What do you think?
Rate this book
Pumping Mad
First Warner Book Printing February 1981.
192 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1981
20 people want to read
About the author
MAD Magazine
290 books42 followersCollective name for "the usual gang of idiots," the various creators, authors, and illustrators of MAD Magazine.
Many compilations of MAD Magazine parodies have been published, and individual author and illustrator credits are sometimes difficult to find.
Many compilations of MAD Magazine parodies have been published, and individual author and illustrator credits are sometimes difficult to find.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
September 22, 2009
In 1981, the year when Pumping MAD was first printed, a copy of MAD Magazine could be acquired from the newsstand for $0.75. Looking back to 1973-1974, when the material contained within this paperback version was first printed, the same periodical could have been purchased for $0.40. And for the real collector, a MAD Magazine Super Special (a double-sized magazine containing indiscriminate "classic" material from five or more years prior) for a buck fifty.
The cover price for Pumping MAD (Number 56 in a series) is $1.75. And, like the Super Special, this title contains a seemingly unconnected series of articles slammed together: a couple of "The Lighter Side Of"s, "Spy Vs. Spy"s, and their ilk. The difference, of course, is that the size of the pages have been reduced for paperback publication, all of Al Jaffee's infamous "Fold-Ins" have been eliminated (due to limitations of the paperback format), and the book probably looks better up on a shelf than an old, dog-eared magazine.
However, upon comparing the two formats, it is clear that the paperback version is solely intended for the new MAD reader (at the time) who would otherwise not have seen the older spoofs and satires. In fact, by the time Pumping MAD hit the shelves, "The Waltons" was ending its nine-year run, "American Graffiti" had been out of theatres for as many years, and much of the other so-called "contemporary pop-culture" which was being ridiculed in the paperback was already yesterday's news by as much as a decade!
Whether or not the format itself proved to be superfluous is debatable. In its time, the market of magazine back issues was limited to either local book stores, or to mail-order specialty businesses, and so the paperback book provided access to such "classic" material (wherein "classic" merely refers to "prior publication," and not to any organized system of selective decision behind which such a label was given).
But these points are hardly relevant to whether or not Pumping MAD is, in essence, a book worthy of recommendation. Within the pages of Pumping MAD comes what many would consider the finest years of the magazine as a magazine and not necessarily as a comic book (which it was for several years before it became something resembling the periodical we recognize it as today). The bottom line is: does Pumping MAD live up to its expectations - that is, is it funny?
And again, one single determination cannot be given for the book as a whole. The book is, after all, comprised of a smorgasbord of offerings ranging from panel jokes by Sergio Aragones, to caustic satirical glimpses into a medical school and a television network. And the truth is, some of the material works -- and some of it simply doesn't.
For instance, in the aforementioned examples, writer Larry Siegel sometimes makes a subtle joke of how doctors are (apparently) trained, and other times he attacks the premise so ham-fistedly that there's nothing to "get" other than the obvious statement he's trying to make. In the case of Siegel's other "Peek Behind The Scenes," the jokes are more often forced, predictable, and just plain blunt: "Can't that guy do anything without reading an idiot card?" exclaims one frustrated stage hand as the "talent" attempts to report a fire whilst relying heavily upon the use of a cue card. Ha ha.
Yet, in the case of Antonio Prohias' submissions, it is the intricate set-ups (and subsequent misdirections) of his trademarked Spys which captures the reader's attention; Yes, the material is formulaic and everyone who's ever heard of MAD Magazine knows that one Spy will outwit the other by the end of the scene... but how, precisely, never fails to amuse.
The long and the short of it: is Pumping MAD funny? Yes. And no. It's funny, except for when it isn't. Insightful? No, not really. But sometimes, it is, or at least it can be.
The most intriguing question is, however: What on Earth is that sexy redhead doing on the front cover, inflating a blow-up Alfred E. Neuman? Clearly she's surprised by the grotesquerie coming to size before her - but why's she even doing it in the first place?
With the passing of artist Jack Rickard in 1983, the world is left unknowing...
