National Lampoon (magazine)
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''National Lampoon'' was an American
humor magazine A humor magazine is a magazine specifically designed to deliver humorous content to its readership. These publications often offer satire and parody, but some also put an emphasis on cartoons, caricature, absurdity, one-liners, witty aphorisms, ...
that ran from 1970 to 1998. The magazine started out as a spinoff from the ''
Harvard Lampoon ''The Harvard Lampoon'' is an undergraduate humor publication founded in 1876 by seven undergraduates at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Overview The ''Harvard Lampoon'' publication was founded in 1876 by seven undergraduates ...
''. ''National Lampoon'' magazine reached its height of popularity and critical acclaim during the 1970s, when it had a far-reaching effect on American humor and comedy. The magazine spawned
films A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...
,
radio Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmit ...
,
live theater Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...
, various sound recordings, and print products including books. Many members of the creative staff from the magazine subsequently went on to contribute creatively to successful media of all types. During the magazine's most successful years,
parody A parody, also known as a spoof, a satire, a send-up, a take-off, a lampoon, a play on (something), or a caricature, is a creative work designed to imitate, comment on, and/or mock its subject by means of satiric or ironic imitation. Often its subj ...
of every kind was a mainstay;
surrealist Surrealism is a cultural movement that developed in Europe in the aftermath of World War I in which artists depicted unnerving, illogical scenes and developed techniques to allow the unconscious mind to express itself. Its aim was, according to l ...
content was also central to its appeal. Almost all the issues included long text pieces, shorter written pieces, a section of actual news items (dubbed "True Facts"),
cartoon A cartoon is a type of visual art that is typically drawn, frequently animated, in an unrealistic or semi-realistic style. The specific meaning has evolved over time, but the modern usage usually refers to either: an image or series of images ...
s and
comic strip A comic strip is a sequence of drawings, often cartoons, arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often serialized, with text in balloons and captions. Traditionally, throughout the 20th and into the 21st ...
s. Most issues also included "Foto Funnies" or fumetti, which often featured nudity. The result was an unusual mix of intelligent, cutting-edge wit, combined with some crass, bawdy jesting. In both cases, ''National Lampoon'' humor often pushed far beyond the boundaries of what was generally considered appropriate and acceptable. It was especially anarchic, satirically attacking what was considered holy and sacred. As co-founder
Henry Beard Henry Nichols Beard (born June 7, 1945) is an American humorist, one of the founders of the magazine '' National Lampoon'' and the author of several best-selling books. Life and career Beard, a great-grandson of 14th Vice President John C. Bre ...
described the experience years later: "There was this big door that said, 'Thou shalt not.' We touched it, and it fell off its hinges." The magazine declined during the late 1980s, and ceased publication in 1998. Projects using the "National Lampoon" brand name continue to this day, under its production company successor, National Lampoon Inc. The 50th anniversary of the magazine took place in 2020 and to celebrate the magazine was issued digitally for the first time by Solaris Entertainment Studio.


The magazine

''National Lampoon'' was started by Harvard graduates and ''
Harvard Lampoon ''The Harvard Lampoon'' is an undergraduate humor publication founded in 1876 by seven undergraduates at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Overview The ''Harvard Lampoon'' publication was founded in 1876 by seven undergraduates ...
'' alumni
Doug Kenney Douglas Clark Francis Kenney (December 10, 1946 – August 27, 1980) was an American comedy writer of magazine, novels, radio, TV and film who co-founded the magazine ''National Lampoon'' in 1970. Kenney edited the magazine and wrote much of its ...
,
Henry Beard Henry Nichols Beard (born June 7, 1945) is an American humorist, one of the founders of the magazine '' National Lampoon'' and the author of several best-selling books. Life and career Beard, a great-grandson of 14th Vice President John C. Bre ...
and Robert Hoffman in 1969, when they first licensed the "Lampoon" name for a monthly national publication. ''
The Harvard Lampoon ''The Harvard Lampoon'' is an undergraduate humor publication founded in 1876 by seven undergraduates at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Overview The ''Harvard Lampoon'' publication was founded in 1876 by seven undergraduates ...
'' was established in 1876 and became a long-standing tradition of the campus, influencing the later National Lampoon Brand in its evolution from illustration-heavy publications to satirical wit, ranging from short fiction to comic strips. The magazine's first issue was dated April 1970 and went on sale on March 19, 1970. The company that owned the magazine was called Twenty First Century Communications. After a shaky start for a few issues, the magazine rapidly grew in popularity. Like ''The Harvard Lampoon,'' individual issues had themes, including such topics as "The Future," "Back to School," "Death," "Self-Indulgence," and "Blight." The magazine regularly reprinted material in "best-of" omnibus collections. Its writers joyfully targeted every kind of phoniness, and had no specific political stance, even though individual staff members had strong political views. Thomas Carney, writing in ''New Times'', traced the history and style of the ''National Lampoon'' and the impact it had on comedy's new wave. "The National Lampoon," Carney wrote, "was the first full-blown appearance of non-Jewish humor in years—not
anti-Semitic Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...
, just non-
Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
. Its roots were W.A.S.P. and
Irish Catholic Irish Catholics are an ethnoreligious group native to Ireland whose members are both Catholic and Irish. They have a large diaspora, which includes over 36 million American citizens and over 14 million British citizens (a quarter of the British ...
, with a weird strain of Canadian detachment. . . . This was not Jewish street-smart humor as a defense mechanism; this was slash-and-burn stuff that alternated in pitch but moved very much on the offensive. It was always disrespect everything, mostly yourself, a sort of reverse deism." ''National Lampoon'' was a monthly magazine for most of its publication history. Numerous "special editions" were also published and sold simultaneously on newsstands. Some of the special editions were anthologies of reprinted material; others were entirely original. Additional projects included a calendar, a songbook, a collection of transfer designs for T-shirts, and a number of books. The magazine sold yellow binders with the Lampoon logo, designed to store a year's worth of issues.


Cover art

The original art directors were cartoonist Peter Bramley and Bill Skurski, founders of New York's Cloud Studio, an alternative-culture outfit known at the time for its eclectic style. Bramley created the ''Lampoon'' first cover and induced successful cartoonists
Arnold Roth :''This is an article about Arnold Roth, the cartoonist. See also Arnie Roth, the musician.'' Arnold Roth (born February 25, 1929) is an American cartoonist and illustrator for advertisements, album covers, books, magazines, and newspapers. Novel ...
and
Gahan Wilson Gahan Allen Wilson (February 18, 1930 – November 21, 2019) was an American author, cartoonist and illustrator known for his cartoons depicting horror-fantasy situations. Biography Wilson was born in Evanston, Illinois, and was inspired by th ...
to become regular contributors. Beginning with the eighth issue, the art direction of the magazine was taken over by Michael C. Gross, who directed the look of the magazine until 1974. A number of the ''National Lampoon'' most acerbic and humorous covers were designed or overseen by Gross, including: * Court-martialed
Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...
mass-murderer
William Calley William Laws Calley Jr. (born June 8, 1943) is a former American army officer and war criminal convicted by court-martial for the premeditated killings of 200 to 400 unarmed South Vietnamese civilians in the Mỹ Lai massacre on March 16, 1968, d ...
sporting the guileless grin of
Alfred E. Neuman Alfred E. Neuman is the fictitious mascot and cover boy of the American humor magazine '' Mad''. The character's distinct smiling face, parted red hair, gap-tooth smile, freckles, protruding nose, and scrawny body, first emerged in U.S. iconog ...
, complete with the parody catchphrase 'What,
My Lai My or MY may refer to: Arts and entertainment * My (radio station), a Malaysian radio station * Little My, a fictional character in the Moomins universe * ''My'' (album), by Edyta Górniak * ''My'' (EP), by Cho Mi-yeon Business * Market ...
?" (August 1971) * The iconic Argentinian revolutionary
Che Guevara Ernesto Che Guevara (; 14 June 1928The date of birth recorded on /upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/78/Ernesto_Guevara_Acta_de_Nacimiento.jpg his birth certificatewas 14 June 1928, although one tertiary source, (Julia Constenla, quoted ...
being splattered with a cream pie (January 1972) * A dog looking worriedly at a
revolver A revolver (also called a wheel gun) is a repeating handgun that has at least one barrel and uses a revolving cylinder containing multiple chambers (each holding a single cartridge) for firing. Because most revolver models hold up to six roun ...
pressed to its head, with what became a famous caption: "If You Don't Buy This Magazine, We'll Kill This Dog" (January 1973): The cover was conceived by writer Ed Bluestone. Photographer Ronald G. Harris initially had a hard time making the dog's plight appear humorous instead of pathetic. The solution was to cock the revolver; the clicking sound caused the dog's eyes to shift into the position shown. This was the most famous ''Lampoon'' cover gag, and was selected by
ASME The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) is an American professional association that, in its own words, "promotes the art, science, and practice of multidisciplinary engineering and allied sciences around the globe" via "continuing ...
as the seventh-greatest magazine cover of the last 40 years. This issue is among the most coveted and collectible of all the National Lampoon's issues. * A replica of the starving child from the cover of
George Harrison George Harrison (25 February 1943 – 29 November 2001) was an English musician and singer-songwriter who achieved international fame as the lead guitarist of the Beatles. Sometimes called "the quiet Beatle", Harrison embraced Indian c ...
's charity album ''
The Concert for Bangladesh The Concert for Bangladesh (or Bangla Desh, as the country's name was originally spelt)Harry, p. 135. was a pair of benefit concerts organised by former Beatles guitarist George Harrison and Indian sitar player Ravi Shankar. The shows were he ...
'', rendered in chocolate and with a large bite taken out of its head (July 1974) Michael Gross and Doug Kenney chose a young designer from ''Esquire'' named Peter Kleinman to succeed the team of Gross and David Kaestle. During his'' Lampoon'' tenure, Kleinman was also the art director of ''Heavy Metal'' magazine, published by the same company. The best known of Kleinman's'' Lampoon ''covers were "Stevie Wonder with 3-D Glasses" painted by Sol Korby, a photographed "Nose to The Grindstone" cover depicting a man's face being pressed against a spinning grinder wheel for the ''Work'' issue, the "JFK's First 6000 Days" issue featuring a portrait of an old
John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination ...
, the "Fat Elvis" cover which appeared a year before
Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...
died, and many of the
Mara McAfee Mara McAfee (November 27, 1929 – January 13, 1984) was an American Pop artist and illustrator best known for her satirical depictions of historical figures, contemporary subjects, and high art traditions. During the 1950s McAfee was also an ...
covers done in a classic
Norman Rockwell Norman Percevel Rockwell (February 3, 1894 – November 8, 1978) was an American painter and illustrator. His works have a broad popular appeal in the United States for their reflection of Culture of the United States, the country's culture. Roc ...
style. Kleinman designed the logos for ''
Animal House ''National Lampoon's Animal House'' is a 1978 American comedy film directed by John Landis and written by Harold Ramis, Douglas Kenney and Chris Miller. It stars John Belushi, Peter Riegert, Tim Matheson, John Vernon, Verna Bloom, Thomas Hu ...
'' and ''Heavy Metal.'' Kleinman left in 1979 to open an ad agency. He was succeeded by Skip Johnson, the designer responsible for the ''
Sunday Newspaper Parody ''National Lampoon Sunday Newspaper Parody'' is an American humor "book", a parody that was first published in 1978 by National Lampoon (magazine), ''National Lampoon'' magazine. In the first printing, this publication had exactly the same form ...
'' and the "Arab Getting Punched in the Face" cover of the ''Revenge'' issue. Johnson went on to ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
.'' He was followed by Michael Grossman, who changed the logo and style of the magazine. In 1984, Kleinman returned as creative director and went back to the 1970s logo and style, bringing back many of the artists and writers from the magazine's heyday. He left four years later to pursue a career in corporate marketing. At that time, the ''National Lampoon'' magazine entered a period of precipitous decline.


