What If Animals In Comics Behaved Like Real Animals Mad Magazine

Mad is known for many regular and semi-regular recurring features in its pages.

Fold-ins [edit]

Every event but two of Mad from 1964 to the present has featured a Fold-in, designed by artist Al Jaffee. They normally appear on the within back comprehend, though one consequence featured a Fold-in front encompass and the year-end "Mad twenty" problems move the characteristic to an interior page. In each Fold-in a question is asked, often of a topical nature. The subject is illustrated past a picture taking up the bulk of the page, with a block of text underneath. When the page is folded inward, the inner and outer fourths of the flick combine to reveal an alternate respond in both picture and words. Jaffee's precise layouts sometimes include false visual cues designed to trick the reader'south eye towards an wrong solution.

"The Lighter Side of..." [edit]

From 1961 to 2002, Dave Berg produced "The Lighter Side of...", which oftentimes satirized the suburban lifestyle, capitalism and the generation gap. Subjects normally lampooned include medicine, office life, parties, marriage, psychiatry, shopping, school and other everyday activities. Although this characteristic eventually became notorious for its corny gags and garishly outdated fashion choices, the Mad editors reported that it was the magazine'southward near pop feature. "The Lighter Side" was more pointed in its early years, providing the sort of Americana-based sense of humour that standups such as Shelley Berman and Alan King performed successfully onstage. The feature was retired with Berg'south death.

Four months afterwards the last Berg artwork was published, his terminal fix of gags, which Berg had written but not penciled, appeared as a tribute. These last "Lighter Side" strips were divided amongst eighteen of the magazine's regular artists, including Jack Davis' last original work for Mad. In 2007, an occasional feature called "The Darker Side of the Lighter Side" debuted. These consist of reprinted Berg strips, with rewritten word balloons that modify the gags to references most disease, sex offenders, corpse disposal and other unsavory, un-Berg-similar topics.

"Spy vs. Spy" [edit]

Antonio Prohías'south wordless "Spy vs. Spy," the never-ending battle between the iconic Black Spy and White Spy, ended upward outlasting the Cold War that inspired it. Except for the respective black/white colour of their clothing, the ii spies were identical in advent and intent. The strip was a silent parable about the futility of mutually-assured destruction, with various elaborate deathtraps designed in Prohías' thick line. Typically, the trap would boomerang back on whichever spy had concocted it. There was no pattern or order dictating which spy would exist killed in a particular episode. A female "Grey Spy" occasionally appeared; dissimilar her two adversaries, she always prevailed. Although Prohías retired from doing the strip in the late 1980s, "Spy vs. Spy" continued in a series of dissimilar hands until 1997, when Peter Kuper took over as the full-fourth dimension author-creative person. However, the original Morse Code byline "past Prohias" remains in each strip's title.

Don Martin gags [edit]

Don Martin, billed as "Mad's Maddest Artist",^[1] drew gag cartoons, more often than not one page but sometimes longer, featuring lumpen characters with apparently hinged feet. Martin's cool sight gags were frequently punctuated by an array of onomatopoeic sound furnishings such as "GLORK" or "PATWANG-FWEEE", coined by Martin himself (or by frequent ghost writer Don Edwing).^[i] Martin's wild physical comedy would eventually brand him the signature artist of the mag.

When Martin first joined Mad, he employed a nervous, scratchy art fashion, but this developed into a rounder, more cartoony look. Many of his cartoons used similar expositional titles (e.g., "One Exceedingly Fine Twenty-four hours at the Embankment," "On the Elevator," "The Pickpocket"). On occasion these titles became increasingly elaborate (east.g., "One Dark in the Acme Ritz Central Arms Waldorf Plaza Statler Hilton Grand Hotel", "Ane Hot Sunny Afternoon in the Middle of the Ocean", or "One Fine Twenty-four hours at the Corner of South Finster Boulevard and Fonebone Street").

Martin's 31-year association with Mad ended in some rancor over the ownership of his original artwork. Not long after leaving Mad, Martin concluded up working at Mad'southward competitor Cracked, which, dissimilar Mad, allowed creators to keep their pages. In 1994, Martin left Cracked and published a handful of issues of his own self-titled publication.^[2]

"A Mad Expect at..." and "Drawn-Out Dramas" [edit]

Sergio Aragonés has written and fatigued his "A Mad Look At..." characteristic for 49 years. Each is a series of gag strips with a common theme. Aragonés' Mad cartooning is notable for almost never using discussion balloons; when they occur at all, they will well-nigh often feature a drawing of any is beingness discussed. Aragonés will periodically bend this rule for a store window sign, a devious "Gesundheit", or some other dialogue vital to the punchline.

