Mad Magazine is a survivor. When the great EC Comics line of the early '50's died a gory, hideous death, slain by a Comics Code designed to put EC's best-selling comics out of business, Mad survived by transforming itself from a color comic book to a black-and-white larger-format magazine -- and became a gigantic seller. Mad survived its eventual sale to EC's competitor, DC Comics. It survived the leaving and eventual deaths of some of its most distinguished contributors -- Harvey Kurtzman, Wally Wood, Will Elder, publisher Max Gaines, Don Martin.
But will it survive the general malaise in the magazine industry?
Mark Evanier conveys the news that Mad is going to quarterly publication, and that its various ancillary publications are being axed. Eventually, Mad the magazine may go away, leaving only Mad the brand name. Alfred E. Newman could lose his trademarked smile at last as he is laid off.
If the economy is going down the toilet, we need some toilet humor. Let's hope Mad survives.
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