Mad Men
Sterling Cooper ( by and by Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce , and later still , Sterling Cooper & Partners ) was the show ’s base of operations of operations ; an advertising agency whose faculty and owners made up the bulk ofMad Men’scentral mold . While Sterling Cooper is a fictional caller , it was inspired by many literal - earth agencies that operated throughout the 1960s and ' 70s . Speaking toThe Telegraphin 2015 , showrunner Matthew Weiner said , " I address to a routine of ad executives from that era about the show and seventy percent of them say I ’d got it drained decently , [ but ] one hundred percent of the women said it mull their experience exactly . ”
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Former advertising executive director Jane Maas ( enjoin to be the ‘ real - life ’ Peggy Olson ) appeared to match , and - in an consultation withWSJ- went one step further : “ Everything they do on Mad Men , we did more of in real life [ … ] more sex , more boozing , more smoking . ” It ’s unsettling to intend that what really happened on Madison Avenue in this earned run average was any bad than the oeuvre surround that was well over with inebriant abuse , bigotry , andDon Draper ’s many mistresses onMad Men . Unfortunately , Maas adamantly claims that the real - life scenario was , indeed , bad . In her book , Mad Women : The Other Side of Life on Madison Avenue in the ' 60s and Beyond , Maas detailed her experiences working for Ogilvy and Mathers - a major advertising office operate within the show ’s time - frame . Also sport is Young and Rubicam , another authority and the subject area of an exchange between Maas and industry veteran Joan Lipton , in which Lipton said : “ Of naturally people partake in [ in office staff sexual practice ] . But you have to understand I was espouse , had a three class old son and lived in Connecticut . ” When asked whether she was cognizant of such activeness , Lipton answer : “ Aware ? Heavens , I touch ! ”
Young and Rubicam is also featured in the show itself when - in theMad Menseason 5premiere , " A Little Kiss " - Y&R staff are demonstrate throwing water - filled bags out of the office windows , direct a group of Black protesters below . This was found on a real incident that pass in May 1966 , and result to demonstrators storming the building to confront the staff . Speaking toNY Timesin 2012 , Weiner call in discovering a paper clause about the result : “ I was blown away . I just bang the layer of outrage from the participants in the dissent . ” He pass on to say that , “ If I had concoct the tale , I would have never written that . It was a great capturing of the lack of respect , which is to me what a lot of the show is about . ”
Over its lengthyseven time of year , Mad Menwas often praised for its period features . Despite this , Lola Cherson - former employee at Grey and Davis Advertising in the sixty - spoke withThe AtlanticaboutMad Men ’s inaccuracy , say : " If you meet somebody in an office , if you were dating them , you met off from the office . You were n’t supposed to be dating employees . In a lot of corporations , it was n’t allowed . " She also refer to the characters ’ alcoholic beverage intake , saying that while “ it ’s perfectly on-key that many executive lunches were 3 - martini affairs , [ … ] it ’s not true there was liquor in older partners ' offices . ” She did , however , tally that , “ later on in the ' 70s , the creative mass were growing pot . "
It ’s really no curiosity thatMad Menwas a goggle box series pet , as it appealed to so many people ’s fantasies , showcasing a time and industry wherein work and play were often indistinguishable from each other . As always , there is a dark side to this fantasy - andMad Men ’s come to spark in 2017 when Matthew Weiner was charge of sexual harassment by former staff author Kater Gordon ( charge that Weiner denied in an consultation withVanity Fair ) . While the Swinging Sixties may be long behind us , their ethical code and work practices appear to have dawdle within the creative industries . Thanks to the # MeToo motion , these abusive practice are being queer , ultimately allowing the probability for meaningful change to occur .
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Are The Agencies That Inspired Mad Men Still Running Today?
Like Sterling Cooper , the work at the heart ofMad Men’soverall serial publication identity element , the aforementioned , real - life advertising agencies had their heyday in decades past . In the years since , meter have changed and the business earthly concern has continued to acquire and shift . harmonise toReference For Business , Young and Rubicam was bought out by a subsidiary company of the British company WPP PLC ( a hold company that sell with technology and public sex act publicizing ) in 2000 during a well-disposed takeover . Ogilvy and Mather is also still range today , now under the cut name of the Ogilvy Group . In 1989 , WPP PLC took command of the ad company , as it did with Young and Rubicam .
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