May I freshen your drink?

[AdamSmith]

Today's irrelevant pop-culture proposition:

The root precursor to 'Mad Men' was 'Bewitched,' with its sly side-story eviscerating the advertising industry.

Are there other examples?

Maybe the only relevance here is that both Darrins -- the actors portraying them, rather -- were said to be gay.

Not to mention the priceless Paul Lynde.

[Guest restless]

Today's irrelevant pop-culture proposition:

The root precursor to 'Mad Men' was 'Bewitched,' with its sly side-story eviscerating the advertising industry.

Are there other examples?

Maybe the only relevance here is that both Darrins -- the actors portraying them, rather -- were said to be gay.

Not to mention the priceless Paul Lynde.

Paul Lynde is completely underrated.

[Guest StuCotts]

The Dick Van Dyke Show was ostensibly about the ad biz, though really more about the home life of Van Dyke's and Mary Tyler Moore's characters. And hardly an evisceration, rather a flagellation with a wet noodle. But funny for its time.

[AdamSmith]

a flagellation with a wet noodle.

The phrase immortalized by the equally priceless Ann Landers!

Agree completely with your assessment.

Interesting how, in my view, both Dick and Mary got so much sharper and better in their respective follow-on series.

[Guest lurkerspeaks]

Wasnt Rob Petrie a writer for the Alan Brady Show??

[AdamSmith]

Wasnt Rob Petrie a writer for the Alan Brady Show??

Thanks for the reminder.

The omniscient Wikipedia reports:

The Dick Van Dyke Show is an American television sitcom which initially aired on CBS from October 3, 1961 until June 1, 1966. The show was created by Carl Reiner and starred Dick Van Dyke and Mary Tyler Moore. A three-camera/studio audience format was used during production. The series was primarily sponsored by Procter & Gamble and, as an "alternate sponsor" beginning with the second season, Lorillard Tobacco Company (Kent cigarettes). The cast sometimes appeared in "integrated commercials" for their sponsors at the end of the show.

The show was also produced by Reiner, who wrote many episodes and played the role of Alan Brady. Many of the show's plots were inspired by Reiner's experiences as a writer for Your Show of Shows, but though he based the character of Rob Petrie on himself, Rob's egocentric boss Alan Brady is less Sid Caesar (host of Your Show of Shows) than a combination of the more abrasive Milton Berle and Jackie Gleason, according to Reiner himself.[1] The Dick Van Dyke Show won 15 Emmy Awards...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dick_van_dyke_show

[Guest Klair]

Paul Lynde. I always loved his humor and the way he delivered it. I used to watch Hollywood Squares all the time, just waiting for the Paul Lynde questions.