Aragonés also provides the "Mad Marginals" or "Drawn-out Dramas", which are small gag images that appear throughout the magazine in its corners, margins or the narrow spaces between panels. Aragonés debuted the feature in Mad #76 (January 1963), and it has appeared in every issue of the magazine since, except for Mad #111. According to Aragonés, his work for that result was lost in the mail.^[3]

Motion picture and Television receiver show parodies [edit]

A typical effect volition include at least one full parody of a pop pic or television show. The titles are changed to create a play on words; for instance, The Addams Family unit became The Adnauseum Family unit. The character names are mostly switched in the aforementioned fashion.

These articles run for several pages, and are presented as a sequential storyline with caricatures and give-and-take balloons. The opening page or two-page splash usually consists of the cast of the evidence introducing themselves directly to the reader. In some parodies, the writers sometimes attempt to circumvent this convention by presenting the characters without such straight exposition. Many parodies cease with the sharp deus ex machina appearance of outside characters or pop culture figures who are thematically tied into the nature to the movie or Goggle box series beingness parodied, or who comment satirically on the theme. For example, Dr. Phil arrives to counsel the psychologically damaged Drastic Housewives; in some other spoof, the former cast of Sex activity and the City are hired equally the new hookers for another HBO series, Deadwood.

The parodies frequently make comedic use of the fourth wall, breaking grapheme, and meta-references. Inside an ostensibly cocky-contained storyline, the characters may refer to the technical aspects of filmmaking, the publicity, hype or box function surrounding their project, their own past roles or existent-life circumstances, and disquisitional analysis of clichés. In the concluding panel of "The $ound of Money", the magazine's 1966 parody of The Sound of Music, Julie Andrews sings a parody of the song "Climb Ev'ry Mountain". The rewritten lyrics reference both the producers' decision to create scarcity and maximize box part profits by running the motion picture in only one theater per urban center at inflated ticket prices ("Charge high admissions; / Allow people wait; / That will brand them think they're / Seeing something great!"), too as Warner Brothers' decision to supersede Andrews with Audrey Hepburn in its movie adaptation of My Fair Lady. Andrews had been a corking success as Eliza Doolittle in the original Broadway production, but she was passed over for the picture role. Despite the high-profile snub, Andrews made an Oscar-winning debut in Mary Poppins – released iv months before My Fair Lady – and solidifying her large screen success with The Sound of Music. Last the Mad parody, Andrews gleefully sings:

"With all these profits,

Things will be fine!

When nosotros top "Fair Lady",

Ven-geance... volition... be... mine!"

Several show business concern stars have been quoted to the issue that the moment when they knew they had finally "made it" was when they saw themselves thus depicted in the pages of Mad. Many celebrities parodied by the magazine have posed for photographs which were printed in Mad'due south letters column, generally property the re-create of the magazine they appeared in, and frequently, reacting in some comical way. After the magazine depicted the main cast of L.A. Law on a 1987 encompass, the actors responded with a photo in which the actors mimicked their caricatured poses and placement, with series creator Steven Bochco blacking out a tooth and taking the place of Alfred E. Neuman.^[4]

Guns N' Roses guitarist Slash told Mojo, "The mag embrace that has meant the most to me was probably when I appeared in Mad Magazine, as a caricature of Alfred E. Neuman (#330, 1994). That was when I felt that I'd arrived."^[5] Film critic Roger Ebert said that being parodied by Mad was "the ultimate accolade."^[6] In an appearance on The Tonight Testify, Michael J. Pull a fast one on told Johnny Carson that he knew he had made information technology in show business "when Mort Drucker drew my head."^{[half dozen]} Howard Stern has often talked nigh what the mag meant to him, every bit in January 2009 when he said, "My greatest career highlight was existence on the cover of Mad Magazine."^[vii] He revisited the topic in October 2013, saying, "Information technology really was the peak of success for me, that I could be on the embrace of MAD Magazine, with Alfred E. Neuman plunging my caput into a toilet bowl. I was but so thrilled and happy... I couldn't believe it."^[viii]

Monroe [edit]

Monroe was an ongoing storyline about an malaise-filled teenaged loser. It depicted the title character's travails in schoolhouse, his dysfunctional dwelling and his relentless troubles elsewhere. Written past Anthony Barbieri, it was illustrated by Bill Wray from 1997 to 2006. The previously blackness-and-white feature was colorized in 2005, and went on hiatus for much of 2006. When it returned, it was fatigued by Tom Fowler with Barbieri remaining the author. It last appeared in January 2010.

Irregular recurring features [edit]

Several Mad premises have been successful enough to warrant additional installments, though not with the regularity of the higher up. These include:

The Mad University Awards for ____ – typically written past Stan Hart, these would mimic the Oscar telecast past showing nominated "performance clips" in non-film areas of life (such every bit parenting or small business concern ownership).
Advert parodies – too numerous to itemize, though many take been written by Dick DeBartolo; these have ranged from Television set ad spoofs to national print campaigns to home marketing and have long provided one of the well-nigh durable sources of the magazine'southward humor. A separate paperback of original textile titled Madvertising was published in 1972, and an extensive reprint drove appeared with the aforementioned title in 2005.
Alfred'southward Poor Annual – written by Frank Jacobs, this text-heavy page featured quick i-liners, puns, faux anniversaries and other arcana, supposedly matched to each day of that month.
Badly-Needed Warning Labels for Rock Albums – written by Desmond Devlin, this series of articles mocked both the ongoing Parental Advisory labelling controversy, every bit well as the musicians of the day, with specifically written warning labels for detail recordings.
Behind the Scenes at ____ – written and illustrated by diverse, these frequently take a bird's eye view of a scene, such equally a television studio or function. Various vignettes and conversations play out simultaneously, showing the reader how the participants "actually" call up and behave.
Believe Information technology Or Nuts! – written and illustrated by various (though most often drawn by Wally Wood or Bob Clarke), this parody of the print version of Ripley's Believe It Or Not! depicted declared marvels and mundanities of the earth. In the late 1950s, Mad also published regular installments of "Kovacs' Strangely Believe It!", another Ripley's parody written by Ernie Kovacs.
Celebrity Cause-of-Expiry Betting Odds – written by Mike Snider, this long-running characteristic listed and "ranked" possible methods of future death for i well-known person at a time. Information technology ordinarily independent a tombstone with a extravaganza of the celebrity (usually drawn by Hermann Mejia). A shorter version later ran in the "Fundalini" section, illustrated past Rick Tulka.
Glory Wallets – usually written by Arnie Kogen, this was a series of peeks at the notes, photographs and other memorabilia existence carried effectually in the pockets of the famous.
Cents-less Coupons – written by Scott Maiko, these imitate the giveaway coupon packets found in Lord's day newspapers but promote ludicrous products such equally "Inbred Valley Imitation Squirrel Meat".
Spooky Thoughts – written past Desmond Devlin and illustrated past Rick Tulka or Evan Dorkin, these feature observations or predictions about both the culture and everyday life that take supposedly dire implications.
A Day in the Life of... – written past Scott Maiko, these articles depict the purported hour-past-60 minutes activities of a particular celebrity, such equally George Lucas, Dick Cheney, Adam Sandler, or Dane Cook.
Mad Deconstructs Talk Shows – written by Desmond Devlin, these take on one show at a fourth dimension and purport to reveal the infinitesimal-past-minute format breakup of America'southward not too spontaneous chat programs.
Practise-It-Yourself Newspaper Story – written by Frank Jacobs, these are brusk text news items containing a number of blank spaces. Each space has a corresponding listing of numbered fill-in-the-blank options, which grow increasingly cool. The premise is that with appropriate mixing and matching, the article can exist read in a vast number of permutations. The same format has too been applied past Jacobs to other areas every bit verse, press releases, or speechmaking.
Duke Bissell's Tales of Undisputed Interest – written and illustrated by P.C. Vey, these absurdist one-page strips presented a serial of not sequiturs and bizarre references in the guise of a linear storyline.
xv Minutes of Fame – written by Frank Jacobs, it consists of curt poems well-nigh lesser celebrities and news figures.
The 50 Worst Things About ____ – written and illustrated by various, this is an annual commodity format which has thus far dealt with big catch-all topics such as "Idiot box," "one-act," "cartoons", "food" or "sports."
The Mad Guide to Man Boobs – written by Ryan Pagelow and illustrated by Drew Friedman, these i-folio articles depict an assortment of topless men whose breasts are uniquely misshapen or unsightly, with an official descriptive name given to each configuration, such as "Stalacteats" or "Belt Sniffers."
The Mad Hate File – written and illustrated by Al Jaffee, these contained a series of observational one-liners almost common irritations.
Hawks & Doves – written and illustrated past Al Jaffee during the Vietnam State of war era, this was a series of cartoons in which the autocratic Major Hawks is exasperated past the rebellious Private Doves, who keeps finding unexpected ways to create the peace symbol on his military base.
Horrifying Clichés – illustrated past Paul Coker Jr. and often written by Phil Hahn, these articles visually depicted florid turns of phraseology such every bit "tripping the light fantastic", "racking one's thoughts" or "laboring under a misconception"; the verbs are taken literally, and all the nouns are characterized as bizarre horned, scaled or otherwise unusual creatures; Mad likewise published a split paperback of these.
