re: Mad Men Series Finale - "Person to Person"

Baby Gene finally got some lines!

Ending was perfect.

I really enjoyed it. I didn't see that coming at all, but it was well done.

There was a article I read through yahoo that nailed the ending. They've been dropping coke references for 3-4 episodes and the articles writer connected the dots. Knowing the coke ad was an early 70's ad.

I just rewatched the ending. Don definitely wrote the ad. He starts to smile and the ad starts playing while the camera is still showing his face. That signifies to me that the ad is running through his head at that moment.

Thought it was a great final episode.

The great thing is I can see Don doing the sales pitch to Coke:

"What do people want? Acceptance, inclusion, acknowledgment. How does Coke play into that: People want someone to keep them company and what better way than by buying them a Coke?"
(Or something along those lines but better of course because it would be Don and not me)

Other storylines:

I liked the Peggy and Stan stuff and it was in character for her to pretty much talk herself into the fact that she loved him (or at least that she had to plot it out logically in her mind). Also liked that there are no guarantees that it would be a successful romance long term. Heck, I'd say the odds are a bit against it. But it was a good stopping point for them in the show.

I agree with others that Sally's storyline was kind of the saddest but she seemed to be up to the challenge of what had to be done.

Pete's ending was good but kind of brief.

Joan's whole "production company" thing seemed kind of like a scheme of some sort or at least a risky idea. I'm glad Peggy didn't go for it.

Roger was great. Finding a little happiness in a quiet way but you could see he wasn't going in blind and had no illusions about long term sustainability.

Nice sleuthing!

He definitely did the ad but I wish we had got to see him pitch it at McCann.

quote:

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"I'd Like to Buy the World a Coke" had its origins on January 18, 1971, in a London fog.

Bill Backer, creative director on the Coca-Cola account for the McCann Erickson advertising agency, was flying to London to meet up with Billy Davis, the music director on the Coca-Cola account, to write radio commercials with two successful British songwriters, Roger Cook and Roger Greenaway, to be recorded by the New Seekers, a popular British singing group.

The heavy fog in London forced the plane to land in Shannon, Ireland. Passengers had to remain near the airport in case the fog lifted. Some of them were furious about their accommodations. By the next day, Backer saw some of the most irate passengers in the airport cafe. Brought together by a common experience, many were now laughing and sharing stories over snacks and bottles of Coca-Cola. Backer wrote of the scene:

"In that moment [I] saw a bottle of Coke in a whole new light... [I] began to see a bottle of Coca-Cola as more than a drink that refreshed a hundred million people a day in almost every corner of the globe. So [I] began to see the familiar words, 'Let's have a Coke,' as more than an invitation to pause for refreshment. They were actually a subtle way of saying, 'Let's keep each other company for a little while.' And [I] knew they were being said all over the world as [I] sat there in Ireland. So that was the basic idea: to see Coke not as it was originally designed to be -- a liquid refresher -- but as a tiny bit of commonality between all peoples, a universally liked formula that would help to keep them company for a few minutes."

When he finally arrived in London, Backer told Billy Davis and Roger Cook what he had seen in the airport café. After he expressed his thoughts about buying everybody in the world a Coke, Backer noticed that Davis's initial reaction was not at all what he'd expected and asked him, "Billy, do you have a problem with this idea?"

Davis slowly revealed his problem. "Well, if I could do something for everybody in the world, it would not be to buy them a Coke."

Backer responded, "What would you do?"

"I'd buy everyone a home first and share with them in peace and love," Davis said.

Backer said, "Okay, that sounds good. Let's write that and I'll show you how Coke fits right into the concept."

---

https://www.coca-colacompany.com/stories/coke-lore-hilltop-story

ETA: Just like what the poster above said.

That giuy with Fred Couples (Fairhopetider) for his avatar posted that a few pages back, but yeah it confirms it.