tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post4104889621022008168..comments2024-03-18T13:50:45.615-04:00Comments on What's Alan Watching?: Mad Men, "The Arrangements": Teach your children wellAlan Sepinwallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03388147774725646742noreply@blogger.comBlogger244125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-992948720235853802009-09-13T03:56:19.932-04:002009-09-13T03:56:19.932-04:00So, after that modest rant, what do you want to ta...So, after that modest rant, what do you want to talk about?<br /><br />I mean, after a week of comments, there must have been something new that no one else talked about that was on the tip of your tongue -- either that, or the rant was less work and more entertaining.cgeyenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-83492727095679559662009-09-11T20:19:55.038-04:002009-09-11T20:19:55.038-04:00Alan,
I love your blog, and you can delete this p...Alan,<br /><br />I love your blog, and you can delete this post if you want:<br /><br />But can we please stop beating the Norwegian-Peggy-Catholic to death! Peggy's father or grandparents might be Norwegian. But hey its so fascinating, so lets discuss for another 50 posts. Or maybe we can talk about salt on ice cream.<br /><br />Rant over. sorry.rcoceanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17102201338319611538noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-73419126012202295812009-09-11T16:26:23.509-04:002009-09-11T16:26:23.509-04:00Grandpa Gene has left Sally a powerful legacy. Liv...Grandpa Gene has left Sally a powerful legacy. Living in their home for such a short time, he showed the little girl genuine love and actually talked with her and listened to her. She will never forget the man who told her she can do anything. <br /><br />Her outburst was raw emotion and truth. She is pretty good at being seen and not heard, but occasionally she spouts off. Last season when Betty put her in the closet, she yelled something like, "Daddy left because you're stupid and mean." Even that was not too far from the truth.Susanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12705788002352470163noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-66150627963519902392009-09-11T13:13:40.077-04:002009-09-11T13:13:40.077-04:00I'm down with KarenX on the Swedish/Norwegian/...I'm down with KarenX on the Swedish/Norwegian/Irish/Polish/Catholic/Lutheran thread -- Peggy definitely "doesn't always tell the truth to people."dylanfannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-59076053813123598912009-09-11T06:30:48.174-04:002009-09-11T06:30:48.174-04:00I enjoyed reading all the comments, so now I’d lik...I enjoyed reading all the comments, so now I’d like to add a few words, even though I might not bring a lot of new elements…<br /><br />On the sweet and salty taste debate: I’ve never tried chocolate ice cream with salt but I think that salt and sweet must be a nice association, quite common. In France for example, we have salted butter and a lot of people use it in pastries or eat it spread on bread with jam.<br /><br />On the Norwegian – Catholic debate: I am with the ones not understanding how a Norwegian can be Catholic, I was quite surprised. I don’t recall Peggy mentioning Polish heritage and I have difficulties believing that a woman as devote as Peggy’s mother would have done a mixed wedding, doesn’t seem really Catholic to me, unless her father converted.<br /><br />On the pre-nup debate: when was it ever mentioned that Gene and Gloria got married???<br /><br />About the BBB add: I don’t think that it didn’t work because it was made by a gay man, I’m sure we can find a lot of examples of artwork done by gay men successfully aiming at straight masculine audiences. I can see two problems here, the add itself and the girl.<br />The add was a bad idea, you shouldn’t copy so much your reference, it looked like a parody. And of course the girl isn’t Ann Margaret but I also think that she looked too old (Peggy said that the whole thing was that Ann Margaret was acting as a woman and a girl) and too modern (especially her breast, too big for someone who’s trying to act as a girl and which didn’t look like shells, which weirdly seem to be the fashion at the time).<br /><br />About the jai alai: I don’t know who had this idea but I think it’s a really brilliant one, I was very surprised to see this sport on a US TV show. I agree that HoHo must be attracted to Paxti’s beauty but his comment regarding his face is not that stupid, it’s a really dangerous sport, the ball goes really fast, you can lose an eye or something.<br /><br />I wonder, do they have a French writer this season? <br />First the accordion and now jai alai (part of Basque Country is in France and the typical French “béret” is Basque). By the way, I can’t get enough of Harry wearing his little red Basque ribbon. But what’s gonna be next? A raw milk cheese tasting? A tribute episode to Edith Piaf and Jean Cocteau, who died on October 11th 1963? <br />Anyway, if they need one expert on French culture, I’m in!!!