I didn’t understand a lot of the jokes in MAD but I loved Don Martin and Al Jaffee. As well as the fold-ins he also did “Snappy answers to Silly Questions”. Amazed he was still going only three years ago.
From the ages of about 8 to 11 I was a Mad Magazine obsessive. I saved my pocket money to order back issues. I ran a magazine library out of one of the cupboards in my classroom. I marveled at the variance of art styles, from Don Martin to Sergio Aragones to Al Jaffee to Mort Drucker.
Most of all, I was utterly spellbound by the idea that a group of adults could find gainful employment churning out cartoons and snarky parodies of contemporary movies. In fact, it was probably the latter that first drew me in; I was desperate to watch all the Hollywood movies I was still far too young for, and I realised that their plots were invariably contained in Mad. Thus, I was able to gain knowledge of the full storyline of, say, The Witches of Eastwick long before I ever laid eyes on the film itself.
During my final year at Primary School my regulation uniform included a limited edition, subscribers-only Alfred E Neuman “What Me Worry” t-shirt, his finger buried up his nose to the knuckle. Somehow, no-one prevented this.
There’s a great site (here: https://www.madcoversite.com/covers.html) containing every cover of Mad Magazine. A friend sent it on to me a few years back and it provoked a veritable orgy of Proustian nostalgia.
I am the proud owner of a framed original of the very first UK edition of Mad which came out in about 1959. Found and bought it for the princely sum of 6d from a second hand bookshop in Gosford Green Coventry in the late 1960s.
Without looking, can anyone here guess what that mag (I would say its in good rather than near mint condition) is worth now?
Found my first Mad – #254 April 1985.
Including the story of the exploitation of the death of Dirk McDirt (biggest hit: Don’t Hit Me With That Chain Again)
Late ’60s – early ’70s I was a regular Mad purchaser, including the Don Martin paperback book collections. The newsagent’s by the stop where I caught my bus home from work always had the latest Mad and a selection of the books.
Rigid Digit says
Just been reading this about the Mad Magazine fold-ins
https://flashbak.com/al-jaffee-demonstrates-how-he-invented-those-brilliant-mad-magazine-folds-ins-459904/
Jaygee says
Another part of our collective childhood gone.
RIP Al and thanks for all the laughs
Leedsboy says
Sad news. I loved Mad when I was a teen.
Black Celebration says
I didn’t understand a lot of the jokes in MAD but I loved Don Martin and Al Jaffee. As well as the fold-ins he also did “Snappy answers to Silly Questions”. Amazed he was still going only three years ago.
Bingo Little says
Ah, this is sad news.
From the ages of about 8 to 11 I was a Mad Magazine obsessive. I saved my pocket money to order back issues. I ran a magazine library out of one of the cupboards in my classroom. I marveled at the variance of art styles, from Don Martin to Sergio Aragones to Al Jaffee to Mort Drucker.
Most of all, I was utterly spellbound by the idea that a group of adults could find gainful employment churning out cartoons and snarky parodies of contemporary movies. In fact, it was probably the latter that first drew me in; I was desperate to watch all the Hollywood movies I was still far too young for, and I realised that their plots were invariably contained in Mad. Thus, I was able to gain knowledge of the full storyline of, say, The Witches of Eastwick long before I ever laid eyes on the film itself.
During my final year at Primary School my regulation uniform included a limited edition, subscribers-only Alfred E Neuman “What Me Worry” t-shirt, his finger buried up his nose to the knuckle. Somehow, no-one prevented this.
There’s a great site (here: https://www.madcoversite.com/covers.html) containing every cover of Mad Magazine. A friend sent it on to me a few years back and it provoked a veritable orgy of Proustian nostalgia.
So long, Al, and thanks for all the memories.
Jaygee says
Cheers for that, Bingo
I am the proud owner of a framed original of the very first UK edition of Mad which came out in about 1959. Found and bought it for the princely sum of 6d from a second hand bookshop in Gosford Green Coventry in the late 1960s.
Without looking, can anyone here guess what that mag (I would say its in good rather than near mint condition) is worth now?
Bingo Little says
Very nice!
I would guess we’re talking in the low hundreds of pounds? Been a while since I’ve had a firm grasp of comic valuations.
GCU Grey Area says
I haven’t looked, but I wonder if the value would be about that of the first issue of Private Eye? I think they go for around £1000.
Jaygee says
About £300 (it’s good rather than VG or NM condition). Not that. I would ever sell
h2triple says
This the same one? Seen here on ebay for £50 as I write this https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/304877698342
Jaygee says
@h2triple
Given that the stamp will reduce the value, that still looks good value (last one I saw on eBay was £60 about five years ago).
https://www.comicpriceguide.co.uk/uk_comic.php?tc=mad
Above site rates even fair copies as being worth £100 or so (assuming, of course, you can find someone to pay it)
Rigid Digit says
Found my first Mad – #254 April 1985.
Including the story of the exploitation of the death of Dirk McDirt (biggest hit: Don’t Hit Me With That Chain Again)
Mike_H says
Late ’60s – early ’70s I was a regular Mad purchaser, including the Don Martin paperback book collections. The newsagent’s by the stop where I caught my bus home from work always had the latest Mad and a selection of the books.
Jaygee says
Always a huge fan of their advertising parodies.
Almost certainly a key influence on my ending up
writing the stuff
Zanti Misfit says
He was brilliant. Such an influence on my humour (or humor, in this case) R.I.P.