"I call John Slattery John, I call him Slatty, I call him fuckface. We're fairly informal."
Sterling and Draper aren’t just best pals on the show, either. Midway through my interview with Hamm at the same hotel hours earlier, the door slowly creeps open and both our heads swivel toward it—only to be greeted by a demented-looking Slattery flipping the bird. “What’s up, nimrod!” yells Slattery. “Hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii, OK, bye,” he continues, before slamming the door.
“Jon and I hit it off on Day One,” says Slattery. “In the first scene, all we had to do was a long walk into where Joan is saying to Peggy, ‘Here’s what you do, put a paper bag on your head…,’ and we were riffing on that dialogue and just screwing around. We had a similar sense of humor and really hit it off.”
.....
As a parting gift to himself, Slattery took the desk lamp from his desk, which currently resides in his office. He also meant to swipe a suit, but forgot until it was too late. Hamm, on the other hand, “really didn’t want anything and wanted to just walk away,” Slattery says.
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/03/26/john-slattery-on-saying-goodbye-to-mad-men
http://www.tn2magazine.ie/smoke-gets-in-your-eyes-interview-with-john-slattery/
Did you secretly hate Jon Hamm for much of the first season then?
He says I did, and not even secretly, but [laughs]… no, I didn’t hate him, deep down. The thing is, it was apparent from the beginning how annoyingly good he was in that role. I don’t think people appreciate how difficult it is to play something as subtle as he does. Trying to communicate so much from a guy who keeps his cards so close to his chest is almost an impossibility.
http://www.shortlist.com/entertainment/tv/sterling-work
"No, just like he usually does, he steps right in and he's the best guy at everything in the room," Slattery told TV Line, when asked if he had offered Hamm any advice on directing. "He jumped right in like he'd been doing it his whole life.He's just better at everything than anyone else. He looks like that, and he can do everything better, too."
The actor went on to joke that becoming a director has improved Hamm's punctuality.
"The only difference between Jon as an actor and Jon as a director is that he was actually on time for work - that's the only one I can detect," Slattery said.
TVLine
SLATTERY: I know, I know. He’s so funny. It really is great. Hamm and I sit next to each other at these read-throughs and we’re just cackling because it’s so funny. And then he’ll point out how many jokes I have, and I’m like, “Yeah, but look at the women sitting across the table who are playing the women that you’re going to be in bed with.” It’s just a great series of good fortunes that this has been, and it’s going to be over soon, which is just dawning on all of us, doing this, because it’s coming on again and then next year will be it. Because we’re almost done with the shooting for this season.
http://collider.com/john-slattery-mad-men-season-6-interview/
Janie: Well, wearing studs, cuff links, a bow tie instead of a straight tie and a proper tuxedo shirt. I also love a dramatic dinner jacket in a velvet or jacquard.
John: I like a blue tux. You could put Jon Hamm in a green tux and he’d look good. Maybe not green velvet though.
http://magazine.brooksbrothers.com/hello-john/
Tell me about working with Jon Hamm.
I’ll tell you what I like about what he does. Everybody looks at him and goes, “Well, Jesus, look at him.” I mean, he’s so good looking and he looks so imposing and you just sort of fall right in as soon as you see him. But the subtlety with which he does all that stuff. I mean, people have appreciated his work, obviously. But really, the very first day of the pilot—it might have been the first scene we shot—I come into his office and he’s got a hangover, so he’s got to take aspirin, do this scene with me, take off his tie, jacket, shirt, reach into the drawer, take out another shirt, which is wrapped in plastic, unwrap it, put it on, button it up, redo his tie, take the aspirin. And I can see (laughs) tiny little beads of sweat, you know, forming, as we go. He had to button his cufflinks or some shit, too.
Which is hard enough to do normally.
Yeah, just in front of the mirror. But here it’s multiple takes so you have to start all over and do it again, and I thought about what Roger appreciates about Don’s character, which is that he does see that sliver, that is not even there all the time, of This isn’t as easy as he makes it look. Don’s a star but nobody knows the full extent—nobody knows the turmoil the guy’s in—but I think Roger sees a little crack in it. And, you know, as an actor it’s a very difficult proposition to show you the emotions of a guy who doesn’t ostensibly have any. I mean, Don has emotions but he doesn’t show them to anybody…. It’s a really difficult thing that Jon is doing. And I think because he looks so good doing it, people think it’s easier, you know, than it is.
Do you have a favorite scene between the two of you?
There was an episode at the end of the first year where it’s Labor Day weekend and I’m trying to get Don to hang around so I can use him as bait. There are the blonde twins in the office and Roger ends up having a heart attack, and I thought, well, you aren’t going to get many opportunities to do all that in one piece of film, so that would probably be the best thing that I had to do. I also thought, that’s why people like this show: because it’s sort of anti-reality TV. It isn’t people tuning in to watch people whose lives are shittier than theirs and to feel better about themselves by watching them. People turn this show on and they’re like, “Holy shit, look at this guy and look at that.” Look at January and Christina—look at everybody. They’re dressed the way they are and they’re smoking and fucking and drinking, and it’s 11 a.m. And, you know, I think, well, God, why can’t my life be like that?
http://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2009/08/mad-men-qa-john-slattery
"Inside the face of a matinee idol lurks a full-on comedy nerd," says John Slattery, who plays Mad Men's agency partner Roger Sterling.
John Slattery reveals that "he was a piano prodigy when he was a kid. He's very modest about it. Get him drunk at a party sometime and he'll show you."
http://www.elle.com/culture/celebrities/a10377/jon-hamm
PLAYBOY: Your Mad Men co-star John Slattery has been spreading rumors that you’re a piano prodigy. Apparently it’s a talent that only comes out after you’ve had a few drinks. Is he pulling our legs?
HAMM: (Laughs.) He is, yes. He’s perpetuated this myth that somehow I am a really great piano player. But I can not nor have I ever played the piano, no matter how drunk I get. Nothing could be further from the truth. I don’t know when the rumor started, but I guess John told a reporter, “This guy Jon Hamm is just a brilliant piano player.” And it got traction because people of course believe everything they read, and John said it with such conviction. But no, that’s a complete fabrication. John is something of a prankster.
http://www.ericspitznagel.com/playboy/jon-hamm-the-playboy-interview/
Do you have a hands-down favorite memory of Mad Men? That acid trip sequence has to be up there?
The acid trip sequence wasn’t as fun to shoot as it was to watch. It was just a series of quick cuts so it was a little like sausage grinding. It looks great at the end but the making of it is less remarkable. The best times as an actor on that show were scenes with Don, those were always great. I got to work with Lizzie Moss less than I would have liked.
You’ve said you’re not comfortable with your sex symbol status – any funny anecdotes about fans throwing themselves at you?
Yes! I was riding a bike with my wife on Long Island and I saw a for ‘for rent’ sign on a house. A friend of mine wanted a summer rental so I asked the woman in the driveway “is this house for rent?” and right away, she said, “are you on that show?” and I wasn’t sure which show she was talking about but I said, “yeah probably.” Then she said, “you boy! You got so fat on that show!” I said, “what? when?” She said, “I don’t know, but boy did you blow up!” I thought, well this is a relief, this is different. It was funny. I was trying to think – I don’t remember when I gained a huge amount of weight. Then she said, “that Jon Hamm! He was like a sausage!” So I told her maybe her television was screwed up and then she got mad! Imagine having her as a landlord. But I’d almost take that over the other.
What did your wife make of that?
She couldn’t stop laughing.
http://deadline.com/2015/05/mad-men-john-slattery-interview-1201427887
Mr. Slattery: "I had one good line a friend of mine wrote, but I'm not going to tell you or I'm never going to win. The first time I lost I was glad because the thought of having to get up and say something is terrifying. And Hamm turns around and goes, "You loser. They don't even look at you, you feel they're going to jinx you. At least I lose to different people; you keep losing to the same guy."
http://adage.com/article/special-report-me-conference-2010/roger-sterling-advertising/147378
He says I did, and not even secretly, but [laughs]… no, I didn’t hate him, deep down. The thing is, it was apparent from the beginning how annoyingly good he was in that role. I don’t think people appreciate how difficult it is to play something as subtle as he does. Trying to communicate so much from a guy who keeps his cards so close to his chest is almost an impossibility.
http://www.shortlist.com/entertainment/tv/sterling-work
The actor went on to joke that becoming a director has improved Hamm's punctuality.