<br />I hope the show will continue to surprise us this way and, contrary to some people here, I didn’t thought that this episode references were too obvious, which is not always the case.<br /><br />LizhiAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-39652988946878211452009-09-11T01:15:57.170-04:002009-09-11T01:15:57.170-04:00I believe Peggy tells her mother that the roomie i...I believe Peggy tells her mother that the roomie is Norwegian as a little call-back to the roomie saying she would be lying to her own mother about Peggy being Swedish. The fact that the comment fell completely flat with Peggy's mom seems to confirm that she herself is not Norwegian so she doesn't care. In other words, it was a mixed marriage. I had always assumed the mom was Irish.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-61161825500337376432009-09-11T00:40:47.969-04:002009-09-11T00:40:47.969-04:00I am moving into the sphere of just blabbing about...I am moving into the sphere of just blabbing about stuff I don't really know about, but...<br /><br />If Margaret "Peggy" Olson were Norwegian, wouldn't her last name be spelled "Olsen"? Isn't she just lying to her new Swedish roommate because she's lied about every other aspect of her personality, too? She has decided to be the person Karen the Swedish Travel Agent saw in the ad. When Peggy throws out at the last minute to her mother that the girl is Norwegian--another lie--I think it's just something to say, sort of in defense of herself. It makes it seem more like a girl with a history that Peggy knows instead of Peggy ducking the question about moving to Manhattan for a man.<br /><br />Why Peggy would lie about Karen the Swedish Travel Agent being Norwegian? Who knows. Peggy does and says some odd things sometimes. Plus she is trying to identify herself as "that girl," which Karen the Roommate clearly is, and she's maybe just trying out identities. She doesn't always tell the truth to people.KarenXhttp://karenm77.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-38948948059323716172009-09-10T20:59:00.052-04:002009-09-10T20:59:00.052-04:00Peter D. Bakija said: And if her Catholic Polish m...Peter D. Bakija said: <i>And if her Catholic Polish mother said "We are Catholic, not Lutheran" to her husband, then you end up with a Catholic Peggy with a Norwegian last name.</i> <br /><br />I went to what seemed to be the most logical conclusion: mixed marriage. Raising the kids Catholic was pretty much a requirement back then (and might still be today. I'm a recovering Catholic, so I have no idea what those wacky papists are up to these days), if there was a mixed marriage and you wanted a Catholic wedding and a marriage that was blessed by the Church.<br /><br />But I didn't think anything of it besides that,and I was surprised it became such a huge topic of discussion.Maurahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17301288188119355801noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-56089221498391862082009-09-10T17:05:33.574-04:002009-09-10T17:05:33.574-04:00Hatfield wrote:
>>Peter D. Bakija, if that&#...Hatfield wrote:<br />>>Peter D. Bakija, if that's true thanks for the info, but if you go back and read the comments a little closer, you'll see that her Norwegian origins--and how that would clash with her family being Catholic--has been the hot button issue of this week's comments. Well, that and salty ice cream>><br /><br />Oh, sure (I read the first 100+ posts, and then skimmed the next 100 to see if anyone addressed this before I posted it). Which is why I was clearing it up. Apparently, if she was 100% Norwegian, it is highly unlikely she would be Catholic. But as I'm pretty sure it was established (in S1? S2? At some point) that she was Polish before it was established that she was Norwegian, you end up with Peggy having a Norwegian father (Mr. Olsen) and a Polish mother. And if her Catholic Polish mother said "We are Catholic, not Lutheran" to her husband, then you end up with a Catholic Peggy with a Norwegian last name.<br /><br />I mean, it is possible I am misremembering that they established Peggy as Polish, in which case, I got nothing. But still, I'm pretty sure that (probably in season 1 when we first meet her family) they make a point of her being Polish (and now also Norwegian).bakijahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11357029145748622693noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-44883249984063498292009-09-10T16:32:39.005-04:002009-09-10T16:32:39.005-04:00It's been something to read all 234 comments, ...It's been something to read all 234 comments, and I would like to add my two cents. <br /><br />Regarding the postings saying Don did not know how to comfort Sally - I think it was evident from the look on his face that he understood her despair, but I also think that he felt he needed to be by Betty's side to console her because he thinks that is what a good husband would do (which is why the we see Betty asleep on top of the bed covers - obviously he comforted her to sleep). I think he really wanted to comfort Sally too, as evidenced by the fact that he got up and went to her room, but he is so clueless he doesn't realize he can do both. <br /><br />And doesn't Joan just light up the screen when she is on???Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-42628349270520111852009-09-10T16:04:41.065-04:002009-09-10T16:04:41.065-04:00If Gene was already going senile, and Gloria was e...If Gene was already going senile, and Gloria was even a quarter the manipulative monster Betty seems to think she is, then I don't see the subject of prenups coming up. I don't think there is one. <br /><br />Thinking of Gene and his descendants makes me muse about what Betty will do with his comment that Don is a joker and that Betty could have done better. THAT sentiment will come back to haunt us way before Gloria and the will does.KarenXhttp://karenm77.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-78978640738718516552009-09-10T15:30:44.687-04:002009-09-10T15:30:44.687-04:00Thinking of Sally as a 1970's hippie, I can...Thinking of Sally as a 1970's hippie, I can't help but wish that in the future there could be a series of "look ins" on the cast. What would they be like by 1975? 1985? 1995? <br /><br />What would Peggy be doing in 1980?Bhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17338645723152652673noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-62842517496788569882009-09-10T15:27:46.648-04:002009-09-10T15:27:46.648-04:00>>Anonymous said...
Pretty sure prenups wer...>>Anonymous said... <br />Pretty sure prenups were not the norm in 1962<br /><<<br /><br />Actually, my grandfather and his second wife drew one up in the late 1950s. They were both middle-aged widows when they married, and they wanted to assure that their individual assets would go to their respective families. <br /><br />So prenups weren't unheard of during that era.LAhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04868479477550590056noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-57302529941704858942009-09-10T15:12:40.123-04:002009-09-10T15:12:40.123-04:00Peter D. Bakija, if that's true thanks for the...Peter D. Bakija, if that's true thanks for the info, but if you go back and read the comments a little closer, you'll see that her Norwegian origins--and how that would clash with her family being Catholic--has been the hot button issue of this week's comments. Well, that and salty ice creamHatfieldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01184680741873873714noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-42141609049438665822009-09-10T14:48:46.483-04:002009-09-10T14:48:46.483-04:00I caught the vibe that Paxti is Ho-Ho's real o...I caught the vibe that Paxti is Ho-Ho's real obsession too.<br /><br />After Don tells him "he could do better" Ho-Ho's sustained stare seemed to be convey that he's trying to figure out if Don is hitting on him. <br /><br />And, as Dan commented above, the "balls in the face" comment was a bit juvenile, anybody who watched the Big Gay Vito plot unfold on the Sopranos probably got a bit of deja vu.Larry Tatenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-48569013150283131672009-09-10T09:52:58.271-04:002009-09-10T09:52:58.271-04:00>>I was surprised to learn that Peggy's ...>>I was surprised to learn that Peggy's family is Norwegian. It doesn't make any sense for them to be Catholic. This is a major mistake by Weiner.>><br /><br />I tried to see if someone already responded to this, but might have missed it. I'm pretty certain that it has been previously established that Peggy's mom is Polish (and father Norwegan), and consequently, being Catholic makes perfect sense.bakijahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11357029145748622693noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-41844567724676607712009-09-10T02:10:01.834-04:002009-09-10T02:10:01.834-04:00Pretty sure prenups were not the norm in 1962.Pretty sure prenups were not the norm in 1962.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-73968487695373806412009-09-09T20:50:14.173-04:002009-09-09T20:50:14.173-04:00There was no sense that anyone at SC thought that ...There was no sense that anyone at SC thought that the movie ad of Sal's was any sort of disaster. You're surely right that they had seen it earlier. We know that Peggy never thought much of the idea, but she'd had her say already. Others might or might not have had personal opinions about it, but it was their first house movie and they evidently deferred to Sal, the only one knowledgeable in the medium. They might not have been convinced by it, but he had done exactly what the client asked for, so it looks like everyone was content to let it go forward to the client, and no one called it out even if perhaps they didn't think much of it. Lack of acumen, sure The more fool they, from our point of view. But they just let it be, and let it go forward to the client. The whole point was that no one anticipated the clients' reactions, and just suppressed their own views if they (and who knows?) were negative. They couldn't have found it abhorrent, in any case.berkowit28https://www.blogger.com/profile/08194317697552106140noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-54094324366595036722009-09-09T20:25:02.750-04:002009-09-09T20:25:02.750-04:00Kosher salt sprinkled chocolate ice cream update:
...Kosher salt sprinkled chocolate ice cream update:<br /><br />Quite good! Who would've known? That said, I think that the aforementioned kosher salt sprinked chocolate squares of last evening were just as good, if not a tad bit better.PanAm53https://www.blogger.com/profile/13133526724573682036noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-60156955200686266052009-09-09T19:58:20.178-04:002009-09-09T19:58:20.178-04:00I have to comment about the Patio meeting. There ...I have to comment about the Patio meeting. There is no way that everyone (except Sal) would have waited to see the complete video until they were in the room with the client. Just not done - not matter how close to deadline you are. They would have prescreened it, realized it was a mistake, and would have rushed like crazy to come up with an alternative concept (usually complete with new story boards). Then, voila, presented the alternative once the client realized what they asked for didn't work. I have seen this happen in real life several times.<br /><br />And it would have given us another classic opportunity to see Don the master at work. I am really disappointed that they gave this such short shrift and I find myself missing the "work" part of the show. Much as I love everything else!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-43271611216580450592009-09-09T16:30:54.818-04:002009-09-09T16:30:54.818-04:00I took Gene's use of salt with the ice cream t...I took Gene's use of salt with the ice cream to forshadow his coming stroke. Also, he mentions that the ice cream has an unusual scent (can't recall to what he compares it). Both would indicate a coming brain-related issue. <br /><br />The HBO series Six Feet Under dealt with main character Nate Fisher's brain tumor effects in a similar manner - he has strange, incongruous scent and taste sensations. <br /><br />Just a thought, but that was my take. I figured Gene would have a stroke or something right there in that scene when he was eating ice cream with salt and smelling funny scents. Why else would Weiner make such overt mention of them?Bmullnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-19602868879993970952009-09-09T15:15:00.551-04:002009-09-09T15:15:00.551-04:00I love how nobody (except Gene) worries about Bett...I love how nobody (except Gene) worries about Betty smoking or drinking while pregnant, but Don admonishes her for eating the fresh healthy peach because "it's been in the car all day." <br /><br />Also, Joan needs to leave SC and go to work for Vogue. SHE is "that girl".Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-26287036791524854312009-09-09T14:28:11.876-04:002009-09-09T14:28:11.876-04:00I was about to say something to dez about using my...I was about to say something to dez about using my powers of actor recognition for good (message boards, this blog, Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon) instead of evil (paparazzi, TMZ, etc.), but Katie's question has me stumped. How humbling!Hatfieldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01184680741873873714noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-89295235931973145492009-09-09T14:10:35.061-04:002009-09-09T14:10:35.061-04:00Does anyone know the actor playing the young Patio...Does anyone know the actor playing the young Patio exec? He looks familiar and kind of reminded me of Dr. Reed from Criminal Minds.<br /><br />ThanksKatienoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17517257.post-53341890187527317042009-09-09T11:05:07.340-04:002009-09-09T11:05:07.340-04:00I'm with those who are sure that Kitty realize...I'm with those who are sure that Kitty realized without a doubt that Sal's gay as he acted out his video. I was reminded of the scene in Battlestar Galactica when Tigh realizes his wife is a traitor; to me, it was clear just through her facial expressions that she had figured it out. Nice work by her.<br /><br />Less confidently, I do think that what went wrong with the Patio commercial was that it lacked the sex, because Sal doesn't get that part.Alexhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10032345969354207822noreply@blogger.com