Frank Jacobs (ice Hockey)
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Franklin Jacobs (May 30, 1929 – April 5, 2021) was an American author of satires, known primarily for his work in '' Mad'', to which he contributed from 1957 to 2014. Jacobs wrote a wide variety of lampoons and spoof, but was best known as a versifier who contributed
parodies A parody is a creative work designed to imitate, comment on, and/or mock its subject by means of satirical or ironic imitation. Often its subject is an original work or some aspect of it (theme/content, author, style, etc), but a parody can als ...
of famous song lyrics and poems.Bill Finger Award
In 2009, Jacobs described himself as "the least-known writer of hysterical light verse in the United States." In 2021, musical parodist
"Weird Al" Yankovic Alfred Matthew "Weird Al" Yankovic ( ; born October 23, 1959) is an American comedy musician, writer, and actor. He is best known for writing and performing Comedy music, comedy songs that often Parody music, parody specific songs by contempo ...
told the ''
Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...
'', “I absolutely devoured every issue f ''Mad'' and Frank Jacobs was a big reason for that obsession. I can’t swear that Frank’s work was my first-ever exposure to the art form of parody, but it was definitely the first time I had seen the craft approached with that much skill, wit and attention to detail. Frank laid out the template for me — he irrevocably changed my DNA.” Jacobs appeared in the sixth chapter of
PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...
' comedy documentary, ''Make 'em Laugh: The Funny Business of America'' singing "Blue Cross", his own 1961 parody of
Irving Berlin Irving Berlin (born Israel Isidore Beilin; May 11, 1888 – September 22, 1989) was a Russian-born American composer and songwriter. His music forms a large part of the Great American Songbook. Berlin received numerous honors including an Acade ...
's " Blue Skies". That lyric was one of 25 that were the subject of '' Berlin v. E.C. Publications, Inc.,'' a precedent-setting case that was appealed to the
Supreme Court In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
and helped to define the boundaries of
parody A parody is a creative work designed to imitate, comment on, and/or mock its subject by means of satire, satirical or irony, ironic imitation. Often its subject is an Originality, original work or some aspect of it (theme/content, author, style, e ...
in American law.


''Mad'' contributions

Bored by his work in a public relations firm, Jacobs found a copy of the magazine and thought "I can do this." When the firm folded Jacobs went to ''Mad''. Jacobs' first submission to the magazine, "Why I Left the Army and Became a Civilian," resulted in an immediate sale and a request for more material. It was one of five Jacobs pieces to appear in issue #33 (June 1957), marking a prodigious debut for the ''Mad'' contributor. His byline subsequently appeared in more than 300 issues of the magazine, second only to Dick DeBartolo among ''Mad'' writers who did not also illustrate their own work. Jacobs had more than 575 credits for the magazine, more than any other writer and second only to writer/artist
Al Jaffee Allan Jaffee (born Abraham Jaffee; March 13, 1921 – April 10, 2023) was an American cartoonist. He was notable for his work in the satire, satirical magazine ''Mad (magazine), Mad'', including his trademark feature, the Mad Fold-in, ''Mad'' F ...
. At his peak, Jacobs was writing a fifth of the magazine's content. "My top year, I sold 60 pages... so you get an idea of the roll I was on," Jacobs told an interviewer. 165 separate issues of ''Mad'' include multiple articles written by Jacobs. Jacobs established numerous recurring features in ''Mad'', including fabricated obituaries for fictional characters from various genres, and the "Do-It-Yourself Newspaper Stories" which offer a series of fill-in-the-blank options.


Books and writings

Jacobs wrote 13 paperback books under the ''Mad'' imprint, including ''Mad for Better or Verse'', a collection of poetry parodies, as well as the biography ''The Mad World of
William M. Gaines William Maxwell "Bill" Gaines (; March 1, 1922 – June 3, 1992) was an American publisher and co-editor of EC Comics. Following a shift in EC's direction in 1950, Gaines presided over what became an artistically influential and historically i ...
''. One of Jacobs' non-''Mad''-related projects was the 1965 ''Alvin Steadfast on Vernacular Island'', a gentle spoof of post-Victorian boys' books. The titular hero is a ten-year-old boy, who joins an adult explorer on Vernacular Island, a place populated by bizarre and wonderful creatures such as the Standing Ovation, the Ill Omen, the Glowing Report and the Ugly Rumor. The two humans go in search of the Doubt, and as their adventure takes them into the jungle, even more fabulous creatures are encountered. The original
Dial Press The Dial Press is a publishing house founded in 1923 by Lincoln MacVeagh. The Dial Press shared a building with ''The Dial'' and Scofield Thayer worked with both. The first imprint was issued in 1924. Authors included Elizabeth Bowen, W. R. Bur ...
edition was illustrated by
Edward Gorey Edward St. John Gorey (February 22, 1925 – April 15, 2000) was an Americans, American writer, Tony Awards, Tony Award-winning costume designer, and artist, noted for his own illustrated books as well as cover art and illustration for book ...
, in a non-characteristic whimsical style unlike his usual gleefully dark drawings. Jacobs' writing is only lightly cynical, with more of an emphasis on wordplay, puns and gentle humor.SF Site
/ref> Jacobs contributed to other magazines, including '' Oui'', ''
Playboy ''Playboy'' (stylized in all caps) is an American men's Lifestyle journalism, lifestyle and entertainment magazine, available both online and in print. It was founded in Chicago in 1953 by Hugh Hefner and his associates, funded in part by a $ ...
'', '' Town and Country'', ''
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...
'', ''
Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with a circulation of over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellen ...
'', '' Saturday Review'', '' Punch'' and ''
Signature A signature (; from , "to sign") is a depiction of someone's name, nickname, or even a simple "X" or other mark that a person writes on documents as a proof of identity and intent. Signatures are often, but not always, Handwriting, handwritt ...
''. At the 2009
San Diego Comic-Con San Diego Comic-Con is a comic book convention and multi-genre entertainment event held annually in San Diego, California, at the San Diego Convention Center. Founded in 1970, originally showcasing primarily comic books and science fiction/fant ...
, Jacobs received the Bill Finger Award for Excellence in Comic Book Writing.


''Mad'' bibliography

Jacobs' work appears in most of the ''Mad'' reprint compilations. Two ''Mad'' compendiums containing only reprinted work by Jacobs have been published: "MAD Zaps the Human Race" in 1984, and "Mad's Greatest Writers: Frank Jacobs - Five Decades of His Greatest Works" in 2015. He wrote 13 paperback books of new material under the ''Mad'' brand name: *''Mad For Better Or Verse'' (Signet 1968 / Warner Books, 1975) *''Sing Along with Mad'' (Signet 1970 / Warner Books, 1977 ) *''Mad About Sports'' (Warner Paperback Library, 1972) *''Mad's Talking Stamps'' (Warner Paperback Library, 1974) *''The Mad Turned-On Zoo'' (Warner Paperback Library, 1974), with co-writer Bob Clarke *''The Mad Jumble Book'' (Warner Paperback Library, 1975), with co-writer Max Brandel *''More Mad About Sports'' (Warner Books, 1977) *''Mad Around The World'' (Warner Books, 1979) *''Mad Goes Wild'' (Warner Books, 1981), with co-writer Bob Clarke *''Get Stuffed With Mad'' (Warner Books, 1981) *''The Mad Jock Book'' (Warner Books, 1983) *''Mad Goes To Pieces (Warner Books, 1984) *''Mad's Believe It Or Nuts!'' (Warner Books, 1986) Jacobs also contributed scripts to Don Martin's original paperbacks. In 2000, he provided the commentary for "'Mad' Cover to Cover," a book of the magazine's cover images.


Non-''Mad'' bibliography

*''Canvas Confidential – A Backward Glance at the World of Art'' (The Dial Press, 1963), co-written with Sy Reit *''30 Ways to Stop Smoking'' (Pocket Books, 1964), illustrated by Alfred Gescheidt *''The Highly Unlikely Celebrity Cookbook'' (New American Library, 1964) *''It Came From Madison Avenue'' (Kanrom Inc., New York, 1964), co-written with
Nick Meglin Nick Meglin (July 30, 1935 – June 2, 2018) was an American writer, humorist, and artist. He was known for his work as a contributor, comics writer, illustrator and editor for the satirical magazine '' Mad''. He also scripted ''Superfan'', a 1 ...
*''Alvin Steadfast on Vernacular Island'' (The Dial Press, 1965) *''The Mad World of William M. Gaines'' (Lyle Stuart, Inc., 1972; paperback edition, Bantam Books, 1973) *''Pitiless Parodies'' (Dover Books on Literature & Drama, 1994) *''Casey at the Bat Baseball Cards: The Mudville Nine'' (Dover Publications, 1995) *''Batty Baseball Cards'' (Dover Publications, 1995) *''Fun With Hand Shadows'' (Dover Games & Puzzle Activity Books, 1996), co-written with Henry Bursill *''Looney Limericks'' (Dover Games & Puzzle Activity Books, 1999)


References


External links


Complete list of Jacobs' ''Mad'' articles




* {{DEFAULTSORT:Jacobs, Frank American satirists American satirical comics writers American songwriters American parodists American humorists American humorous poets American satirical poets Bill Finger Award winners 1929 births 2021 deaths Mad (magazine) people 20th-century American writers 20th-century American poets 20th-century American male writers Writers from Lincoln, Nebraska