Oh, Ida

RIP Miss Blankenship

One of my favorite TV characters kicked the ol' bucket last night.  Ida Blankenship, Don Draper's hilariously blunt secretary, his punishment for all the pretty young things he messed up before her, in the words of Roger, "...died like she lived: Surrounded by the people she answered phones for.”  Bert Cooper put it more eloquently:  "She was born in a barn and she died on the 37th floor of a skyscraper.  She’s an astronaut.”  At least she went out with some of the best Blankenship lines to date.  To Don: “Are you going to the toi-let?” Re Dr. Faye Miller: “She’s pushy, that one. I guess that’s what it takes."  To Don, after seeing little Sally in person: “She looked so chubby in the pictures.”  Ida was over the top, queen of the not-very-subtle digs, a supporting character who wandered in from a 60's sitcom and stayed a while.  She stood out like the pain in the ass she was, and I, for one, am pissed off to see her plotz.  At least I can "friend" her on Facebook. She's got her own page.