Smoke Gets in Your Eyes (Mad Men)
| "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes" | |
|---|---|
| Mad Men episode | |
| Episode no. | Season 1 Episode 1 |
| Directed by | Alan Taylor |
| Written by | Matthew Weiner |
| Cinematography by | Phil Abraham |
| Original air date | July 19, 2007 |
"Smoke Gets in Your Eyes" is the first episode of the first season of the American period drama television series Mad Men. It first aired on July 19, 2007, in the United States on AMC, and was written by creator Matthew Weiner and directed by Alan Taylor. "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes" was budgeted at US$3 million. Production for the episode took place in New York City and Los Angeles.
Weiner conceived of the script in 2000 while working as a writer for the television sitcom Becker. Before writing the pilot episode, Weiner studied American literature and cinema of the 1950s and 1960s to get a perspective on American culture during that period. Weiner sent the script to The Sopranos creator David Chase, who recruited Weiner to work with him on The Sopranos. Weiner shelved the project for seven years to focus on Chase's program; interest for Mad Men did not surface until the conclusion of The Sopranos' final season.
According to the Nielsen Media Research, the episode attained a rating of 1.4 (1.2 million households) upon initial airing.
In 1960 New York City, Don Draper (Jon Hamm), creative director for advertising agency Sterling Cooper, is facing a professional dilemma: how to sell cigarettes in spite of increased public awareness of their health risks. He seeks input from customers and his girlfriend Midge Daniels (Rosemarie DeWitt), but is unable to find a solution. He rejects academic research for the company by a psychologist that suggests some customers will be drawn to smoking despite the health risks because of a collective "death wish."
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