The Internet’s collective consciousness expressed grave concern when Peggy Olson stepped onto the elevator of Sterling Cooper Draper Price for the last time. Would this descent also represent her exit from Mad Men? To which I replied, “no, Internet, no.” This concern was not unfounded because the show has been known to discard or greatly diminish the screen time of seemingly essential characters (e.g., Sal, Paul, even Betty). Nevertheless, I doubted that Peggy would vanish or pop up as a Hari Krishna because she is central to the show’s understanding of mid-century American culture. While Don embodies the American desire for reinvention and illusion, Peggy represents the hyper-ambitious spirit and transitional energy of the late sixties far more than any other character—particularly more than the woman who replaced her for much of this season, Megan.
The Internet also seems fairly certain that the “lady’s cigarette” Peggy is testing will become Virginia Slims with the infamous tagline “You’ve come a long way, baby.” Due to Matthew Weiner’s scrupulous attention to period detail, I doubt the show will actually have Peggy create this campaign because, in real life, it was written by a man. This shouldn’t be surprising, for what workingwoman would have considered 1968 a watershed moment in women’s liberation? You were still fired if you got pregnant and couldn’t charge a husband with rape in most states. You could wear Go-go boots though. Continue reading “Lights Out”