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The Mad Men Collection documents the work of Mad Men creator Matthew Weiner and his writing and production team
behind the scenes of the television drama acclaimed for its insightful writing and
meticulous recreation of period detail. The collection encompasses scripts, outlines,
notes,
correspondence, memos, casting materials, costume sketches, costume inspiration boards
and
lookbooks, call sheets, shooting schedules, clearance reports, photographs, set plans,
storyboards, clippings, maps, schedules, magazines, newspapers, publicity artwork,
press
kits and publicity brochures, promotional materials, invitations, awards, proof pages,
props, and costumes. Scripts, production materials, and publicity materials date from
2001
to 2016 and in addition to printed copies of these documents, in many instances, the
electronic files associated with these documents are also present in the collection.
Clippings, magazines, and other materials collected for research primarily date from
the
late 1950s to the early 1970s. Also present in the collection are four boxes of scripts
and
production materials from Weiner’s 2013 feature film Are You
Here. Matthew Weiner donated a collection of manuscript materials and a small
selection of props; Mad Men’s production company, Lionsgate
Entertainment, donated a separate collection of costumes and props. |
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The collection is divided in two series: Series I. Mad Men,
1912-2016 and Series II. Are You Here, 2005-2012. Series I is
further divided in four subseries. Subseries A. Scripts, 2001-2014 contains script
binders,
drafts, outlines, notes, and electronic files for individual episodes of Mad Men. Materials in this subseries are arranged in order of
season, and within seasons in order of episode. Season One episodes are numbered 101-113,
Season Two episodes are numbered 201-213, and so on for each season. In a few instances
episodes were filmed in a different order than they were broadcast on television.
Materials
for these episodes are described in the container list according to the order they
were
broadcast on television, but the materials themselves may be labeled with a different
episode number or with two episode numbers (for example, S109/P108, indicating that
it was
the ninth episode of Season One to be broadcast but the eighth episode to be filmed).
Some
online content providers assign different episode numbers to Mad
Men Seasons Five and Six because the first and second episodes of those seasons are
combined in one two-hour long episode; the finding aid uses separate episode numbers
for
parts one and two of "A Little Kiss" and "The Doorway" and therefore lists thirteen episodes for Seasons
Five and Six rather than twelve. |
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Within individual episodes, script materials are arranged chronologically from earliest
to
latest. The Mad Men writing team typically began to plan an
episode with an outline, followed by writer’s first and second drafts, then possibly
a
concept meeting draft; pre-production draft; tone meeting draft; and white, blue,
pink,
yellow, green, and goldenrod production drafts, although not every episode went through
all
of the drafts listed above. Revised outlines and Matthew Weiner’s script rewrites
are also
present for some episodes. The final shooting script (usually referred to as a "fully collated" script), the script supervisor’s shooting
scripts with log pages recording the shots for each take, and as broadcast scripts
are
available for some, but not all, episodes. Many drafts contain handwritten annotations
by
Matthew Weiner and others; annotated drafts are noted as such in the container list.
Some
drafts, revised pages, and outlines created for individual episodes are in the form
of
electronic files; they may or may not duplicate materials present in manuscript form.
If an
episode has corresponding electronic files, an entry for the files is included in
the
container list within the material associated with that episode and includes a brief
description, the number of files, the file formats, and the timestamp. Other electronic
files relate to entire seasons of the show rather than to individual episodes, including
files maintained by the script coordinator and writer’s room staff. Entries for these
files
are included in the container list at the beginning of each season before materials
associated with individual episodes, and include a brief description, the number of
files,
the file formats, and the timestamp. |
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In addition to loose drafts, outlines, and notes, there are one or more script binders
present for each episode. Most episodes have binders that belonged to Matthew Weiner
and the
script coordinator. Matthew Weiner’s binders typically contain a final shooting script
and a
variety of production materials including casting notes, call sheets, shooting schedules,
pre-timing estimates, and for episodes directed by Weiner, set plans and storyboards.
The
script coordinator binder often contains a comprehensive set of script drafts from
writer’s
first draft to final production draft. In addition to the Matthew Weiner and script
coordinator binders, there are also script binders kept by head of research Allison
Mann
during Seasons Six and Seven. These contain script drafts annotated with Mann’s research
notes. The content of the binders varies from episode to episode, and with the exception
of
binders for Episodes 103 and 113, materials have been removed from the original three-ring
binders due to preservation concerns. The binder contents have been foldered in their
original order with the original divider tabs. |
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Subseries B. Research, 1912-2014 is arranged chronologically by season, with general
research materials that are not identified with any particular season filed at the
end.
Research materials for Seasons One through Three were originally filed together and
remain
in that arrangement. Research binders, typically consisting of photocopied materials
relating to popular culture or advertising history during a particular year or span
of
years, are filed at the beginning of each season (materials have been removed from
the
original three-ring binders due to preservation concerns and foldered in their original
order). Following the binders for each individual season, research files contain
photocopies, clippings, correspondence, and notes on topics of interest to the show’s
writers. Materials from the files are foldered together alphabetically, with original
folder
titles noted in parentheses after the letter or span of letters in the container list.