"The only difference between Jon as an actor and Jon as a director is that he was actually on time for work - that's the only one I can detect," Slattery said.
TVLine
http://collider.com/john-slattery-mad-men-season-6-interview/
John: I like a blue tux. You could put Jon Hamm in a green tux and he’d look good. Maybe not green velvet though.
http://magazine.brooksbrothers.com/hello-john/
I’ll tell you what I like about what he does. Everybody looks at him and goes, “Well, Jesus, look at him.” I mean, he’s so good looking and he looks so imposing and you just sort of fall right in as soon as you see him. But the subtlety with which he does all that stuff. I mean, people have appreciated his work, obviously. But really, the very first day of the pilot—it might have been the first scene we shot—I come into his office and he’s got a hangover, so he’s got to take aspirin, do this scene with me, take off his tie, jacket, shirt, reach into the drawer, take out another shirt, which is wrapped in plastic, unwrap it, put it on, button it up, redo his tie, take the aspirin. And I can see (laughs) tiny little beads of sweat, you know, forming, as we go. He had to button his cufflinks or some shit, too.
Which is hard enough to do normally.
Yeah, just in front of the mirror. But here it’s multiple takes so you have to start all over and do it again, and I thought about what Roger appreciates about Don’s character, which is that he does see that sliver, that is not even there all the time, of This isn’t as easy as he makes it look. Don’s a star but nobody knows the full extent—nobody knows the turmoil the guy’s in—but I think Roger sees a little crack in it. And, you know, as an actor it’s a very difficult proposition to show you the emotions of a guy who doesn’t ostensibly have any. I mean, Don has emotions but he doesn’t show them to anybody…. It’s a really difficult thing that Jon is doing. And I think because he looks so good doing it, people think it’s easier, you know, than it is.
Do you have a favorite scene between the two of you?
There was an episode at the end of the first year where it’s Labor Day weekend and I’m trying to get Don to hang around so I can use him as bait. There are the blonde twins in the office and Roger ends up having a heart attack, and I thought, well, you aren’t going to get many opportunities to do all that in one piece of film, so that would probably be the best thing that I had to do. I also thought, that’s why people like this show: because it’s sort of anti-reality TV. It isn’t people tuning in to watch people whose lives are shittier than theirs and to feel better about themselves by watching them. People turn this show on and they’re like, “Holy shit, look at this guy and look at that.” Look at January and Christina—look at everybody. They’re dressed the way they are and they’re smoking and fucking and drinking, and it’s 11 a.m. And, you know, I think, well, God, why can’t my life be like that?
http://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2009/08/mad-men-qa-john-slattery
John Slattery reveals that "he was a piano prodigy when he was a kid. He's very modest about it. Get him drunk at a party sometime and he'll show you."
http://www.elle.com/culture/celebrities/a10377/jon-hamm
HAMM: (Laughs.) He is, yes. He’s perpetuated this myth that somehow I am a really great piano player. But I can not nor have I ever played the piano, no matter how drunk I get. Nothing could be further from the truth. I don’t know when the rumor started, but I guess John told a reporter, “This guy Jon Hamm is just a brilliant piano player.” And it got traction because people of course believe everything they read, and John said it with such conviction. But no, that’s a complete fabrication. John is something of a prankster.
http://www.ericspitznagel.com/playboy/jon-hamm-the-playboy-interview/
The acid trip sequence wasn’t as fun to shoot as it was to watch. It was just a series of quick cuts so it was a little like sausage grinding. It looks great at the end but the making of it is less remarkable. The best times as an actor on that show were scenes with Don, those were always great. I got to work with Lizzie Moss less than I would have liked.
You’ve said you’re not comfortable with your sex symbol status – any funny anecdotes about fans throwing themselves at you?
Yes! I was riding a bike with my wife on Long Island and I saw a for ‘for rent’ sign on a house. A friend of mine wanted a summer rental so I asked the woman in the driveway “is this house for rent?” and right away, she said, “are you on that show?” and I wasn’t sure which show she was talking about but I said, “yeah probably.” Then she said, “you boy! You got so fat on that show!” I said, “what? when?” She said, “I don’t know, but boy did you blow up!” I thought, well this is a relief, this is different. It was funny. I was trying to think – I don’t remember when I gained a huge amount of weight. Then she said, “that Jon Hamm! He was like a sausage!” So I told her maybe her television was screwed up and then she got mad! Imagine having her as a landlord. But I’d almost take that over the other.