Editorial

Every regular monthly issue of the magazine had an editorial at the front of the magazine. This often appeared to be straightforward, but was always a parody. It was written by whoever was the editor of that particular issue, since that role rotated among the staff, but Kenney had been the main writer of them for the first few issues. Some issues were guest-edited.


Staff

The magazine was an outlet for some notable writing talents, including
Douglas Kenney Douglas Clark Francis Kenney (December 10, 1946 – August 27, 1980) was an American comedy writer of magazine, novels, radio, TV and film who co-founded the magazine National Lampoon (magazine), ''National Lampoon'' in 1970. Kenney edited the ma ...
,
Henry Beard Henry Nichols Beard (born June 7, 1945) is an American humorist, one of the founders of the magazine '' National Lampoon'' and the author of several best-selling books. Life and career Beard, a great-grandson of 14th Vice President John C. Bre ...
, George W. S. Trow, Chris Miller, P. J. O'Rourke,
Michael O'Donoghue Michael O'Donoghue (January 5, 1940 – November 8, 1994) was an American writer and performer. He was known for his dark and destructive style of comedy and humor, was a major contributor to ''National Lampoon'' magazine, and was the ...
,
Anne Beatts Anne Beatts (February 25, 1947 – April 7, 2021) was an American comedy writer. Early life Beatts was born in Buffalo, New York, to Sheila Elizabeth Jean (Sherriff-Scott) and Patrick Murray Threipland Beatts. She has described her parents as "b ...
,
Chris Rush Chris Rush (born Christopher John Mistretta; February 11, 1946 – January 28, 2018) was an American comedian, writer, actor, radio personality and author. He is best known for his stand-up routines and albums, along with having been a writer a ...
, Sean Kelly,
Tony Hendra Anthony Christopher "Tony" Hendra (10 July 1941 – 4 March 2021) was an English satirist, actor and writer who worked mostly in the United States. Educated at St Albans School (where he was a classmate of Stephen Hawking) and at St John's Col ...
,
Brian McConnachie Brian McConnachie (born December 23, 1942) is an American actor, comedy writer, and children's book author. In 1982, he won an Emmy Award as part of the writing team for ''SCTV Network'', and in 1979 he was nominated for an Emmy as part of the w ...
, Gerald Sussman,
Derek Pell Derek Pell is a visual artist, photographer, writer and satirist. He was the editor in chief of ''Zoom Street Magazine''. He was editor of ''DingBat Magazine'' for 12 years, and a contributing editor to ''PC Laptop. ''Under both his name and his p ...
,
Ellis Weiner Ellis Weiner (born 31 October 1950) is an author and humorist who has previously worked as an editor of '' National Lampoon'' and a columnist for ''Spy Magazine''. His humor has also appeared in ''The New Yorker '', ''Paris Review'', and ''The New ...
,
Ted Mann Ted Mann (April 16, 1916 – January 15, 2001) was an American businessman involved in the film industry and head of Mann Theatres. In 1973, he purchased the National General Theatre chain and changed the name of Grauman's Chinese Theatre, wh ...
, Chris Cluess,
Al Jean Alfred Ernest Jean III (born January 9, 1961) is an American screenwriter and producer. Jean is well known for his work on ''The Simpsons''. He was raised near Detroit, Michigan, and graduated from Harvard University in 1981. Jean began his wri ...
,
Mike Reiss Michael L. Reiss ( '; born ) is an American television comedy writer and author. He served as a show-runner, writer and producer for the animated series ''The Simpsons'' and co-created the animated series ''The Critic''. He created and wrote ...
, Jeff Greenfield, John Hughes and
Ed Subitzky Ed Subitzky, full name Edward Jack Subitzky (born March 19, 1943), is an American writer and artist. He is best known as a cartoonist, comics artist, and humorist. He has worked as a television comedy writer and performer, a writer and performer ...
. The work of many important cartoonists, photographers, and illustrators appeared in the magazine's pages, including
Neal Adams Neal Adams (June 15, 1941 – April 28, 2022) was an American comic book artist. He was the co-founder of the graphic design studio Continuity Associates, and was a creators-rights advocate who helped secure a pension and recognition for Supe ...
,
Gahan Wilson Gahan Allen Wilson (February 18, 1930 – November 21, 2019) was an American author, cartoonist and illustrator known for his cartoons depicting horror-fantasy situations. Biography Wilson was born in Evanston, Illinois, and was inspired by th ...
,
Robert Grossman Robert Grossman (March 1, 1940 – March 15, 2018) was an American painter, sculptor, filmmaker, comics artist, illustrator and author. In a career spanning fifty years, Grossman's illustrations have appeared over 500 times on the covers of var ...
, Michael Sullivan,
Ron Barrett Ron Barrett is an American illustrator, best known for illustrating the children's book ''Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs'', which was written by his former wife, Judi Barrett. Career He is a graduate of the School of Industrial Art in New Y ...
, Peter Bramley,
Vaughn Bode Vaughn may refer to: Places in the United States *Vaughn, California, former name of Bodfish, California * Vaughn, Montana * Vaughn, New Mexico *Vaughn, Oregon * Vaughn, Pennsylvania * Vaughn, Virginia * Vaughn, Washington Name * Vaughn (surname ...
,
Bruce McCall Bruce McCall (born May 10, 1935) is a Canadian author and illustrator, best known for his frequent contributions to ''The New Yorker''. Life and career Born and raised in Simcoe, Ontario, Canada, he was fascinated by comic books and showed an earl ...
,
Rick Meyerowitz Rick Meyerowitz (born November 29, 1943) is an American artist, and author. He is best known for his work for '' National Lampoon'' magazine and its spin-offs, including his poster for the comedy film ''Animal House''. Early life Meyerowitz was ...
,
Warren Sattler Warren Sattler (born September 7, 1934) is an American artist and cartoonist, who contributed work to many popular publications from the early 1960s through the 1990s. Biography A lifelong Connecticut resident, Warren Sattler started cartooning a ...
, M. K. Brown,
Shary Flenniken Shary Flenniken (born 1950) is an American editor-writer-illustrator and underground cartoonist. After joining the burgeoning underground comics movement in the early 1970s, she became a prominent contributor to '' National Lampoon'' and was one ...
,
Bobby London Robert "Bobby" London (born June 29, 1950) is an American underground comix and mainstream comics artist. His style evokes the work of early American cartoonists like George Herriman and Elzie Crisler Segar. Biography As a child, London was "pen ...
,
Edward Gorey Edward St. John Gorey (February 22, 1925 – April 15, 2000) was an Americans, American writer, Tony Award-winning costume designer, and artist, noted for his own illustrated books as well as cover art and illustration for books by other w ...
, Jeff Jones,
Joe Orlando Joseph Orlando (April 4, 1927 – December 23, 1998) was an Italian American illustrator, writer, editor and cartoonist during a lengthy career spanning six decades. He was the associate publisher of '' Mad'' and the vice president of DC Comics, ...
,
Arnold Roth :''This is an article about Arnold Roth, the cartoonist. See also Arnie Roth, the musician.'' Arnold Roth (born February 25, 1929) is an American cartoonist and illustrator for advertisements, album covers, books, magazines, and newspapers. Novel ...
, Rich Grote,
Ed Subitzky Ed Subitzky, full name Edward Jack Subitzky (born March 19, 1943), is an American writer and artist. He is best known as a cartoonist, comics artist, and humorist. He has worked as a television comedy writer and performer, a writer and performer ...
,
Mara McAfee Mara McAfee (November 27, 1929 – January 13, 1984) was an American Pop artist and illustrator best known for her satirical depictions of historical figures, contemporary subjects, and high art traditions. During the 1950s McAfee was also an ...
,
Sam Gross Sam Gross (born August 7, 1933) is an American cartoonist, specializing in single-panel cartoons. History Born in Bronx, New York City, Gross was the son of Max and Sophie, who were Jewish immigrants to America. His mother was born in Iași, ...
,
Charles Rodrigues Charles Rodrigues (September 29, 1926 – June 14, 2004) was an American cartoonist perhaps best known as a contributor to '' National Lampoon''. Rodrigues was born in New Bedford, Massachusetts; his father came from Madeira, Portugal and his mot ...
,
Buddy Hickerson Buddy may refer to: People *Buddy (nickname) * Buddy (rapper), real name Simmie Sims III (1993–Present) * Buddy Rogers (wrestler), ring name of American professional wrestler Herman Gustav Rohde, Jr. (1921–1992) *Buddy Boeheim (born 1999), Am ...
,
B. K. Taylor B. K. (Bob) Taylor is an American illustrator, cartoonist, writer, production designer, costume designer, puppeteer, and musician known for his work on the Odd Rods collector stickers of the late 1960s, his covers for '' Sick'' magazine, his co ...
,
Birney Lettick A Birney or Birney Safety Car is a type of streetcar that was manufactured in the United States in the 1910s and 1920s. The design was small and light and was intended to be an economical means of providing frequent service at a lower infrastruc ...
,
Frank Frazetta Frank Frazetta (born Frank Frazzetta ; February 9, 1928 – May 10, 2010) was an American fantasy and science fiction artist, noted for comic books, paperback book covers, paintings, posters, LP record album covers, and other media. He is ...
,
Boris Vallejo Boris Vallejo (born January 8, 1941) is a Peruvian-American painter who works in the science fiction, fantasy, and erotica genres. His hyper-representational paintings have appeared on the covers of numerous science fiction and fantasy fiction ...
,
Marvin Mattelson Marvin may refer to: __NOTOC__ Geography ;In the United States * Marvyn, Alabama, also spelled Marvin, an unincorporated community * Marvin, Missouri, an unincorporated community * Marvin, North Carolina, a village * Marvin, South Dakota, a town ...
,
Stan Mack Stan Mack (b. May 13, 1936) is an American cartoonist best known for his series, ''Stan Mack's Real Life Funnies'', which ran in ''The Village Voice'' for over 20 years. His ''Adweek'' comic strip, ''Stan Mack’s Outtakes'', covered the New York ...
,
Chris Callis Chris is a short form of various names including Christopher, Christian, Christina, Christine, and Christos. Chris is also used as a name in its own right, however it is not as common. People with the given name * Chris Abani (born 1966), N ...
, John E. Barrett, Raymond Kursar, Andy Lackow, and David C.K. McClelland. Comedy stars
John Belushi John Adam Belushi (January 24, 1949 – March 5, 1982) was an American comedian, actor, and musician, best known for being one of the seven original cast members of the NBC sketch comedy show ''Saturday Night Live'' (''SNL''). Throughout his ca ...
,
Chevy Chase Cornelius Crane "Chevy" Chase (; born October 8, 1943) is an American comedian, actor and writer. He became a key cast member in the first season of ''Saturday Night Live'', where his recurring ''Weekend Update'' segment became a staple of the ...
,
Gilda Radner Gilda Susan Radner (June 28, 1946 – May 20, 1989) was an American actress and comedian, and one of the seven original cast members of the "Not Ready For Prime Time Players" on the NBC sketch comedy show ''Saturday Night Live'' (''SNL''). In he ...
,
Bill Murray William James Murray (born September 21, 1950) is an American actor and comedian. He is known for his deadpan delivery. He rose to fame on ''The National Lampoon Radio Hour'' (1973–1974) before becoming a national presence on ''Saturday Nigh ...
,
Brian Doyle Murray Brian Murray (born October 31, 1945), known professionally by his stage name as Brian Doyle-Murray, is an American actor, voice-actor and screenwriter. He has appeared with his younger brother, actor/comedian Bill Murray, in several movies, i ...
,
Harold Ramis Harold Allen Ramis (; November 21, 1944 – February 24, 2014) was an American actor, comedian, director and writer. His best-known film acting roles were as Egon Spengler in ''Ghostbusters'' (1984) and '' Ghostbusters II'' (1989), and as Russel ...
, and
Richard Belzer Richard Jay Belzer (born August 4, 1944) is a retired American actor, stand-up comedian, and author. He is best known for his role as BPD Detective, NYPD Detective/Sergeant, and DA Investigator John Munch, whom he has portrayed as a regular cast ...
first gained national attention for their performances in the National Lampoon's stage show and radio show. The first three subsequently went on to become part of ''
Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves a ...
'' original wave of Not Ready for Primetime Players, Bill Murray replaced Chase when Chase left ''SNL'' after the first season, and Brian Doyle Murray later appeared as an ''SNL'' regular. Harold Ramis went on to star in the Canadian sketch show SCTV and assumed role as its head writer, then left after season 1 to be a prolific director and writer working on such films as ''
Animal House ''National Lampoon's Animal House'' is a 1978 American comedy film directed by John Landis and written by Harold Ramis, Douglas Kenney and Chris Miller. It stars John Belushi, Peter Riegert, Tim Matheson, John Vernon, Verna Bloom, Thomas Hu ...
'', ''
Caddyshack ''Caddyshack'' is a 1980 American sports comedy film directed by Harold Ramis, written by Brian Doyle-Murray, Ramis and Douglas Kenney, and starring Chevy Chase, Rodney Dangerfield, Ted Knight, Michael O'Keefe and Bill Murray with supporting ...
'', ''
Ghostbusters ''Ghostbusters'' is a 1984 American Supernatural fiction, supernatural comedy film directed and produced by Ivan Reitman, and written by Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis. It stars Bill Murray, Aykroyd, and Ramis as Peter Venkman, Ray Stantz, and ...
'', and many more. Brian Doyle Murray has had roles in dozens of films, and Belzer is an Emmy Award-winning TV actor. Gerald L. "Jerry" Taylor was the publisher, followed by William T. Lippe. The business side of the magazine was controlled by
Matty Simmons Martin Gerald Simmons (October 3, 1926 – April 29, 2020) was an American film and television producer, newspaper reporter for the ''New York World-Telegram and Sun'', and Executive Vice President of Diners Club, the first credit card company. ...
, who was
chairman of the board The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the grou ...
and
CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...
of Twenty First Century Communications, a publishing company.


