MAD #242 — October 1983

"The trouble with doing nothing is you can't quit and rest!" — Alfred E. Neuman

Contents

• Ad for MAD Super Special Spring 1984 — Movies II
  C2
• Contents Page
  1
• Letters Dept.

  Notes

  • Ad for MAD's Don Martin Presents Captain Klutz II Paperback, Alfred E. Neuman portraits, Subscriptions — Why Kill Yourself? — stick-trap with spikes (Paul Coker, Jr. art)
  2–3
• Drawn-Out Dramas

  Marginal Thinking Dept.

  Sergio Aragones
  (various places around the magazine)
• Star Bores Re-Hash of the Jeti (movie satire)

  The Farce Be With You Dept.

  Written by Dick DeBartolo / Art by Mort Drucker

  Reprinted in 11 collections

  • MAD Special #65 — Winter 1988
  • Swing Along With MAD — 1991 (Paperback #87)
  • MAD Star Wars Spectacular — 1996
  • MAD About the Eighties — 1999
  • MAD Star Wars Spectacular — Summer 1999
  • MAD Art — 2002 (excerpt)
  • MAD About Star Wars — 2007
  • MAD For Decades — 2007
  • Extremely Moronic MAD — 2012
  • MAD's Greatest Artists — Mort Drucker — 2012
  • MAD Spoofs Star Wars — Special Collector's Edition 2019
  4–11
• Warning Labels We Desperately Need

  Whoopee! Caution Dept.

  Written by Tom Koch / Art by Bob Clarke

  Reprinted in 1 collection

  • MAD Special #81 — May 1992
  12–13 sample
• You're Never Really 100% Sure...

  Doubts All, Folks! Dept.

  Written by John Ficarra / Art by Paul Coker, Jr.

  Reprinted in 3 collections

  • MAD Special #67 — Summer 1989
  • The Porpoise-ful MAD — 1991 (Paperback #88)
  • MAD About the Eighties — 1999
  14–16
• MAD's Video Game Arcade Owner of the Year

  Two Bit Operator Dept.

  Written by Frank Jacobs / Art by Angelo Torres

  Reprinted in 2 collections

  • Swing Along With MAD — 1991 (Paperback #87)
  • MAD Special #86 — March 1993
  17–20
• One Fine Medieval Morning at Home

  Don Martin Dept. Part I

  Don Martin

  Reprinted in 4 collections

  • MAD Special #68 — Fall 1989
  • MAD Special #104 — June 1995
  • MAD's Greatest Artists — The Completely MAD Don Martin — 2007
  • MAD Spoofs Sci-Fi and Fantasy — Special Collector's Edition 2018
  21
• A Short History Showing How Different Publications Slant the News

  Trying to Slip Bias Dept.

  Written by Paul Laikin / Art by George Woodbridge

  Reprinted in 1 collection

  • MAD Special #65 — Winter 1988
  22–23
• The Lighter Side of...

  Berg's-Eye View Dept.

  Dave Berg

  Reprinted in 2 collections

  • MAD Special #67 — Summer 1989
  • The Porpoise-ful MAD — 1991 (Paperback #88)
  24–28
• Spy vs. Spy — rocket sandwich (logo) / spring-loaded torpedo splits

  Joke and Dagger Dept.

  Antonio Prohias

  Reprinted in 7 collections

  • MAD Special #67 — Summer 1989
  • Swing Along With MAD — 1991 (Paperback #87)
  • MAD Color Classics #3 — April 2001
  • Spy Vs. Spy — The Complete Casebook — Antonio Prohias — 2001
  • Spy Vs. Spy — Omnibus — Antonio Prohias — 2011
  • Insanely Awesome MAD — 2011
  • Insanely Awesome MAD — Deluxe Edition — 2014
  29
• MAD's All-Inclusive Do-It-Yourself Peanuts Comic Strip

  Strip Tease Dept.

  Written by Frank Jacobs / Art by Jack Rickard

  Reprinted in 7 collections

  • MAD Special #65 — Winter 1988
  • MAD Special #101 — January 1995
  • MAD About Comic Strips — 2003
  • The MAD Bathroom Companion — Turd in a Series — 2003
  • The MAD Bathroom Companion — The Mother Load — 2004
  • Totally Useless MAD — 2013
  • MAD's Greatest Writers — Frank Jacobs — 2015
  30–31
• Poetic Tributes to People Who Wouldn't Ordinarily Get Them

  Knock Verse Dept.

  Written by Frank Jacobs / Art by Harry North, Esq.

  Reprinted in 1 collection

  • MAD Special #67 — Summer 1989
  32–34
• One Afternoon on a Remote Jungle Island

  Don Martin Dept. Part II

  Don Martin

  Reprinted in 4 collections

  • MAD XL #1 — January 2000
  • MAD's Greatest Artists — The Completely MAD Don Martin — 2007
  • 1001 MAD Pages You Must Read Before You Die — 2009
  • MAD's Greatest Artists — Don Martin — 2014
  35
• An Advertiser Would Have Us Believe...

  Ad Nausea Dept.

  Written by Tom Koch / Art by Jack Davis

  Reprinted in 4 collections

  • MAD Special #65 — Winter 1988
  • Completely MAD — 1991 (excerpt)
  • Swing Along With MAD — 1991 (Paperback #87)
  • MADvertising — 2005
  36–39
• The MAD Gross-Out Diet

  Queasy Does It Dept.

  Paul Peter Porges

  Reprinted in 3 collections

  • MAD Special #66 — Spring 1989
  • Swing Along With MAD — 1991 (Paperback #87)
  • The MAD Gross Book — 2001
  40–41
• The A(sinine) Team (TV satire)

  "T" and *A* Dept.

  Written by Stan Hart / Art by Mort Drucker

  Reprinted in 5 collections

  • MAD Special #66 — Spring 1989
  • The Porpoise-ful MAD — 1991 (Paperback #88)
  • MAD Special #110 — January 1996
  • MAD About TV — 1999
  • MAD Art — 2002 (excerpt)
  42–47
• One Fine Evening During Prime Time

  Don Martin Dept. Part III

  Don Martin

  Reprinted in 5 collections

  • MAD Special #66 — Spring 1989
  • MAD About TV — 1999
  • MAD's Greatest Artists — The Completely MAD Don Martin — 2007
  • MAD's Greatest Artists — Don Martin — 2014
  • MAD #46 — December 2025
  48
• Fold-In — What is changing America's drinking habits?

  Al Jaffee

  Reprinted in 2 collections

  • MAD Special #68 — Fall 1989
  • The MAD Fold-In Collection 1964–2010 — 2011
  C3
• Back Cover — One-On-One Night in the Laboratory

  Written by Don (Duck) Edwing / Art by Don Martin

  Reprinted in 6 collections

  • MAD Special #140 — September 1999
  • MAD's Greatest Artists — The Completely MAD Don Martin — 2007
  • Horrifyingly MAD — 2011
  • MAD Spoofs Horror — Special Collector's Edition 2017
  • MAD Haunts Halloween — Special Edition 2024
  • MAD #45 — October 2025
  C4