Mad Men Episode 1.04 New Amsterdam

The junior ad execs all stand around listening to the comedic stylings of Bob Newhart when Pete's secretary informs him that his wife's in the office. After Pete makes the rounds, introducing Trudy to Don and the gang, she takes him to a post-war Park Avenue building. As they stand on the empty hardwood floors of the 1,500-square-foot apartment, Pete explains that his $75-a-week salary just won't cover it.

Rachel Menken walks down a back hallway of Sterling Cooper just as Don comes out of the projection room. Don asks if they can grab lunch, but she has no interest in awkward conversation.

That night, Betty takes the new family dog Polly for a walk. The suburban street is quiet, except for a handsome man banging on the door of Helen Bishop's house: "Dammit, Helen! Open the door!" When he notices Betty, he asks to use her telephone but she refuses.

Late that night, Helen stops by to thank Betty for her help. Over some coffee, she reveals that the reason for the divorce was her husband Dan's many women in the city.

That same night, Pete sits in his parent's living room. The furniture, covered in white sheets, is prepared for the summer months. His father, Andrew, doesn't understand his line of work, which seems to only include wining and dining. Pete gives up trying to explain how his business works and hints at how he and Trudy need help with a down payment on the upper eastside apartment. Andrew snubs the request. "We gave you everything," he says. "We gave you your name, and what have you done with it?"

The next day, the conference room fills up with easels as well as the creative team. They are congregating to share their advertising mockups with steel company head Walter Veith. Don flips over each board, revealing the campaign: a picture of the Manhattan skyline with the words, "New York City, brought to you by Bethlehem Steel." Similar boards showcased Chicago, St. Louis and Pittsburgh. Walter, although he understands that most cities are all steel, isn't completely sold. Just as Don was a few sentences away from sealing the deal, Pete apologetically says they can try to come up with something else and sends Walter on his way. "You do your job -- take him sailing, get him into a bathing suit -- and leave the ideas to me," Don says.

As Betty prepares dinner, Helen calls with a favor. She's supposed to stuff envelopes at Kennedy headquarters but her babysitter cancelled. Helen's house is a mess, with newspapers and mail across the coffee table and laundry piled on the chair. Helen, scouring under the couch for her shoes, thanks Helen and says goodbye to her son Glen, who's playing the piano.

One night after an evening with his own parents, he and Trudy are out to dinner with hers, Jeannie and Tom Vogel. They, however, are more willing to help finance their apartment. Pete resists the offer, worried that taking a loan would take away his independence. Still, Tom and Trudy get their way.

Back at Helen's, Betty and Glen watch "Gang of Outlaws" on TV when she gets up to use the restroom. As she lifts her dress and sits on the toilet, Glen opens the door and stares. She yells at him to get out. He cries, apologizes and then hugs her, much to her surprise. Moments later, he asks if he can have some of her hair. Spotting a pair of sewing scissors, she obliges his request before sending him to bed.

Ken and Walter sit at a booth in a hotel bar as Pete escorts two beautiful twenty-somethings to the table. Pete tries to talk shop about the steel campaign, but Walter's thoughts are all on the young ladies.

Back in the conference room, the group reconvenes and Walter eyes the mockups. This time, Don tries to sell an "Oh Little Town of Bethlehem" theme, but Walter prefers the one Pete pitched the night before: "Bethlehem Steel is the backbone of America."

After Pete escorts Walter out, he returns to the conference room. Don isn't pleased: "I need you to go and get a cardboard box. Then put your things in it." Pete, trying not to hyperventilate, pours himself a drink in his office. Now isn't the time to buy an apartment.

At Dr. Wayne's office, Betty shares her concerns over Helen and her children. She thinks that perhaps Helen is jealous of her and her happy family.

Don and Roger Sterling meet with Mr. Cooper in his vast, Japanese-style office to discuss Pete's termination. Unfortunately for Don's ego, Pete's mother is Dorothy Dykeman, the family that used to own nearly everything north of 125th Street. Thus, Pete is the gateway to many of the city's marquee interests. Don and Roger enter Pete's office to tell him he's off the hook. Roger tells Pete that he and Cooper wanted him gone, but Don decided to give him another chance.

That night, Don and Roger talk things over. "Maybe every generation thinks the next one is the end of it all," Roger says. "I bet people in the Bible were walking around complaining about 'kids today.'"

At Pete and Trudy's new apartment, Mrs. Lyman -- their new neighbor -- meets the newlyweds and implores for stories about Pete's Dykeman roots. As Trudy shares the stories, Pete looks to nothing in particular.