Pete Campbell was always looking for something he couldn't name. He had the perfect house in Cos Cob, a wife who actually loved him, and a career that was finally hitting its stride. But then he met Beth Dawes, and everything went sideways.
Honestly, if you're a Mad Men fan, you probably remember the blue eyes. Alexis Bledel, fresh off her Gilmore Girls fame, stepped into the role of Beth in Season 5 and completely shifted the energy of the show. She wasn't just another "mistress of the week." She was a ghost in a floral dress.
Who Exactly Was Beth Dawes?
Beth was the wife of Howard Dawes, one of Pete’s fellow commuters on the New Haven Line. Howard was a boorish, cheating salesman who openly bragged about his "city apartment" where he kept a mistress. Beth, meanwhile, was falling apart in the suburbs.
She first appears in the episode "Lady Lazarus." She’s at the train station, claiming she locked her keys in her car. It’s a classic damsel-in-distress move, but with Beth, it felt less like a flirtation and more like a cry for help. Pete drives her home, and they end up having sex on the floor of her house.
It was messy. It was desperate. And for Pete, it became an obsession.
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The Most Depressing Affair in Advertising History
Pete Campbell usually cheated because he wanted power. He wanted to feel like Don Draper. But with Beth Dawes, it was different. He saw his own unhappiness reflected in her.
There’s this haunting scene where Beth talks about looking at photos of Earth from space. She tells Pete how the planet looks so small and fragile, surrounded by nothing but "darkness." While Pete tries to make it about their "connection," Beth is talking about a literal, crushing existential dread.
She wasn't looking for a boyfriend. She was looking for a reason to exist.
What happened to her at the end?
This is where the story gets really dark. Beth eventually tells Pete that she’s going to the hospital. Her husband, Howard, has decided that her "melancholy" (what we’d call clinical depression today) needs to be cured with electroshock therapy.
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In the 1960s, this wasn't the refined medical procedure it is now. It was a blunt instrument used to "reset" women who weren't happy being housewives.
When Pete visits her in the hospital in the Season 5 finale, "The Phantom," the tragedy hits its peak. Beth Dawes is sitting in her bed, looking beautiful but vacant. She has no idea who Pete is. The treatment worked—it wiped her memory of their affair, and with it, the only spark of life she’d found in years.
Why the Beth Dawes Arc Matters So Much
A lot of people think this storyline was just a way to give Pete something to do. I disagree. It’s actually one of the most important mirrors for Pete’s character development.
- The Loss of Identity: Just as Beth lost her memory to the "cure," Pete was losing his soul to the pursuit of a life he didn't even want.
- The Feminist Horror: Beth represents the terrifying reality for women in 1966. If you weren't happy, your husband could literally have your brain "zapped" until you forgot why you were sad.
- Pete’s Monologue: Pete’s speech to a memory-wiped Beth in the hospital is arguably Vincent Kartheiser’s best work. He tells her the story of "a friend" (himself) who is profoundly lonely. He gets to confess his sins to the only person who can’t judge him because she doesn't know him.
Fun Fact: The Real-Life Connection
If the chemistry between Pete and Beth felt weirdly intense, there’s a reason for it. Alexis Bledel and Vincent Kartheiser actually started dating after meeting on the set of Mad Men. They eventually got married in 2014 (though they later divorced in 2022). It’s one of the few times a Mad Men affair led to a real-life walk down the aisle.
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Was Beth Dawes a "Good" Character?
The fan response to Beth is usually split. Some viewers found her too "dreamy" or felt Bledel’s acting was a bit stiff compared to the high-octane energy of Elisabeth Moss or January Jones.
But I think that was the point. Beth was supposed to feel like she was already halfway gone. She was a woman who was being slowly erased by her marriage and her environment. She wasn't supposed to be "fun" like Joan or "driven" like Peggy. She was a warning.
Actionable Insights for Your Next Rewatch
If you’re going back through Season 5, keep an eye on these specific details regarding the Beth and Pete dynamic:
- Watch the Lighting: Notice how Beth is almost always shrouded in shadows or soft, diffused light. She never feels fully "present" in the room.
- Listen to the Sound: In the hospital scene, the hum of the hospital equipment mirrors the electrical "zap" that took her memories.
- The Train Motif: Most of their interactions happen near the train. It symbolizes the transience of their relationship—they are just people passing through each other's lives on the way to somewhere else.
Next Steps for Fans:
If you want to understand the clinical context of Beth's treatment, look up the history of ECT (Electroconvulsive Therapy) in the mid-20th century. It provides a chilling backdrop to why Beth was so terrified of her "appointment" at the hospital.
Also, pay close attention to Pete's behavior in Season 6. You'll see that his encounter with Beth changed him; he becomes much more aware of his own mortality and the "emptiness" of the suburban dream he spent five seasons trying to build.