What did your wife make of that?
She couldn’t stop laughing.
http://deadline.com/2015/05/mad-men-john-slattery-interview-1201427887
Mr. Slattery, on being a three-time Emmy loser: "We all keep losing, and [Jon] Hamm is there and Christina Hendricks and they put you on the aisle as though you might win. You have to make sure you keep clapping, and the guy's there on the floor with the camera right on your face. It's like, 'Can I stop now?'"
Mr. Morgan: "What would you say if you won?" Mr. Slattery: "I had one good line a friend of mine wrote, but I'm not going to tell you or I'm never going to win. The first time I lost I was glad because the thought of having to get up and say something is terrifying. And Hamm turns around and goes, "You loser. They don't even look at you, you feel they're going to jinx you. At least I lose to different people; you keep losing to the same guy."
http://adage.com/article/special-report-me-conference-2010/roger-sterling-advertising/147378
Firstly I’ll say that I saw ‘Confess, Fletch’ recently and I really enjoyed the film. How did you get involved in the film?
- I got a call from my pal Jon Hamm. I was sent the script through my agent. I knew that Jon was trying to get the movie made and that Greg Mottola was going to be directing. I directed a film, that hasn’t come out yet, that Hamm is the star of and I knew it was going to affect (the schedule) one way or the other. I knew that it was happening, I just wasn’t sure when. I didn’t know that I was going to be asked to be involved and then they asked me to play Frank and I was happy to do it. It was only a couple of scenes and but it was great fun. I’m a big fan of Greg Mottola and I’m good friends with Hamm.
You and Jon have history having starred together in ‘Mad Men’. What was it like to be acting opposite one another again?
- It was funny sitting in a bar we’ve sat at I don’t know how many bars together on-screen and off-screen. That was amusing. There’s an easy rapport. We actually worked together day one of the pilot of ‘Mad Men’ and he had to do a very involved scene, and we just hit it off right away. He had to do all kinds of business and I just had to stand there and watch and then make some snide comment at the end of the scene as I would do, and leave. We just hit it off right away and have been that way since. This was a very easy rhythm to fall into. The scenes were apparent what the dynamic was and the history of the two characters and all that. It was nice to have a built in history, and not have to cook it all up.
For fans of ‘Fletch’ it’s such a treat to have a new film because it’s been a long time since the last one with Chevy Chase. Why do you think the character resonated so strongly and why is now the time for the character to return to the big screen?
- I think it’s the initial success of Chevy and his take on it, and how great and charming and funny and original that was. I think the difficulty was acknowledging that that’s a unique tone that you can’t recreate, and nobody can do Chevy Chase. Does the material work and does the tone work with someone else? There have been numerous false starts or starts and stops; there’s so many reasons why movies don’t happen. This was a good meeting of actor and material, and Jon was a big fan of the books growing up. He and Greg are friends and have worked together before, and Greg’s obviously a great comedic talent as well. I guess the stars aligned and they got it done.
‘Confess, Fletch’ sets up the franchise to continue. Would you be interested in reprising the role of Frank again?
- Yeah I would, absolutely! I think they’ve made three now. Chevy made two and this is the third. I think there were 11 so there’s eight more (to make) but that’s not to say that you couldn’t remake any of the other ones. I really had a good time. It wasn’t hugely taxing on my end. Jon was there all day every day, as was Greg of course. It was a lark for me. Yeah, I’d love to do it again.
What do you have coming up outside of ‘Confess, Fletch’?
- I did a movie called ‘Maggie Moore(s)’ with Jon and Tina Fey. I screened it recently looking for distribution. It’s a comedy about a double murder and we’re looking for the right home for it. It’s an it’s a ever-shifting ground, the streaming and the buying and selling movies and TV. It’s a weird time. There are companys emerging or disappearing or exponentially growing? There’s so much material out, there’s so much content out there, that you want to find the right place to cut through.
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