True Facts

"True Facts" was a section near the front of the magazine which contained true but ridiculous items from real life. Together with the masthead, it was one of the few parts of the magazine that was factual. "True Facts" included photographs of unintentionally funny signage, extracts from ludicrous newspaper reports, strange headlines, and so on. For many years
John Bendel John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...
was in charge of the "True Facts" section of the magazine. Steven Brykman edited the "True Facts" section of the National Lampoon website. Several "True Facts" compilation books were published in the 1980s and early 90s, and several all-True-Facts issues of the magazine were published during the 1980s.


Foto Funnies

Most issues of the magazine featured one or more "Foto Funny" or fumetti, comic strips that use photographs instead of drawings as illustrations. The characters who appeared in the Lampoon's Foto Funnies were usually writers, editors, artists, photographers or contributing editors of the magazine, often cast alongside nude or semi-nude models. In 1980, a paperback compilation book, ''National Lampoon Foto Funnies'' which appeared as a part of
National Lampoon Comics ''National Lampoon Comics'' was an American book, an anthology of comics; it was published in 1974 in paperback. Although it is to all appearances a book, it was apparently considered to be a special edition of National Lampoon (magazine), ''Natio ...
, was published.


Funny Pages

The "Funny Pages" was a large section at the back of the magazine that was composed entirely of
comic strip A comic strip is a sequence of drawings, often cartoons, arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often serialized, with text in balloons and captions. Traditionally, throughout the 20th and into the 21st ...
s of various kinds. These included work from a number of artists who also had pieces published in the main part of the magazine, including Gahan Wilson,
Ed Subitzky Ed Subitzky, full name Edward Jack Subitzky (born March 19, 1943), is an American writer and artist. He is best known as a cartoonist, comics artist, and humorist. He has worked as a television comedy writer and performer, a writer and performer ...
and
Vaughn Bode Vaughn may refer to: Places in the United States *Vaughn, California, former name of Bodfish, California * Vaughn, Montana * Vaughn, New Mexico *Vaughn, Oregon * Vaughn, Pennsylvania * Vaughn, Virginia * Vaughn, Washington Name * Vaughn (surname ...
, as well as artists whose work was only published in this section. The regular strips included "Dirty Duck" by
Bobby London Robert "Bobby" London (born June 29, 1950) is an American underground comix and mainstream comics artist. His style evokes the work of early American cartoonists like George Herriman and Elzie Crisler Segar. Biography As a child, London was "pen ...
, "Trots and Bonnie" by
Shary Flenniken Shary Flenniken (born 1950) is an American editor-writer-illustrator and underground cartoonist. After joining the burgeoning underground comics movement in the early 1970s, she became a prominent contributor to '' National Lampoon'' and was one ...
, "The Appletons" and "Timberland Tales" by
B. K. Taylor B. K. (Bob) Taylor is an American illustrator, cartoonist, writer, production designer, costume designer, puppeteer, and musician known for his work on the Odd Rods collector stickers of the late 1960s, his covers for '' Sick'' magazine, his co ...
, "Politeness Man" by
Ron Barrett Ron Barrett is an American illustrator, best known for illustrating the children's book ''Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs'', which was written by his former wife, Judi Barrett. Career He is a graduate of the School of Industrial Art in New Y ...
, and many other strips. A compilation of Gahan Wilson's "Nuts" strip was published in 2011. The Funny Pages logo header art, which was positioned above Gahan Wilson's "Nuts" in each issue, and showed a comfortable, old-fashioned family reading newspaper-sized funny papers, was drawn by
Mike Kaluta Michael William Kaluta, sometimes credited as Mike Kaluta or Michael Wm. Kaluta (born August 25, 1947), is an American comics artist and writer best known for his acclaimed 1970s adaptation of the pulp magazine hero ''The Shadow'' with writer Den ...
.


Other merchandise

From time to time, the magazine advertised Lampoon-related merchandise for sale, including T-shirts that had been specially designed.


