Remembering the prime of Mad Magazine

[fasstrack]

SNAPPY ANSWERS TO STUPID QUESTIONS was instrumental in my early development as a smartass.

Essential reading for any wisecracker wannabe.

I didn't need any schooling in being a smartass. It's just a gift I have

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

SNAPPY ANSWERS TO STUPID QUESTIONS was instrumental in my early development as a smartass.

Essential reading for any wisecracker wannabe.

I didn't need any schooling in being a smartass. It's just a gift I have

Nah! Takes a lot of training to make an effective smartarse. When I was at work, one of my responsibilities was smartarse remarks.

MG

[fasstrack]

SNAPPY ANSWERS TO STUPID QUESTIONS was instrumental in my early development as a smartass.

Essential reading for any wisecracker wannabe.

I didn't need any schooling in being a smartass. It's just a gift I have

Nah! Takes a lot of training to make an effective smartarse. When I was at work, one of my responsibilities was smartarse remarks.

MG

You and Son-of-a-Weizen get my vote for best screen names on this board BTW. Mine is lame by comparison.

"If you got it, flaunt it!*

*Zero Mostel as Max Bialystock in The Producers

[Son-of-a-Weizen]

When those Spy vs. Spy characters suddenly popped up in some weird little tv ad a few years back (Coca-Cola? Carnival Cruise lines?? I dunno. ) I remember thinking that it was a sign that someone (like a Pixar) was at work on a film. Guess not. Hey, they've got a Spy vs. Spy Xbox game! It's not like the movie audience would be strictly limited to us 40-60 yr old farts! Bring on the film!

[fasstrack]

When those Spy vs. Spy characters suddenly popped up in some weird little tv ad a few years back (Coca-Cola? Carnival Cruise lines?? I dunno. ) I remember thinking that it was a sign that someone (like a Pixar) was at work on a film. Guess not. Hey, they've got a Spy vs. Spy Xbox game! It's not like the movie audience would be strictly limited to us 40-60 yr old farts! Bring on the film!

What was the name of the artist who drew Spy Vs. Spy? I forget. I do remember he did both drawings and story lines.

I predict at least 90 responses.....

[Free For All]

Response #1

It was created by Cuban Antonio Prohías, but continued by others, including Peter Kuper.

Next? 89 to go.

[flat5]

Don Martin's brother is a good jazz piano player. Jay Corre told me he plays good. So he does :-)

I had a 10 cent comic book of Mad Magazine. Main feature was 'Michael Rodent'.
Starts out with everyone saying (one at a time) 'Hey Donald Duck'! At which point Donald would be hit in the head by something. This goes on for awhile as Donald walks down the street. The last one is Pluto who holds up a sigh saying 'Can I help it if I'm the only Disney character who does not speak English'. Bam! Donald gets hit again.

After a while he runs into Goofy. Donald tells Goofy he is stupid. Goofy tells Donald that he (Donald) is so confused that he leaves the house every morning forgetting to put his pants on. Donald looks down - sees that Goofy is right - runs home and returns with baggy sailor pants for the rest of the cartoon.

My favorite Don Martin is 'The Sleepwalker'. Not sure that is the correct name, though.
Guy wakes up with a bright but silly expression on his face. Wife looks at him - sticks hand in his mouth - pulls out a coat-hanger. She says 'sleepwalking in the closet again, eh stupid!' Brilliant drawings.

Edited January 19, 2014 by flat5

[fasstrack]

I was searching for lyrics to East Side Story (which BTW I never did find) and this thread popped up and was great fun to revisit. Hope you agree.

[BruceH]

Loved the artists Bill Elder, Harvey Kurtzman, Wood and Jack Davis (man, nobody could draw like Elder!). Elder and Kurtzman wound up doing "Lil' Annie Fanny" in Playboy and Davis has done countless movie ads and posters. I really liked the humor but LOVED the drawing! Kurtzman, the founding illustrator, left in 1957 and the artistry did a very slow, gradual decline (IMO). The illustration has remained good, but does not compare with the work of the 50's.

I agree. Those paperback anthologies with "Superduperman," "Starchie," and so on, I remember reading because of kids at school and around the neighborhood passing well-thumbed copies back and forth. Later, in the 80s, those early Kurtzman issues were reprinted in expensive hardbacks, with the original covers reproduced. It served to demonstrate how much MAD had declined over the years.

[fasstrack]

I don't know that the illustrations declined-or the satire, until maybe the past 20 years. Or maybe the bar was set so high early on a comedown seemed inevitable. But Jack Davis, Mort Drucker, Dave Berg, Don Martin, et al? Come on! How wrong can you go? They were there for most of the journey. People said on here that Mad declined when Bill Gaines died. When was that? If that was when the color pages and the ads started I agree. Mad fell, and hard then. On another matter, does anyone remember Sick or Cracked? Should we, or were they pretenders? The artwork seemed derivitave when I bought an issue of one or both, and I have no memory of the content. I know they didn't last-never a good sign.

[ejp626]

I don't know that the illustrations declined-or the satire, until maybe the past 20 years. Or maybe the bar was set so high early on a comedown seemed inevitable. But Jack Davis, Mort Drucker, Dave Berg, Don Martin, et al? Come on! How wrong can you go? They were there for most of the journey. People said on here that Mad declined when Bill Gaines died. When was that? If that was when the color pages and the ads started I agree. Mad fell, and hard then. On another matter, does anyone remember Sick or Cracked? Should we, or were they pretenders? The artwork seemed derivitave when I bought an issue of one or both, and I have no memory of the content. I know they didn't last-never a good sign.

Cracked would on occasion run Howard the Duck in a 2 or 3 page story. Don't know how it was linked to the Marvel comic (same artists/writers?) and that didn't seem to be a parody. That was pretty cool, and I wish someone would collect those, but other than that I didn't really get into Cracked. Of course, I almost never bought either magazine. I do remember in the glory days you could find Mad and Cracked near grocery check-out counters.

[fasstrack]

Genrge Woodbridge! He was the genius of them all. He could draw idiots, clods, the over-rated like no one. He made the face of idiocy like drooling, grinning succabi that gave little hope for human redemption or evolution. Remember the college fight song bit? Those fur coats with faces creeping out of the fur or leather helmets a la Eric Idle (as that simp sentry guarding the prince in the tower that kept repeating the kings instructions wrong while bobbing his head with the idiot grin moving). No one did dolts like Woodbridge. He was the king. Even Don Martin's clods had a few scams and conceits-which backfired of course, that was the joke. Woodbridge's creations just stared at you like the monsters of Greek myth.

[fasstrack]

I think we're misspelling it. (; Wasn't it Crack'd? So many brain cells ago...Then the 'lost decades'. I'm sure you can relate!

[Cali]

I don't know that the illustrations declined-or the satire, until maybe the past 20 years. Or maybe the bar was set so high early on a comedown seemed inevitable. But Jack Davis, Mort Drucker, Dave Berg, Don Martin, et al? Come on! How wrong can you go? They were there for most of the journey. People said on here that Mad declined when Bill Gaines died. When was that? If that was when the color pages and the ads started I agree. Mad fell, and hard then. On another matter, does anyone remember Sick or Cracked? Should we, or were they pretenders? The artwork seemed derivitave when I bought an issue of one or both, and I have no memory of the content. I know they didn't last-never a good sign.

You probably know that the early MAD magazines were all color.

[fasstrack]

I guess I did-after the fact. The comic was in color I would think, right? But I grew up in the B&W era (come to think of it w/TV too) so 'out of sight, out of mind'. I came to love that B&W-THAT was Mad to me. The reissues of the color originals were in B&W too. And it doubtless kept costs down and the need for advertisers away-until The Fall. I pick it up occasionally, with a glimmer hope that something will amuse me-never expecting the 'glory days'-and and I'm always disappointed. I read it and throw it in the trash.

[Pete C]

I was a vociferous reader

I had a creative writing student once who was full of malapropisms. On the first day of class I always asked students what writers they liked enough to read multiple books by. This woman rattled off a long list. "You read a lot," I said. "Oh, I'm a ferocious reader!" she said.

