# Mad-Men: 5.12 "Commissions & Fees" (open spoilers) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 4, 2012, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mad-men-5-12-commissions-fees-open-spoilers/623980 "2012-06-04T00:16:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2012, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mad-men-5-12-commissions-fees-open-spoilers/623980/61 "2012-06-04T19:04:02Z")
The speculation about what the resignation letter could mean legally is interesting. Of course, if it was bad for the firm, they could just destroy it and no one would be the wiser. ---
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2012, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mad-men-5-12-commissions-fees-open-spoilers/623980/62 "2012-06-04T19:08:54Z")
> [@Lightray](#): > > Can someone explain what the implications were with the Jaguar fee scheme? I assume it is going to result in something dire for SCDP, but couldn’t quite sort out what the threat was. > > Maybe SCDP relies on slush funds and overbilling clients? Will they have to _gasp_ cut down on the liquor budget? I’m guessing it was something that Lane could have explained or avoided the consequences of… The standard commission structure for an ad agency is to take 15% of the cost of the commercial/ad that they place. So if they pay $85 net to a station for a TV or radio spot, there would be a $15 commission. The client would pay $100 to the agency, and the agency would pay the station their $85 and keep the rest. Under a fee deal, the client would just pay a flat rate for all of the work being done and it wouldn’t matter what kind of rates they were able to negotiate with the station. So it’s almost always a less profitable deal for the agency, which is why they were worried about other clients all wanting the same deal. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2012, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mad-men-5-12-commissions-fees-open-spoilers/623980/63 "2012-06-04T19:14:29Z")
> [@Bob Ducca](#): > > The standard commission structure for an ad agency is to take 15% of the cost of the commercial/ad that they place. So if they pay $85 net to a station for a TV or radio spot, there would be a $15 commission. The client would pay $100 to the agency, and the agency would pay the station their $85 and keep the rest. > > Under a fee deal, the client would just pay a flat rate for all of the work being done and it wouldn’t matter what kind of rates they were able to negotiate with the station. > > So it’s almost always a less profitable deal for the agency, which is why they were worried about other clients all wanting the same deal. And this is why Harry actually has a very important job. At first blush, it doesn’t look like he’s doing anything very hard. But the firm’s ability to profit from the bills it takes in is effected by the rates that Harry is able to get for the ads that they place. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2012, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mad-men-5-12-commissions-fees-open-spoilers/623980/64 "2012-06-04T19:20:40Z")
IIRC we established earlier that Sterling, Cooper, and Draper each have 25% of the agency and Lane and Pete had 12.5% each, before Joan got 5% which shaved a little from each. So I’m guessing this happens to agencies and law firms and companies every day- a junior partner dies or gets voted off the island or both- but in real life what happens? Which of these scenarios would be most likely: -If Lane’s widow doesn’t _want_ to be paid out for his shares can she retain them as a silent partner? -If she is bought out, would the partners split them and each pay a share of the payment to Lane’s widow? (This would seem unlikely since Joan doesn’t have the money to pay for any part of the share, Pete’s not in the position Don and Burt and Roger are in, and nobody would want Roger or Don [the two most likely to do so] owning 37.5% of the firm.) ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2012, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mad-men-5-12-commissions-fees-open-spoilers/623980/65 "2012-06-04T19:24:59Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > IIRC we established earlier that Sterling, Cooper, and Draper each have 25% of the agency and Lane and Pete had 12.5% each, before Joan got 5% which shaved a little from each. So I’m guessing this happens to agencies and law firms and companies every day- a junior partner dies or gets voted off the island or both- but in real life what happens? Which of these scenarios would be most likely: > > -If Lane’s widow doesn’t _want_ to be paid out for his shares can she retain them as a silent partner? > > -If she is bought out, would the partners split them and each pay a share of the payment to Lane’s widow? (This would seem unlikely since Joan doesn’t have the money to pay for any part of the share, Pete’s not in the position Don and Burt and Roger are in, and nobody would want Roger or Don [the two most likely to do so] owning 37.5% of the firm.) It depends on the documents that created the partnership. All this stuff would be defined by contract. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2012, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mad-men-5-12-commissions-fees-open-spoilers/623980/66 "2012-06-04T19:28:42Z")
> [@Athena](#): > > I thought the whole sequence with Sally and her period was extremely well-done. I can’t imagine I’m not the only female with a similar story or two about periods coming at awkward times when I was still pretty young. It’s horribly embarrassing and confusing when you’re a young girl and new to it all. And I can’t imagine how much worse it must have been in the 60s, before tampons were widely available (right?) and the normal supplies were practically diapers. > > Side note: how DID women deal with surprise periods back then? Pictures I’ve seen of those pads show them to be frikkin’ huge! Is that why women always had such big purses, they had to carry around pads the size of shoeboxes? I learned from _Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret_ that it used to be a _belt_ you pinned a horrible giant pad to. (Awfully, newer editions of that one change that detail, which is a shame because I don’t know where else a young woman would learn anything at all about what our foremothers had to deal with unless they did research of their own.) ---
**Author:** ![Rhiannon8404](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rhiannon8404/32/17929_2.png) [@Rhiannon8404](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhiannon8404)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2012, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mad-men-5-12-commissions-fees-open-spoilers/623980/67 "2012-06-04T19:40:50Z")
As soon as Sally said she wasn’t feeling well at the museum, I knew what was going to happen. I even turned to **Suburban Plankton** and said, “I bet the show the blood.” It was just exactly something I expected of this program. It didn’t bother me at all. What I didn’t expect, though, was for Betty to have told Sally about getting her period. A lot of girls are totally unprepared for it, even in this day and age. I just saw Betty as being the type of woman to not bring it up until it was necessary, that is, when it happened. I thought for sure Sally would run back to the apartment and talk to Megan about it, thus bonding them closer and making Sally resent Betty all the more for not preparing her. ---
