Mad #55

(June 1960)

[What? You Say I'm Not Covered?] (Table of Contents)

Safe Form Mutual / comic story / 1 page (report information)

Credits

Script:

Al Jaffee

Pencils:

Lester Krauss (photo)

Inks:

Lester Krauss (photo)

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Genre:

satire

Synopsis:

Parody of ad for State Farm Mutual Insurance.

Indexer Notes

Writer credit from "Totally MAD" CD collection.

Departments (Table of Contents)

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

Credits

Script:

?

Pencils:

various (see Notes)

Inks:

various (see Notes)

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Synopsis:

table of contents

Indexer Notes

Art is excerpts from various stories in this issue.

Have Your Own MAD Show With This Half-Baked Cast (Table of Contents)

Alfred E. Neuman bust / promo (ad from the publisher) / 0.33 page (report information)

Credits

Script:

?

Pencils:

Lester Krauss (photo) ?

Inks:

Lester Krauss (photo) ?

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Synopsis:

House ad for china bust of Alfred.

Here's The Seventh Wonder Of The World! (Table of Contents)

Son of MAD / promo (ad from the publisher) / 0.17 page (report information)

Credits

Script:

?

Pencils:

? (photo)

Inks:

? (photo)

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Synopsis:

House ad for 7th MAD paperback book.

Random Samplings of Reader Mail (Table of Contents)

Letters Dept. / letters page / 1 page (report information)

Credits

Script:

Albert B. Feldstein; George Rinehart; Don Schumacher; Henry Kirchner; George Hewitt; Mike Brown; Ann Thomas; John Swift; Robert Davis; Mickey Olsen

Pencils:

Wallace Wood; George Woodbridge; ? (photo)

Inks:

Wallace Wood; George Woodbridge; ? (photo)

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Characters:

unnamed Marine; Alfred Hatchplot

Synopsis:

Letters of comment, many about issue #53, along with a pitch for back issue sales.

You'll Have A Duece Of A Time With Your Subscription To MAD (Table of Contents)

MAD Magazine / promo (ad from the publisher) / 0.17 page (report information)

Credits

Script:

?

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Synopsis:

House ad for subscriptions.

Feeling Low Lately? (Table of Contents)

MAD hardcover books / promo (ad from the publisher) / 0.28 page (report information)

Credits

Script:

?

Pencils:

? (photo)

Inks:

? (photo)

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Synopsis:

House ad for MAD For Keeps and MAD Forever.

This Is The End Of Them! (Table of Contents)

Alfred E. Neuman / promo (ad from the publisher) / 0.05 page (report information)

Credits

Script:

?

Pencils:

Norman Mingo (painted)

Inks:

Norman Mingo (painted)

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Characters:

Alfred E. Neuman

Synopsis:

House ad for pinups suitable for framing.

Pictures The Editor Left Out (Table of Contents)

Accentuate The Positive Dept. / comic story / 4 pages (report information)

Credits

Script:

Al Jaffee

Pencils:

Joe Orlando (signed)

Inks:

Joe Orlando (signed)

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Genre:

humor

Characters:

Mary Lou Va Voom; Melvin Goodslob; Holbrook "Home-Run" Harney; Senator Vernon T. Balotstufer; Mrs. Balotstufer; Mr. Balotstufer (father); General Klod; Alfred E. Neuman

Synopsis:

Compares the photos used in magazine articles with unused photos that might have been taken just afterwords.

The concert (Table of Contents)

Don Martin 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:

humor

Characters:

Mandrake S. Bach

Synopsis:

Problems occur when a man who is both a musician and magician carries his equipment for both professions on stage.

MAD Beats The TV Plug Crackdown (Table of Contents)

Memorably Mentioned Dept. / text story / 2 pages (report information)

Credits

Script:

Paul Krassner

Pencils:

Bob Clarke

Inks:

Bob Clarke

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Genre:

humor

Characters:

Gary Moore; Mr. Shnook; Chester Riley; Mrs. Riley; Bob Hope

Synopsis:

MAD introduces some products with brand names that will inadvertently be sprinkled throughout normal speech.

The MAD Madison Avenue Primer (Table of Contents)

Hard Spell Dept. / text story / 3 pages (report information)

Credits

Script:

Larry Siegel

Pencils:

Wallace Wood (signed)

Inks:

Wallace Wood (signed)

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Genre:

satire

Synopsis:

An attempt to make the world of advertising understandable by seven-year olds.

The Arthur Money Party (Table of Contents)

R.S.V.I.P. Dept. / comic story / 4 pages (report information)

Credits

Script:

Larry Siegel

Pencils:

Mort Drucker (signed)

Inks:

Mort Drucker (signed)

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Genre:

satire

Characters:

Kathleen Money; The Arthur Money Dancers [Rhoda Pfeffer; Lewis Eskin]; Jawaharlal Nehru; Mrs. Nikita Khrushchev; Fred Astep; Ed Sullivan

Synopsis:

Parody of the Arthur Murray Party TV show.

