"Screwball" The MAD MAD MAD GAME?

 "Screwball", THE MAD MAD MAD GAME?  was released by Transogram in 1960. The game had players entering the "Madvertising business" ("Only Boobs and 1/2 wits can win!") traveling around the board in their "Jokewagons" filled with phony MAD-like products,  (Prince Boobert Tobacco, Swipe toothpaste, Winegoof Beer, Cantaford Motor Co, screamingly funny stuff like that), spending "Mad money". The luck of the spinner determined whether players had to pay nothing, half, full or double price for their prizes. Got it?

The problem was that Transogram and the game's creators didn't bother to license the rights from MAD magazine, despite using an Alfred E. Neuman look-alike on the box cover (with art created by the cult comic book artist Howard Nostrand). MAD objected, and to appease MAD's lawyers the game was recalled with a second version released, this time with a microphone covering the fake Alfred's mouth to cover the gap tooth, and wearing headphones to cover his large ears. The "Screwball" was now larger,  with one less "MAD" in the game's title. Finally,  the hilarity could ensue!

first version of the game, art by Howard Nostrand

game directions

the game and it's contents

some of the game cards, art also by Howard Nostrand

the revised cover 

"Godfrey Cambridge's Rent a Negro Plan"

The late, great, rotund 1960's black comedian Godfrey Cambridge's 1967 book "Put-Ons & Put-Downs" featured his earlier caustic nightclub/album  routine "Godfrey Cambridge's Rent a Negro Plan". The routine was illustrated for the book by the great MAD caricaturist Mort Drucker and reprinted in Cavalier magazine. Drucker also illustrated the book cover.

The comic book artist Neil Adams is also credited with "illustrating" the art, but I can't really figure out why. Adams had a distinctive style which I'm not recognizing in this work. Perhaps Adams inked Drucker's pencils? Any speculation or information would be appreciated.

Jack Davis draws Groucho Marx

In early 1965, BLUEBOOK magazine obtained the rights to reprint a chapter ("The Unnatural History of love") from Groucho Marx's 1963 sexual memoir MEMOIRS of a MANGY LOVER. They hired the great Jack Davis to create a wonderful B&W illustration of Groucho sitting atop a sick world, observing couples making out throughout history. Jack channeled his amazing panoramic movie poster and LP illustrations for "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World" two years earlier.

 This piece of art was new to me and as far as I know has never been reprinted. It's from the collection of Bill Leach who also owns the Davis original art. My thanks to Bill for sharing it all!

Groucho taking notes, close up detail of the illustration

page one of the spread

page two

the entire magazine spread

the original art (click to enlarge)

Hank Azaria, Porn Auteur

This is my new portrait for the New York Observer of actor/cartoon voice artist Hank Azaria posed as massive-toupee wearing former hairdresser turned porn auteur Gerard Damiano. Azaria appears in the new film "Lovelace"

art director, Ed Johnson

http://observer.com/2013/08/hank-azaria-voice-of-simpsons-and-movie-star-next-door-steals-his-scenes-in-lovelace/

larger view (click to enlarge)

The DAVE BERG Anthology

The massive book, "Mad's Greatest Artists: Dave Berg-Five Decades of The Lighter Side" from Running Press books, features a foreword and a portrait of Dave Berg by yours truly.

Dave Berg, 1960's

The lavish, oversized hardcover collection of over 40 years of Dave Berg's "The Lighter Side of" work for MAD magazine and much more, is 
is 100% Kaputnik-Approved!

 Order here...
http://www.amazon.com/MADs-Greatest-Artists-Decades-Lighter/dp/0762451610/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1375046829&sr=8-1&keywords=Dave+

My portrait of Dave Berg, who began his career as a comic book artist in the early
1940's. The portrait will also be included in my upcoming book "Heroes of the Comics":

Jack Davis's Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World

In anticipation of the 50th anniversary coming up in Nov...

In 1963, the cartoonist/comics artist/humorous illustrator Jack Davis was hired by United Artists to create the poster art for the Stanley Kramer all-star comedy It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World. Jack Davis had drawn several movie posters prior to being hired for MMMMW, but this one was huge, the film becoming a blockbuster, and forever established him as the king of comedy film posters. When Fantagraphics' Gary Groth and I interviewed Jack in 2011 at the Brooklyn Comics festival he confirmed that this was the assignment that forever changed the course of his career, it was the game changer.

with the  great Jack
Davis in Nov 2011
(photo by Ryan Flanders)

Jack Davis became the go to guy, the most in-demand artist of comedy film posters throughout the sixties and seventies, arguably the most successful and popular film poster artist of all time, and undoubtedly, the master of the chaotic, over- crowded crowd scene. The film has also had an afterlife for Jack Davis. He'd create several variations of the poster over the years, as well as the wraparound art for the LP album, and several other fun spinoffs...

http://drewfriedman.blogspot.com/2011/12/one-only-jack-davis.html

The original film poster

B&W version used for the film's press book and newspaper ads

click to enlarge

another version of the poster

an ad for the film's LA premiere

ad for the NY premiere

larger look at the B&W version

cover to the LP album

the front & back covers

Click to enlarge

sheet music

a display for record stores

a later poster variation created for the film's re-release in 1970

a German poster

later newspaper ad

TV Guide ad for the film's first TV airing

an early video cover

Soundtrack CD

Jack Davis created this later cover piece for the RCA Videodisc release in 1983:

Jonathan Winters who co-starred in the film, had Davis create this cover parody of
his film poster for this 1964 album cover

in 1964, Jack Davis, who hadn't done work for MAD magazine in nearly
 a decade, made his triumphant return by parodying the very poster he created for this
wraparound MAD paperback

And his most recent images created for the Criterion release:
https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/3031-jack-davis-s-new-mad-world-illustrations

Jack Davis's recent career anthology from Fantagraphics, using his
 "It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World" poster art on the cover


thanks to Ed Edo Dennis & Stephen Kroninger

Great Moments of Comedy LP Covers

In 1964, someone at Verve records had the brilliant idea of releasing comedy LP records by popular contemporary comedians and not featuring the comic's faces on the covers. Instead, the covers depicted laughing, guffawing, shrieking, head-slapping, nose-squinching, all-American, (white), couples, (actors, or Verve employees?), all with their eyes squeezed tight,  all pretending to be enjoying comedy LP's.

Some appear to be suffering from severe migraine headaches, several look like they're actually weeping or in pain, and one guy looks like he's literally about to throw up. The guy on the cover of the Jackie Mason album looks like the last guy you'd expect to enjoy Jackie Mason's brand of comedy.

 Here are all the delightful results: