Vitals

John Slattery as Roger Sterling, Madison Avenue ad executive

New York City, Spring 1969

Series: Mad Men
Episode: “Field Trip” (Episode 7.03)
Air Date: April 27, 2014
Director: Christopher Manley
Creator: Matthew Weiner
Costume Designer: Janie Bryant

Background

Four years ago, on Friday the 13th of March 2020, COVID-19 was officially declared a national emergency in the United States. After a week or two of being instructed to reminded to sing “Happy Birthday” twice while washing my hands, it was a very surreal Friday in the office as rumors swirled about how this newly classified pandemic would affect our reality.

As nationwide lockdowns set in across the United States, the following Monday started the first of what was initially intended to be a “two-week” work-from-home policy that ultimately stretched over nearly 15 months. While I applaud those who consistently dressed to work from home as though it were another day in the office, adjusting to this “new normal” for me—even as a style blogger—meant unprecedented levels in workday comfort, eventually finding an agreeable compromise of a presentable upper-half and comfortable lower-half that was best for my own personal productivity.

“What does this have to do with Mad Men?” you ask, in all fairness.

Aside from the fact that Mad Men was one of the first of my favorite shows that I rewatched in its entirety during the spring 2020 quarantine period, the stylish series also presented a look I’d long been wanting to revisit that reminded me of that odd lockdown period as I tried to blend loungewear with business attire.

At the start of Mad Men‘s seventh season, Don Draper (Jon Hamm) demonstrates a nearly half-century head-start on the WFH trend as the recently grounded ad man has been covertly working on accounts from his Manhattan penthouse, currently persona non grata at SC&P after getting a little too candid during a client pitch at the end of the previous season. His reputation resurged enough to secure a job offer from a rival company, Don pays a late visit to his former friend and colleague Roger Sterling (John Slattery), confronting him over feeling abandoned by the agency he co-founded—and, more specifically, his old pal. Continue reading →