Mad Men for Kids

Mad Men is a great experiment in a sort of cultural reenactment of not a specific event but of a mood and evolution of thought. It’d be cool if kids could watch it and get a sense of how the popular media that they are immersed in today came to be. But the womanizing and foul language and adult situations make it inappropriate. So how do you make TV’s current best drama safe for your kids to experience? Mash it up with a classic children’s book!

British web site The Poke (sort of the British version of The Onion) has created images of our favorite Mad Men characters in the style of the Mr. Men characters by Roger Hargreaves. Their first “book” is called Mr. Sterling Gets Angry and chronicles the conflict that erupts when Mr. Sterling pits his alcohol and tobacco habits against Mr. Draper’s.

So, okay, I guess it’s still not kid-friendly. But it’s funny as hell.

The Hargreaves characters appeared in numerous children’s books, such as Mr. Tickle and Little Miss Chatterbox. My favorites were Little Miss Bossy and Little Miss Scatterbrain. Interestingly enough, Roger Hargreaves was the creative director of a London advertising firm before his Mr. Men and Little Miss books took off. Can you imagine the man behind those beloved characters swilling rye and schtupping secretaries?

The Poke