Author: Mark

You might think, as you wade through this site, that I have no life. Not true. I spend about two days a year working on Mark's Very Large National Lampoon Site. The rest of the time I spend making fonts. (Like that's any better.)

Tony Hendra, R.I.P.

Tony Hendra passed away at the age of 79 on March 4, 2021. You can read the full obituary at The New York Times. Hendra was a contributing editor from 1970-71, managing editor in 1972, an editor from 1973-76, and senior editor in 1977, after which he parted ways with the magazine. In his early

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Gerald Taylor, R.I.P.

Jerry Taylor, who was National Lampoon‘s associate publisher from 1971-72 and publisher from 1973-75 (the Golden Age) has died at the age of 85. He was also executive producer on most of the National Lampoon record albums, such as Radio Dinner and Lemmings. Aside from Lampoon stuff, he was creator, publisher and executive editor of

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374. “Too Much Pink” Comic

Q: Trying to find online (or other) reference to Nat Lamp comics page that used the phrases “too pink” and “much too pink” about a woman’s breasts. Probably an early issue, maybe by Peter Bramley. Any ideas? A: Carol nails it: “”Too pink! Too pink!” is screamed in terror by evolved cockroaches of the future when confronted by

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Is Your Name Tim Murphy?

I tried answering the question you emailed me recently, but your email address is no good, so my reply could not be delivered. If you want the answer, try again from a valid email address. If your name is not Tim Murphy, never mind.

Matty Simmons, R.I.P.

Former publisher of the National Lampoon Matty Simmons has died at the age of 93. Besides helping to found the magazine with editors Henry Beard, Doug Kenney, and Rob Hoffman, Simmons was responsible for taking National Lampoon to Hollywood with the hit comedy Animal House and the Vacation movie series. New York Times Obituary LA

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Happy 50th, National Lampoon!

I can’t believe I forgot about this, but someone in one of the comment threads reminded me. Fifty years ago this month, the first issue of National Lampoon hit the stands. (Read the inside story of that first cover here.) So far, I haven’t seen any notice of this in the media. But it’s not

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NatLamp Subscription Promos

Reader Cullum Rogers, who runs the amazing Magazine Parody website, recently did a detailed post about a NatLamp subscription promo from the late seventies that was probably not widely seen. It’s a parody of the typical Publisher’s Clearing House sweepstakes offer that was so ubiquitous back then. As a NatLamp subscriber at the time, I

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