While the 1950′s has been historically perceived as a relatively boring decade by our nation’s young people (in this instance young people may refer to anyone born later than 1959), AMC’s hit TV series Mad Men has single-handedly brought the decade back with a new found vengeance. Between the boozed-up office atmosphere, scandalous affairs carefully kept under wraps and say what you want to say attitude at the expense of political correctness, all portrayed in the show’s extremely well-written script, suddenly the 1950′s are hip, arguably for the first time in history, including the 1950′s. With an entire generation of young men striving to emulate Don Draper, for better or worse depending on your perspective, the first place to start is the throwback 50′s attire. Skinny ties are most notable comeback from a fashion standpoint, though no study has ever been conducted to directly correlate decreasing tie width with rise in Mad Men’s popularity. Considering its mainstream success, the show likely, at the very minimum, accelerated an already rising trend.The 1950′s also saw an increase in tapered suits, slimmed down lapels, while the thinning ties were more simplified than their 1940′s counterparts, often sporting traditional designs that were often striped, peppered with small shapes or even left as solid, single color. The average tie was close to 3 inches wide by 1953, continuing to decrease in width while increase in length over the course of the next decade or so, until returning to the more standard 4 inch mark by the end of 60′s. Today’s most common ties are close to the 4-inch barrier at 3.75 inches, though many fashion conscious tie-wearer, particularly young men, are seeking out ties in the 2 to 3 inch range. For those of you looking to dress for work at Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce, the skinniest ties available can be found online, while many mall department stores will carry at least a few ties of every variety to satisfy various niche markets (i.e. the bow-tie rack).