Interview

Nicholson: Well, if there was such a thing as the battle of the sexes and the object of the battle is to win, then as the general for the men, I would say, “Hey, just give them what they want. It’s the easiest win you’ll have.”

Jones: [laughs] And we sure did win. I think what’s great about the show is that, just in terms of fashion, it has helped bring a certain silhouette back. That womanly, cinched waist . . . I mean, a year before Mad Men came out, everything was very boxy and sort of shapeless. Now, as much as I hate getting into my girdle every day for the show, it’s brought that beautiful line back. You think of a lady when you see it. It’s kind of refreshing. You don’t have to give up your femininity to be a powerful woman.

Nicholson: And then, after that period when the show takes place, the women’s movement said, “Take off your bra!” etc.

Jones: That was a tangible way to say, “I’m not going to be held under these constraints of being a woman.” And so, in an act of defiance, women took off all their physical restraints—their girdles and their bras. That was a way of setting it right on the table.

Nicholson: Growing up in the household I grew up in, it was certainly a myth that strong, outspoken women were not admired—and not just in my own household, but in the community.

Jones: I think Don Draper’s storyline on Mad Men shows that. He’s married this woman who he thinks is the perfect woman and someone he should love. She looks right, acts right, doesn’t say too much. But then he’s sexually attracted to very outspoken, independent women.

Nicholson: Speaks to the paradox.

Jones: Right. So some men don’t want their women to speak up, and then other men are attracted to that very thing. But as a woman, you don’t want to be just window dressing. I’ve probably been unattractive to some men because I do say what I feel and what I think. You can be political about it, but I don’t have a red flag. I don’t have a mechanism in my head that prevents me from saying what I think, or if something upsets me or if I feel like I’m being degraded. I come from a family of very outspoken women. I can’t imagine living in a time when you couldn’t express what you felt. That’s why Betty does what she does. She’s imploding to the point where she gets so frustrated that she does something wacky.

Nicholson: That’s why, every once in a while, she shoots a bird because she doesn’t know what else to do. [laughs]

Jones: If I was living back then, I think I would have been a bit rebellious. But Betty’s whole thing is that she’s doing what she thinks she should do. She’s living her life the way she thinks she should live it . . . I suppose I do that, too. I’m from a small town [Sioux Falls, South Dakota], so I guess I think I should be married and have kids. I also think I should be juggling a career. But I don’t have a lot in common with Betty or the way she handles things. With her, it’s all a façade. It’s interesting, though, that in terms of education, marriage, jobs—women are still not where they should be. Women still get paid less. Women still . . . [laughs] whatever. But even though things are better now than they were before, I think women of my generation take a lot for granted.

Nicholson: What are some things that women now take for granted?

Jones: Things like getting to go to an Ivy League school, getting work as a high-powered businesswoman or as a studio executive. Anything you would think.

Nicholson: What is success to you?

Jones: Well, success for me is to feel happy—80 percent of the time. That’s been my goal in life. I think that comes from my father. He’s a very optimistic, happy person. I’m not quite sure if I’ll ever feel this, but I want to know how to be happy. I’m happy when I’m at work. I’m happy when I’m with my family or my dog. But, you know, there’s always that feeling of, I’m not satisfied. I have that thing in my stomach where I just need to keep striving for things. In my mind, I want the fairy tale.

Nicholson: So how did you get to L.A.?

Jones: Well, I first went to New York when I was 18, and I did some modeling and commercials. A modeling scout had come to Nebraska and found me. My mom and I had been out shopping for a dance. We were told to go to this big place—it was like a modeling school, I suppose.

Nicholson: Who told you to go to this modeling school?

Jones: This guy. He must have been Italian. [Nicholson laughs] He had an agency in New York. They told my mom, “We’d love to have your daughter come to New York.” And so my mom checked it out, and it was legitimate, but she told me I had to finish high school and turn 18 before I could go. So I hurried up and finished high school almost a year early. Three days after I turned 18, I went to New York. Didn’t know anybody. Didn’t have any money. I had $200.

Nicholson: How was the trip?

Jones: I went on an airplane—the second airplane I’d ever been on. We drove to Omaha from South Dakota and flew from there. I was supposed to stay four months and then come back and go to college.