The Real Estate of Mad Men

Fans of Mad Men are familiar with how meticulously it reproduces period details, but it's still amazing, and a little weird at times, to see just how meticulous it is. Yesterday while Googling some information on the Ossining Reservoir, I came across the blog of J. Philip Faranda, an Ossining, N.Y., real estate agent, who was surprised in a recent episode to see that Baby Gene was to be delivered by a "Dr. Mendelowitz." Faranda was also delivered by Dr. Mendelowitz.

If you visit his blog—warning: real-estate-related historical spoilers—you'll also find some info on the reservoir and the history of development in and around Ossining. (A tip: keep an eye out for the Arcadian Shopping Center in the future!) There's also a link to a local news site that's compiled a map of Mad Men references in Westchester, including as guess as to the real-life correlate to Don and Betty's fictional address. (Warning: annoying musical intro.)

One historical correction Faranda points out, by the way: "The Draper's phone number is WIlson-4, 8032, or 944-8032. Not accurate. The WILSON exchange at that time was 941, not 944. 944 didn't arrive until the 1990's." You just know that is a stake to Matthew Weiner's heart.