The Mad Library of Extremely Thin Books – written by Frank Jacobs, these two-page manufactures were laid out to look like a bookshelf in which but the spines of the books were visible. The various titles would propose books that could non possibly contain much content, such as "Making It On Your Ain" by Nancy Sinatra, "Wonderful Things That a Nickel Volition Still Buy", "Out-Spoken Feminists in the Arab World", or "Prominent Blackness Yachtsmen".
Mad'due south ____ of the Year – written and illustrated by various, these 4-to-six-folio articles would enact an interview with a fictional representative of a item practice or element of gild (i.due east. "MAD'due south Summer Camp Owner of the Year"; "MAD'south Flick Producer of the Year").
Melvin and Jenkins' Guide to _____ – written past Desmond Devlin and illustrated past Kevin Pope, these "guides" present the behavioral or attitudinal "do's and don'ts" on a diverseness of topics, every bit demonstrated past the titular pair (Jenkins doing the proper thing, while Melvin does not). An abbreviated version runs in the "Fundalini" section.
Movie Outtakes – these are screen captures of upcoming films (more often than not taken from the motion picture trailer), given new word balloons; MAD typically times these pieces to coincide with the moving picture's full general release, either in advance of the full parody or in lieu of it.
The Mad Nasty File – typically written past Tom Koch and illustrated by Harry North or Gerry Gersten, these insult manufactures caricatured a diversity of public figures and proceeded to abuse them verbally.
Obituaries for ____ Characters – by and large written by Frank Jacobs, these alleged newspaper clippings detail the appropriate demises for fictional characters from a genre such as comic strips, advertisement, or television.
People Watcher's Guide to ____ – often written past Mike Snider and illustrated by Tom Bunk, these articles used a scenario such as "the mall" or "a cemetery" to mock specific observed behaviors.
Planet Tad!!!!! – written by Tim Carvell and illustrated by Brian Durniak, this purports to be the LiveJournal-like webpage of teenaged loser Tad'south blog, which inadvertently reveals his various personal traumas and full general idiocy.
Pop-Off Videos – written by Desmond Devlin and illustrated with music video screen captures, these one-folio articles mimicked the VH1 series "Pop-Up Video," which enhanced music videos with small $.25 of information. Mad also published a divide standalone special upshot of these.
The Mad _____ Primer – written and illustrated by various, Mad Primers mimicked the writing way of Dick and Jane and dealt with a broad variety of subjects from bigotry to hockey to religion; Mad also published a Cradle to Grave Primer equally a divide paperback, showing the complete misery-filled life of one man.
____ Revisited – "conceived" by Max Brandel co-ordinate to his credit, these photographic pieces would take a long-established piece of text, such as the Preamble to the U.S. Constitution, or the Ten Commandments, and systematically illustrate the text with ironically-called photo images.
Scenes We'd Similar to See – written and illustrated by diverse, these were by and large i-page vignettes which inverted the common conventions of moviemaking, advert, or the culture at large, ending with a clichéd character in a clichéd setting, interim cowardly or proverb something atypically honest.
Six Degrees of Separation Betwixt Anyone and Annihilation – written by Mike Snider and illustrated by Rick Tulka, this feature exploited the Kevin Salary-based game of links to humorously connect various items or people in thematic or painstakingly phrased ways rather than proximity.
Snappy Answers to Stupid Questions – written and illustrated past Al Jaffee, this long-running series reproduces unnecessary questions (i.due east., "Is that an octopus?" "Are y'all a jogger?") and supplies 3 sarcastic responses for each, along with a bare box for the reader to supply their own snappy answer. A mini-version of this characteristic occasionally appears in the mag's "Fundalini" section, consisting of just ane question. Mad has also published several separate, standalone paperbacks of these.
7 Periods Closer to Death – written and illustrated past Ted Rall, this i-page strip takes a satirical look at life in loftier school.
What Is A ____? – written past Tom Koch, these text-heavy articles would draw the characteristics of a personality type, such equally an introvert, a "big man on campus", or a political party-pooper.
When ____ Go Bad – written and illustrated by John Caldwell, each article depicts the outrageous behavior allegedly plant within the worst element of a certain culture or profession (i.east. "When Nuns Go Bad"; "When Clowns Go Bad"; "When The Morbidly Obese Go Bad"; "When Minions Become Actually, Really Bad").
The Year in Pic – written by Desmond Devlin, these ironically juxtaposed movie titles of the past calendar year with photographs of topical news events or celebrities.
You Know You're Really ___ When... – written and illustrated by various, these took a common condition ("You lot're Really Overweight When...") and presented several one-liners on the theme.

