The Good Old ‘Mad Men’ Days of Photographer William Helburn (Photos)

In the days when Madison Avenue ruled Manhattan, photographer William Helburn was an advertising king who embraced the true spirit of the day – he gave up fame in order to make more money. A contemporary of the likes of Iriving Penn and Richard Avedon, Helburn eschewed putting his name on many of his images in order to grow his own coffers working for rival accounts. But whether he was shooting an advertisement or an editorial feature, he never gave up the quality of his images. A part to the advertising revolution of the day, Helburn's images became known for their "playful shock aesthetic," according to Robert Lilly in the introduction to William Helburn: Seventh and Madison (available now from Thames & Hudson). "I always tried to do something that made you remember that page," Helburn said. "I tried to do something different...and I meant to shock people as much as I could."

Working on Madison wasn't the only thing Helburn had in common with Mad Men's famed ad exec Don Draper. Helburn was a nightlife-loving, model-seducing, race car-driving man of the 1950s and 60s. "I used to pride myself on the fact that I would make it with more models than anybody," Helburn remembers. "Every model that came in – I was Willy Wonka in the candy factory. I just was in love with everyone. That's why I loved my business so much. I loved girls. I loved sex." Click through to see some of the fashion photographer's playful and revolutionary work.

Left: Joanna McCormick, 1951.

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Betsy Pickering and Dovima, 1958.

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“The Skirt’s the Thing,” Dovima and Jean Patchett, Madison Square, Harper’s Bazaar, 1958.

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Pawn Shop, 1954. For Doyle Dane Bernbach.

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“In all this big wide thirsty world…there’s nothing like that great taste of Coke,” Central Park, Coca-Cola, 1956. For McCann Erickson.

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Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward, Times Square, Town & Country, 1955.

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Dovima Under the El, “Dior Creates Cosmopolitan Drama,” 1956. For Douglas Simon.

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Clean New York Campaign, Wall Street, c. 1960.

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Ice Capades, Hershey Sports Arena, Pennsylvania, DKW Auto Union (later Audi), 1958.

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“French love: food and fashion,” Maurice Chevalier and Margot McKendry, McCall’s, January 1963.

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Courtesy of Thames & Hudson

The Good Old ‘Mad Men’ Days of Photographer William Helburn (Photos)

William Helburn was a photographer king of Madison Avenue during the 50s and 60s, trading fame for money and women. See some of the real-life Don Draper’s best images.

Allison McNearney