Lady Lazarus 

Megan convinces Don that she should give up her job at the firm so that she can pursue a career on Broadway, while Peter has a fling with an acquaintance's wife.

Director:

Phil Abraham

Writers:

Matthew Weiner (created by), Matthew Weiner

Stars:

Jon Hamm, Elisabeth Moss, Vincent Kartheiser

Cast

Episode cast overview, first billed only:
Jon Hamm	...	Don Draper
Elisabeth Moss	...	Peggy Olson
Vincent Kartheiser	...	Pete Campbell
January Jones	...	Betty Francis (credit only)
Christina Hendricks	...	Joan Harris
Jared Harris	...	Lane Pryce (credit only)
Aaron Staton	...	Ken Cosgrove
Rich Sommer	...	Harry Crane
Kiernan Shipka	...	Sally Draper (credit only)
Jessica Paré	...	Megan Draper
Christopher Stanley	...	Henry Francis (credit only)
Jay R. Ferguson	...	Stan Rizzo
Robert Morse	...	Bertram Cooper (credit only)
John Slattery	...	Roger Sterling
Alexis Bledel	...	Beth Dawes

Storyline

Megan has been lying to her colleagues, including Don, about her whereabouts at certain times of the day. She is caught in the lie by both Don and Peggy. She is able to make up a credible enough excuse to Don, but Peggy confronts her on it. Based on that discussion, Megan decides to come clean to Don about what she's been doing. Don's reaction surprises her, which leads to a major change at SCDP. But Don's true reaction may actually be closer to what she had anticipated based on an encounter Don has with Peggy. Meanwhile, Pete is still feeling more fulfilled at work as clients, without even having met him, are giving him gifts. But he is feeling more and more restless at home, especially after he learns that his train commuting colleague Howard Dawes has embarked on an affair in the city. Taking a cue from Howard and given the opportunity, Pete embarks on a wannabe affair of his own, the "wannabe" part based on the insecurities of the other party.

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Plot Keywords:

train | giving someone a ride home | quitting a job | adultery | effeminate gay man | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

TV-14

Did You Know?

Trivia

Don summons an elevator, but the doors open to reveal only the abyss of an empty shaft. In a June 2012 interview with the New York Times, Matthew Weiner seems to imply that this was an actual malfunction on the set that was retained or recreated for the finished scene. ("In my mind, that actually happened. The elevator wasn't there, which we know happens all the time. I thought that was an amazing cinematic representation of his emotional state.") But this reading might be taken out of context; Weiner may simply have been restating a simile with doors he drew for a just-prior question about Pete Campbell. At any rate, the empty elevator shaft fits with the death imagery that is sprinkled throughout the show and also symbolizes the new void of Megan's departure (per same interview).

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Goofs

Several times references are made to a photograph of the Earth as taken from space. This episode was set in October 1966. It is true that the first photograph in which the Earth can be seen is a shot taken from NASA's Lunar Orbiter 1 and published on the front page of the New York Times on August 27, 1966. However, they are not referring to the right photo. When Beth is in bed with Pete, she describes his eyes as being the same color blue as the Earth and that the Earth looks like an isolated tiny ball. The 1966 photo was black and white. Color photographs of the Earth weren't available until taken by the DODGE satellite in September 1967, so Beth could not have made the color comparison. From the verbal descriptions, they are clearly describing the iconic photo "Earthrise" which was taken from the Apollo 8 spacecraft on December 24, 1968 - two years later.

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Quotes

Peggy Olson: [On the phone] Hello.
Don Draper: It's me. Is Megan there?
Peggy Olson: Isn't she with you?
Don Draper: Yes, we're playing a hilarious joke on you.
Peggy Olson: She left a while ago to meet you at the restaurant.
Don Draper: When?
Peggy Olson: I don't know, after you called.
Don Draper: I didn't call.
Peggy Olson: Oh. Well, she must be at home.
Don Draper: I'm at home.
[...]

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Connections

References Candid Camera (1960)

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Soundtracks

Tomorrow Never Knows
Written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney
Performed by The Beatles

User Reviews

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

6 May 2012 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles Center Studios - 450 S. Bixel Street, Downtown, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Lionsgate Television, Weiner Bros.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

48 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1