Five fun facts about MAD magazine

MAD magazine has entertained readers, young and old for almost 70 years, but the recent news that that it would no longer be producing new content and be sold in printed form was a blow to many. Here are some interesting facts about the America humour magazine which you may not know.

1. The magazine was founded by editor Harvey Kurtzman and publisher William Gaines and first published in 1952.

2. The magazine’s mascot Alfred E Neuman became so recognizable that a letter arrived at their offices which had no address written on it, just a drawing of Alfred on it.

3. MAD magazine produced a cover congratulating the winner of the 1960 US Presidential election long before the votes were counted. One cover said ‘We were with your all the way, Jack , as a nod to JFK’s victory, but the cover could be flipped to mark a potential Richard Nixon win.

4. The magazine did not feature advertising between 1957 and 2001. The publishers felt that their satire and lampooning of corporations would make it difficult for them to carry ads from the same sort of companies, so made the decision not to carry real ads. Instead, they published spoof ads before relenting in 2001 due to concerns about the loss of revenue.

5. Attempts at breaking out beyond the printed version of the magazine enjoyed mixed results. A 1974 animated series was canned even before broadcast and a 1980 movie starring Robert Downey Jnr called ‘MAD Presents Up The Academy’ proved such as stinker that MAD publishers insist their name be taken of it.

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