Besides the to a higher place, Mad has returned to certain themes and areas again and once more, such as fullblown imaginary magazines, greeting cards, nursery rhymes, Christmas carols, song parodies and other poetry (including several versions of "Casey at the Bat"), comic strip takeoffs and others.

Table of Contents [edit]

The first folio of each upshot lists all the articles to follow, including their "Department" headings, which are plays on words. For example, a parody of a pizza chain's menu appeared under "The Passion of the Crust Section", while an article entitled "William Shakespeare, Sports Commentator" was role of "The Play-Past-Play'due south the Matter Department". Long-running features had equally long-running headers: Spy vs. Spy is filed nether the "Joke and Dagger Department", Dave Berg's "Lighter Side of..." ever ran inside the "Berg'south Heart View Department", and many of Frank Jacobs' articles come up nether the "Frank on a Scroll Department". Don Martin's crazy cartoons were simply labelled "Don Martin Department", with further fanfare presumably being unnecessary. Dick DeBartolo'southward manufactures occasionally are headed nether the "Dick Section", while some of Duck Edwing's articles were labeled as the "Tales from The Duck Side" Dept. Most of the magazine'due south other recurring features have had their ain standing "Section".

Each Table of Contents cites one article that does not really exist. Examples of these imaginary listings have included "Santa Claus, Porn Star"; "What if Cap'due north Crunch Was Brought Before a Military Tribunal?"; "If Bobby Knight Coached the Special Olympics"; "Only the Assistant Undersecretary of Transportation Would Possibly Believe..."; "What if Daffy and Donald Duck Went To Prison?"; and "Snappy Answers to Stupid Questions During the Bombing of Belgrade". In one instance, the false title listed, "If Chickens Could Time Travel", showed up as a genuine article in the next issue.

Each Tabular array of Contents also includes a quote or aphorism attributed to Alfred E. Neuman. With a handful of exceptions, this is the but time the character ever "speaks".

Letters and Tomatoes Dept. [edit]

An esoteric version of the standard "Messages to the Editors", this department of the magazine includes correspondence from readers, reader drawings or craft projects, celebrity photos, references to Mad in other media, and so along. In contempo years, all letters are typically answered in a snide and insulting way, and always include a pun or twist on the sender's name.

The first "Letters" department (then called "Mad Mumblings") appeared in MAD #3 (January–February 1953). The first letter printed came from a Marine Corps corporal named Eugene F. Shanlin, who said he "had never heard people laugh out loud at a comic magazine earlier!" (Shanlin after became an officeholder with the NYPD and died in 2000.)^[9]

There have been a few recurring sub-departments, including the "Brand a Dumb Wish Foundation" which promised to make readers' stupid requests come true (a parody of the Brand a Wish Foundation); "Antiques Freakshow with Hans Brickface", in which photographs of readers' bizarre household items were appraised past the slightly psychotic Hans; absurd one-sentence observations called "MAD Mumblings", which were typically non sequiturs posted online by the readers; and glory "Two-Question Interviews" which were essentially over earlier they began, thus revealing zip.

The magazine solicits reader photos of famous people posing with a copy of Mad. Once a yr, Mad publishes "The Bang-up Fifty", listing 50 famous people they promise to run into in upcoming "Celebrity Snaps". A reader who successfully gets ane of the 50 to pose in a photo gets a complimentary iii-year subscription (provided that the celebrity is touching the outcome). Some celebrities transport in photos of themselves, typically in response to the magazine having targeted them in a previous outcome. The magazine was delighted to publish a photograph of Dan Quayle unwittingly property the "PROOFREADER WANTED" cover of Mad #355, on which the mag'due south logo appeared as MAAD. During a photograph op in 1992, the then-Vice President had incorrectly "corrected" an uncomplicated school pupil on the style Quayle thought the word "potato" should exist spelled.

The Fundalini Pages [edit]

Beginning with its February 2004 edition, Mad has led off its problems with this take hold of-all department of various bits, which are far shorter or smaller than normal Mad articles. They often appear as many as 3 to six per page. Some of these pieces are produced in-house; others are the work of freelancers. All contributors for each month were credited en masse, as "Friends of Fundalini". For this reason, information technology is non always credible which contributor is responsible for which item, particularly the writers. Outset with issue number 500 (June 2009), writers and artists (except editorial staff members) take been given credit for individual contributions. Nigh Fundalini features are one-shot gags that never appear once more, some accept appeared multiple times, and a few take become regular features. Amongst the recurring elements in the Fundalini section are:

Created for Fundalini [edit]

Bitterman, a short comic strip by Garth Gerhart nigh a mean slacker;
Classified ads; these frequently bargain in absurdity and non sequiturs;
The Cover We Didn't Utilise, purporting to be the "2nd choice" for that issue's front cover;
The Fast 5, a Top 5 list like to David Letterman's Top ten lists;
Foto News, in which topical photographs are given word balloons (similar to fumetti, though without that genre's narrative storyline attribute);
Gag panels by cartoonists such as Tom Cheney ("Pull My Cheney!"), or P.C. Vey ("Vey to Go!", later called Oy Vey!).
The Godfrey Report, a pocket-size 3x 3 grid showing iii classes of objects and their electric current cultural status, which is arbitrarily rated as "In", "5 Minutes Ago", or "Out". (e.yard. Stoolies: In, Squealers: V Minutes Ago, Turncoats: Out);
Graphic Novel Review, written past Desmond Devlin, which analyzes fictional comic collections and graphic novels such as The Anally Complete Peanuts or Tintin in Fallujah;
The Kitchen Sink, a lengthy barrage of spoof titles for topics such as "Reality Shows Currently Nether Development" or "Proposed Star Wars Sequel Titles";
Monkeys Are Ever Funny, by Evan Dorkin, showing famous news photographs with the paradigm of a monkey Photoshopped in (e.g. the raid on Elian Gonzalez's closet, or the Hindenburg explosion);
The NFL's Ref Report, written by Kiernan P. Schmitt, which illustrates a topic by using generic drawings of a referee's hand signals;
The Puzzle Nook, a multiple choice fill-in-the-blank phrase;
Saddam Sez, which reused the same photo of Saddam Hussein speaking at his 2006 trial. A word airship was added, making a random reference having cypher to do with Hussein or Iraq. The March 2007 consequence of Mad contained a statement that "Due to circumstances beyond our control" the Saddam Sez characteristic would be put on "indefinite hiatus". Fidel Castro afterward replaced Saddam with "Castro Comments";