Chronology

The magazine existed from 1970 to 1998. Some consider its finest period was from 1971 to 1975, although it continued to be produced on a monthly schedule throughout the 1970s and the early 1980s, and did well during that time. However, during the late 1980s, a much more serious decline set in. Upstart video distributor Vestron Inc. attempted a takeover bid in 1986, but the board members of the magazine rejected the offer. In 1989, the company that controlled the magazine and its related projects (which was part of "Twenty First Century Communications") was the subject of a
hostile takeover In business, a takeover is the purchase of one company (the ''target'') by another (the ''acquirer'' or ''bidder''). In the UK, the term refers to the acquisition of a public company whose shares are listed on a stock exchange, in contrast to ...
by film producer
Daniel Grodnik Daniel Grodnik (born May 30, 1952) is an American film producer living in Los Angeles, California. In 1989, he and partner Tim Matheson took over ''National Lampoon'', becoming its chairman and CEO. Mr. Grodnik in is a member of the Producer's ...
and actor
Tim Matheson Tim Matheson (born Timothy Lewis Matthieson; December 31, 1947) is an American actor and director. Some of his best-known acting roles include the title character of the 1960s animated ''Jonny Quest'' TV series, Eric "Otter" Stratton in the 197 ...
, who had starred in the Lampoon's first big hit, Animal House. In 1990 it was sold outright to another company, "J2 Communications". At that point "National Lampoon" was considered valuable only as a
brand name A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's good or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create an ...
that could be licensed out to other companies. The magazine was issued erratically and rarely from 1991 onwards. 1998 saw the last issue.


1970

The first issue was April 1970; by November of that year, Michael C. Gross had become the art director. He achieved a unified, sophisticated, and integrated look for the magazine, which enhanced its humorous appeal. The sixth issue from September 1970 entitled "Show Biz," got the company in hot water with
The Walt Disney Company The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...
after a lawsuit was threatened because of the issue's cover, which showed a drawing of
Minnie Mouse Minnie Mouse is a cartoon character created by The Walt Disney Company. As the longtime sweetheart of Mickey Mouse, she is an anthropomorphic mouse with white gloves, a bow, polka-dotted dress, white bloomers, and low-heeled shoes occasionally w ...
topless, wearing
pasties Pasties (singular pasty or pastie) are patches that cover a person's nipples and areolae, typically self-adhesive or affixed with adhesive. They originated as part of burlesque shows, providing a commercial form of bare-breasted entertainment. T ...
.


1973–1975

National Lampoon's most successful sales period was 1973–75. Its national circulation peaked at 1,000,096 copies sold of the October 1974 "Pubescence" issue. The 1974 monthly average was 830,000, which was also a peak. Former ''Lampoon'' editor
Tony Hendra Anthony Christopher "Tony" Hendra (10 July 1941 – 4 March 2021) was an English satirist, actor and writer who worked mostly in the United States. Educated at St Albans School (where he was a classmate of Stephen Hawking) and at St John's Col ...
's book ''Going Too Far'' includes a series of precise circulation figures. It was also during this time that ''National Lampoon: Lemmings'' stage show and ''
The National Lampoon Radio Hour ''The National Lampoon Radio Hour'' was a comedy radio show which was created, produced and written by staff from ''National Lampoon'' magazine. The show ran weekly, for a little over a year, from November 17, 1973 to December 28, 1974. Orig ...
'' show was broadcast, bringing interest and acclaim to the National Lampoon brand with magazine talent like writer
Michael O'Donoghue Michael O'Donoghue (January 5, 1940 – November 8, 1994) was an American writer and performer. He was known for his dark and destructive style of comedy and humor, was a major contributor to ''National Lampoon'' magazine, and was the ...
that would go on to write for ''
Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves a ...
''. The magazine was considered by many to be at its creative zenith during this time. It should however be noted that the publishing industry's newsstand sales were excellent for many other titles during that time: there were sales peaks for '' Mad'' (more than 2 million), ''
Playboy ''Playboy'' is an American men's lifestyle and entertainment magazine, formerly in print and currently online. It was founded in Chicago in 1953, by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from Hefner's mother. K ...
'' (more than 7 million), and ''
TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media company that provides television program Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or t ...
'' (more than 19 million).


1975

Some fans consider the glory days of National Lampoon to have ended in 1975, although the magazine remained popular and profitable long after that point. During 1975, the three founders (Kenney, Beard, and Hoffman) took advantage of a
buyout clause A buyout clause or release clause refers to a clause in a contract that imposes an obligation on another organisation wishing to acquire the services of the employee under contract to pay the (usually substantial) fee of the clause to the organisati ...
in their contracts for $7.5 million (although Kenney remained on the magazine's masthead as a senior editor until about 1976). About the same time, writers Michael O'Donoghue and
Anne Beatts Anne Beatts (February 25, 1947 – April 7, 2021) was an American comedy writer. Early life Beatts was born in Buffalo, New York, to Sheila Elizabeth Jean (Sherriff-Scott) and Patrick Murray Threipland Beatts. She has described her parents as "b ...
left to join the
NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...
comedy show ''
Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves a ...
'' (''SNL''). At the same time, the'' National Lampoon Show's ''John Belushi and Gilda Radner left the troupe to join the original septet of'' SNL's'' Not Ready for Primetime Players. The magazine was a springboard to the
cinema of the United States The cinema of the United States, consisting mainly of major film studios (also known as Hollywood) along with some independent film, has had a large effect on the global film industry since the early 20th century. The dominant style of Ame ...
for a generation of comedy writers, directors, and performers. Various alumni went on to create and write for ''SNL,'' ''
The David Letterman Show ''The David Letterman Show'' is an American morning talk show that was hosted by David Letterman on NBC. It originally aired from June 23 to October 24, 1980. Originally, the series lasted 90 minutes, then 60 minutes from August 4 onward. Back ...
,'' SCTV, ''
The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of American life, epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, ...
'', '' Married... with Children'', ''
Night Court ''Night Court'' is an American television sitcom that aired on NBC from January 4, 1984 to May 31, 1992. The setting was the night shift of a Manhattan municipal court presided over by a young, unorthodox judge, Harold "Harry" T. Stone (portray ...
'', and various films including ''
National Lampoon's Animal House ''National Lampoon's Animal House'' is a 1978 American comedy film directed by John Landis and written by Harold Ramis, Douglas Kenney and Chris Miller. It stars John Belushi, Peter Riegert, Tim Matheson, John Vernon, Verna Bloom, Thomas Hulc ...
'', ''
Caddyshack ''Caddyshack'' is a 1980 American sports comedy film directed by Harold Ramis, written by Brian Doyle-Murray, Ramis and Douglas Kenney, and starring Chevy Chase, Rodney Dangerfield, Ted Knight, Michael O'Keefe and Bill Murray with supporting ...
'', ''
National Lampoon's Vacation ''National Lampoon's Vacation'', sometimes referred to as simply ''Vacation'', is a 1983 American road trip comedy film directed by Harold Ramis starring Chevy Chase, Beverly D'Angelo, Imogene Coca, Randy Quaid, John Candy, and Christie Brink ...
'', and ''
Ghostbusters ''Ghostbusters'' is a 1984 American Supernatural fiction, supernatural comedy film directed and produced by Ivan Reitman, and written by Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis. It stars Bill Murray, Aykroyd, and Ramis as Peter Venkman, Ray Stantz, and ...
''. As some of the original creators departed, the magazine remained popular and profitable as it had the emergence of John Hughes and editor-in-chief
P.J. O'Rourke Patrick Jake O'Rourke (November 14, 1947 – February 15, 2022) was an American libertarian political satirist and journalist. O'Rourke was the H. L. Mencken Research Fellow at the libertarian Cato Institute and a regular correspondent for ''Th ...
, along with artists and writers such as Gerry Sussman,
Ellis Weiner Ellis Weiner (born 31 October 1950) is an author and humorist who has previously worked as an editor of '' National Lampoon'' and a columnist for ''Spy Magazine''. His humor has also appeared in ''The New Yorker '', ''Paris Review'', and ''The New ...
,
Tony Hendra Anthony Christopher "Tony" Hendra (10 July 1941 – 4 March 2021) was an English satirist, actor and writer who worked mostly in the United States. Educated at St Albans School (where he was a classmate of Stephen Hawking) and at St John's Col ...
,
Ted Mann Ted Mann (April 16, 1916 – January 15, 2001) was an American businessman involved in the film industry and head of Mann Theatres. In 1973, he purchased the National General Theatre chain and changed the name of Grauman's Chinese Theatre, wh ...
, Peter Kleinman, Chris Cluess, Stu Kreisman,
John Weidman John Weidman (born September 25, 1946) is an American librettist and television writer for ''Sesame Street''. He has worked on stage musicals with Stephen Sondheim and Susan Stroman. Career Weidman was born in New York City and grew up in Westpor ...
,
Jeff Greenfield Jeffrey Greenfield (born June 10, 1943) is an American television journalist and author. Early life He was born in New York City, to Benjamin and Helen Greenfield. He grew up in Manhattan and graduated in 1960 from the Bronx High School of Sci ...
,
Bruce McCall Bruce McCall (born May 10, 1935) is a Canadian author and illustrator, best known for his frequent contributions to ''The New Yorker''. Life and career Born and raised in Simcoe, Ontario, Canada, he was fascinated by comic books and showed an earl ...
, and
Rick Meyerowitz Rick Meyerowitz (born November 29, 1943) is an American artist, and author. He is best known for his work for '' National Lampoon'' magazine and its spin-offs, including his poster for the comedy film ''Animal House''. Early life Meyerowitz was ...
.


1985

In 1985,
Matty Simmons Martin Gerald Simmons (October 3, 1926 – April 29, 2020) was an American film and television producer, newspaper reporter for the ''New York World-Telegram and Sun'', and Executive Vice President of Diners Club, the first credit card company. ...
(who had been working only on the business end of the Lampoon up to that point) took over as editor-in-chief. He fired the entire editorial staff, and appointed his two sons, Michael Simmons and Andy Simmons, as editors, Peter Kleinman as creative director and editor, and Larry "Ratso" Sloman as executive editor. The magazine was on an increasingly shaky financial footing, and beginning in November 1986, the magazine was published six times a year instead of every month.


