Discussing
Al Feldstein and the laughable legacy of Mad magazine

The legacy of former Mad magazine editor Al Feldstein, and how it formed one Christian's relationship with laughter.

I've never even considered that my folks would either challenge me or question why I read MAD magazine. Did parents do that? Odd.

Anyway, I agree about satire and reveling in the incongruous. Both are great occupations for Christians!

I think my parents, had they read MAD when I was reading it, would simply thought it juvenile and a bit profane, since we were relatively conservative. And it was, very much, juvenile and a bit profane. Being a bit sheltered (in a good way), half of it was above my head.

Yet It was also an introduction for me not only to the genre of satire, but the very notion of cultural critique. Not every cultural institution was without foibles nor above criticism, sometimes even ridicule. It was genuine dialogue about ideas, at least to my pre-adolescent brain. It was in print (with much less profanity) what Jon Stewart and friends do now on cable (with extreme profanity).

Great topic, Dave. I was raised by a father who secretly loved Monty Python but found it inappropriate after he was saved. He eventually came back to his senses. Mad magazine still wasn't quite acceptable in our house, but my brother and I argued it had some great articles and that really cool folding back cover. Thankfully, I grew up in a family that laughs. Raucously. That has been a blessing. I love and appreciate your stating that when we laugh we become God's mirth on earth. I have always believed that, too.