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2012, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mad-men-5-12-commissions-fees-open-spoilers/623980/68 "2012-06-04T20:17:24Z")
[Interesting interview w/ Jared Harris about Lane’s exit.](http://www.hitfix.com/whats-alan-watching/interview-mad-men-co-star-jared-harris-on-lane-pryce-and-commissions-and-fees) ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2012, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mad-men-5-12-commissions-fees-open-spoilers/623980/69 "2012-06-04T20:36:57Z")
> [@peedin](#): > > Weiner’s son used to creep me out but in this episode I saw a teenage boy who has problems fitting into the crowd at school, and whose good friend is a girl that lives hours away. He finally portrayed the character as sympathetic and as someone I could understand. I think he’s great! I know/knew tons of boys like him. He’s spot-on. If you (not you **peedin** ) think he’s bad as an actor you aren’t familiar with the kind of character he’s trying to portray. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2012, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mad-men-5-12-commissions-fees-open-spoilers/623980/70 "2012-06-04T20:45:20Z")
Can someone explain to me what the chain of command is at Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce? Who is managing partner? ---
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2012, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mad-men-5-12-commissions-fees-open-spoilers/623980/71 "2012-06-04T20:46:28Z")
> [@Bob Ducca](#): > > [Interesting interview w/ Jared Harris about Lane’s exit.](http://www.hitfix.com/whats-alan-watching/interview-mad-men-co-star-jared-harris-on-lane-pryce-and-commissions-and-fees) Harris was amazing during this episode. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2012, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mad-men-5-12-commissions-fees-open-spoilers/623980/72 "2012-06-04T20:52:18Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > Can someone explain to me what the chain of command is at Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce? Who is managing partner? Cooper, Sterling, and Draper are equal partners. Pryce and Campbell are half partners. Pryce managed the books. That’s pretty much all there is to it. There is no “chain of command” beyond that. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2012, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mad-men-5-12-commissions-fees-open-spoilers/623980/73 "2012-06-04T20:54:14Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > Cooper, Sterling, and Draper are equal partners. Pryce and Campbell are half partners. Pryce managed the books. That’s pretty much all there is to it. There is no “chain of command” beyond that. Merci. ---
**Author:** ![shy\_guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a6a055/32.png) [@shy\_guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shy_guy)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2012, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mad-men-5-12-commissions-fees-open-spoilers/623980/74 "2012-06-04T20:54:46Z")
I agree with Zipper. I have no idea what the actor is like in real life, but Glenn is _exactly_ like a lot of boys that age. Regarding Lane, not only did he embezzle funds and forge Don’s signature, he _lied_ about it when Don confronted him. Given that, Don’s actions were certainly as accommodating as Lane could possibly have hoped for. If Pete had been in on the discovery he probably would’ve gotten the authorities involved. ---
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2012, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mad-men-5-12-commissions-fees-open-spoilers/623980/75 "2012-06-04T21:00:28Z")
Since Cooper knows about the check, even though he doesn’t know it was forged, is he going to start asking Don questions about it? ---
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2012, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mad-men-5-12-commissions-fees-open-spoilers/623980/76 "2012-06-04T21:03:52Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > Merci. Welcome back. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2012, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mad-men-5-12-commissions-fees-open-spoilers/623980/77 "2012-06-04T21:09:12Z")
> [@Gangster\_Octopus](#): > > Since Cooper knows about the check, even though he doesn’t know it was forged, is he going to start asking Don questions about it? Don may tell the partners what went down. It doesn’t matter much at this point. ---
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2012, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mad-men-5-12-commissions-fees-open-spoilers/623980/78 "2012-06-04T21:17:23Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > Don may tell the partners what went down. It doesn’t matter much at this point. It will matter if there is a dispute over Lane’s share. ---
**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2012, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mad-men-5-12-commissions-fees-open-spoilers/623980/79 "2012-06-04T21:23:21Z")
> [@Bob Ducca](#): > > [Interesting interview w/ Jared Harris about Lane’s exit.](http://www.hitfix.com/whats-alan-watching/interview-mad-men-co-star-jared-harris-on-lane-pryce-and-commissions-and-fees) Thanks. Great non-spoilery quote from the article: > [@](#): > > John Slattery is normally the person you go to if you want to find out what’s going on, A)Because he directs episodes and generally knows stuff, but B)He knows where the early scripts are, and he gets hold of them, and he’s totally indiscreet. ---
**Author:** ![Rhiannon8404](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rhiannon8404/32/17929_2.png) [@Rhiannon8404](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhiannon8404)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2012, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mad-men-5-12-commissions-fees-open-spoilers/623980/80 "2012-06-04T21:39:33Z")
> [@Gangster\_Octopus](#): > > It will matter if there is a dispute over Lane’s share. What dispute would there be? Wouldn’t his wife inherit his share of the firm as next of kin? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mad-men-5-12-commissions-fees-open-spoilers/623980.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mad-men-5-12-commissions-fees-open-spoilers/623980.md?page=5)