Mad About the Sixties: The Best of the Decade

by MAD Magazine

When American kids of a certain vintage--Bill Clinton, for example, but not Bob Dole--put down their childish things, they picked up MAD magazine. It didn't leave their hands until adulthood hit, and maybe after. The magazine ain't what it used to be, so it's easy to forget how keen it once was. MAD About the Sixties is a long-overdue collection of material from that seminal humor magazine's salad days. It's a welcome reminder that when MAD was good, it was very, very it featured solid writing coupled with great art, month after month. The movie andtelevision parodies ("Bats-Man," "Star Blech") are sure to be a hit, whether you saw the originals the first time around or as reruns. While it helps to have lived throughthe era--particularly for the ad parodies--there's enough generic daffiness in MAD About the Sixties to satisfy the reader who never saw Wings, much less Paul McCartney's other band.

Genres: Humor, Comics, Satire, Comix, Nonfiction, Comedy, Collections

240 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1995

About the author

Collective 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.

Reviews

[Jon Nakapalau · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hey man...this is a groovy book...plus I got Sergio Aragonés to autograph one of his strips in the book for me...far out...past this solar system...what a trip. Seriously - great book that will bring back memories for anyone who lived through this time: a time and place I doubt we will ever see again!

[Tassa DeSalada · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mad Magazine has been a lifelong favorite read of mine. Years ago, it had me doubling over with laughter. It still has that quality. It's informative. It's legendary. It's awesome. It's Mad. I always enjoy picking up some Mad. This particular book shows some of their best work.

[Leslie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This brings back a lot of great memories.

[Theresa · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I was a wee girl, I bought this for myself and read it absolutely ragged. I don't know why, because I'm sure I understood maybe 2% of the jokes and references in it.

I do remember being obsessed with the all the different artwork though. And this is where I learned that I loved Al Jaffee.

[Rose Rosetree · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanks to "the usual gang of idiots." If you'all were here with me right now, I'd give you a deep Japanese bow. But I've only met you through this book, a second Mad anthology, and my old subscription to "Mad Magazine."

This "Best of the Decade" book has, for me, as many LOLs as pages. Maybe more.

The illustrations are so very expressive, the writing so refreshingly over the top. Here's a sample:

EVER WONDER ABOUT THE "CHEF" WHO PACKS 8 GREAT TOMATOES IN THAT LITTLE BITTY CAN?

How to convey what's on this spectacular page! (I'd give you the number, except that none of the pages in this book is numbered.)

More than half of the glossy, full-color page is devoted to an unforgettable visual. Behold the grimacing chef, complete with poufy toque and an immaculate white uniform, plus a casually knotted white scarf (for a bit more flair)?

He's preparing a can of Contadina tomato paste, advertised with a slogan about "putting eight great tomatoes in that little bitty can."

What do we see on this page? Using his left hand, the chef holds the can steady. His right hand clutches a wooden mallet, which he is using to smash-and-squoosh one of the tomatoes into that small tin can.

Contrasting with the seven picture-perfect tomatoes on the chef's lovely wooden table, you see that first tomato exploding into a pattern of mess worthy of Jackson Pollock. As for the chef's expression, how to put this delicately? He might not be ready for a regular gig on "The Food Network."

HERE'S THE NARRATION, AT THE BOTTOM OF THE PAGE

I'm the guy who puts eight great tomatoes in that little bitty can!!

All day long -- squashing, squooshing, slamming, splattering...

Yecch, what a mess!

Thank goodness it's my last week at this gooky job!

Next week my company starts using a new-type can, and I'll be able to stuff those eight great tomatoes in that little bitty can without ending up looking like I've been attacked with a meat cleaver.

Mainly because our new "little bitty can" expands into a "biggy wiggy can" like an accordion.

[Rex Hurst · Rating 5 out of 5]

Now I realize why I was so cynical as a kid. I read Mad magazine. Rereading these issues - which are far more brilliant than I gave them credit for as a teen - shows me just how much they skewered everything aspect of society with an unblinking eye. This volume is an overview of materials from the 1960s, when the magazine really solidified into place. It introduced Sergio Aragones Mad Marginals; Anthony Probas' Spy Vs. Spy; Dave Berg's Lighter Side; Al Jaffee's Snappy Answers to Stupid Questions; plus making Mort Drucker and Jack Davis staples of the comic.

[Kirby Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

So much fun! My only complaint comes from having read many of the best-of Mad compilations published the last few years, there's a fair amount of content duplication, more than I would have hoped for. But it's all good!

[David Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mad Magazine was an iconic part of American culture, and the sixties were definitely their greatest years. A lot of it still holds up, especially the gag strips like Don Martin and Spy vs. Spy. Unfortunately though, a lot of it also hasn't aged too well, especially the movie parodies.

[Jason · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such fun to revisit MAD Magazine!! This perfectly curated look at the 1960's through the lens of MAD's cartoons, articles and spoofs manages to showcase the best of MAD and highlight the ups and downs of the decade, Quite cleverly done!

