{"id":25672,"date":"2025-02-04T11:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-02-04T19:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/crookedmarquee.com\/stage8\/?p=25672"},"modified":"2025-02-06T16:38:25","modified_gmt":"2025-02-07T00:38:25","slug":"mad-man-david-lynch-commercial-artist","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/crookedmarquee.com\/stage8\/mad-man-david-lynch-commercial-artist\/","title":{"rendered":"Mad Man: David Lynch, Commercial Artist"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

In the wake of David Lynch\u2019s passing, any number of endearingly quirky and hilarious stories have been shared about him, including one where he met with actors Jon Hamm and Elizabeth Moss, stars of the <\/em>critically acclaimed AMC advertising biz drama Mad Men<\/em>. Lynch was so enamored<\/a> with the show\u2014\u201dThey\u2019re great characters\u2026 great writing, great atmosphere\u201d\u2014that during dinner, he called the actors by their characters\u2019 names.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI had the opportunity to meet Peggy Olsen and Don Draper,\u201d said Lynch. \u201cThat\u2019s who they are to me. I called Peggy, \u2018Peggy.\u2019\u201d (This story was confirmed by Moss during an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live!<\/em>, who told about receiving a follow up email from Lynch: \u201cHe wrote \u2018Dear Peggy\u2019 and finished it with \u2018Give my love to Don\u2019.\u201d)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lynch\u2019s love of Mad Men<\/em> was not a one-way street\u2014series creator Matthew Weiner has spoken of the filmmaker\u2019s influence on his show and career a number of times. Nor is it hard to understand Lynch\u2019s attraction to the material: beyond the simple quality of the writing or acting, Mad Men\u2019s<\/em> exploration of the often dark subconscious of the American Dream are not dissimilar to that of Lynch\u2019s work (although his stories are far more disturbing and strange). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But even beyond that obvious connection, it is likely Lynch felt a personal connection to the material due to his own history as an ad man.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In terms of Lynch\u2019s vocations, he\u2019s first known, obviously, as a movie director and showrunner. He started out as a visual artist and remained prolific in that field throughout his life. He was also a recognizable actor, a talented musician, a cartoonist, weatherman, author, coffee maker, and restaurateur. His presence across all of these fields only served to build up his stature as a cultural icon so that his passing at the age of 78 garnered more attention than one might expect from an artist whose work could be so challenging (this is the man who made Inland Empire<\/em><\/a>, remember). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Which is what makes his commercial directing work so interesting. Even though it\u2019s entirely normal, even expected, for big name directors to take on that type of work \u2014Martin Scorsese directed and starred in a Super Bowl spot<\/a> just last year\u2014only on rare occasions do these ads break through and achieve widespread notice (Ridley Scott\u2019s iconic 1984 Apple ad<\/a> springs to mind). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

None of Lynch\u2019s work in the field received that level of attention, which isn\u2019t to say they\u2019ve gone unnoticed. A cursory Google search for \u2018David Lynch commericals\u2019 brings up any number of articles, playlists, and individual examples. A dive into them will have you wishing for a Blu-ray collection similar to the Short Films of David Lynch <\/em>set.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After watching all of these commercials, it\u2019s easy to break them down into a couple of different categories. There are, first and foremost, the scent ads. This market seemed to be where Lynch was most in demand, with him turning out spots for the likes of Calvin Klien, Gorgio Armani, Yves Saint Laurent, and more. These are hardly distinguishable from most perfume commercials of the day: a mix of uber-cool European arthouse cinema and Cinemax-style softcore erotica that borders on self-parody. Lynch\u2019s come replete with a score by his closest collaborator, Angelo Badalamante, so they have more of an immediately emotional hook than most others. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lynch did two sets of Calvin Klien ads. The first feature Twin Peaks<\/em> cast member Heather Graham alongside Benicio Del Toro (sadly, the only time Lynch would work with that actor), while the second set has him laying excerpts from three different novelists (F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, and D.H. Lawrence) over footage of beautiful people yearning. Interesting, for sure, but of all the perfume ads, it\u2019s the glitzy, noir-soaked Gio for Armani<\/a> spot that is most intriguing. Here, he gets to play around with his favorite theme of \u2018a woman in trouble\u2019 before moving into a lavish nightclub scene that sees him pay homage to one of his own cinematic forebears and heroes<\/a>, Federico Fellini.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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