Mad #292 (Nick Meglin and John Ficarra) - Anti-Smoking Issue - January 1990

Over the years, Mad has presented an honest argument against cigarette smoking and the tobacco industry with artist-writer Al Jaffee often leading the way.  With a large audience of teenagers and pre-teens, this is an important message for long-term health.  In this issue, writer Lou Silverstone takes aim at the giant tobacco-selling business with a four-page parody of Sixty Minutes titled "Six Minutes Looks at Smoking" ("The Topic of Cancer Dept.").  Artist Angelo Torres fills the article with smoking images such as Joe Camel, a "flip-top box" (coffin), the Phillip Morris bellhop Johnnie, Death with a Bic, the "Sent" (Kent) lady, the "Muleboro" cowboy and "Morton Clowney, Jr."  The American flag is at half-mast in the splash page.  Mr. Silverstone reminds the readers that the U.S. military was encouraged to smoke during World War II and that those cigarettes are now (1990) causing "500,000 deaths a year."  I like to think that Mad Magazine has extended the lives of thousands of its readers who took their advice.  On page 43, Sergio Aragones added his marginal comment with the Man-in-the-Sky using his giant squirt gun to extinguish the cigarette of a foolish young smoker.

The other excellent piece of writing in the issue is the parody of Jabberwocky by Frank Jacobs on the back cover ("Joystick Jabberwacky"). [JAM 11/20/2011]

Departments:
Wee the People - Funny to Shrink the Kids
ROM with a View - The Mad Guide to New Computer Games
Joke And Dagger - Spy vs. Spy
Ask Backwards - Mad's Home Version of Double Jeopardy
Serge-In General - A Mad Look at Musical Instruments
Tales from the Duck Side - One Fine Morning in Miami
The Topic of Cancer - "Six Minutes" Looks at Smoking
Dialing for Dullards - What's Your Choice?
Berg's-Eye View - The Lighter Side
Greetings And Sanitations - One Typical Afternoon in the Bronx
Buy And Cel - The Great Toon Surplus Sale
The Handwriting Is off the Wall - Big City Signs of the Times
Iceberg's-Eye View - Duck Edwing Chills out up North
An Embarrassment of Richard's - Mad's Catalogue of Practical Joke Items for the Computer
Of Human Bandage - One Sultry Evening in Cairo
A Crass Act - Buried with Children
'Fluff Said - Exciting but Meaningless Movie Studio Blurbs

Fold-In - Match