Mad #31

(February 1957)

The MAD Window Test (Table of Contents)

Mad Magazine / promo (ad from the publisher) / 1 page (report information)

Credits

Script:

?

Pencils:

Jack Davis (signed); Bill Elder (Shomes figure)

Inks:

Jack Davis (signed); Bill Elder (Shomes figure)

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Characters:

Melvin Cowznofski; Shermlock Shomes

Synopsis:

House ad for MAD Magazine subscriptions.

Indexer Notes

Inside front cover.

Departments (Table of Contents)

Vital Features / foreword, introduction, preface, afterword / 1 page (report information)

Credits

Script:

? [as Alf]

Pencils:

various

Inks:

various

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Genre:

fact

Indexer Notes

Art is excerpts from this issue. Masthead quote is from TIME Magazine. There is a credit of Nick Megliola for ideas, but no indication of what articles.

The New Marilyn Marone (Table of Contents)

Increase The Circulation Dept. / comic story / 2 pages (report information)

Credits

Script:

?

Pencils:

Wally Wood (signed)

Inks:

Wally Wood (signed)

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Genre:

humor

Characters:

Marilyn Marone; Sir Lauwrence Olivier

Synopsis:

A comparison of Marilyn's career before and after acting lessons.

Indexer Notes

Parody of Marilyn Monroe's career.

If You Like To Collect Records (Table of Contents)

Leslie Creations / advertisement / 0.083 page (report information)

Credits

Script:

?

Pencils:

? (photo)

Inks:

? (photo)

Letters:

typeset

Editing:

?

Content Information

Synopsis:

Ad for record rack.

Are You MAD? (Table of Contents)

Critics Panel / advertisement / 0.165 page (report information)

Credits

Script:

?

Pencils:

?

Inks:

?

Colors:

?

Letters:

typeset

Editing:

?

Content Information

Synopsis:

Ad for kit including pin, for becoming a registered Critic.

Now In Full Color! (Table of Contents)

Alfred E. Neuman / promo (ad from the publisher) / 0.083 page (report information)

Credits

Script:

?

Pencils:

Norman Mingo

Inks:

Norman Mingo

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Characters:

Alfred E. Neuman

Synopsis:

House ad for pinups suitable for framing.

Random Samplings of Reader Mail (Table of Contents)

Letters Dept. / letters page / 1.67 pages (report information)

Credits

Script:

Albert B. Feldstein; Dotti Stavin; Jean Menti; Jan Baldwin; Gary DeLain; Elvis Presley Fan Club (Orland CA); Ronald Jones; Michael Mason; Don Galloway; Ronny Klugman; Robert Masonheimer; Harold Weiss; Mickey Rooney; Tom Player; Louis Callahan; Robert Monement; Free Fall Ferris; Chips Koehler; Jack Benny; Walt Dizzy; Tim Lachman; John Doe; Marty Karpen; Phil Duffey; Ken Mayer; Elmer Woggin; Bruce Furic; Jean Roy; N. Lenin, Jr.; Hiram Dinkerpok; James Eveland; Michael Wiesenberg

Pencils:

various

Inks:

various

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Synopsis:

Letters of comment, mostly about issue #30.

Indexer Notes

Art is excerpts from issue #30. Reply to one letter states that all letters published are written by readers, even the gag letters.

Field & Scream (Table of Contents)

Call of The Wild Magazines Dept. / comic story / 5 pages (report information)

Credits

Script:

?

Pencils:

Jack Davis (signed)

Inks:

Jack Davis (signed)

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Genre:

satire

Characters:

Lance Sturdley; Irv Blintz; Milton Forbisher; Lancelot Borscht-Bagel; Ozgood Z'Beard; Elmo Klunk; Walt Goober; Fenwick Furd

Synopsis:

Excerpts from hunters' magazine, including some phony ads.

Reprints: show reprint note before migration

• in More Trash From MAD (EC, 1958 series) #1 (1958)
• in Mad About the Fifties (Little, Brown & Co., 1997 series) #[nn] (1997)

Indexer Notes

Parody of "Field & Stream" magazine.

