Mad Men, the hit show centered around an advertising firm in the 1960′s has inspired more than a love for retro fashion and classic cocktails over lunch. It was also the impetus for the “Mad Men Reading List”, created by Billy Parrott, manager of the Battery Park City branch of the New York Public Library. The list includes all the books read by characters in the series. “I love the show,” says Parrott in an interview with the New York Daily News. “And being a librarian, I always take note when someone’s reading something.” The list, which is featured on the library’s blog as well as on Twitter under the name batteryparkcity, is becoming quite popular with patrons. “Now, the day after the show, people come in and start asking about stuff.” Read more…

Before there was Don Draper and Mad Men, real-life ad man Jerry Della Femina was living it up on Madison Avenue. Della Femina’s 1970 memoir From Those Wonderful Folks Who Gave You Pearl Harbor (Simon & Schuster, 288pgs), one of the sources of inspiration for the hit television show, was reissued this month. The book, named after a tongue-in-cheek slogan rejected by Panasonic, exposes the true hijinks and excesses of advertising’s heyday. In an interview with NPR, Della Femina discusses his time as an ad executive. “Advertising was fun,” he explains. “I wrote that it was the most fun you could have with your clothes on — and we’ll never see it again.” Comparing the antics of the characters on Mad Men with his real life experiences, he claims the show has toned down the debauchery on Madison Avenue. “Obviously it was not politically correct, but everyone took part in it and we were just enjoying doing what we were doing,” he admits. “We thought the fun would never end.”
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