All the serious news is making me think of the late cartoonist Dave Berg

[Tummler]

Dave Berg, longtime MAD Magazine cartoonist, died almost two years ago (May 16, 2002) of cancer. His shtick was the "Lighter Side of ..." strips, which often featured recurring character Roger Kaputnik as a stand-in for Berg.

Even Dave Berg wouldn't be able to find a "lighter side of" the Chimp's mess in Iraq. :(

[NightTrain]

1. MAD magazine was one of my earliest introductions to subversion.

I started reading it in 1975, at age nine, and never missed an issue for about the next decade. Unfortunately, since Bill Gaines died in 1991, the magazine has lost a lot of its magic.

[supernova]

2. I learned to read reading MAD

My brother used to get the paperback books and he read to me from those. :evilgrin:

when I got to be 8 or so I was old enough to spend my allowance on the magazine when we went to the store. I read it all through high school and some into college.

MAD was my first tutor in how skewed the world really is.

[ironflange]

3. Aw, that's so sad

I didn't know he died.

I just found a whole box of old MADs in my basement, all late 60's - early 70's. I wanna go read them now! I graduated to National Lampoon after that, they're in there too.

So much fine literature, so little time!

[NightTrain]

4. Unfortunately, Mr. Berg has shuffled off this mortal coil.

Along with George Woodbridge and Don Martin. :(

[Tummler]

5. Damn, I didn't know about Woodbridge and Don Martin

Do you know if Al Jaffee is still alive? He was my favorite, mainly for all the crazy inventions he'd dream up.

On edit: it appears that he is! :)
http://www.deadoraliveinfo.com/dead.nsf/jnames-nf/Jaffee+Al