Scenes We'd Like To See: One Against Four (Table of Contents)

Hollywood Dept. / comic story / 1 page (report information)

Credits

Script:

?

Pencils:

Phil Interlandi (signed)

Inks:

Phil Interlandi (signed)

Content Information

Genre:

satire

Synopsis:

Man defeats 4 pirates one-at-a-time while rescuing a woman but is then surrounded by the next 4 pirates.

Reprints: show reprint note before migration

• in Son of Mad (Signet Books, 1959 series) #S1701 (October 1959)

Item (Table of Contents)

Newspapers Dept. / text story / 3 pages (report information)

Credits

Script:

G. Stang

Pencils:

? (photo)

Inks:

? (photo)

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Genre:

satire

Characters:

Billy Poobah; Jim Poobah; Charles Bickford

Synopsis:

Stories on the same news item as they might be done by different newspapers or magazines.

Reprints: show reprint note before migration

• in Worst from MAD (EC, 1958 series) #1 (1958)

Indexer Notes

Writer credit from "Totally MAD" CD collection.

Why I Write Poetry (Table of Contents)

Ernie Kovacs Dept. / text article / 3 pages (report information)

Credits

Script:

Ernie Kovacs [as Percy Dovetonsils]

Pencils:

Jack Davis (signed)

Inks:

Jack Davis (signed)

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Genre:

humor

Characters:

Stanley; Stanley's cat; Percy Dovetonsils

Synopsis:

A short article on why he writes poetry followed by the poem "Ode To Stanley's Pussycat."

MAD Greeting Cards (Table of Contents)

Pick-A-Card Dept. / comic story / 3 pages (report information)

Credits

Script:

?

Pencils:

Bob Clarke (signed)

Inks:

Bob Clarke (signed)

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Genre:

satire

Synopsis:

A collection of greeting cards for unusual events such as being evicted and losing your job.

Indexer Notes

Third page is separated and is on final page of issue.

What They're Saying Around The Solar System (Table of Contents)

Ear To The Ether Dept. / comic story / 2 pages (report information)

Credits

Script:

?

Pencils:

Basil Wolverton (signed)

Inks:

Basil Wolverton (signed)

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Genre:

humor

Characters:

Floyd Void; Boone Swoon; Groib Spoop; Harry S. Irium; Sullivan Ford; Gertie Grunch; Wyncha Gimeah; Stanley Groovik; Mandrill Gluten; Alfred E. Lumen

Synopsis:

Opinions of earth culture by beings from other bodies in our solar system.

What's All This Jazz About Jazz (Table of Contents)

Al "Jazzbo" Collins Dept. / text article / 6 pages (report information)

Credits

Script:

Al "Jazzbo" Collins

Pencils:

Wally Wood (signed)

Inks:

Wally Wood (signed)

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Genre:

fact

Characters:

Al "Jazzbo" Collins

Synopsis:

In an interview, Al tells something about the origins and meaning of jazz and introduces his jazz pets.

Future TV Ads (Table of Contents)

Soft-Sell Advertising Dept. / comic story / 2 pages (report information)

Credits

Script:

Don Martin (signed)

Pencils:

Don Martin (signed)

Inks:

Don Martin (signed)

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Genre:

satire

Synopsis:

Phony ad storyboard for Billie's Rope Mart.

Reprints: show reprint note before migration

• in Worst from MAD (EC, 1958 series) #1 (1958)
• in Mad About the Fifties (Little, Brown & Co., 1997 series) #[nn] (1997)

MAD's Ink Blot Test (Table of Contents)

Psychology Dept. / text article / 2 pages (report information)

Credits

Script:

?

Pencils:

Kelly Freas; Bill Elder (title figures)

Inks:

Kelly Freas; Bill Elder (title figures)

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Genre:

satire

Synopsis:

Fake Rorschach tests with explanations.