Cigarette Geography (Table of Contents)

Durham Bull Dept. / text story / 3 pages (report information)

Credits

Script:

Sy Reit

Pencils:

Bob Clarke (signed)

Inks:

Bob Clarke (signed)

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Genre:

satire

Synopsis:

MAD takes the trend of cigarette manufacturers' focus on various parts of the cigarettes to ridiculous extremes.

Literal Translations of Figurative Speech (Table of Contents)

Idiom's Delight Dept. / comic story / 2 pages (report information)

Credits

Script:

Dave Berg

Pencils:

Lester Krauss (photo)

Inks:

Lester Krauss (photo)

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Genre:

humor

Synopsis:

One-panel gags of people acting out common expressions such as "Won't you join me in a cup of coffee?"

Indexer Notes

Some people are MAD staffers recognized from previous promo ads.

I.B.M. Cards (Table of Contents)

Punch And Booty Dept. / text story / 4 pages (report information)

Credits

Script:

Frank Jacobs

Pencils:

Joe Orlando

Inks:

Joe Orlando

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Genre:

humor

Characters:

Melvin Blecch; Selma Blecch; Nikita Khrushchev; Jack Benny; Fidel Castro; Alfred E. Neuman

Synopsis:

Interpreting the punches on computer billing cards.

In A Greasy Spoon Diner (Table of Contents)

Don Martin Dept. / comic story / 1 page (report information)

Credits

Script:

Don Martin (signed)

Pencils:

Don Martin (signed)

Inks:

Don Martin (signed)

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Genre:

humor

Synopsis:

The cook provides an unappetizing condiment.

Popular Politician (Table of Contents)

Vote's My Line Dept. / comic story / 6 pages (report information)

Credits

Script:

Gary Belkin

Pencils:

George Woodbridge (signed)

Inks:

George Woodbridge (signed)

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Genre:

satire

Characters:

Adlai Stevenson; Charles DeGaulle; Nikita Khrushchev; David Ben-Gurion; Richard Nixon; Hubert Humphrey; Pat Nixon; Drouella Pearsons; Wayne Morse; Margaret Chase Smith; Nelson Rockefeller

Synopsis:

What a celebrity magazine based on politicians might look like.

The Jackie Talented Story (Table of Contents)

Sid Caesar Dept. / comic story / 4 pages (report information)

Credits

Script:

Sid Caesar

Pencils:

Wallace Wood (signed)

Inks:

Wallace Wood (signed)

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Genre:

satire

Characters:

Sid Caesar [Jackie Talented]; J. P. Starmaker; Jackie's father; Tony; Vera Brassy; Helen Zigfried

Synopsis:

A parody of all the "unknown makes it big in show business" movies.

Barber Shop (Table of Contents)

Berg's Eye View Dept. / comic story / 3 pages (report information)

Credits

Script:

Dave Berg (signed)

Pencils:

Dave Berg (signed)

Inks:

Dave Berg (signed)

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Genre:

humor

Synopsis:

Special chairs at the barber shop so men can enjoy a fantasy while having their hair cut.

Mother's Day Cards (Table of Contents)

Panned Parenthood Dept. / text article / 2 pages (report information)

Credits

Script:

Frank Jacobs

Pencils:

Bob Clarke (signed)

Inks:

Bob Clarke (signed)

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Genre:

satire

Characters:

Al Capone; Benedict Arnold; Emperor Nero; Eddie "Blackbeard" Teach; John Wilkes Booth; Lizzie Borden

Synopsis:

Ridiculous Mother's Day cards through history that might have been sent by kids who didn't turn out so well.

The "Hip" Raven (Table of Contents)

Poe-Etic Injustice Dept. / text story / 5 pages (report information)

Credits

Script:

Paul Laikin (translation); Edgar Allan Poe (original)

Pencils:

Mort Drucker (signed)

Inks:

Mort Drucker (signed)

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Genre:

satire

Synopsis:

A translation of Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven" into hip slang.

Indexer Notes

Writer credit from "Totally MAD" CD collection.

More MAD "Y'OX" (Table of Contents)

Marginal Thinking Dept. / filler / 0 pages (report information)

Credits

Script:

?

Pencils:

?

Inks:

?

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Genre:

humor

Characters:

Marginal Marvin

Synopsis:

Captions with arrangements of "X"s and "O"s as the art.

Indexer Notes

Appears in the margins of 25 pages.

Have Yourself A Political Party (Table of Contents)

Alfred E. Neuman For President Kit / promo (ad from the publisher) / 1 page (report information)

Credits

Script:

?

Pencils:

George Woodbridge (signed); ? (photo)

Inks:

George Woodbridge (signed); ? (photo)

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Synopsis:

House ad for kit containing poster, sticker, button, and hat.

Indexer Notes

inside back cover

How Many Ways Can He Hurt Himself Today? (Table of Contents)

Goldbrick & Goldbrick / comic story / 1 page (report information)

Credits

Script:

?

Pencils:

Kelly Freas (painted, signed)

Inks:

Kelly Freas (painted, signed)

Colors:

Kelly Freas (painted, signed)

Letters:

typeset

Content Information

Genre:

satire

Synopsis:

Parody of a Johnson & Johnson first aid products ad.

Indexer Notes

back cover