It turns out even the Beatles are Mad Men devotees.
Sunday’s episode of the acclaimed drama ended with brooding ad man Don Draper alone in his New York City apartment listening to “Tomorrow Never Knows” from the Fab Four’s 1966 album “Revolver.”
Mad Men husband-and-wife writing-producing duo Andre and Maria Jacquemetton say the show’s creative team desperately wanted that particular song.
“In the case of the Beatles, they’re not known for opening up their song catalogue to everyone,” Andre Jacquemetton said Monday. The couple was in Toronto to give a master class at the Canadian Film Centre and were scheduled to speak at the TIFF Bell Lightbox as well.
“It just turns out actually that they’re huge fans of the show. So in a way, it’s ‘Who do you get to talk to?'”
Added Maria Jacquemetton: “It was really [Mad Men creator] Matt Weiner making a personal appeal, he really worked very hard to get that particular song in the episode.”
In the episode, Draper’s wife Megan announces plans to quit the advertising business and resume pursuit of an acting career. She gives her husband the album after he reveals he knows woefully little about popular music.
“[Weiner] and the writers felt very strongly that that was sort of a seminal song and moment in music history and that we really wanted it to be in that episode,” said Maria Jacquemetton.
“The episode is so much about Don’s disappointment over the woman that he loves not wanting to be at his side and his creative partner anymore… and him sort of feeling out of touch with everything that’s going on around him.”
“You really get the sense in last night’s episode that Don is old,” added Andre Jacquemetton. “And that time is moving much quicker than he would like it to be.”
Of Weiner’s quest to get the song, he added: “It took a long time, he had to speak to quite a few people and write some letters, but it got done. And was it amazing.”
