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Mad Men is a show that transcends its logline. On its face, it sounds a bit dull and mildly ridiculous—a show about Madison Avenue ad men in the stodgy early 1960s?—but Matthew Weiner and his cast delivered one of the best TV shows ever, a deep dive into the changing mores of America across the '60s, as the Consumer Age came into dominance.
If you miss the detailed recreations of the era, the fab fashions, and Don Draper’s fascinating antihero aura—and you’ve already burned through our suggestions for streamalike shows—there are still plenty of movies, books, podcasts, and even video games that can scratch that itch.
The best books like Mad Men
Mad Men was a literary show. Aside from all the overt allusions to and actual books visually referenced on the show, there’s a writerly aspect to the scripts that made it feel like a collection of short stories as much as a TV series. If you want more of that vibe, here are some great books to dive into.
The Man in the Grey Flannel Suit, by Sloan Wilson
An obvious influence on the show, The Man in the Grey Flannel Suit was a bestseller in 1955, and the title became shorthand for a certain type of middle-class American. It’s the story of Tom Rath, a World War II veteran and family man making his way up the corporate ladder while dealing with what we would now recognize as PTSD, not to mention the new pressures of affluence. Like Don Draper, Tom keeps up the appearance of a detached, confident businessman while his inner monologue is a riot of conflicting emotions and stress.
The Best of Everything, by By Rona Jaffe
Jaffe was just 26 when she wrote this, her debut novel, and it offers the perfect alternate perspective on the Mad Men era (Don Draper, in fact, is seen reading it in season one). The story follows five young women who work at a big office in Manhattan, and details their lived experience as people with dreams, as sex objects routinely harassed at work, and as willing participants in extramarital affairs and other scandalous behavior. It’s a snapshot of a bygone era with the same depth and attention to detail as the show.
Confessions of an Advertising Man, by David Ogilvy
Sure, you can (and should, because it’s hilarious) actually buy a copy of Sterling’s Gold, the fictional memoir by Roger Sterling from Mad Men. But you should also read the book that filled Sterling with so much envy—Confessions of an Advertising Man, by advertising legend David Ogilvy. It’s basically an instruction manual in which Ogilvy shares the lessons he’d learned from decades in the business, and it established him as a kind of Ad Guru for the 1960s. If you want insight into how real "Mad Men" thought, this is the book for you.
Revolutionary Road, by Richard Yates
Mad Men often feasted on the theme of affluent ennui and suburban malaise—no matter how successful or wealthy Don and everyone around him becomes, they’re desperately bored and unhappy. One of the most potent moments on the show comes late in the series: Don has reached the pinnacle of professional success and is sitting in a boring meeting when he spots a plane in the sky outside his window—and just stands up and leaves for an adventure. That’s the energy in Yates’ classic, tragic novel: Frank and April Wheeler plan to escape the trap of 1950s American drudgery by saving up to live in France and live as bohemians, but their empty lives can't support their outsized dreams.
Seconds, by David Ely
This 1963 novel should be better known (as should the 1966 film adaptation, which is perhaps the best work Rock Hudson ever did), and it’s ideal for Mad Men fans because it’s also about a successful man who can’t seem to resist the urge to flee his happy life and reimagine himself. In this case, literally: "Wilson,” as the 50-ish bank executive in this book calls himself, signs up with a company that fakes his death, remakes him into a physically younger man, and sets him up with his dream career in an all-new life, to disastrous consequences. There’s no doubt Don Draper would have done this if he had the chance.
The best movies like Mad Men
Mad Men might be literary, but it’s also a damn fine-looking show. If you want some feature-length entertainment that explores the same time period and similar themes, you can’t go wrong with these movies.