A Wikipedia parody has appeared twice, first called "Wonkypedia", and then "Wakipedia". Both entries featured a convoluted assortment of unrelated facts, in the mode of an inaccurate or vandalized Wikipedia page (e.g. the "commodity" on Pearl Harbor discussed Mao Tse-Tung'due south surprise attack and how it led to the bombing of Chernobyl). Wonkypedia is now an actual website.^[10]

Truncated versions of ii pre-existing features, *Celebrity Cause of Death Betting Odds" and *Melvin and Jenkins' Guide to..." have been moved to Fundalini.

The Strip Club [edit]

An array of short gag comic strips drawn by various artists, it has appeared roughly every other calendar month since its debut in the July 2005 issue. It typically runs iii pages, and is a combination of one-shot gags and recurring features. Among the repeated strip characters are an almighty superhero chosen Fantabulaman; a hero robot named Santon; Rob, the Evil Backstabbing Robot Temp; Begetter O'Flannity, a priest who conducts celebrity interviews in a hot tub; Trigger McBride, a horse cop; the unnamed protagonists who use "The Machine that Travels Through Time"; Jeff, a human being whose roommate is oblivious to the fact that he is a serial killer despite obvious evidence; and Patience Homo, a superhero who takes too long to stop crimes.

Become Fetch! [edit]

Blurring the line betwixt advertising and content was Become Fetch!, a 2005-06 list of newly released media products such as videogames, DVD releases, music albums and books. Each product listing had The Hype and The Snipe, in which its good and bad qualities were expounded. Each Become Fetch! as well promoted "the Must Have", an idiosyncratic (but real) product which no Mad reader should exist without, such as cold galvanizing spray, or a pneumatic jackhammer. Go Fetch! was an odd cross between the wise-ass Mad mentality and the sort of product ratings generally associated with Rolling Stone. It was an overtly commercial feature, with some one-liners thrown in with the credible hope of making it more palatable. Equally such, Go Fetch! was heavily criticized by many of the magazine's loyal readers as a betrayal of the mag's original satiric mission. In its twelvemonth of existence, Become Fetch! appeared in eight of 12 issues, just the feature has been defunct since June 2006.

"The Mad 20" [edit]

Since 1998, in every Jan consequence, Mad has commemorated the "20 Dumbest People, Events and Things" of the year. These emphasize the visual motif above all else, parodying such things as motion-picture show posters, famous paintings, or magazine covers, though i or two text-heavier takeoffs are normally sprinkled into each twelvemonth's assortment. The characteristic is reminiscent of the one-time Spy Magazine'due south "Spy 100" list, which purported to catalogue "Our Annual Census of the 100 Near Abrasive, Alarming, and Appalling People, Places and Things".

Though the "20 Dumbest People, Events and Things" are numbered 1-20, the "rankings" announced to be substantially random. The "20th dumbest" slot of 2001 was awarded to Mad itself for its "slide down the glace slope of greedy commercialism" in finally permitting advert in its pages.

Keeping in heed the indiscriminate positioning, these were the "#1" selections for the various years:

1998: "Starr Wars", a motion-picture show poster parody of the partisan Kenneth Starr investigation, depicting Starr as Darth Vader, and Beak Clinton holding a cigar instead of a lite saber;
1999: "Y2K Panic", a cluttered cartoon showing a crashing airplane displacing the Times Square New year's day's Brawl, sending it careening into a terror-stricken crowd;
2000: A rewritten Presidential oath of office. The upshot went to press ane week after the disputed 2000 election; the editors had idea they would be able to plug in the winner, but were obliged to publish ii versions of the epitome, i with Al Gore being sworn in, the other depicting George W. Bush;
2001: "A.I. Asinine Ideology", a movie poster parody of the Steven Spielberg film A.I. highlighting Jerry Falwell's placing arraign on the ix/xi attacks on gays, feminists, abortionists and the ACLU;
2002: "Martha Stewart Lying", a mag spoof of Martha Stewart's insider trading scandal;
2003: "Term Eliminator", a flick affiche parody of the third Terminator film mocking Arnold Schwarzenegger's victory in the California recall election;
2004: "Donny Rumsfeld and the Prisoners of Abu Ghraib", a book encompass in the way of the third Harry Potter jacket, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban;
2005: "Where's W?", a volume parody in the style of the Where'south Waldo? serial. The cover shows a tableau of the crowded, flooded streets of New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, with George Westward. Bush completely impossible to discover;
2006: "The Iraqi Quagmire Chess Ready", in the style of a Franklin Mint collectable. Literal chess pieces were sculpted and photographed, depicting such figures every bit Dick Cheney, Joseph Lieberman, Abu-Musab al-Zarqawi and Muqtada al-Sadr;
2007: "Michael & Me", A parody of the book Marley and Me and ostensibly written from the perspective of 1 of Michael Vick's illegal fighting pit bulls. The book cover depicts Vick strangling a dog;
2008: "Clueless", a parody of the board game Clue featuring losing vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin. Information technology included rules of play which mimicked Palin's rhetoric and speaking style. The rooms, weapons, characters were besides changed to reflect her persona and associations.
2009: "The Canonization of Michael Jackson", a religious icon which poked fun at media, fans and other hangers-on who spent the weeks following Jackson'south expiry ignoring or whitewashing the child molestation accusations, his eccentric habits and his penchant for self-glorification. (Jackson's personal md, who is widely blamed for causing the singer's death past overdose, was given his own entry at #xx: a parody of Jackson'due south "Thriller" anthology, renamed "Killer");
2010: "Creators of the Black Lagoon", a poster parody of the 1954 monster movie satirizing the malfeasance before and after the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
2011: "The Walking Debt", a parody of the AMC serial The Walking Expressionless mocking the partisan battle over the previously perfunctory adjustment to the U.S. debt ceiling. President Obama, Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid, John Boehner, Eric Cantor and Mitch McConnell are among the politicians shown as shuffling, mindless zombies.
2012: "Paint Misbehavin' ", a parody of the 1960 Norman Rockwell painting "Triple Self-Portrait"^[xi] which was changed to satirize Cecilia Gimenez'southward botched "restoration" of the religious Ecce Homo fresco in Borja, Zaragoza.
2013: "National Buffoons' Abysmal House", a parody of the pic affiche for the 1978 comedy moving-picture show Beast House, mocking John Boehner and the Republican Political party-led House of Representatives for triggering the government shutdown.
2014: "GoodellFellas", a parody of the movie poster for the 1990 gangster picture Goodfellas, mocking NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell for the league's lack of punishment against Ray Rice for beating his wife in an elevator, and Adrian Peterson's abuse of his son with a tree branch.
2015: "The Great Gasbag", a parody of the movie poster for the 2013 film The Great Gatsby, mocking Donald Trump's abusive "verbal diarrhea" towards Jeb Bush, Megyn Kelly and others during his bombastic campaign for the Republican Presidential nomination. Mad had previously used the title "The Bully Gasbag" for its parody of the 1974 Robert Redford-Mia Farrow film adaptation.
2016: "The Toxic Contender", a parody of the movie poster for the 1984 film The Toxic Avenger, mocking Donald Trump'southward "name-calling", "fact-costless", "soul-crushingly baneful" campaign. It was the start of four Trump entries, the most for any target in any "MAD xx" consequence (the other iii were about Trump'southward squad of advisors, his sexist remarks, his paying no taxes, and investigations of the Trump Foundation).
2017: "Russkie Business organisation", a parody of the movie affiche for the 1983 moving picture Risky Business, mocking Donald Trump's association with the ongoing investigation into collusion and Russian interest in the 2016 Presidential election. Information technology was the first of a full dozen Trump-related entries, though Trump only had a supporting role in some of them, such as Vice President Mike Pence, Kathy Griffin'due south much-criticized photo of a beheaded Trump, the reactions to quarterback Colin Kaepernick's civil rights protest, or the racist white supremacist/Nazi rally in Charlottesville.
2018: "Infamous Monsters of Movieland," a parody of the 1960s/70s horror/sci-fi magazine Famous Monsters of Filmland, mocking the various celebrities accused or convicted of sexual misconduct or rape, including Pecker Cosby, Harvey Weinstein, Kevin Spacey, Les Moonves, Matt Lauer, Roger Ailes, Beak O'Reilly, Charlie Rose and Louis CK. A woman is holding the magazine with a look of horror, and her hair sticking up in fright.

Running gags and recurring images [edit]

The Mad Style Guide (1994), showing several of the magazine's repeated images.

Mad has fabricated frequent utilise of esoteric words, including potrzebie, furshlugginer, veeblefetzer, Moxie, ganef, halavah, and axolotl. Many, but not all of these words are of Yiddish or Jewish origin. Favored humorous names included Melvin, Bitsko, Kaputnik, Cowznofski, and Fonebone. Mad used the word "ecch" or its cousins "blecch" and "yecch" every bit an all-purpose expression of disgust so oftentimes that even The Simpsons after made passing references to the do, showing Mad covers with the unseen parodies "Beauty and the Blecch" and "NYPD Blecch".

