Mad Women

I'm not sure which I prefer, 'Rescue me' or 'Mad Men'. But tonight, the latter is returning. I actually lived the 'Mad Men' life (or Mad Women life) when I worked for a Toronto magazine publishing empire, Maclean-Hunter, back in the late sixties/early seventies. It wasn't an ad agency per se, but it had all the elements -- advertising, copy writing, art department, publishing and "goings-on". Man, what a place!

My publisher was a wild man. Every Monday morning he would hold an editorial meeting in his large, smoke-filled office. Invariably, he had a hangover, so always brought out the scotch to get him through and bring him around. I didn't imbibe, but others did. No one cared, as long as he brought in the advertising dollars. Hell, he could have done anything he wanted; the money was there. Every Friday afternoon, after we had put the magazine "to bed", as they called it, he would drag us off to the sleaziest Yonge Street dive imaginable, where we would drink draft all afternoon and evening. It was just like 'Mad Men' -- everyone smoking and drinking all the time. And the affairs! My dear, scandalous.

But I loved it. It was a very exciting life for a young woman just out of university. Ah, memory lane, what a lovely trip.