A Single Man (2009)
Based on the 1964 novel by Christopher Isherwood, this film follows middle-aged professor George Falconer (Colin Firth) on the day he has decided to commit suicide due to the unbearable grief he feels after losing his long-time partner, Jim (Matthew Goode). He initially observes everything he experiences with renewed interest, believing it will be the last time he does so, but his encounters over the course of the day impact him in unexpected ways. It’s a gorgeous glimpse of the early 1960s and the story of a man living—and ruined by—a double life. Stream A Single Man on Kanopy or rent it on Prime Video.
Inside Llewyn Davis (2013)
A 1960s-set period piece about a brilliant man who won’t get out of his own way? That’s a perfect match with Mad Men. In 1961 New York, Llewyn Davis (Oscar Isaac) is a struggling folk singer in the time just before Bob Dylan’s breakthrough. Broke and bitter, his life collapses around him as poor decisions, grief, and simple bad luck conspire to make him consider giving up his dreams. It’s a lot funnier than that sounds, and a brilliant examination of a narcissist who has the looks and talent but not the moral fortitude to make it big. Aside from the pitch-perfect recreation of the time and place, fans of the show will appreciate it as a deep character study. Stream Inside Llewyn Davis on Kanopy or rent it on Prime Video.
The Apartment (1960)
If you ever thought the rampant sexism and alcohol-soaked chicanery in your average episode of Mad Men was a bit over the top, The Apartment will set you straight. In 1960 Manhattan, C.C. Baxter (Jack Lemmon) is an ambitious clerk in an enormous insurance company who allows the executives in his division to use his bachelor apartment to stage their extramarital affairs. It’s both hilarious and heartbreaking, and a contemporaneous depiction of what office life was like, contemporaneous to the first season of Mad Men is set. Stream The Apartment on Kanopy or rent it on Prime Video.
How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying (1967)
If you were surprised to see Bert Cooper (Robert Morse)’s ghost sing and dance for Don Draper in season seven of Mad Men, you never saw How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying. This 1967 film (based on a hit Broadway musical) follows J. Pierrepont Finch (Morse) as he follows the ethically dubious advice found in a self-help book to rise steadily from the mailroom to the boardroom at a huge company. It’s a funny, bright take on the 1960s business world that’s somehow more joyous and also more cynical than Mad Men. Stream How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying on Hoopla or rent it on Prime Video.
Patterns (1956)
Written by The Twilight Zone's Rod Serling, Patterns was explicitly named as a major influence on Mad Men by Matthew Weiner himself—he said he used the film to “get a sense of the real offices and to see how virtue and ambition can clash.” The story centers on an idealistic young executive who is pushed by his company’s owner to replace an older, highly respected executive who’s lost his touch. It’s a story of manipulation, ambition, and greed, and you can see the clear echoes of Mad Men’s office scenes in every frame. Stream Patterns on Kanopy or rent it on Prime Video.
The best video games like Mad Men
If, like Don Draper, you’re more about taking action, controlling your own destiny, and not having a contract, video games can give you at least a hint of that Mad Men vibe. (There actually was a kind-of-a-joke Mad Men visual novel-style game released back in 2012, but it’s no longer playable, so you’ll have to make do with these suggested substitutes.)
L.A. Noire
The obvious choice is L.A. Noire, for two basic reasons. One, the game employed a lot of Mad Men actors, starting with Aaron Staton (Ken Cosgrove) as the lead character Cole Phelps and including Julie McNiven (Hildy), Ryan Cutrona (Betty Draper’s father, Eugene), Michael Gladis (Paul Kinsley), and Rich Sommer (Harry Crane), just to name a few. And two, the game’s 1947 setting is a similarly immersive recreation, from the fashions to the gritty, noir-soaked tone.
Platforms: PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo Switch, Steam
Disco Elysium
If you loved Mad Men, you’ll love the whole vibe of Disco Elysium. It’s set in a dreamy universe with visuals that look like an oil painting, and you play as a burned-out, amnesiac detective with substance abuse issues, so at first glance the connection to Mad Men isn’t obvious. You’ll find it not only in the antihero main character and his struggles with identity and sobriety, but in the dense, literary approach to story and character—playing the game is almost like taking Don Draper, removing his memory, and dropping him into an alternate universe mystery.
Platforms: PlayStation, Xbox, Stadia, Nintendo Switch, Steam
BioShock
On the one hand, BioShock is a demented first-person shooter set in an underwater city (and the sequel is set in a floating sky city) where insane people have overdosed on Objectivism and "plasmids" that give them superpowers, none of which is very Mad Men-esque. On the other hand, the visual design is a pitch-perfect 1960 vibe, the story is an exploration of how narcissism and consumerism destroy societies, and the questions of identity and free will the game explores slot nicely into a Draper-style narrative, questioning whether any of us truly know who we really are.
Platforms: PlayStation, Xbox, Steam
One Late Night
A recurring plot beat in Mad Men is the liminal weirdness of working late at an office. Whether it’s Don hallucinating the ghost of Anna Draper after she passes away, Harry living at the office post-affair, or Paul Kinsley, drunk as a skunk, having a creative epiphany late at night, the offices of Mad Men are a character unto themselves. One Late Night is a free-to-play indie horror game, but it captures that eerie vibe as you wander an empty office, following clues to a haunting (and probably being scared out of your wits a few times). Imagine you’re playing as Don, hungover and depressed, experiencing a long dark night of the soul.
Platforms: Steam
What Remains of Edith Finch
If you love the deep characterization and exploration of generational trauma inherent in Don Draper's story, play What Remains of Edith Finch. You take up the role of Edith, a 17-year-old girl who is the last survivor of her family. She returns to the estate where she grew up to learn the real reasons her family collapsed into chaos and tragedy. It’s a thoughtful, absorbing walking simulator-slash-mystery that offers a similar vibe to Draper’s story, as Edith struggles with the possibility that her family is cursed, and that the curse remains with her.
Platforms: PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo Switch, Steam
The best podcasts like Mad Men
Whether you want to discuss and quote Mad Men endlessly or find an audio drama offering a similarly absorbing story, podcasts can help.
They Coined It
Despite the fact that the podcast abruptly stopped before covering the final episode of the series (due to the hosts' health issues), They Coined It remains one of the best recap podcasts for Mad Men. Whether you’re watching the show for the first time or re-watching it for the tenth, Roberta and Dan offer up detailed, insightful analyses of every episode except the finale, making this the perfect podcast if you want to really dig in and catch every cultural reference, literary allusion, and subtle character note.
In a Snit
Mad Men is a fascinating study of postwar America, midcentury corporate culture, and existential malaise—from a white, cis, and male perspective. In a Snit offers a feminine and feminist perspective of the show, digging into the fashion and sexual politics. It’s a refreshing change from a lot of Mad Men podcasts that concentrate almost entirely on Don Draper.
The Diarist
If you’re looking for an absorbing audio drama with Mad Men vibes, check out The Diarist. Set at a 1950s New York advertising firm (check), the story follows Andrea Davies, a young secretary who has an affair with her handsome, charming boss (check) and stumbles into a dark web of lies and betrayal. The setting and characters might have come straight from an early episode of the show, and the tone is a perfect match for some of the darker and more suspenseful episodes.
Bronzeville
Looking for a period story that offers a different experience with similar levels of intricate character work and literary storytelling? Check out Bronzeville. Starring Larenz Tate and Laurence Fishburne, the story is set in 1940s Chicago in the Black neighborhood known as Bronzeville. Its depiction of a specific time and age is spot-on, and the story, involving an unofficial lottery, murder, and the racial tensions of the era, is as compelling as anything on Mad Men.
Mad Men Deconstructed
If you’re looking for more historical context and a deeper psychological investigation of the show, check out Mad Men Deconstructed. Although the podcast only covers most of the first two seasons, the episodes are packed with useful information that will inform your experience of the entire show. The aim is to judge everything from the perspective of the 1960s rather than our modern-day point of view, a pivot that often reveals important subtleties in various character choices and plot swerves.
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