I may be the only person whose favorite Mad series was "Those Horrifying Old Cliches," where a cliche would get a grotesque illustration. I remember Incurable Romantic: it was a little bug wearing a gladiator's helmet and sneezing: an incurable Roman tic! That series may have been my introduction to bad punning, which I adopted with relish (unfortunately, mustard was not up for adoption at the time).

[Cali]

I guess I did-after the fact. The comic was in color I would think, right? But I grew up in the B&W era (come to think of it w/TV too) so 'out of sight, out of mind'. I came to love that B&W-THAT was Mad to me. The reissues of the color originals were in B&W too. And it doubtless kept costs down and the need for advertisers away-until The Fall. I pick it up occasionally, with a glimmer hope that something will amuse me-never expecting the 'glory days'-and and I'm always disappointed. I read it and throw it in the trash.

The earliest MADs were of the pulp comic variety and were entirely in color. What I remember the most about those early editions is each frame was chock full of illustrations, with little unexpected gags and details that would keep you occupied for hours.

[Dave James]

43-Man Squamish from issue #95 and Three Cornered Pitney from issue #241.

[fasstrack]

Is 'vociferous reader' a malapropism? Or a potential horrifying cliche? Or should I just have you kiss my Spooner? I guess I meant voracious-and I hope that passes muster. I love that 'incurable romantic' and may adopt it for my ongoing Calling All Romantics song cycle project (coming soon to a tip jar near you) unless I can get a good illustrator to do Miniver Cheevey, subject of a song and humorous poem. Hey, that was a run-on sentence for Pete to parse. Here's a short one: kish mein tuchas... Lighten up, I kid Pete-and myself. And, Pete, my favorite Horrifying Cliche was Nursing a Grudge-wherein a buxom angel of mercy in nurse's uniform ministered to the wounds of the hairy little furball Grudge. In other news I just went online and saw covers from the last decade-and not bad at all. Can't vouch for what you get when you crack 'em. There was also an auction site not hawking directly but discussing all manner of memorabilia item for sale-at prices that were, well, Mad.

[fasstrack]

Any other George Woodbridge fans?

[Pete C]

Is 'vociferous reader' a malapropism?

Not if you talk back to the books.

[TedR]

I'm surprised I never posted on this thread. I always liked the magazine satires drawn by George Woodbridge and Joe Orlando. I think GW drew Modern Teacher magazine and Gun Lovers (?) magazine, a Field and Stream type satire. Also Readers Digress...with a Gone With The Wind condensed novel, condensed to one page. ("Boom! 'Thank god that bloody war is over'...) I recently bought The Mad Genius of Comics: The Art of Harvey Kurtzman along with a hardback edition of all 11 issues of Humbug. Humbug was a somewhat overlooked humor mag started by Kurtzman, Jack Davis, Will Elder, Al Jaffee and Arnold Roth. An admittedly poor businessman, after leaving Mad, he struggled and lost money with Humbug and Help. Playboy hired Kurtzman but ended their upscale humor mag Trump after two issues. It wasn't until Little Annie Fanny that he became financially successful but artistically unsatisfied.

[Dave Garrett]

I agree. Those paperback anthologies with "Superduperman," "Starchie," and so on, I remember reading because of kids at school and around the neighborhood passing well-thumbed copies back and forth. Later, in the 80s, those early Kurtzman issues were reprinted in expensive hardbacks, with the original covers reproduced. It served to demonstrate how much MAD had declined over the years.

I had a bunch of those paperback anthologies as a kid as well. More recently, there was this, which has occasionally been available at ridiculously low prices for such a massive, beautiful set.

[fasstrack]

Yes, Pete-and talking back to Prozac is Lillyferous. And grounds for being put in Happy Farm. Thanks for the info on the 2 zines, lads. Was unfamiliar w/either. Arnold Roth I thought was that Meyer Lansky guy who wouldn't croak in Godfather II (;

[fasstrack]

I think GW was also the artist for that bit where they changed channels (using a photo of a human hand) in mid-sentence which was then completed by the new speaker , resulting in great joyful idiocy. Or was the entire thing photos? I'm old and annoying...