The cover price for Pumping MAD (Number 56 in a series) is $1.75. And, like the Super Special, this title contains a seemingly unconnected series of articles slammed together: a couple of "The Lighter Side Of"s, "Spy Vs. Spy"s, and their ilk. The difference, of course, is that the size of the pages have been reduced for paperback publication, all of Al Jaffee's infamous "Fold-Ins" have been eliminated (due to limitations of the paperback format), and the book probably looks better up on a shelf than an old, dog-eared magazine.
However, upon comparing the two formats, it is clear that the paperback version is solely intended for the new MAD reader (at the time) who would otherwise not have seen the older spoofs and satires. In fact, by the time Pumping MAD hit the shelves, "The Waltons" was ending its nine-year run, "American Graffiti" had been out of theatres for as many years, and much of the other so-called "contemporary pop-culture" which was being ridiculed in the paperback was already yesterday's news by as much as a decade!
Whether or not the format itself proved to be superfluous is debatable. In its time, the market of magazine back issues was limited to either local book stores, or to mail-order specialty businesses, and so the paperback book provided access to such "classic" material (wherein "classic" merely refers to "prior publication," and not to any organized system of selective decision behind which such a label was given).
But these points are hardly relevant to whether or not Pumping MAD is, in essence, a book worthy of recommendation. Within the pages of Pumping MAD comes what many would consider the finest years of the magazine as a magazine and not necessarily as a comic book (which it was for several years before it became something resembling the periodical we recognize it as today). The bottom line is: does Pumping MAD live up to its expectations - that is, is it funny?
And again, one single determination cannot be given for the book as a whole. The book is, after all, comprised of a smorgasbord of offerings ranging from panel jokes by Sergio Aragones, to caustic satirical glimpses into a medical school and a television network. And the truth is, some of the material works -- and some of it simply doesn't.
For instance, in the aforementioned examples, writer Larry Siegel sometimes makes a subtle joke of how doctors are (apparently) trained, and other times he attacks the premise so ham-fistedly that there's nothing to "get" other than the obvious statement he's trying to make. In the case of Siegel's other "Peek Behind The Scenes," the jokes are more often forced, predictable, and just plain blunt: "Can't that guy do anything without reading an idiot card?" exclaims one frustrated stage hand as the "talent" attempts to report a fire whilst relying heavily upon the use of a cue card. Ha ha.
Yet, in the case of Antonio Prohias' submissions, it is the intricate set-ups (and subsequent misdirections) of his trademarked Spys which captures the reader's attention; Yes, the material is formulaic and everyone who's ever heard of MAD Magazine knows that one Spy will outwit the other by the end of the scene... but how, precisely, never fails to amuse.
The long and the short of it: is Pumping MAD funny? Yes. And no. It's funny, except for when it isn't. Insightful? No, not really. But sometimes, it is, or at least it can be.
The most intriguing question is, however: What on Earth is that sexy redhead doing on the front cover, inflating a blow-up Alfred E. Neuman? Clearly she's surprised by the grotesquerie coming to size before her - but why's she even doing it in the first place?
With the passing of artist Jack Rickard in 1983, the world is left unknowing...
February 13, 2017
1st Read: September 17, 1982 - September 19, 1982 (*** Rating)
FINAL READ: January 14, 2017 (* Rating)
Interesting to look back on this book after thirty five years and see how humor has shifted to what it is today. Young Adult reading material today is a far cry from what it used to be. This book gives great example of that
I've seen on one site that a good, USED copy of this book is asking for up to $100.00 and makes me wonder who would pay that price. I may keep mine, as it is in good condition. It would be cool to see what I could get for it, knowing I'd never read it again.
FINAL READ: January 14, 2017 (* Rating)
Interesting to look back on this book after thirty five years and see how humor has shifted to what it is today. Young Adult reading material today is a far cry from what it used to be. This book gives great example of that
I've seen on one site that a good, USED copy of this book is asking for up to $100.00 and makes me wonder who would pay that price. I may keep mine, as it is in good condition. It would be cool to see what I could get for it, knowing I'd never read it again.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews