interview with amc’s blogger

30 Jan, 2009 • posts i've written • No comments

A while back I did a quick phone interview with John Frankfurt who writes AMC’s Mad Men blog. John just posted the interview and sent me some nice schwag to say thanks.

Q: How are characters assigned or chosen from the show in Twitter?

A: Originally it was anyone who jumped on it and registered that account, because that’s the way Twitter works: If you have the account it’s yours. Main characters like Don Draper and Peggy Olson were picked first. After that, we see one person will run three or four accounts to pick up some peripheral characters so they can do really interesting things together. I think you’re seeing that with Francine’s character and Betty Draper, so they can experience what’s going on outside of Manhattan. For other people, it’s what resonates most with them.

I definitely prefer email interviews to phone, there’s always a good bit lost in translation, but I was happily surprised when AMC’s blogger reached out to me. The next step is talking to AMC proper, then Matt Weiner.

we are sterling cooper

08 Dec, 2008 • posts i've written • No comments

I must confess. I’ve been leading a double life. On Twitter, I’ve been masquerading as Bud Melman, a mailroom clerk at Sterling Cooper Advertising in 1962. I also built WeAreSterlingCooper.com. And for a short period of time, I ran a wiki where I tried to get many of the other Mad Men characters to play along and create story arcs between episodes.

I’ve written a full report about my other life, along with what it could mean for the future of entertainment. You can grab that report at http://drop.io/becomingamadman

So why did I do it? Because I’m a fan of the show; maybe even the biggest fan. Sunday nights were a solemn ritual of tuning in (ask Vanessa). I’d even buy the episode off iTunes the next day to watch on the train. I didn’t let anyone out of my sight without going on and on about what a great show it was. That’s what fans do, turn on new people to your show, product, etc. The more creative we get (like Mad Men twittering), the more effective we can be.

I wasn’t the first to come up with the idea of bringing a Mad Men character to life on Twitter, though. I just thought the idea was insanely brilliant and I wanted to play along, too. It didn’t work out quite how I had hoped, but I’m incredibly thankful for all the new people I’ve met and the support they’ve given me.

UPDATES

In a bit of “holy shit that’s awesome” news, I see that my report, Becoming a Mad Man, is part of Henry Jenkin’s syllabus for the fall course he’s teaching on Transmedia Storytelling at USC. It’s sure to be poked, prodded, and maybe even dismissed, but I’m incredibly honored for its inclusion in the course.

In addition, the report and my activities were recently cited in Grant McCracken’s latest book, Chief Culture Officer (p. 91)