Source: @Mizzou
Date: January 14, 2008
By: Pete Bland

Editor’s Note: Jon Hamm attended Mizzou on a theatre scholarship and graduated in 1993 with an English degree. As a student, Hamm played the role of Cliff in the 1992 Summer Repertory production of Cabaret and in 1993 appeared in Assassins, also a musical.

Like numerous other Golden Globe winners Jan, 13, Jon Hamm missed out on experiencing a moment about which most actors only dream.

The University of Missouri grad, however, wasn’t going to let the strike by the writers in the entertainment industry intrude on his high.

With the Golden Globes ceremony canceled because of the writers’ walkout, Hamm — a St. Louis native who graduated from MU with an English degree in 1993 — celebrated his award for best actor in a television drama series during a penthouse gathering at the famed Chateau Marmont.

There, among family, friends and colleagues, the festivities only grew wilder when Mad Men — the breakout AMC series for which Hamm, as ’60s ad man Don Draper, won his award — later added a Globe for best television drama series.

Hamm spoke with a number of reporters in Hollywood the night of the awards. Here are some of the highlights of what he had to say about his unforgettable evening:

“I wish I could have thanked everybody publicly,” Hamm told The Associated Press. “But it was still a great experience. I wouldn’t trade it. I will remember this always.”

“We were on the balcony. I almost fell over,” Hamm told the Los Angeles Times. “I never had this experience of feeling weak in the knees.”
“It’s perfect for our show. I have nothing to compare it — it just feels great.”

“This whole thing just makes me sad,” Hamm added about the somewhat bittersweet victory because of the strike. “I hope everyone can start acting like adults again and not like petulant fourth-graders. Everyone wants to get back to work.”

“We all sort of collectively freaked out at both of the announcements,” Hamm told Variety. “We’re all here on the balcony, watching the sun set over Sunset Boulevard — there’s nothing better than that. It was, and is, a beautiful night.”

“It felt special to be surrounded by close friends and family,” Hamm told USA Today. “I was surrounded by everyone who meant so much to me. The only people I didn’t get to thank are the other nominees and the Hollywood Foreign Press.”

Hamm’s also was nominated for a Screen Actors Guild award for best actor in a TV drama series.