"Mad Men" has us - hook, line and sinker. We find ourselves watching a couple episodes at a time, now. The characters are so interesting. We're always guessing at what might happen and then amazed by what does unfold. There is nothing like a nighttime show that we're still talking about in the morning. The attention to 60's detail is incredible. Stuffed celery, a Magnalite roaster and ATLAS SHRUGGED… I'm still chuckling. But the smoking!! Granted, Lucky Strike was a significant client for Don Draper and crew. Herbal cigarettes, nearly as deadly, are substituted in the show. But seriously, 74 hits by one character in the pilot? Well, according to this interview with John Hamm, the writers crave verisimilitude as much as the Sixties Set craved smokes. Well, there's a word to remember...
I maintain that my Big Apple office was not like the one depicted. Of course, we dealt with international TV and not tobacco. But Joe and I do recall other smoke-related issues, over the years. One in particular - an early 70's dinner party with two puffers in attendance - ruined a night's sleep for our family. The upstairs bedrooms reeked from the lingering effects. A household rule was set, that night:
Sorry, Charlie… No Smoking In This Residence
