November 4, 2022
By wpilson
Article, History
Mad comics, politics, cartoons, celebrities
Before artists developed their own style in cartoons, there were comic books. Comic books allowed artists to develop their own style and put it to print. Mad Magazines allowed artists to be experimental and craft their own stories using either existing characters or their own original works. Without Mad Magazines, the art form of comics would look a lot different today because many of the most world-renowned comic book writers and artists originally got their start working for Mad. Artists like Will Eisner, Don Martin, Harvey Kurtzman, Charles M Shultz, Mort Drucker, Joe Orlando, and Sergio Aragonez all contributed to Mad Magazines at some point in their careers. Not only did Mad offer an outlet for artists, but it also expanded the form of entertainment in the latter half of the 20th century. Countless celebrities in the form of cartoons, sports, politics, and music have all gotten to where they are thanks to the influence of Mad Magazine. One reason Mad has been so influential was because of the political humor that satirized many political figures who have come and gone.
Mad Magazine is credited with creating an opening for free speech during a time when censorship and Cold War fears dominated the news and comic book format. The team of idiots over at Mad satirized everything from Presidents to current events, to even comic figures themselves like Peanuts and Batman. The twist was the artists poked fun at the topics they covered in their art and writing. Nothing was off the table for Mad Magazines, over their seventy-year run they covered the Cuban Missile Crises, Watergate, Star Wars, Punk Rock, 9/11, and the assassination of Osama Bin Laden. The magazine’s best issues were when their subjects were controversial figures like Trump, Kanye West, or Richard Nixon because the controversy those figures created lead to the writers creating the best jokes. They avoided portraying their subjects in a positive light and instead poked fun at their shortcomings, flaws, and decisions. In many ways, Mad was groundbreaking for how it used politics and current events to create humor long before Saturday Night Live and comedians used them in their routines. The realm of politics was not the only format Mad helped revolutionize, without Mad, many of entertainments biggest celebrities and shows would not have existed without Mad Magazines’ influence.
The endless artists Mad employed helped influence many cartoonists, musicians, and writers have credited the influence of Mad on their decision to choose their occupation. People like Weird Al Yankovic, Robert Crumb (Fritz the Cat), Matt Groening (The Simpsons), Michael J Fox, and Monty Python’s Terry Gilliam have all credited Mad for opening their eyes to the world of entertainment and humor. The way Mad revealed the machine underneath the curtain helped many people realize the life they wanted. Many celebrities have even said that it was an honor and a privilege when Mad Magazine satirized them in an issue. It was acknowledgment that they made it in the world of entertainment when Mad found their them funny enough to poke fun at. Even though Mad is no longer in publication, they retired in 2018, they left behind a legacy no other magazine or comic could ever recreate.
The enduring love for Mad Magazine was because readers understood the artists and writer’s mission. Their mission was to create humor out of unfortunate events and people society either loved or hated. Creating humor out of news and the lives of celebrities helped solidify the entertainment form of parody and satire. Through satire and parodies, Mad Magazine was able to survive over seventy years of shit and leave behind a legacy that many artists, celebrities, musicians, and writers have imitated, but never duplicated.