The latest Mad Men fan theory involves Megan Draper, Sharon Tate, Vietnam, and a T-shirt
Although we all know Mad Men is typically constructed on-the-fly, using leftover Halloween hippie costumes and giant cardboard backdrops with “The ‘60s” written on them in marker, this hasn’t stopped fans from scrutinizing every aspect of the production looking for symbolic clues. And last Sunday’s episode has sparked one of its most intriguing theories since the series began, simply by including a T-shirt—a T-shirt that just so happens to link to one of the most notorious murders of Mad Men’s era.
As first ignited on Reddit and then helpfully elaborated on UPROXX, Sunday’s “The Better Half” saw Megan wearing a white tee emblazoned with a big, red star—the exact same shirt worn by Sharon Tate in an old Esquire spread. According to costume designer Janie Bryant, the similarity is “no coincidence.” Naturally, this set off rampant theorizing that the show really was making deliberate reference to the actress who was killed in her own home by the Manson Family, and even perhaps foreshadowing a similar fate for Megan. Granted, that’s a huge leap based on little evidence. Though, in terms of most Mad Men fan speculation, it’s definitely no crazier than believing Bob Benson is secretly a reptilian overlord scheming to rule the world. (Especially considering he so obviously is.)