1989

On December 29, 1988, producer
Daniel Grodnik Daniel Grodnik (born May 30, 1952) is an American film producer living in Los Angeles, California. In 1989, he and partner Tim Matheson took over ''National Lampoon'', becoming its chairman and CEO. Mr. Grodnik in is a member of the Producer's ...
and actor
Tim Matheson Tim Matheson (born Timothy Lewis Matthieson; December 31, 1947) is an American actor and director. Some of his best-known acting roles include the title character of the 1960s animated ''Jonny Quest'' TV series, Eric "Otter" Stratton in the 197 ...
(who played "Otter" in the 1978 film ''National Lampoon's
Animal House ''National Lampoon's Animal House'' is a 1978 American comedy film directed by John Landis and written by Harold Ramis, Douglas Kenney and Chris Miller. It stars John Belushi, Peter Riegert, Tim Matheson, John Vernon, Verna Bloom, Thomas Hu ...
'') filed with the SEC that their production company, Grodnick/Matheson Co., had acquired voting control of 21.3 percent of National Lampoon Inc. stock and wanted to gain management control. They were named to the company's board in January 1989, and eventually took control of the company by purchasing the ten-percent share of Simmons, who departed the company. Grodnik and Matheson became the co-chairmen/co-CEOs. During their tenure, the stock went up from under $2 to $6, and the magazine was able to double its monthly ad pages. The company moved its headquarters from New York to Los Angeles to focus on film and television. The publishing operation stayed in New York. Grodnik and Matheson sold the company in 1990.


1990

In 1990, the magazine (and more importantly, the rights to the
brand name A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's good or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create an ...
"National Lampoon") were bought by a company called
J2 Communications J2 Communications was a video/television production and distribution company that was founded in 1986 by James P. Jimirro, who had previously been the founding president of the Disney Channel and then a CBS executive. J2 Communications distributed ...
(a company previously known for marketing
Tim Conway Thomas Daniel "Tim" Conway (December 15, 1933 – May 14, 2019) was an American actor, comedian, writer, and director. From 1966 to 2012 he appeared in more than 100 TV shows, TV series and films. Among his more notable roles, he portrayed the ...
's ''
Dorf Dorf may refer to: * Dorf (surname) * Dorf (character), portrayed by Tim Conway * ''Dorf'', German term for 'village', see Town#Germany * Dorf, Germany (disambiguation), various settlements * Dorf, Switzerland, a small town * DORF (film festi ...
'' videos), headed by James P. Jimirro. J2 Communications' focus was to make money by licensing out the "National Lampoon" brand. The company was contractually obligated to publish at least one new issue of the magazine per year to retain the rights to the Lampoon name. However, the company had very little interest in the magazine; throughout the 1990s, the number of issues per year declined precipitously and erratically. In 1991, an attempt at monthly publication was made; nine issues were produced that year. Only two issues were released in 1992. This was followed by one issue in 1993, five in 1994 and three in 1995. For the last three years of its existence, the magazine was published only once a year.


1998, last issue

The magazine's final print publication was November 1998, after which the contract was renegotiated and, in a sharp reversal, J2 Communications was then prohibited from publishing issues of the magazine. J2, however, still owned the rights to the
brand name A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's good or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create an ...
, which it continued to franchise out to other users. In 2002, the use of the brand name and the rights to republish old material were sold to a new, and otherwise unrelated, company which chose to call itself
National Lampoon, Incorporated National Lampoon, Inc. is a company formed in 2002 in order to use the brand name "National Lampoon" in comedy and entertainment following the tradition of its magazine predecessor, '' The National Lampoon''. In the words of its prospectus, the ...
.


2007, DVD-ROM

In 2007, in association with Graphic Imaging Technology, Inc. National Lampoon, Inc. released a collection of the entire 246 issues of the magazine in .pdf format viewable with Adobe Acrobat. The cover of the DVD box featured a remake of the January 1973 "Death" issue, with the caption altered to read "If You Don”t Buy This DVD-ROM, We’ll Kill This Dog". The pages are viewable on both Windows (starting with Windows 2000) and Macintosh (starting with OSX) systems.


Related media

During its most active period, the magazine spun off numerous productions in a wide variety of media. ''National Lampoon'' released books, special issues, anthologies, and other print pieces, including:


Special editions

* ''
The Best of National Lampoon No. 1 ''The Best of National Lampoon No.1'' was a humorous American book that was first published in 1971. The book was a special issue of National Lampoon (magazine), ''National Lampoon'' magazine, so it was sold on newsstands. However, it was put out ...
'', 1971, an anthology * ''
The Breast of National Lampoon ''The Breast of National Lampoon: A Collection of Sexual Humor'', is an American humor book that was first published in 1972. The book was a special issue of ''National Lampoon'' magazine, so it was sold on newsstands; however, it was put out in ...
'' (a "Best of" No. 2), 1972, an anthology * ''
The Best of National Lampoon No. 3 ''The Best of National Lampoon #3'' was an American humor book published in 1973. The book was an anthology of articles from ''National Lampoon'' magazine. It was sold on newsstands, but was published in parallel with the regular issues of the ...
'', 1973, an anthology, art directed by Michael Gross * '' National Lampoon The Best of #4'', 1973, an anthology, art directed by Gross * ''
The National Lampoon Encyclopedia of Humor ''National Lampoon Encyclopedia of Humor'' is an American humor book that was first published in 1973 in hardback. It was a "special issue" of '' National Lampoon'' magazine, so it was sold on newsstands; however, it was put out in addition to the ...
'', 1973, edited by Michael O'Donoghue and art directed by Gross.
This publication featured the fake
Volkswagen Volkswagen (),English: , . abbreviated as VW (), is a German Automotive industry, motor vehicle manufacturer headquartered in Wolfsburg, Lower Saxony, Germany. Founded in 1937 by the German Labour Front under the Nazi Party and revived into a ...
ad seen above, which was written by Anne Beatts. The spoof was listed in the contents page as "
Doyle Dane Bernbach DDB Worldwide Communications Group LLC, known internationally as DDB, is a worldwide marketing communications network. It is owned by Omnicom Group, one of the world's largest advertising holding companies. The international advertising networks ...
," the name of the advertising agency that had produced the iconic 1960s ad campaign for Volkswagen. According to Mark Simonson's "Very Large National Lampoon Site": ''"If you buy a copy of this issue, you may find the ad is missing. As a result of a lawsuit by VW over the ad for unauthorized use of their trademark, NatLamp was forced to remove the page (with razor blades!) from any copies they still had in inventory (which, from what I gather, was about half the first printing of 250,000 copies) and all subsequent reprints."'' * ''
National Lampoon Comics ''National Lampoon Comics'' was an American book, an anthology of comics; it was published in 1974 in paperback. Although it is to all appearances a book, it was apparently considered to be a special edition of National Lampoon (magazine), ''Natio ...
'', an anthology, 1974, art directed by Gross and David Kaestle * '' National Lampoon The Best of No. 5'', 1974, an anthology, art directed by Gross and Kaestle * ''
National Lampoon 1964 High School Yearbook Parody ''National Lampoon 1964 High School Yearbook Parody'' is an American humor book that was first published in 1973. It was a spin-off from '' National Lampoon'' magazine. The book was a parody of a high school yearbook from the early 1960s. It w ...
'', 1974, Edited by P.J. O'Rourke and Doug Kenney, art directed by Kaestle. * ''
National Lampoon Presents The Very Large Book of Comical Funnies ''National Lampoon Presents The Very Large Book of Comical Funnies'' is an American humor book, a book of comic strips that was published in 1975 in paperback as a spin-off of ''National Lampoon'' magazine. Although it appears to be a book, in ...
'', 1975, edited by Sean Kelly * ''
National Lampoon The 199th Birthday Book ''National Lampoon The 199th Birthday Book: A Tribute to the United States of America, 1776–1975'' was an American humor book that was issued in 1975 in paperback. Although it appears to be a regular book, it was a "special issue" of ''Nation ...
'', 1975, edited by Tony Hendra * ''
National Lampoon The Gentleman's Bathroom Companion ''National Lampoon The Gentleman's Bathroom Companion'' was a humorous book that was first published in 1975. It was a "special edition" of '' National Lampoon'' magazine, and as such it was sold on newsstands in addition to that month's regular ...
'', 1975 edited by Hendra, art directed by Peter Kleinman * ''
Official National Lampoon Bicentennial Calendar 1976 ''Official National Lampoon Bicentennial Calendar 1976'' was an American humorous calendar that was published in 1975 as a spin-off from ''National Lampoon'' magazine. It was written and compiled by Christopher Cerf and Bill Effros. The cover ar ...
'', 1975, written and compiled by Christopher Cerf & Bill Effros * '' National Lampoon Art Poster Book'', 1975, Design direction by Peter Kleinman * ''The Best of National Lampoon No. 6'', 1976, an anthology * ''
National Lampoon The Iron On Book ''National Lampoon The Iron On Book'' was an American humor book that was published in 1976. It was a "special edition" of ''National Lampoon'' magazine and as such it was sold on newsstands along with the regular monthly issue of the magazine. ...
'' 1976, Original T-shirt designs, edited by Tony Hendra, art directed by Peter Kleinman. * ''
National Lampoon Songbook ''National Lampoon Songbook'' was an American humorous songbook which was issued in 1976. Although it appears to be a book in its own right, it was a "special issue" of ''National Lampoon'' magazine and as such it was only sold on newsstands. P ...
'', 1976, edited by Sean Kelly, musical parodies in sheet music form * '' National Lampoon The Naked and the Nude: Hollywood and Beyond'', 1977, written by Brian McConnachie * ''The Best of National Lampoon No. 7'', 1977, an anthology * ''
National Lampoon Presents French Comics ''National Lampoon Presents French Comics (The Kind Men Like)'' is an American humor book first published in 1977 in hardcover. It was a spin-off of ''National Lampoon'' magazine. The book is a collection of translated comics by French comic bo ...
'', 1977, edited by
Peter Kaminsky Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a sur ...
, translators Sophie Balcoff, Sean Kelly, and Valerie Marchant * ''
National Lampoon The Up Yourself Book ''National Lampoon The Up Yourself Book'' was an American humor book that was published on January 1, 1977. Although it appears to be a book, this was a "special edition" of ''National Lampoon'' magazine, and as such it was sold in newsstands alo ...
'', 1977, Gerry Sussman * ''
National Lampoon Gentleman's Bathroom Companion 2 ''National Lampoon Gentleman's Bathroom Companion II'' was a humorous book that was first published in 1977. It was a spin-off from '' National Lampoon'' magazine and a follow-up to the ''National Lampoon The Gentleman's Bathroom Companion''. The ...
'', 1977, art directed by Peter Kleinman. * ''
National Lampoon The Book of Books ''National Lampoon Book of Books'' was an American humor book that was published in 1979 in hardcover. It was a spin-off of ''National Lampoon'' magazine. It consisted of parodies of best-sellers. The book was edited by Jeff Greenfield, contribut ...
'', 1977 edited by Jeff Greenfield, art directed by Peter Kleinman * ''The Best of National Lampoon No. 8'', 1978, an anthology, Cover photo by Chris Callis, art directed by Peter Kleinman * '' National Lampoon's Animal House Book'', 1978, Chris Miller,
Harold Ramis Harold Allen Ramis (; November 21, 1944 – February 24, 2014) was an American actor, comedian, director and writer. His best-known film acting roles were as Egon Spengler in ''Ghostbusters'' (1984) and '' Ghostbusters II'' (1989), and as Russel ...
,
Doug Kenney Douglas Clark Francis Kenney (December 10, 1946 – August 27, 1980) was an American comedy writer of magazine, novels, radio, TV and film who co-founded the magazine ''National Lampoon'' in 1970. Kenney edited the magazine and wrote much of its ...
Art Direction by Peter Kleinman and Judith Jacklin Belushi * ''
National Lampoon Sunday Newspaper Parody ''National Lampoon Sunday Newspaper Parody'' is an American humor "book", a parody that was first published in 1978 by ''National Lampoon'' magazine. In the first printing, this publication had exactly the same form and apparent content as that ...
'', 1978 (claiming to be a Sunday issue of the
Dacron Polyethylene terephthalate (or poly(ethylene terephthalate), PET, PETE, or the obsolete PETP or PET-P), is the most common thermoplastic polymer resin of the polyester family and is used in fibres for clothing, containers for liquids and foods ...
,
Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...
(a spoof on
Akron, Ohio Akron () is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Summit County, Ohio, Summit County. It is located on the western edge of the Glaciated Allegheny Plateau, about south of downtown Cleveland. As of the 2020 C ...
) ''Republican–Democrat'', this publication was originally issued in loose newsprint sections, mimicking a genuine American Sunday newspaper.) Art Direction and Design by Skip Johnston * '' National Lampoon Presents Claire Bretécher'', 1978, work by
Claire Bretécher Claire Bretécher (; 17 April 1940 – 10 February 2020)
on Lambiek Comiclopedia was a French
Sean Kelly (editor), Translator Valerie Marchant * '' Slightly Higher in Canada'', 1978, Anthology of Canadian humor from National Lampoon. Sean Kelly and
Ted Mann Ted Mann (April 16, 1916 – January 15, 2001) was an American businessman involved in the film industry and head of Mann Theatres. In 1973, he purchased the National General Theatre chain and changed the name of Grauman's Chinese Theatre, wh ...
(Editors) * '' Cartoons Even We Won't Dare Print'', 1979, Sean Kelly and
John Weidman John Weidman (born September 25, 1946) is an American librettist and television writer for ''Sesame Street''. He has worked on stage musicals with Stephen Sondheim and Susan Stroman. Career Weidman was born in New York City and grew up in Westpor ...
(Editors), Simon and Schuster * ''
National Lampoon The Book of Books ''National Lampoon Book of Books'' was an American humor book that was published in 1979 in hardcover. It was a spin-off of ''National Lampoon'' magazine. It consisted of parodies of best-sellers. The book was edited by Jeff Greenfield, contribut ...
'', 1979, Edited by Jeff Greenfield. Designed and Art Directed by Peter Kleinman * '' National Lampoon Tenth Anniversary Anthology 1970–1980'' 1979 Edited by P.J. O'Rourke, art directed by Peter Kleinman * ''National Lampoon Best Of #9: The Good Parts 1978-1980'', 1981, the last anthology.


