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ORIGINAL AUTHENTIC SINGLE
VINTAGE ISSUE OF THE AMERICAN HUMOR MAGAZINE FOR ADULTS
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Additional Information from
Internet Encyclopedia
National Lampoon was an American
humor magazine which ran from 1970 to 1998. The magazine started out as a
spinoff from the Harvard Lampoon. National Lampoon magazine reached its height
of popularity and critical acclaim during the late 1970s, when it had a
far-reaching effect on American humor and comedy. The magazine spawned films,
radio, live theatre, various sound recordings, and print products including
books. Many members of the creative staff from the magazine subsequently went
on to contribute creatively to successful media of all types.
During the magazine's most
successful years, parody of every kind was a mainstay; surrealist content was
also central to its appeal. Almost all the issues included long text pieces,
shorter written pieces, a section of actual news items (dubbed "True
Facts"), cartoons and comic strips. Most issues also included "Foto
Funnies" or fumetti, which often featured nudity. The result was an
unusual mix of intelligent, cutting-edge wit, combined with some crass, bawdy
jesting. In both cases, National Lampoon humor often pushed far beyond the
boundaries of what was generally considered appropriate and acceptable. As
co-founder Henry Beard described the experience years later: "There was
this big door that said, 'Thou shalt not.' We touched it, and it fell off its
hinges."
The magazine was an outlet for
some notable writing talents, including Kenney, Beard, George W. S. Trow, Chris
Miller, P. J. O'Rourke, Michael O'Donoghue, Chris Rush, Sean Kelly, Tony
Hendra, Brian McConnachie, Gerald Sussman, Ellis Weiner, Ted Mann, Chris
Cluess, Al Jean, Mike Reiss, Jeff Greenfield, John Hughes and Ed Subitzky.
The work of many important
cartoonists, photographers, and illustrators appeared in the magazine's pages,
including Neal Adams, Gahan Wilson, Robert Grossman, Michael Sullivan, Ron
Barrett, Peter Bramley, Vaughn Bode, Bruce McCall, Rick Meyerowitz, Warren
Sattler, M. K. Brown, Shary Flenniken, Bobby London, Edward Gorey, Jeff Jones,
Joe Orlando, Arnold Roth, Rich Grote, Ed Subitzky, Mara McAfee, Sam Gross,
Charles Rodrigues, Buddy Hickerson, B. K. Taylor, Birney Lettick, Frank
Frazetta, Boris Vallejo, Marvin Mattelson, Stan Mack, Chris Callis, John E.
Barrett, Raymond Kursar, and Andy Lackow.
Comedy stars John Belushi, Chevy
Chase, Gilda Radner, Bill Murray, Brian Doyle Murray, Harold Ramis, and Richard
Belzer first gained national attention for their performances in the National
Lampoon's stage show and radio show. The first three subsequently went on to
become part of Saturday Night Live's original wave of Not Ready for Primetime
Players, Bill Murray replaced Chase when Chase left SNL after the first season,
and Brian Doyle Murray later appeared as an SNL regular.[9] Harold Ramis went
on to be a prolific director and writer working on such films as Animal House,
Caddyshack, Ghostbusters, and many more. Brian Doyle Murray has had roles in
dozens of films, and Belzer is an Emmy Award-winning TV actor.
Gerald L. "Jerry"
Taylor was the publisher, followed by William T. Lippe. The business side of
the magazine was controlled by Matty Simmons, who was chairman of the board and
CEO of Twenty First Century Communications, a publishing company.
The "Funny Pages" was
a large section at the back of the magazine that was composed entirely of comic
strips of various kinds. These included work from a number of artists who also
had pieces published in the main part of the magazine, including Gahan Wilson,
Ed Subitzky and Vaughn Bode, as well as artists whose work was only published
in this section. The regular strips included "Dirty Duck" by Bobby
London, "Trots and Bonnie" by Shary Flenniken, "The
Appletons" by B. K. Taylor, and "Politeness Man" by Ron Barrett,
and many other strips. A compilation of Gahan Wilson's "Nuts" strip
was published in 2011. The Funny Pages logo header art residing above Gahan
Wilson's "Nuts" in each issue, showing a comfortable, old-fashioned
family reading newspaper-sized funny papers, was by Mike Kaluta.
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