A 4 part new Smithsonian Channel series with Mad Men producer Matthew Weiner, Brooke Shields and other experts will air on Sunday, January 8th at 9:00pm ET/PT. The series will provide an inside look into the men and women who re-invented the advertising industry from post-WWII America through the 1980s, according to a press release announcing the show. The series will not only cover the classic and memorable ad campaigns, many of which are in the collections of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, but also include features, clips, and interviews with the creators of the groundbreaking series Mad Men.
The story will include artifacts, costumes, and props from the series Mad Men against the backdrop of actual advertising history as displayed in its exhibition, American Enterprise, using the objects to explore the commercials and ad campaigns of mid-century America. It will also use the stories of the Mad Men cast alongside alongside interviews with the real ad men and women of the 1950s through the 1980s – from the top ad creators of the 1950s to Brooke Shields, who as a teen model was the centerpiece of a controversial early 1980s Calvin Klein ad campaign.
The Real Mad Men of Advertising is produced by Biscuit Century for Smithsonian Channel. Executive producers for Biscuit Century are Molly Herman and Rob Lyall. Tim Evans and David Royle serve as executive producers for Smithsonian Channel.
DIVERGE talked to Tim Evans, Executive Producer for the series to find out more.
Where did this idea for “The Real Mad Men of Advertising” come from?
The Smithsonian received a donation of props and wardrobe for the series “Mad Men” just after the series ended. We used this as our entryway into examining the history of advertising. “Mad Men” was fiction, so we asked ourselves, what can the actual advertising executives from the Golden Age tell us about the impact of advertising American culture?
Why is this series significant?
We talk to real actual creators of ads from the 1950s through the 1980s. These are the real-life Don Drapers and Peggy Olsons, who were essentially inventing American culture at its apex. We get to look at historic and nostalgic ads, then see how they both reflect and change popular culture.
How is the series unique?
One of the surprising revelations of “The Real Mad Men of Advertising” is the impact that diversity as had on advertising. In the 1960s, Madison Avenue was beginning to target women and African Americans as new demographic groups. By the 1980s, women and African Americans were running advertising agencies. A great example from our series is the story of KFC’s campaign “We Do Chicken Right.” Created by an African American woman specifically for an urban demographic, the ads eventually became KFC’s national campaign.
Additional thoughts?
We were able to work closely with Lionsgate TV and Matt Weiner to use specific scenes and storylines from “Mad Men” to explore actual historic ad campaigns and their impact. The real story of the ad men and women is more surprising, more dramatic, and ultimately more compelling than the award-winning fictional series.
What will each part include and when will it air?
THE REAL MAD MEN OF ADVERTISING: THE 1950s
Premieres Sunday, January 8th at 9 p.m. ET/PT
In a post-war world, advertisers tantalized consumers with visions of futuristic homes and cars, shiny jewelry, and the newest home appliances. Advertising harnessed buying power that created an unprecedented consumer boom. Advertisers discovered an entirely new, fast-growing market – children — and began to market directly to them on shows like Howdy Doody. The decade saw the proliferation of the most powerful selling machine of all: television. What was previously shown in print advertisements and heard on radio ads was now seen and heard through the new and exciting medium of television – piped directly into living rooms. From “doctors” hawking cigarettes, to the newest fins on Cadillacs, to “Does She Or Doesn’t She” – the ad men and women of the Fifties were re-inventing culture.
THE REAL MAD MEN OF ADVERTISING: THE 1960s
Premieres Sunday, January 15th at 9 p.m. ET/PT
Starting with a game-changing Volkswagen ad created by Doyle Dane Bernbach that used self-deprecating humor, the “creative revolution” was born. Mad Men creator Matthew Weiner explains why he began his series with the launch of the Creative Revolution. Rejecting old-fashioned advertising gospel, these new mad men and women questioned everything that advertisers once held to be true. This change in tone was made possible by new voices in advertising, as diverse talent broke into the exclusive “white shoe” agencies. The 60s were a time of unrest and change, with protests and riots in the street – and Madison Avenue tried to capitalize on it. As the civil rights movement gained traction, advertising was called upon to integrate. At the same time, the mystique of the counter-culture challenged the consumerism that was being pushed upon them. Ruled by the almighty dollar, advertisers were forced to change.
THE REAL MAD MEN OF ADVERTISING: THE 1970s
Premieres Sunday, January 22nd at 9 p.m. ET/PT
The Regulation Revolution of the 1970s was a time when consumers got hip, government got involved, and advertisers got scared into action. The name of the game for Madison Avenue was “trust” – both losing it and reclaiming it. Kicked off by the banning of cigarette television commercials, it’s a decade when consumers got smart and angry, and advertisers employed the tools of the creative revolution to try and win them back with plain talk and honesty. This episode tells the story of the rise of the consumer movement, championed by Ralph Nader and his “Nader’s Raiders.” If the 1960s promised a better world, the 70s faced the reality of delivering it. Progress is a bumpy road, but one ad – and Mad Men finale centerpiece – fills airwaves with a song of diversity, peace and optimism. The commercial featuring “I’d like to buy the world a Coke” may be considered the greatest ad of all time. It certainly looked and felt the way America wanted things to be.
THE REAL MAD MEN OF ADVERTISING: THE 1980s
Premieres Sunday, January 29th at 9 p.m. ET/PT
The 1980s were a time when greed was good, 24-hour sponsored programming was legal, and advertising became entertainment. Out of the economic hardship of the 1970s, the election of Ronald Reagan offered a welcome brand of optimism. A Madison Avenue dream team delivered a Reagan campaign commercial that put his candidacy over the top – promising “Morning in America.” Political confidence fueled an era of heavy consumption and new categories of designer products. Fifteen-year-old model Brooke Shields starred in the most controversial campaign of the decade, for Calvin Klein jeans – a steamy ad that was later pulled from major networks. Calvin Klein went on to make men’s underwear a fashion statement – setting the bar for the sexy, well-groomed 1980s man. Hispanic-Americans found representation that they were so dearly lacking in the advertising industry. A 1984 Super Bowl commercial, directed by Ridley Scott, introduced the Apple Macintosh that promised to revolutionize the world. At the same time, cable television exploded and MTV became a network that spoke to teens in a way no one had before. With this first generation of music videos, content and commercial became indistinguishable.
