The Fabuleous Fifties

The Parody To End All Parodies

Tuesday Comic Strip Day.

Bill Elder's comic strip imitations from the early days of Mad are legendary. After he left (with Harvey Kurtzman), his spot was taken by Walace Wood, who was just as good at satiricly nailing newspaper and comic strip styles. He did a lot of What If Comic Strip cahracters type of feautures, most of which have been reprinted here and there. What I have not seen yet (though there might be one somewhere I missed) is a reprint of Walace Wood (and friend's) masterpiece Puck Sunday Section parody, which wa done for Worst From Mad #4. Why this is not the single most expensive Mad item around, I do not know. I have had a cope for over twenty years now and although it has been torn a bit along the way, I still relish it. So hee it is in full, if not completely in the right order. I am providing some comments along the way, identifying artists ans such...


Walace Wood's parody of Blondie starts of the section and it's a masterpiece. What Wood does with the dogs is just great. It seems as if he was born to draw this. My copy is torn, as I said. There may be another, completer scan flying around the web, if you are into such a thing.


Again, Walace Wood shows how it's done.


This parody is so spot on, that I can't see who did it.


Walace Wood Chanelling Walt Kelly. As with most of these, the text isn't bad either.


Not Wood. I am pretty sure this is by Joe Orlando.


This could be by Wood or by Bob Clarke, who both did a great Schultz impression.


Walace Wood getting dangerously close to his own style.


My money is o Bob Clarke for this one, but I may be anyone.


Joe Orlando in his trademark 'funny' style.


Walace Wood wanted to take over Prince Valiant at one point. Here he takes it just a little bit over the top. Every line in this is funny.


The gags on the wall have a slight Bob Clarke feel to them.


Walace Wood did a whole series of these and he could have done more as far as I am concerned. If he had stuck with it, it could even have been his 'thing'.


I'd say Bob Clarke did these, based on the similarity to the signed ones he did for the magazine.


The Tarzan stip could be by Wood and probably is. I don't know who did the Phantom.


Here we have a surprise visit by George Woodbrigde whom I would have recognized had he nog signed it. Could he have done the two abve as well? I guess...