Books

* '' Would You Buy A Used War From This Man?'', 1972, edited by Henry Beard * '' Letters from the Editors of National Lampoon'', 1973, edited by Brian McConnachie * '' National Lampoon This Side of Parodies'', 1974, edited by Brian McConnachie and Sean Kelly * '' The Paperback Conspiracy'', 1974, Anthology,
Brian McConnachie Brian McConnachie (born December 23, 1942) is an American actor, comedy writer, and children's book author. In 1982, he won an Emmy Award as part of the writing team for ''SCTV Network'', and in 1979 he was nominated for an Emmy as part of the w ...
(editor) Warner Paperback Library * ''
The Job of Sex ''National Lampoon The Job of Sex: a Workingman's Guide to Productive Lovemaking'' is a humorous book that was first published in 1974. It was a spin-off from '' National Lampoon'' magazine. The book was a parody of the 1972 book, ''The Joy of Sex ...
'', 1974, edited by Brian McConnachie * ''
A Dirty Book! A, or a, is the first letter and the first vowel of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''a'' (pronounced ), plural ''aes'' ...
'', 1976, Sexual Humor from the ''National Lampoon''.
P.J. O'Rourke Patrick Jake O'Rourke (November 14, 1947 – February 15, 2022) was an American libertarian political satirist and journalist. O'Rourke was the H. L. Mencken Research Fellow at the libertarian Cato Institute and a regular correspondent for ''Th ...
(editor). New American Library, * ''
Another Dirty Book Another or variant may refer to: * anOther or Another Magazine, culture and fashion magazine * Another (novel), ''Another'' (novel), a Japanese horror novel ** Another (film), ''Another'' (film), a Japanese 2012 live-action film based on the novel ...
'' Sexual Humor from the ''National Lampoon''.
P.J. O'Rourke Patrick Jake O'Rourke (November 14, 1947 – February 15, 2022) was an American libertarian political satirist and journalist. O'Rourke was the H. L. Mencken Research Fellow at the libertarian Cato Institute and a regular correspondent for ''Th ...
and
Peter Kaminsky Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a sur ...
(editors) * ''
National Lampoon's Doon ''National Lampoon's Doon'' is a parody of Frank Herbert's 1965 science fiction novel '' Dune'', written by Ellis Weiner and published in 1984 by Pocket Books for '' National Lampoon''. It was reprinted by Grafton Books () in 1985. In 1988 W ...
'', 1984 "True Facts" special editions and books * '' National Lampoon True Facts'', 1981, compiled by
John Bendel John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...
, special edition * '' National Lampoon Peekers & Other True Facts'', 1982, by John Bendel, special edition * '' National Lampoon Presents True Facts: The Book'', 1991, by John Bendel "Amazing Ads, Stupefying Signs, Weird Wedding Announcements, and Other Absurd-but-True Samples of Real-Life Funny stuff" by John Bendel, trade paperback by Contemporary Press (now McGraw Hill) * '' National Lampoon Presents More True Facts'', 1992 Contemporary Press * '' National Lampoon's Big Book of True Facts: 2004 Brand-New Collection of Absurd-but-True Real-Life Funny Stuff'' :(There were also four all-True-Facts regular issues of the magazine, in 1985, 1986, 1987, and 1988.)


Recordings


Vinyl

Vinyl Vinyl may refer to: Chemistry * Polyvinyl chloride (PVC), a particular vinyl polymer * Vinyl cation, a type of carbocation * Vinyl group, a broad class of organic molecules in chemistry * Vinyl polymer, a group of polymers derived from vinyl m ...
record album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records coll ...
s * '' National Lampoon Radio Dinner'', 1972, produced by Tony Hendra * ''
Lemmings A lemming is a small rodent, usually found in or near the Arctic in tundra biomes. Lemmings form the subfamily Arvicolinae (also known as Microtinae) together with voles and muskrats, which form part of the superfamily Muroidea, which also include ...
'', 1973, an album of material taken from the stage show ''Lemmings'', and produced by Tony Hendra * '' National Lampoon Missing White House Tapes'', 1974, an album taken from the radio show, creative directors Tony Hendra and Sean Kelly * ''
Official National Lampoon Stereo Test and Demonstration Record The ''Official National Lampoon Stereo Test and Demonstration Record'' is a comedy album released by '' National Lampoon'' in 1974, in vinyl LP format. The album is a parody of stereo test and demonstration records, which were used by hi-fi ent ...
'', 1974, conceived by and written by Ed Subitzky * ''
National Lampoon Gold Turkey ''National Lampoon'' was an American humor magazine that ran from 1970 to 1998. The magazine started out as a spinoff from the ''Harvard Lampoon''. ''National Lampoon'' magazine reached its height of popularity and critical acclaim during the ...
'', 1975, creative director Brian McConnachie. Cover Photography by Chris Callis. Art Direction by Peter Kleinman * ''
National Lampoon Goodbye Pop 1952–1976 ''National Lampoon'' was an American humor magazine that ran from 1970 to 1998. The magazine started out as a Spin-off (media), spinoff from the ''Harvard Lampoon''. ''National Lampoon'' magazine reached its height of popularity and critical a ...
'', 1975, creative director Sean Kelly * '' National Lampoon That's Not Funny, That's Sick'', 1977. Art directed by Peter Kleinman. Illustrated by Sam Gross * '' National Lampoon's Animal House (album)'', 1978, soundtrack album from the movie * ''
Greatest Hits of the National Lampoon ''National Lampoon'' was an American humor magazine that ran from 1970 to 1998. The magazine started out as a spinoff from the '' Harvard Lampoon''. ''National Lampoon'' magazine reached its height of popularity and critical acclaim during t ...
'', 1978 * ''
National Lampoon White Album ''National Lampoon White Album'' is an American album of humorous songs and spoken word skits. It was originally released as a vinyl record and cassette tape in 1980, but it was reissued and is still available as a CD. It was written and performe ...
'', 1979 * '' National Lampoon Sex, Drugs, Rock 'N' Roll & the End of the World'', 1982 Vinyl
singles Singles are people not in a committed relationship. Singles may also refer to: Film and television * ''Singles'' (miniseries), a 1984 Australian television series * ''Singles'' (1992 film), written and directed by Cameron Crowe * ''Singles'' ...
* A snide parody of
Les Crane Les Crane (born Lesley Stein; December 3, 1933 – July 13, 2008) was a radio announcer and television talk show host, a pioneer in interactive broadcasting who also scored a spoken word hit with his 1971 recording of the poem ''Desiderata'', w ...
's 1971 hit "
Desiderata "Desiderata" (Latin: "things desired") is an early 1920s prose poem by the American writer Max Ehrmann. Although he copyrighted it in 1927, he distributed copies of it without a required copyright notice during 1933 and , thereby forfeiting his ...
", written by Tony Hendra, was recorded and released as "
Deteriorata "Deteriorata" is a comedy record released as a single in 1972. It is a parody of Les Crane's 1971 spoken word recording of "Desiderata", the early 20th-century poem by Max Ehrmann. ("Desiderata" is Latin for "desired things"; "deteriorata" is a p ...
", and stayed on the lower reaches of the ''Billboard'' magazine charts for a month in late 1972. "Deteriorata" also became one of ''National Lampoon'' bestselling posters. * The gallumphing theme to ''
Animal House ''National Lampoon's Animal House'' is a 1978 American comedy film directed by John Landis and written by Harold Ramis, Douglas Kenney and Chris Miller. It stars John Belushi, Peter Riegert, Tim Matheson, John Vernon, Verna Bloom, Thomas Hu ...
'' rose slightly higher and charted slightly longer in December 1978.


