As an employment lawyer, I've often been mystified and troubled by the enduring appeal of TV's hit series "Mad Men."
The show, taking place in the early 1960s, deals with a number of important social issues as it affects the characters. It accurately depicts a white-collar workplace at a time when a variety of personal habits and behaviors, now illegal, were celebrated or tolerated.
Females in those days -- as among the show's characters -- were in subservient roles, with little chance to be career equals to men. Minorities were few. Homosexuals were closeted, because to be out would have been a career-killer. Sexual harassment was blatant, common and without serious punishment. Smoking and drinking on the job were frequent.
One observer has said that the show's success is based on giving "viewers an alluring package that contains some not-so-pleasant material."
Not so pleasant? Most of it is illegal today.
Much of the critical commentary about the show focuses on the "alluring package" part, rather than the difficult social issues that dominated the latter half of the '60s and beyond. The look of "Mad Men" is often lauded, its costumes and sets, the appealing actors and actresses, the personal story lines that draw viewers in.
Here are a few recent article titles in Allure magazine: "Forget Mad Men's Plot ... Let's Talk About That Eye Makeup" and "Este Lauder to Launch Mad Men-Inspired Makeup." From Cosmopolitan: "Life Lessons to Lift from Mad Men."
Disturbingly, the "Man Men" mania goes beyond mere surface appeal. A number of sources of management advice have actually celebrated the show. Forbes published an article: "Lessons From 'Mad Men': Sales Tips From Don Draper."