM7NfM
Note the last joke - a headline stating 'Congress passes Civil Rights Bill - for Rhodesia.' In case you didn't know, that's Zimbabwe.
I occurred to me that 'Mad Men' is a great history lesson for those not around back then. This particular episode takes place between Christmas and New Year's Eve 1967. Here's a TV news report from 1969, when the war was still going on.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F66SeCXIt7E
This one's tame and political - no bodies. Sometimes, though, you got more truth than you wanted:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dY39EZcEgdc
In the opening episode, Don Draper meets a US soldier on leave from Vietnam. The soldier has a Zippo lighter that is inscribed, 'In life, we often have to do things that just are not our bag.' It's a real thing: one researcher found one on eBay:
http://www.slate.com/blogs/browbeat/2013/04/07/mad_men_premiere_season_6_vietnam_zippo_and_tonight_show_stand_up_comic.html
So it's good history. Well, it's a terrible history, but it's pretty much what happened. If you were there, - I was in high school, and yes, we had arguments about Vietnam, and whether we'd go, etc - you relive it.
If you weren't, it beats a lot of other ways to learn.
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A Bit About the Mad Men and Vietnam
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