Cassette tape

* '' National Lampoon Radio Dinner'', 1972, produced by Tony Hendra * ''
Lemmings A lemming is a small rodent, usually found in or near the Arctic in tundra biomes. Lemmings form the subfamily Arvicolinae (also known as Microtinae) together with voles and muskrats, which form part of the superfamily Muroidea, which also include ...
'', 1973, an album of material taken from the stage show ''Lemmings'', and produced by Tony Hendra * '' National Lampoon Missing White House Tapes'', 1974, an album taken from the radio show, creative directors Tony Hendra and Sean Kelly * ''
National Lampoon Gold Turkey ''National Lampoon'' was an American humor magazine that ran from 1970 to 1998. The magazine started out as a spinoff from the ''Harvard Lampoon''. ''National Lampoon'' magazine reached its height of popularity and critical acclaim during the ...
'', 1975, creative director Brian McConnachie. Cover Photography by Chris Callis. Art Direction by Peter Kleinman * ''
National Lampoon Goodbye Pop 1952–1976 ''National Lampoon'' was an American humor magazine that ran from 1970 to 1998. The magazine started out as a Spin-off (media), spinoff from the ''Harvard Lampoon''. ''National Lampoon'' magazine reached its height of popularity and critical a ...
'', 1975, creative director Sean Kelly * '' National Lampoon That's Not Funny, That's Sick'', 1977. Art directed by Peter Kleinman. Illustrated by Sam Gross * '' National Lampoon's Animal House (album)'', 1978, soundtrack album from the movie * ''
Greatest Hits of the National Lampoon ''National Lampoon'' was an American humor magazine that ran from 1970 to 1998. The magazine started out as a spinoff from the '' Harvard Lampoon''. ''National Lampoon'' magazine reached its height of popularity and critical acclaim during t ...
'', 1978 * ''
National Lampoon White Album ''National Lampoon White Album'' is an American album of humorous songs and spoken word skits. It was originally released as a vinyl record and cassette tape in 1980, but it was reissued and is still available as a CD. It was written and performe ...
'', 1979 * '' The Official National Lampoon Car Stereo Test and Demonstration Tape'', 1980, conceived and written by
Ed Subitzky Ed Subitzky, full name Edward Jack Subitzky (born March 19, 1943), is an American writer and artist. He is best known as a cartoonist, comics artist, and humorist. He has worked as a television comedy writer and performer, a writer and performer ...
* '' National Lampoon Sex, Drugs, Rock 'N' Roll & the End of the World'', 1982


CDs

* A single CD release, ''
National Lampoon Gold Turkey ''National Lampoon'' was an American humor magazine that ran from 1970 to 1998. The magazine started out as a spinoff from the ''Harvard Lampoon''. ''National Lampoon'' magazine reached its height of popularity and critical acclaim during the ...
'' recordings from ''
The National Lampoon Radio Hour ''The National Lampoon Radio Hour'' was a comedy radio show which was created, produced and written by staff from ''National Lampoon'' magazine. The show ran weekly, for a little over a year, from November 17, 1973 to December 28, 1974. Orig ...
'', was released by
Rhino Records A rhinoceros (; ; ), commonly abbreviated to rhino, is a member of any of the five extant species (or numerous extinct species) of odd-toed ungulates in the family Rhinocerotidae. (It can also refer to a member of any of the extinct species o ...
in 1996. * A three-CD boxed set '' Buy This Box or We'll Shoot This Dog: The Best of the National Lampoon Radio Hour'' was released in 1996. Many of the older albums that were originally on vinyl have been re-issued as CDs and a number of tracks from certain albums are available as MP3s.


Radio

* ''
The National Lampoon Radio Hour ''The National Lampoon Radio Hour'' was a comedy radio show which was created, produced and written by staff from ''National Lampoon'' magazine. The show ran weekly, for a little over a year, from November 17, 1973 to December 28, 1974. Orig ...
'' was a nationally syndicated
radio Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmit ...
comedy show which was on the air weekly from 1973 to 1974. For a complete listing of shows, see. Former Lampoon editor
Tony Hendra Anthony Christopher "Tony" Hendra (10 July 1941 – 4 March 2021) was an English satirist, actor and writer who worked mostly in the United States. Educated at St Albans School (where he was a classmate of Stephen Hawking) and at St John's Col ...
late
revived this format
in 2012 for The Final Edition Radio Hour, which became
podcast for National Lampoon, Inc.
in 2015. * '' True Facts'', 1977–1978, written by and starring Peter Kaminsky, Ellis Weiner, Danny Abelson, Sylvia Grant


Theater

* ''
Lemmings A lemming is a small rodent, usually found in or near the Arctic in tundra biomes. Lemmings form the subfamily Arvicolinae (also known as Microtinae) together with voles and muskrats, which form part of the superfamily Muroidea, which also include ...
'' (1973) was ''National Lampoon'' most successful theatrical venture. The
off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer tha ...
production took the form of a parody of the
Woodstock Festival Woodstock Music and Art Fair, commonly referred to as Woodstock, was a music festival held during August 15–18, 1969, on Max Yasgur's dairy farm in Bethel, New York, United States, southwest of the town of Woodstock, New York, Woodstock. ...
. Co-written by Tony Hendra and Sean Kelly, and directed and produced by Hendra, it introduced
John Belushi John Adam Belushi (January 24, 1949 – March 5, 1982) was an American comedian, actor, and musician, best known for being one of the seven original cast members of the NBC sketch comedy show ''Saturday Night Live'' (''SNL''). Throughout his ca ...
,
Chevy Chase Cornelius Crane "Chevy" Chase (; born October 8, 1943) is an American comedian, actor and writer. He became a key cast member in the first season of ''Saturday Night Live'', where his recurring ''Weekend Update'' segment became a staple of the ...
and
Christopher Guest Christopher Haden-Guest, 5th Baron Haden-Guest (born February 5, 1948) is an American-British screenwriter, composer, musician, director, actor, and comedian. Guest is most widely known in Hollywood for having written, directed, and starred in ...
in their first major roles. The show formed several companies and ran for a year at New York's
Village Gate The Village Gate was a nightclub at the corner of Thompson and Bleecker Streets in Greenwich Village, New York. Art D'Lugoff opened the club in 1958, on the ground floor and basement of 160 Bleecker Street. The large 1896 Chicago school (architec ...
. A touring show called "That's not Funny That's Sick" toured the US & Canada 1976-77 * ''
The National Lampoon Radio Hour ''The National Lampoon Radio Hour'' was a comedy radio show which was created, produced and written by staff from ''National Lampoon'' magazine. The show ran weekly, for a little over a year, from November 17, 1973 to December 28, 1974. Orig ...
'', 1975, with John Belushi, Brian Doyle Murray, Bill Murray, Gilda Radner and Harold Ramis. * '' If We're Late, Start Without Us!'', 1979, head writer Sean Kelly * '' National Lampoon's Class of '86'': This show was performed at the
Village Gate The Village Gate was a nightclub at the corner of Thompson and Bleecker Streets in Greenwich Village, New York. Art D'Lugoff opened the club in 1958, on the ground floor and basement of 160 Bleecker Street. The large 1896 Chicago school (architec ...
in 1986, aired on cable in the 1980s, and was subsequently available on VHS.


Television

* ''
Delta House ''Delta House'' is an American sitcom that was adapted from the 1978 film ''National Lampoon's Animal House.'' The series aired from January 18 to April 21, 1979 on ABC. Casting Cast members reprising their roles from ''Animal House'' included ...
'', 1979, Universal Television for ABC-TV Network (two derivative frat house projects, NBC's Brothers and Sisters and CBS'
Co-Ed Fever ''Co-Ed Fever'' is an American sitcom that aired on CBS in 1979. The series attempted to capitalize on the success of the motion picture ''National Lampoon's Animal House''. It was the third of three "frat house" comedy series to air in early 1 ...
aired at the same time. None of the series were successful.) * '' National Lampoon's Comedy Playoffs'', 1990, Showtime Networks


Films

Considerable ambiguity exists about what actually constitutes a ''National Lampoon'' film. During the 1970s and early 1980s, a few films were made as spin-offs from the original ''National Lampoon'' magazine, using its creative staff. The first theatrical release, and by far the most successful ''National Lampoon'' film was ''
National Lampoon's Animal House ''National Lampoon's Animal House'' is a 1978 American comedy film directed by John Landis and written by Harold Ramis, Douglas Kenney and Chris Miller. It stars John Belushi, Peter Riegert, Tim Matheson, John Vernon, Verna Bloom, Thomas Hulc ...
'' (1978). Starring John Belushi and written by Doug Kenney, Harold Ramis, and Chris Miller, it became the highest-grossing comedy film of that time. Produced on a low budget, it was so enormously profitable that, from that point on for the next two decades, the name "National Lampoon" applied to the title of a movie was considered to be a valuable selling point in and of itself. Numerous movies were subsequently made that had "National Lampoon" as part of the title. Many of these were unrelated projects because, by that time, the name "National Lampoon" could simply be licensed on a one-time basis, by any company, for a fee. Critics such as the ''
Orlando Sentinel The ''Orlando Sentinel'' is the primary newspaper of Orlando, Florida, and the Central Florida region. It was founded in 1876 and is currently owned by Tribune Publishing Company. The ''Orlando Sentinel'' is owned by parent company, '' Tribune P ...
''′s Roger Moore and ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
''′ Andrew Adam Newman have written about the cheapening of the ''National Lampoon''′s movie imprimatur; in 2006, an
Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...
review said: "The National Lampoon, once a brand name above nearly all others in comedy, has become shorthand for pathetic frat boy humor." The first of the ''National Lampoon'' movies was a not-very-successful made-for-TV movie: * ''
Disco Beaver from Outer Space ''Disco Beaver from Outer Space'' is an early production by '' National Lampoon'', made for HBO in 1979. The short film is a collection of comedy sketches, contained within the main story which is centered on two characters: the protagonist, an e ...
'', broadcast in 1978.


