Possible spoilers for past episodes of Mad Men below
I know January Jones is one of the best actresses working today because I hate her character on Mad Men. Seriously, I used to have sympathy for Betty Draper, but now I loathe her. She’s such a petty, immature, snotty woman. She’s a horrible mother too. I have to admit this, though – if January wasn’t so amazing at playing Betty in such a brilliant way, I wouldn’t have such strong feelings about her. In my mind, January is the unsung acting hero of the cast of Mad Men. Jon Hamm, John Slattery, Elizabeth Moss and even Bryan Bratt (Sal! Poor Sal, he was fired Sunday) get more attention and accolades than January.
Is it because January is so beautiful? That her character is such a flawless, icy, Grace Kelly-esque blonde? I don’t know why January doesn’t get more recognition for her work on Mad Men, but I hope this season changes things for her. She’s started getting more press, and people are starting to pay more attention to her. Thus, she’s got her first American GQ cover (she was on the cover of GQ UK earlier this year). The full interview hasn’t been put up yet, but Huffington Post has some early excerpts. GQ does have the slideshow up already – and January Jones is stacked. I didn’t really know her body was this amazing. Also, I have to admit – I didn’t really know anything about her private life. It turns out that January, 31, dated Ashton Kutcher from 1998 to 2001, and Josh Groban from 2003 to 2006. Lord, she has weird taste in men, doesn’t she? Anyway, she alludes to her relationship with Ashton in the interview, and he sounds like a total jerk:
GQ has a lengthy profile “Mad Men” star January Jones, conducted during a Chicago-LAX flight over six beers.
Jones, who started out as a model, talks (but doesn’t name) her first boyfriend when she moved to Los Angeles to try acting.
“The guy I was dating when I first got to L.A. was not supportive of my acting,” she says. “He was like, I don’t think you’re going to be good at this. So– f-ck you! He only has nice things to say now–if anything, I should thank him. Because the minute you tell me I can’t do something, that’s when I’m most motivated.”
The interviewer later writes that the ex was Ashton Kutcher.
Another person she came across, when first working at 18 as a model in New York, was Laura Steinberg, ex-wife of 80’s financier Saul Steinberg and the mother of her boyfriend Julian Steinberg.
Laura became something of a surrogate mother, taking January on far-flung vacations–a wedding in Italy, a month in Bali–even after January had split with her son.
“Laura taught me how to hold my knife and fork and to be a lady,” says January. “To keep my forearms on the table–never my elbows–and place my napkin on my lap. She got me out of the models’ apartment, and my Fargo accent was really strong then, so she taught me how to speak.”
[From GQ via Huffington Post]
I always forget that too – she’s a farm girl from South Dakota, not some icy New England princess. I sometimes worry that January’s career beyond Mad Men will not compare favorably. She worked her ass off playing forgettable characters in forgettable films for so many years – I really hope she’s able to parlay her critical respect from Mad Men into a major, substantial career. Oh, and Ashton sounds like a douche, doesn’t he?
January Jones with Ashton Kutcher in 2000
With Josh Groban in 2005
Header image from GQ via Huffington Post. Thumbnails below from 9/24/09 and 9/20/09 credit: WENN.com
January, is a brilliant actress. When a Guy is not supportive of your goals u need to leave. Something better is out there for you. Sadly we woman have to kiss loads of frogs to find the Prince.
Wow she is a beautiful woman! Glad she’s out of the unsupportive relationships.
What’s weird about her men choices? Josh Groban seems kind of normal and he was funny on an episode of Glee. Ashton Kutcher (while I think he’s a douche) may have seemed like a catch as the time.
She’s pretty stunning and while I haven’t seen Mad Men I’m sure she deserves the buzz she’s now getting.
She’s such a chameleon! She looks like a cute farmgirl in the Ashton pic. Not surprised he was douchey, he probably realized she had more talent in her pinky finger than he ever would.
I agree her character isn’t very sympathetic and she plays her brilliantly. I do think your description of Betty is a bit harsh though – she is a complete product of her upbringing, that is how well bred girls were raised -we see time and time again how repressed and messed up all of the characters are – Peggy, Pete, etc. – by trying to behave as they were raised to. Betty was never given the tools to be a loving Mother, I think it is shown repeatedly that her pettiness is a sign of an immature, unformed woman playing at perfection. I dunno, I just love her character, and find her weird little actions more entertaining than the highly strung Peggy for instance.
