AMC has announced the upcoming premiere of the sixth season of Mad Men for Sunday, April 7th. The cable channel ordered 13 episodes and will kick the run off with a two-hour premiere.

Here’s the press release:

AMC’S AWARD-WINNING DRAMA “MAD MEN” TO LAUNCH SIXTH SEASON WITH TWO-HOUR PREMIERE ON SUNDAY, APRIL 7

Created and Executive Produced by Emmy(R) and Golden Globe(R) Winner Matthew Weiner

NEW YORK, NY – January 23, 2013 – AMC’s critically acclaimed Emmy(R) and Golden Globe(R) Award-winning drama, “Mad Men,” will return for its sixth season on Sunday, April 7 at 9:00 pm ET/PT with a special two-hour premiere written by creator and executive producer, Matthew Weiner and directed by executive producer, Scott Hornbacher. Following the premiere, on Sunday, April 14, “Mad Men” will return to its regular timeslot at 10pm ET/PT with an episode written by Jonathan Igla and Weiner, and directed by Jon Hamm.

“To be able to continue exploring the stories of these characters for a sixth season is an amazing opportunity,” said Weiner. “We love mining this world and look forward to bringing the audience stories that we hope will continue to both surprise and entertain them.”

“It is a calling card and a point of great pride for AMC to be the network home of ‘Mad Men,’ led by Matthew Weiner and his brilliant team,” said Charlie Collier, President and General Manager, AMC. “We can’t wait to share season six with the world and what better way to start than with a special two-hour premiere?”

“The success of ‘Mad Men’ is built on the exceptional artistry and imagination of Matthew Weiner, the cast, and the entire writing and producing team,” said Kevin Beggs, President, Lionsgate Television Group. “They continually strive to raise the bar and we look forward to bringing viewers another great season.”

Created by Emmy(R) and Golden Globe(R) winner Weiner and produced by Lionsgate, “Mad Men” has three Golden Globe(R) Awards for Best Drama and made history in 2011 as the first basic cable series ever to win the Emmy(R) for Outstanding Drama Series in four consecutive years. “Mad Men” stars Golden Globe(R) winner Jon Hamm, January Jones, Elisabeth Moss, John Slattery, Vincent Kartheiser, Christina Hendricks, Jessica Paré, Aaron Staton, Rich Sommer, Robert Morse, Jay Ferguson, Chris Stanley, Ben Feldman and Kiernan Shipka.

Fans looking to catch up on “Mad Men” can watch the fifth season on AMC On Demand beginning February 11, with season five episodes rolling out each week up to the season six premiere. Viewers can also set their DVR every Sunday morning beginning at 6:00am ET/PT to catch up on past “Mad Men” episodes, including season five, which begins airing March 3, leading up to the season six premiere.

“Mad Men” is produced by Lionsgate in association with AMC. Joining Weiner are executive producers Scott Hornbacher, André & Maria Jacquemetton and Janet Leahy; supervising producer Semi Chellas; producers Jon Hamm, Erin Levy and Blake McCormick; consulting producers Lisa Albert and Mike Saltzman; and co-producers Marcy Patterson, Tom Smuts, Josh Weltman and Bob Levinson. Christopher Manley, ASC is director of photography. Emmy(R) Award winner Dan Bishop is production designer and Emmy(R) Award winner Janie Bryant is costume designer. Tom Wilson, Chris Figler and Christopher Gay are editors.

About AMC

AMC reigns as the only cable network in history to ever win the Emmy(R) Award for Outstanding Drama Series four years in a row, as well as the Golden Globe(R) Award for Best Television Series – Drama for three consecutive years. Whether commemorating favorite films from every genre and decade or creating acclaimed original programming, the AMC experience is an uncompromising celebration of great stories. AMC’s original stories include “Mad Men,” “Breaking Bad,” “The Walking Dead,” and “Hell on Wheels.” AMC further demonstrates its commitment to the art of storytelling with its slate of unscripted original series, as well as curated movie franchises like AMC’s Can’t Get Enough and AMC’s Crazy About. Available in more than 98 million homes (Source: Nielsen Media Research), AMC is owned and operated by AMC Networks Inc. and its sister networks include IFC, Sundance Channel and WE tv. AMC is available across all platforms, including on-air, online, on demand and mobile. AMC: Story Matters HereSM.

About Lionsgate

Lionsgate is a leading global entertainment company with a strong and diversified presence in motion picture production and distribution, television programming and syndication, home entertainment, family entertainment, digital distribution, new channel platforms and international distribution and sales. The Company has built a strong television presence in production of primetime cable and broadcast network series, distribution and syndication of programming and an array of channel assets. Lionsgate currently has 23 shows on 16 networks spanning its primetime production, distribution and syndication businesses, including such critically-acclaimed hits as the multiple Emmy Award-winning “Mad Men,” “Weeds” and “Nurse Jackie,” the new comedy “Anger Management,” the network series “Nashville,” the syndication successes “Tyler Perry’s House of Payne,” its spin-off “Meet the Browns,” “For Better Or Worse,” “The Wendy Williams Show,” “Are We There Yet?” and the upcoming “Orange Is The New Black,” an original series for Netflix. Lionsgate handles a prestigious and prolific library of approximately 15,000 motion picture and television titles that is an important source of recurring revenue and serves as the foundation for the growth of the Company’s core businesses. The Lionsgate brand remains synonymous with original, daring, quality entertainment in markets around the world.

What do you think? Will you be tuning in to watch the new season of Mad Men on AMC? How long do you think this series should continue?