209. Crackers Jackoff

March 23, 2010

Q: I’m trying to locate the lampoon issue that featured a gay Russian sailor who demonstrated various hand signals used by sailors for different types of homosexual sex. I think he was a cartoon character. And I think his name was Crackers Jackoff. Does it ring a bell?

A: The definitive answer, again from Carol: “The January ’85 (Good Clean Sex) issue had an article by Derek Pell entitled ‘Dr Bey’s Carnal Freak Show’, with art collaged from oldtime engravings. One of the performers is a sailor-suited Lithuanian lad called Crackers Jackov aka The Amazing Mental Masturboy; ‘an awesome demonstration of mind over member’.”

Comments

For what it's worth, I searched the DVD-ROM for "hand signals" and "semaphore," and I didn't find the article in question. I did not get around to searching "Crackers Jackoff," if anyone with the disc wants to give that a try.

—Dell

March 24, 2010 7:56 pm

I checked that and it comes up empty. Maybe the spelling was different.

—Mark

March 26, 2010 2:38 pm

I don't know where the name Crackers Jackoff came from, but consider the following: NL's May '77 (Gay) issue had an article called "Secret Homosexual Code Signals" by PJ O'Rourke. Photographs of a smiling gentleman demonstrate various signals, and claims that the "thumbs-up" sign means "Can I jack off on your shoes?". Next to it, the "OK" sign is said to mean "There are 4 Turkish Freighters docked downtown and my asshole is bleeding like a bitch"... Is this the sailor connection? Just 3 pages later in the same ish, we have a Christopher Browne comic, "The Baths", in which an innocent Russian exchange student visits a gay bath-house in NY. Therefore, my theory is that "Crackers Jackoff" is a composite memory of the jacking-off, sailor-fancying handsignal man and the Russian student cartoon character. Can anybody beat this?

—Carol

May 30, 2010 9:35 pm

Thanks, Carol. I think you could be right.

—Mark

June 16, 2010 12:44 pm

And here's the final piece of the puzzle. The January '85 (Good Clean Sex)issue had an article by Derek Pell entitled "Dr Bey's Carnal Freak Show", with art collaged from oldtime engravings. One of the performers is a sailor-suited Lithuanian lad called Crackers Jackov aka The Amazing Mental Masturboy; "an awesome demonstration of mind over member". He isn't Russian, nor a student, so my earlier deductions remain valid.

—Carol

August 25, 2011 9:36 pm

Thanks, Carol. That must be it.

—Mark

August 30, 2011 1:05 pm

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