• by David Goetzl  @dgoetzl, July 29, 2008

The season two premiere of AMC's "Mad Men" reaped the benefits of a year's worth of watercooler talk on Sunday. Total viewers and 18-to-49 ratings exceeding 2007's summer-long performance by striking margins.

Total viewers clocked in at 1.95 million, more than double the 915,000 average for all 13 episodes a year ago. Among 18-to-49 viewers, the 955,000 average for Sunday almost tripled the 342,000 for all of 2007.

The premiere was heavily promoted by AMC, with promotions including billboards in Manhattan and banners on nytimes.com. The series, set in 1960s Madison Avenue, also received a much-hyped Emmy nomination for best drama last week.

Since its run a year ago, the show had critics pondering if it had both the coveted "Sopranos" appeal and a key endorsement: Friends and neighbors touting it to their friends and neighbors.