In 1998 he was 20 years old. So he wasn’t the mature, supportive boyfriend she would have hoped for. He was a kid, it doesn’t really reflect on what kind of person he is 11 years later. I don’t think a lot of people would want to be judged on the kind of person they were at 20. And what kind of chick is still talking about it more than a decade later? That says more about her than it does about him. He’s not out there reliving old relationships.
Kaiser- ITA totally about Betty Draper! I used to feel sorry for her too, but towards the end of last season, I turned on her big time.
I think January, however, is a great actress in the role and she is classically beautiful, like a Grace Kelly.
What a tool Kutcher is. Good for her, getting rid of him.
What Mrs. Darcy said.
She’s so amazing on Mad Men- brilliant, even. Love her.
Whomever wrote that gq article is illiterate. The whole first paragraph is missing words.
HELLO, spoiler warnings please!!!!
I stopped liking Betty too. She looks almost unrecognizable in that 2005 picture.
“He’s not out there reliving old relationships.”
well, to be fair, neither is she. she was just relating how something that an ex said to her motivated her. When you’re a celeb and you’re talking about your life and why you went into acting or what motivates you, things like this come up.
she didn’t mention him by name and she wasn’t bashing their relationship.
that being said, she looks like a totally different person in the banner pic, the pic with Kutcher and the pic with Groban. I would have thought that they were three different people if the post didn’t tell me otherwise.
@robn ditto & laura=mom…hmm ok.
Unsurprising. This is a guy who went to his girlfriend’s house to pick her up, spotted a dark red stain on the floor when he peeped through her windows (after she didn’t answer the door or her phone), and just thought it was wine and went off his merry way to the premiere. And yes, she’d been murdered.
What I’m saying is, at the very least he’s not too bright.
I’m kind of agreeing with Ashton on this one. Her character on Mad Men is flat and one dimensional. Maybe that is the way it is written. I’d love to see her in something where she has to really get angry or emotional. I don’t remember her shedding a tear when her dad died and her love scenes are pretty “cold fish”. JMO
Fargo is in North Dakota, not South Dakota.
Is it me or does it look like January was a bit.. enhanced between Ashton and Groban?
Ashton – uck. He strikes me as someone who wants to be perpetually 20 (or maybe 10) years old.
definitely looks enhanced. Different eye color, bridge of her nose is now thinner… wow, talk about the Hollywood Car Wash. Girl got turned out and turned out good.
(Ha, in the full length photo of her on the red carpet, check out the guy in the backgroud–gold shoes– taking ninja pictures. Stealth, guy.)
@YoMamma- Betty is supposed to be a Stepford wife type, cold, spoiled and incapable of showing any real human emotion. That is why she has such problems in her life with Don and her children.
WOW!!!! she’s gorgeous.
always thought she was an exceptionally pretty woman on Mad Men, but the clothes of the 1960s time period don’t show off her body! She’s really got the whole package! She was pretty with Ashton, very natural, but personally I prefer the lighter hair on her.
I’d like to see her in some feature films, maybe playing a less-icy character.
I’m sorry, but SIX beers?? I don’t know anything about this woman, but I already know she has a drinking problem. Welcome to Hollywood.
I hate the way that Betty treats Sally!
Ferdis- Betty is rotten to both of her kids. I agree though, she is extra mean to poor Sally. No wonder Sally has behavioral problems.
What a fantastic name!
Love the show & I think she plays her character beautifully. As for the wardrobe accenting her figure I disagree, I think the fashion of that era does more for her than a modern wardrobe/style.
Ashton was an idiot then & it seems nothing’s changed. Either way you’re an adult on many levels at 20 & being supportive of a friend is no exception, it’s not something you grow into unless you’re an absolute ass.
BAWWWWWWW!
She had alot of face work done and implants so she doesnt look the same at all as when dating Ashton.
But Ashton was right she wasnt pretty then and she isnt now.
This is a girl trying to hard to be pretty when it just isnt in the genes. After all her surgeries she still isnt pretty. That says volumes.
What the hell are you talking about Kim? ashton kutcher fan much? She isn’t pretty because it isn’t in her genes? Congrats that’s some good BS you’re writting there.