The word "hoohah" was an early on running gag, oftentimes exclaimed by excited characters in the comic book issues written by Harvey Kurtzman; the first story in the start result of Mad was titled "Hoohah!".^[12] Its Eastern European feel was a perfect fit for the New York Jewish style of the publication. The precise origin of "hoohah" is unknown, although it may have sprung from the Hungarian word for "wow", which is hűha.

"It's crackers to slip a rozzer the dropsy in snide" was a not sequitur-ish phrase that constitute its style into Mad on several occasions in the 1950s; this was dated British slang meaning "It'due south madness to bribe a policeman with apocryphal coin." (The phrase originated in Margery Allingham's mid-thirties detective novel, The Fashion in Shrouds).^[thirteen]

Some of the mag's visual elements are whimsical, frequently appearing in the artwork without context or explanation. Among these are a potted avocado found named Arthur (reportedly based on art manager John Putnam's personal marijuana constitute); a domed trashcan wearing an overcoat; a pointing half-dozen-fingered manus; the Mad Zeppelin (which more closely resembles an early on experimental non-rigid airship); and an emaciated long-beaked creature who went unidentified for decades earlier existence dubbed "Flip the Bird".

In tardily 1964, Mad was tricked into purchasing the "rights" to an optical illusion already in the public domain,^{[ citation needed ]} featuring a sort of three-pronged tuning fork whose appearance defies physical possibility. The magazine dubbed information technology the "Mad poiuyt" subsequently the six rightmost letter keys on a QWERTY keyboard in contrary order, non realizing that the existing prototype was already known to engineers and normally called a blivet.

Mad cartoonists have regularly drawn themselves, fellow contributors and editors, and family unit members into the manufactures, most famously Dave Berg's self-caricature "Roger Kaputnik". Al Jaffee sometimes incorporates a self-caricature into his signature, most notably in his fold-ins. The magazine's photograph spreads take typically featured Mad's ain staff. Originally, the magazine tried hiring models for its photo shoots, merely found that many were unwilling to make the exaggerated faces the magazine wanted. While trying to prompt the reluctant outsiders with demonstrations, the magazine staff soon decided that they were better suited for foolish posing than the professionals, and more cost-effective.

In the 1990s and 2000s, the magazine has fabricated periodic references to "the monkey juice", generally in the context of over-imbibing with aforementioned. Many letter of the alphabet cavalcade responses are punctuated with the informal interjection "Fa fa fa!". The mysterious proper name "Max Korn" has popped upward for years; reader requests to analyze Korn'southward truthful identity accept been greeted with increasingly outlandish explanations.

Regardless of the amount, the changing cover toll of Mad has long been followed past the discussion "Cheap!". Variants accept occasionally appeared; following an increase from 25 to 30 cents, the successive issues claimed to be "Cheap" (merely Ten'd out), "Cheap?", and "Kinda Cheap". A rise to 40 cents sparked almost a year's worth of variations: "Ouch!", "Outrageous!", "No Laughing Matter", "Relatively Cheap", "Inexpensive (Considering)", and over again, "Cheap?". Other toll increases were billed as "Almost Cheap", "Inflated!", and for a cover featuring Bonnie and Clyde, "Highway Robbery".

References [edit]

^ ^a ^b Martin, Don. The Completely Mad Don Martin, Running Press, 2007.
^ Chisholm Trail Bookstore (Duncan, Oklahoma)
^ Evanier, Marking. News from ME, March 17, 2007.
^ http://www.bleedingcool.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/mega_watermark_ugc1213191.jpg^{[ blank URL image file ]}
^ Mojo, June 2008, pg. 58.
^ ^a ^b "Roger Ebert dies at 70 afterward battle with cancer - Chicago Sun-Times". www.suntimes.com. Archived from the original on 2013-04-04.
^ Howard Stern broadcast on Sirius Radio, ane-20-09
^ Howard Stern Show broadcast on Sirius, Oct 22, 2013
^ "Miscellaneous Citrus County, Florida Obituaries".
^ Wonkypedia
^ "Why Was Rockwell Called "America'south Creative person"?".
^ Alphabetize of MAD's first two years
^ Allingham, Margery. The Mode in Shrouds, New York: Felony & Mayhem Press, 2008, p. 58. The speaker is Albert Campion's "male person's gentleman", Magersfontein Lugg, a former burglar with aspirations of bettering himself. He has been increasing his education by way of reading "a small dictionary of quotations", and tosses the sentence out as a possible entry in his own work of that sort.

External links [edit]

Madcoversite.com attempts to group the irregularly recurring features

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Recurring_features_in_Mad_(magazine)

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