The
original order of these research files has been retained; however, in some instances
folders
contain materials related to subjects other than those indicated by the folder title.
For
this reason, researchers interested in topics related to a particular season are strongly
encouraged to browse through all of the research files for that season. |
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In addition to research binders and files, the collection contains a large number
of
vintage periodicals collected for research purposes. These magazines and newspapers
are
listed alphabetically by title (and chronologically within each title) at the end
of
Subseries B. Many of the magazines are annotated with sticky notes flagging articles
of
interest to the research team and noting ideas for specific characters sparked by
the
content of the magazine. Annotated issues are noted as such in the container list.
Some of
the magazines collected for research have a musty odor, are coated with dirt and grime,
and/or contain brittle paper that tears easily. Researchers should wear nitrile gloves
and
exercise care when handling these materials, and those with sensitivity to mold may
wish to
wear a mask. |
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Some photographs and articles collected as research materials for particular seasons
are in
the form of electronic files. If a season has corresponding electronic files, entries
for
these files are included in the container list within the research files associated
with
that season and include a brief description, the number of files, the file formats,
and the
timestamp. |
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Subseries C. Production, 2002-2014 contains a small selection of production materials
including casting notes; costume sketches, character inspiration boards and costume
lookbooks; production photographs, including costume, hair, and makeup tests; set
plans; and
production binders. Production binders for Episode 101 and Season Three contain a
variety of
production materials, including calendars, call sheets, clearance reports, schedules,
and
correspondence regarding casting, post-production, and publicity campaigns. Materials
have
been removed from the original three-ring binders due to preservation concerns and
foldered
in their original order. Notable in this series are Matthew Weiner’s notes dating
from
before production through Season Seven, which record both script and general production
ideas, and the author trading cards with pictures of Charles Dickens, Arthur Miller,
Eugene
O’Neill, and Tennessee Williams that Weiner carried in his pocket for inspiration
during the
show’s production. |
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Many production materials are in the form of electronic files, including administrative,
art department, and casting files; behind the scenes production photographs; and photographs
and inventories of props. Entries for these files are included in the container list
within
the production subseries and include a brief description, the number of files, the
file
formats, and the timestamp. |
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Subseries D. Publicity, 2007-2016 comprises a variety of materials including awards,
clippings, invitations, key art for publicity campaigns, magazines and newspapers,
photographs, press kits, and publicity brochures. Also in this series are proofs of
the book
Matthew Weiner’s Mad Men, published by Taschen in 2016, and a
variety of promotional materials associated with the show, such as wall calendars,
a
static-cling play set called Desktop Mad Men, and a notepad made of cocktail napkins.
Some
publicity materials are in the form of electronic files, including publicity artwork
and
photographs, and files related to events and exhibitions. Entries for these files
are
included in the container list within the publicity subseries and include a brief
description, the number of files, the file formats, and the timestamp. |
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Subseries E. Related Scripts and Other Writings, 2011-2013, undated, contains scripts
that
are related to Mad Men in some way, such as the script for
The Simpsons’s Mad Men parody
"The Man in the Blue Flannel Pants," which featured
Matthew Weiner as a guest voice. |
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Series II. Are You Here, 2005-2012 contains scripts and
production materials for Matthew Weiner’s second feature film, Are You
Here, which was filmed in North Carolina in 2012 in between the production of
Seasons Five and Six of Mad Men. Materials include script
drafts, a binder with shooting script and production materials, casting files, set
plans,
and storyboards. The working title of the film was You Are Here
and all of the scripts and production materials in the collection refer to the film
by that
title. |
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Correspondence in the Mad Men Collection primarily consists of
printouts of emails. All individuals copied on a given email are indexed as correspondents
at the end of this finding aid. In addition to Matthew Weiner, correspondents include
executive producer Scott Hornbacher; writers including Lisa Albert, Kater Gordon,
Brett
Johnson, Jonathan Igla, André and Maria Jacquemetton, Erin Levy, and Carly Wray; head
of
research Allison Mann and other members of the research team; Weiner’s assistants;
and
members of the executive staff at AMC Networks and Lionsgate Entertainment. Due to
privacy
concerns, most email addresses have been redacted from the correspondence. Original
documents containing restricted email addresses have been replaced with redacted
photocopies. |
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Many of the casting documents in the collection contain private information including
Social Security numbers, home addresses, and personal phone numbers. These documents
are
restricted during the lifetime of the individuals mentioned. In most instances, a
redacted
photocopy of a sample page is provided as an example of the format and type of information
used during production; however, due to the volume of these documents in the collection,
it
is not possible to provide redacted photocopies of all the restricted pages. A small
number
of electronic files found in the collections contain personal information such as
Social
Security and Tax Identification numbers; these files are restricted during the lifetime
of
the individuals mentioned. |
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A small group of scripts, research, and publicity materials for Episode 113 was made
available for research in 2016 in a preliminary inventory. This finding aid incorporates
the
materials described in that preliminary inventory and supersedes it. |
