Forgotten and Obscure Sources
Mad did not restrict its attentions to the popular culture of the day. A baseball story in the second issue is a twist on Stephen Vincent Benét's "The Devil and Daniel Webster." In the fifth issue, the Renfrew of the Royal Mounted source was already more than a decade out of date for the readers of 1953 and is exponentially more obscure today. Some subtle distinctions may not be readily apparent in reading the material. For instance, "Dragged Net" in the third issue is a parody of the Dragnet radio show, but "Dragged Net" in issue #11 satirized the Dragnet television series.
Such sources are illuminated in the following sequential listing of all Mad issues. It also includes the debuts of notable contributors. As with all parodies, a knowledge of the subjects being satirized is necessary for a full understanding of the humor. The early Mad poetry lampoons are an exception to this rule, since they used the original text of notable poems but added exaggerated, extreme cartoon illustrations.
Read more about this topic: List Of Mad Issues
Famous quotes containing the words forgotten, obscure and/or sources:
“I know, you have forgotten those June nights on the Riviera, where we sat ‘neath the shimmering skies, moonlight bathing in the Mediterranean! We were young, gay, reckless! The night I drank champagne from your slipper—two quarts. It would have held more, but you were wearing inner soles!”
—Irving Brecher, U.S. screenwriter, and Edward Buzzell. J. Cheever Loophole (Groucho Marx)
“Coke and Blackstone hardly shed so much light into obscure spiritual places as the Hebrew prophets.”
—Herman Melville (1819–1891)
“On board ship there are many sources of joy of which the land knows nothing. You may flirt and dance at sixty; and if you are awkward in the turn of a valse, you may put it down to the motion of the ship. You need wear no gloves, and may drink your soda-and-brandy without being ashamed of it.”
—Anthony Trollope (1815–1882)