''National Lampoon's Animal House''

In 1978, ''National Lampoon's
Animal House ''National Lampoon's Animal House'' is a 1978 American comedy film directed by John Landis and written by Harold Ramis, Douglas Kenney and Chris Miller. It stars John Belushi, Peter Riegert, Tim Matheson, John Vernon, Verna Bloom, Thomas Hu ...
'' was released. Made on a small budget, it did phenomenally well at the box office. In 2001, the United States
Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library is ...
considered the film "culturally significant", and preserved it in the
National Film Registry The National Film Registry (NFR) is the United States National Film Preservation Board's (NFPB) collection of films selected for preservation, each selected for its historical, cultural and aesthetic contributions since the NFPB’s inception i ...
. The script had its origins in a series of short stories that had been previously published in the magazine. These included Chris Miller's "Night of the Seven Fires", which dramatized a fraternity initiation and included the characters Pinto and Otter, which contained prose versions of the toga party, the "road trip", and the dead horse incident. Another source was Doug Kenney's "First Lay Comics", which included the angel and devil scene and the grocery-cart affair. According to the authors, most of these elements were based on real incidents. The film was of great cultural significance to its time, as ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' describes the magazine's 1970s period as "Hedonism in full sway and political correctness in its infancy."
Animal House ''National Lampoon's Animal House'' is a 1978 American comedy film directed by John Landis and written by Harold Ramis, Douglas Kenney and Chris Miller. It stars John Belushi, Peter Riegert, Tim Matheson, John Vernon, Verna Bloom, Thomas Hu ...
, as the article describes was a crucial film manifestation of that culture. An article from ''
The Atlantic Monthly ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher. It features articles in the fields of politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 1857 in Boston, ...
'' describes how ''Animal House'' captures the struggle between "elitist who willingly aligned itself with the establishment, and the kind full of kooks who refused to be tamed." That concept was a crucial figment of the early National Lampoon Magazine, according to a ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' article concerning the early years of the Magazine and co-founder Douglas Kenney's brand of comedy as a "liberating response to a rigid and hypocritical culture."


''National Lampoon's Class Reunion''

This 1982 movie was an attempt by John Hughes to make something similar to ''Animal House''. ''
National Lampoon's Class Reunion ''Class Reunion'' is a 1982 American black comedy film produced by '' National Lampoon'' as the third film from the magazine. It was the second film released; although '' National Lampoon Goes To The Movies'' was filmed in 1981, it was delayed and ...
'' was not successful, however.


''National Lampoon's Vacation''

Released in 1983, the movie ''
National Lampoon's Vacation ''National Lampoon's Vacation'', sometimes referred to as simply ''Vacation'', is a 1983 American road trip comedy film directed by Harold Ramis starring Chevy Chase, Beverly D'Angelo, Imogene Coca, Randy Quaid, John Candy, and Christie Brink ...
'' was based upon John Hughes's ''National Lampoon'' story "Vacation '58". The movie's financial success gave rise to several follow-up films, including ''
National Lampoon's European Vacation ''National Lampoon's European Vacation'' is a 1985 American comedy film directed by Amy Heckerling and written by Robert Klane. The second film in National Lampoon's ''Vacation'' film series, it stars Chevy Chase, Beverly D'Angelo, Dana Hill, ...
'' (1985), ''
National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation ''National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation'' is a 1989 American Christmas comedy film and the third installment in ''National Lampoon'' magazine's ''Vacation'' film series. ''Christmas Vacation'' was directed by Jeremiah S. Chechik, written and co ...
'' (1989), based on John Hughes's "Christmas '59", ''
Vegas Vacation ''Vegas Vacation'' is a 1997 American comedy film directed by Stephen Kessler in his feature directorial debut. It is the fourth installment in '' National Lampoon''’s ''Vacation'' film series, and was written by Elisa Bell, based on a story by ...
'' (1997), and most recently ''
Vacation A vacation (American English) or holiday (British English) is either a leave of absence from a regular job or an instance of leisure travel away from home. People often take a vacation during specific holiday observances or for specific festi ...
'' (2015), all featuring
Chevy Chase Cornelius Crane "Chevy" Chase (; born October 8, 1943) is an American comedian, actor and writer. He became a key cast member in the first season of ''Saturday Night Live'', where his recurring ''Weekend Update'' segment became a staple of the ...
.


Similar films

The
Robert Altman Robert Bernard Altman ( ; February 20, 1925 – November 20, 2006) was an American film director, screenwriter, and producer. He was a five-time nominee of the Academy Award for Best Director and is considered an enduring figure from the New H ...
film '' O.C. and Stiggs'' (1987) was based on two characters who had been featured in several written pieces in ''National Lampoon'' magazine, including an issue-long story from October 1982 entitled "The Utterly Monstrous, Mind-Roasting Summer of O.C. and Stiggs." Completed in 1984, the film was not released until 1987, when it was shown in a small number of theaters and without the "National Lampoon" name. It was not a success. Following the success of ''Animal House'', '' MAD'' magazine lent its name to a 1980 comedy titled ''
Up the Academy ''Mad Magazine Presents Up the Academy,'' often shortened to ''Up the Academy,'' is a 1980 American comedy film directed by Robert Downey Sr. and starring Wendell Brown, Tommy Citera, Ron Leibman, Harry Teinowitz, Hutch Parker, Ralph Macchio, T ...
''. Although two of ''Animal House'' co-writers were the ''Lampoon'' Doug Kenney and Chris Miller, ''Up The Academy'' was strictly a licensing maneuver, with no creative input from ''Mad'' staff or contributors. It was a critical and commercial failure.


Film about the magazine

In 2015, a documentary film was released called '' National Lampoon: Drunk Stoned Brilliant Dead''. The film featured a great deal of content from the magazine, as well as interviews with staff members and fans, and it explains how the magazine changed the course of humor. The 2018 film ''
A Futile and Stupid Gesture ''A Futile and Stupid Gesture: How Doug Kenney and National Lampoon Changed Comedy Forever'' is an American book by Josh Karp that was published in 2006. It is a history of ''National Lampoon'' magazine and one of its three founders, Doug Kenne ...
'', a biography of co-founder
Douglas Kenney Douglas Clark Francis Kenney (December 10, 1946 – August 27, 1980) was an American comedy writer of magazine, novels, radio, TV and film who co-founded the magazine National Lampoon (magazine), ''National Lampoon'' in 1970. Kenney edited the ma ...
, also depicts the magazine's early years. The film was described by a 2018 ''
New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
'' article as a "snapshot of a moment where comedy's freshest counter-culture impulse was gleefully crass and willfully offensive." In the same article, Kenney was said to "spot a comical hollowness and rot in the society he and his peers were trained to join."


Notes


References


Further reading

* '' Going Too Far'',
Tony Hendra Anthony Christopher "Tony" Hendra (10 July 1941 – 4 March 2021) was an English satirist, actor and writer who worked mostly in the United States. Educated at St Albans School (where he was a classmate of Stephen Hawking) and at St John's Col ...
, 1987, Doubleday, New York. * ''If You Don't Buy This Book, We'll Kill This Dog! Life, Laughs, Love, & Death at National Lampoon'' 1994, Matty Simmons, Barricade Books, New York. * '' Mr. Mike: The Life and Work of Michael O'Donoghue'', Dennis Perrin, 1998, AvonBooks, New York. * ''
A Futile and Stupid Gesture ''A Futile and Stupid Gesture: How Doug Kenney and National Lampoon Changed Comedy Forever'' is an American book by Josh Karp that was published in 2006. It is a history of ''National Lampoon'' magazine and one of its three founders, Doug Kenne ...
: How Doug Kenney and National Lampoon Changed Comedy Forever'', Josh Karp, 2006. * ''That's Not Funny, That's Sick: The National Lampoon and the Comedy Insurgents Who Captured the Mainstream'', Ellin Stein, 2013, W. W. Norton & Company, New York.


External links


Mark's Very Large ''National Lampoon'' website

Gallery of all ''National Lampoon'' covers, 1970-1998
* Two part interview with the ''Lampoon's'' first female contributing editor, Anne Beatts, on her involvement with the magazine







by
Jake Tapper Jacob Paul Tapper (born March 12, 1969) is an American journalist, author, and cartoonist. He is the lead Washington anchor for CNN, hosts the weekday television news show ''The Lead with Jake Tapper'', and co-hosts the Sunday morning public af ...
, ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'', July 3, 2005. * ttps://www.imdb.com/keyword/national-lampoon-series/ List of ''National Lampoon'' movies {{DEFAULTSORT:National Lampoon (Magazine) Satirical magazines published in the United States Black comedy Defunct magazines published in the United States English-language magazines Epic Records artists Magazines established in 1969 Magazines disestablished in 1998 Radar Records artists 1970s in comedy 1980s in comedy 1990s in comedy