‘Mad Men’ Star Kiernan Shipka Recalls Eight (!) Different Bobby Drapers

There’s an occasional TV phenomenon where one child of a main character’s family ends up assuming a profound role in the narrative, leaving the others to barely register. We saw it on Homeland with Dana Brody and Chris (who?), and most notably with Mad Men alum Kiernan Shipka, who now recalls the eight different actors who played Sally’s brother Bobby over the years.

Granted, child actors can often end up interchangeable or written out, Shipka proved notable for maintaining the role of Sally Draper from Mad Men’s second episode on, garnering more and more critical praise for her performance as the years went by. The same couldn’t be said for Don Draper’s other child Bobby, played by young actors Maxwell Huckabee, Aaron Heart, Jared Gilmore, and finally Mason Vale Cotton.

Reflecting over The List app, Shipka surprisingly recalled a grand total of eight actors to play Bobby through Mad Men’s seven seasons, some admittedly less memorable than others, like “Bucket Head Bobby”:

A little known fact is that this Bobby was an entirely different Bobby. He was anointed “Bucket Head Bobby.” We didn’t really bond, because we only worked together for a few hours. He seemed chill.

Or perhaps, “Slurpee Bobby”:

Most people call the Bobby from the episode “The Wheel,” “Slurpee Bobby.” After 30 minutes of taking pictures, he was done-zo. His mom kept bribing him with slurpees from 7-Eleven. By the end, she must have owed him a lifetime supply.

You can find the full roster of all eight Bobby Drapers at the link above, and start pondering the efficacy of sending someone with a bucket over their head to sub in for you at work. Keep the scotch flowing, and who would know?

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