Reprints: show reprint note before migration

• in Worst from MAD (EC, 1958 series) #1 (1958)
• in Mad About the Fifties (Little, Brown & Co., 1997 series) #[nn] (1997)

Don Giovanni (Table of Contents)

Culture Dept. / comic story / 4 pages (report information)

Credits

Script:

Nick Meglin

Pencils:

Wally Wood (signed)

Inks:

Wally Wood (signed)

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Genre:

satire

Characters:

Don Giovanni; Leporello; Donna Anna; Don Pedro; Zerlina; Don Ottavio; Emily Bravo; Elvis Presley (cameo)

Synopsis:

The story of the comic opera Don Giovanni is told with special emphasis on what makes it funny.

Reprints: show reprint note before migration

• in Worst from MAD (EC, 1958 series) #1 (1958)

Indexer Notes

Writer credit from "Totally MAD" CD collection.

Future TV Ads (Table of Contents)

Soft-Sell Advertising Dept. / comic story / 2 pages (report information)

Credits

Script:

Don Martin (signed)

Pencils:

Don Martin (signed)

Inks:

Don Martin (signed)

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Genre:

satire

Characters:

George; Harriet

Synopsis:

Phony ad storyboard for Ringwort's Rat Poison Pills.

Reprints: show reprint note before migration

• in More Trash From MAD (EC, 1958 series) #1 (1958)
• in Like, Mad (Signet Books, 1960 series) #T4904 (circa 1970)

Why the Precision Engineered, Highly Perfected 35mm Camera Replaced The Simple, Unpretentious, Primitive Box Camera (Table of Contents)

Negative Thinking Dept. / text article / 3 pages (report information)

Credits

Script:

A. Rosen

Pencils:

Bob Clarke (signed)

Inks:

Bob Clarke (signed)

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Genre:

humor

Synopsis:

Humorous look at the relative problems of both types of cameras, ending in the question still unanswered.

Reprints: show reprint note before migration

• in Worst from MAD (EC, 1958 series) #1 (1958)
• in Like, Mad (Signet Books, 1960 series) #T4904 (circa 1970)

Indexer Notes

Writer credit from "Totally MAD" CD collection.

Orson Bean Opens His Family Album (Table of Contents)

Orson Bean Dept. / comic story / 7 pages (report information)

Credits

Script:

Orson Bean

Pencils:

Jack Davis (signed)

Inks:

Jack Davis (signed)

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Genre:

humor

Characters:

Orson Bean; Orson's father; Uncle Ordway; cousin Gerald; Matthew Brady Bean; Orson's grandmother; unnamed gypsy; Hesitation Bean; Ezekial Bean; King George III; Cornwallis; Hope Bean

Synopsis:

Vignettes of Orson's family from Revolutionary times to present.

Indexer Notes

Intended to be the first of several articles. Notes that "special material by Alan Robin" but does not note what material.

A New Kind of Bargain Offer To Mystery Readers (Table of Contents)

The Dollar Mystery Guild / advertisement / 1 page (report information)

Credits

Script:

?

Pencils:

?

Inks:

?

Letters:

typeset

Editing:

?

Content Information

Synopsis:

Ad for book club.

Indexer Notes

Inside back cover.

Purloined Proverbs Ascribed to Popular People (Table of Contents)

Misdirected Quotes Dept. / text article / 0 pages (report information)

Credits

Script:

various

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Genre:

humor

Synopsis:

Old cliches misattributed to famous people.

Reprints: show reprint note before migration

• in Worst from MAD (EC, 1958 series) #1 (1958) [portions; Confirm: direction of reprint]
• in More Trash From MAD (EC, 1958 series) #1 (1958) [portions; Confirm: direction of reprint]

Indexer Notes

Appear in margins on 20 different pages of the issue.

MAD Travel Stickers (Table of Contents)

illustration / 1 page (report information)

Credits

Script:

?

Pencils:

Bob Clarke

Inks:

Bob Clarke

Colors:

?

Content Information

Genre:

humor

Synopsis:

Phony travel destination stickers.

Reprints: show reprint note before migration

• in Worst from MAD (EC, 1958 series) #1 (1958)

Indexer Notes

Back cover.