[Allen Martin · Rating 4 out of 5]

An enjoyable afternoon reading back in time

[TrumanCoyote · Rating 4 out of 5]

"East Side Story" and the Dr Seuss spoof are absolute classics...among the funniest things I've ever read/seen. The former would've been even funnier had it been more even-handed (but I guess not even Mad could escape having a few icicles from the Cold War). Anyway, I just thought I'd give a few excerpts from them both:

Khrushchev (to "I Feel Pretty"):

I feel vicious
Oh so vicious
I feel vicious, malicious and low!
How delicious
Just to know that I am hated so!

See the little world that we're living in
How shall I destroy it today-ay?
I will thump my shoe!
I will make a face!
I will start a war!
I will get my way!

Sinatra (to "America"):

Life is a whiz in America
Eddie met Liz in America
Thought she was his in America
Well, that's show-biz in America!

Commie Satellites (to "Gee Officer Krupke"):

Today one thing is certain--the world is split in two
You built an Iron Curtain, it really killed the view
Now please do us a favor--to us we think it's due
Build a curtain that will keep out you!

You say, "Shape up your nation!" Except that it won't shape
The whole darn population is tryin' to escape
You shoulda stayed in Russia, you shoulda stayed in bed
Vlad-i-vos-tok! I'm a sorry Red!

* * * * *

(1)

From there to here
and here to there
we all are sniffing
Poison Air.

We knew a man whose name was Cliff.
Of city air, he took a whiff.
He didn't have a handkerchief
to strain that air he chanced to sniff.
The sniff he took was quite terrif,
and now poor Cliff is cold and stiff.

(2)

Say hello
to sweet Annette.
Annette has got
a lovely pet.
That's her pet--
its name's Yvette.

Each day Annette
will take Yvette
to a Dog Beauty Shop
for a Pet Hair Set
(With a set net, yet!)
And after Yvette
has had her set
Annette will take her
to the Vet.

Who needs a Husband
to sit and fret,
to bet and sweat
and make you upset?
And who needs kids
to forget and wet?
Husbands and kids
can be a threat.
Which is why Annette
is in debt to her pet.
Yvette has never
talked back yet.

Tell me, tell me--
How sick can you get?

(3)

We know a punk
whose name is Yunk.
They put him in jail
for killing a Monk.

He wasn't told
by Officer Wunk
to call his lawyer,
Bernie Schtunk.

His legals rights had
therefore shrunk,
so his confession
was deemed "bunk,"
and in the street
he went, ker-plunk.

So if you're caught
while pushing "junk,"
or stuffing someone
in a trunk,
and you are worried
that you're sunk,
remember the tale
of the punk
named Yunk.

[JD Waggy · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the highest and most intelligent forms of humor, I think, is satire. When done right, it's just phenomenally funny--and the greatest strength of this anthology is that it takes the time to explain the joke. Having not lived through the 60s, there are some things I didn't know about political references or TV ads of the time and the like. This has three separate little introductions that split the decade into thirds and explain the relevance of different covers, what was going on in the world, and what was going on in the office of MAD, but without sounding condescending or dull.
As to the bits included, well, MAD is just frakking hilarious. SPY vs. SPY is, of course, a classic, but there are also the musical parodies (why yes, I DID find myself singing along with "East Side Story" and "A Day with J-F-K" to see if the rhythms matched, which they did, which convinces me of the genius of the Usual Gang of Idiots), the film maulings, the fake ads ("Does this ad seems blurry to you? That's because it is!"), and so many other gems. Each piece is funny by itself (well, except for "Hokum's Heroes," but that was deliberately discomforting) and also has tons of visual jokes drawn into the background. It's a feast of funny, really, and proof that the best insights are often made by those trying not to see clearly.

[Benjamin Fasching-Gray · Rating 5 out of 5]

My seven year old will gladly read this out loud cover to cover for you. His favorites are 'uncle nutzy' and a page of gadgets to keep your cigarette smoke from bothering your neighborhoods. he also sometimes just laughs for no reason and when you ask him, it's cuz he's remember this joke near the beginning of the book that shows william m gaines with a kid in his lap and gaines is saying, "son, your father is a crook. he publishes mad magazine."

[Thomas Fraser · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was around 8 years old when I first read this. being ten and born in 2001 I did not really know a lot about what went on in the sixties. I had to ask lots of questions and did not understand many fo the jokes. But the illustrations were awesome. I came back and read it when i understood more and actually got the references. Mad Magazine is by far my favorite thing to read, and always makes me laugh. I'd recommend this to any of my friends and anyone who enjoys good satire.

[David Ward · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mad About the Sixties: The Best of the Decade by the Usual Gang of Idiots (Quality Paperback Book Club 1996) (051.0) is a collection of the highlights from Mad Magazine during the 1960's. This type of humor does not age well, but I surely loved it as a kid. My rating: 6.5/10, finished 1/31/14.

[Miund · Rating 5 out of 5]

The best articles from MAD magazine published way back in the sixties. I traveled through time with the usual gang of idiots. Awesome!

[Michael Brian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Is there anything better than Mad Magazine? No, there is not. Case closed. Please do not read unless you have a sense of humor. Dick Cheney, that means you.

[Rick Segers · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's Mad Magazine...What can I say? Some classics from the pages of MAD when it was really funny...,

[Scott Wilson · Rating 3 out of 5]

A lot of Mad is not as funny as it was when I was 13 ... but a lot still is!