''The Realist'' was a

magazine A magazine is a periodical literature, periodical publication, print or digital, produced on a regular schedule, that contains any of a variety of subject-oriented textual and visual content (media), content forms. Magazines are generally fin ...

of "social-political-religious criticism and satire", intended as a hybrid of a grown-ups version of ''Mad'' and Lyle Stuart's anti-censorship monthly ''The Independent.'' Edited and published by Paul Krassner, and often regarded as a milestone in the American underground or countercultural press of the mid-20th century, it was a nationally-distributed newsstand publication as early as 1958. Publication was discontinued in 2001.Thefreelibrary.com
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History

First published in the spring of 1958 in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

in the offices of '' Mad'', ''The Realist'' appeared on a fairly regular schedule during the 1960s and then on an irregular schedule after the early 1970s. In 1984, it was revived as a much smaller newsletter. Articles and cartoons from the magazine were collected in a book, ''The Best of the Realist'' (Running Press, 1984). The final issue of ''The Realist'' was #146 (Spring 2001). ''The Realist'' provided a format for extreme satire in its articles, cartoons and Krassner's editorials, but it also carried more traditionally serious material in articles and interviews. The magazine also published political commentary from

Norman Mailer Nachem Malech Mailer (January 31, 1923 – November 10, 2007), known by his pen name Norman Kingsley Mailer, was an American writer, journalist and filmmaker. In a career spanning more than six decades, Mailer had 11 best-selling books, at least ...

Ken Kesey Ken Elton Kesey (; September 17, 1935 – November 10, 2001) was an American novelist, essayist and Counterculture of the 1960s, countercultural figure. He considered himself a link between the Beat Generation of the 1950s and the hippies o ...

and Joseph Heller.

Hoaxes and advertising

Masquerade Party

The first hoax directed toward mainstream culture involved the 1960 edition of the NBC show '' Masquerade Party''.Michael DooleyJuly (2000
Here Lies Paul Krassner
, at ''AIGA Journal of Graphic Design'', vol. 18, no. 2, 2000Paul Krassner (1960)

, ''The Realist'' n.16 March 1960, pp. 5–6Paul Krassner (1960).
Case History of a TV Hoax
, ''The Realist'' n. 18 June 1960, pp. 1, 3–4 Typically, television network executives would react swiftly and fearfully to viewer complaints, no matter how small or unjustified the viewer response. Testing this premise, angry letters containing no specific complaints at all were sent in response to a particular episode of the innocuous game show.

Bumper sticker

Among the more successful productions issued by Krassner was a red, white, and blue automobile bumper sticker, decorated with stars, which proclaimed " Fuck Communism". In advertising this item, Krassner advised that if anyone displaying the sticker received criticism, the critic should be told, "Go back to Russia, you Commie lover."

Disneyland Memorial Orgy poster

His ''Disneyland Memorial Orgy'' poster, illustrated by

Wally Wood Wallace Allan Wood (June 17, 1927 – November 2, 1981) was an American comic book writer, artist and independent publisher, widely known for his work on EC Comics's titles such as ''Weird Science (comic), Weird Science'', ''Weird Fantasy'', an ...

and published in the May 1967 issue, was a highlight of the magazine, so successful that Krassner printed it as a

poster A poster is a large sheet that is placed either on a public space to promote something or on a wall as decoration. Typically, posters include both typography, textual and graphic elements, although a poster may be either wholly graphical or w ...

that was widely pirated. The poster has been upgraded by Krassner into a new, digitally-colored version. A section of the image on the left shows Snow White being sexually assaulted by five of the seven dwarfs whilst the other two engage in anal sex nearby. This scene has been printed (often modified to be more explicit) on t-shirts and worn by punks with the title ''Snow White and the Sir Punks'', which have caused some offence. Other cartoonists featured in ''The Realist'' included Howard Shoemaker, Dick Guindon, Mort Gerberg, Bhob Stewart, Jonathan Richards and Lou Myers.

"The Parts That Were Left Out of the Kennedy Book"

Krassner's most successful prank was ''The Parts That Were Left Out of the Kennedy Book'', a grotesque article following the censorship of

William Manchester William Raymond Manchester (April 1, 1922 – June 1, 2004) was an American author, biographer, and historian. He was the author of 18 books which have been translated into over 20 languages. He was awarded the National Humanities Medal and the ...

's book on the Kennedy assassination, '' The Death of a President''. At the climax of the short story,

Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), also known as LBJ, was the 36th president of the United States, serving from 1963 to 1969. He became president after the assassination of John F. Kennedy, under whom he had served a ...

is on

Air Force One Air Force One is the official air traffic control-designated Aviation call signs, call sign for a United States Air Force aircraft carrying the president of the United States. The term is commonly used to denote U.S. Air Force aircraft modifie ...

sexually penetrating the bullet-hole wound in the throat of

JFK John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), also known as JFK, was the 35th president of the United States, serving from 1961 until Assassination of John F. Kennedy, his assassination in 1963. He was the first Catholic Chur ...

's corpse. Krassner acknowledged Marvin Garson, editor of the '' San Francisco Express Times'' and husband of Barbara Garson (author of the notorious anti-Johnson play '' MacBird!''), for coming up with that surreal image. According to Elliot Feldman, "Some members of the mainstream press and other Washington political wonks, including

Daniel Ellsberg Daniel Ellsberg (April 7, 1931June 16, 2023) was an American political activist, economist, and United States military analyst. While employed by the RAND Corporation, he precipitated a national political controversy in 1971 when he released th ...

of Pentagon Papers fame, actually believed this incident to be true." In a 1995 interview for the magazine '' Adbusters'', Krassner commented: "People across the country believed – if only for a moment – that an act of presidential necrophilia had taken place. It worked because

Jackie Kennedy Jacqueline Lee Kennedy Onassis ( ; July 28, 1929 – May 19, 1994) was an American writer, book editor, and socialite who served as the first lady of the United States from 1961 to 1963, as the wife of President John F. Kennedy. A popular f ...

had created so much curiosity by censoring the book she authorized –

's '' The Death of a President'' – because what I wrote was a metaphorical truth about LBJ's personality presented in a literary context, and because the imagery was so shocking, it broke through the notion that the war in Vietnam was being conducted by sane men." In 1967, the Canadian campus newspaper '' The McGill Daily'' published an excerpt from Krassner's story. The Montreal police confiscated the issue and Rocke Robertson, principal of

McGill University McGill University (French: Université McGill) is an English-language public research university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill University, Vol. I. For the Advancement of Learning, ...

, charged student John Fekete, the supplement editor responsible for the publication, before the Senate Discipline Committee.

Conspiracy theories

''The Realist'' was the first

satirical Satire is a genre of the visual arts, visual, literature, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently Nonfiction, non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ...

magazine to publish

conspiracy theories A conspiracy theory is an explanation for an event or situation that asserts the existence of a conspiracy (generally by powerful sinister groups, often political in motivation), when other explanations are more probable.Additional sources: * ...

.'' Conspiracy Encyclopedia: The Encyclopedia of Conspiracy Theories'', Thom Burnett, 2005, p. 86, It was the first magazine to carry Mae Brussell's work on conspiracies, which covered the kidnapping of Patty Hearst, the

Watergate scandal The Watergate scandal was a major political scandal in the United States involving the Presidency of Richard Nixon, administration of President Richard Nixon. The scandal began in 1972 and ultimately led to Resignation of Richard Nixon, Nix ...

, the assassination of JFK and other conspiracy theories. When the magazine ran into financial difficulties in the 1970s, it was the conspiracy theory element that attracted ex-Beatle

John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer-songwriter, musician and activist. He gained global fame as the founder, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the Beatles. Lennon's ...

to donate; saying, "If anything ever happens to me...it won't be an accident."

Cultural influence

In 2003, Italian satirist Daniele Luttazzi, whose production company is called "Krassner Entertainment", wrote the short story '' Stanotte e per sempre'' (Eng.: ''Tonight and forever'') about the assassination of Italian politician

Aldo Moro Aldo Moro (; 23 September 1916 – 9 May 1978) was an Italian statesman and prominent member of Christian Democracy (Italy), Christian Democracy (DC) and its centre-left wing. He served as prime minister of Italy in five terms from December 1963 ...

. In the climax scene,

Giulio Andreotti Giulio Andreotti ( ; ; 14 January 1919 – 6 May 2013) was an Italian politician and wikt:statesman, statesman who served as the 41st prime minister of Italy in seven governments (1972–1973, 1976–1979, and 1989–1992), and was leader of th ...

penetrates the bullet wounds in

's corpse.

Lewis Black Lewis Niles Black (born August 30, 1948) is an American stand-up comedian and actor. His comedy routines often escalate into angry rants about history, politics, religion and cultural trends. He hosted the Comedy Central series ''Lewis Black's ...

included an excerpt, precisely the final part, from Krassner's story in his 2005 book '' Nothing's Sacred''.

Notable contributors

Notable contributors include: * Paul Krassner * Mae Brussell *

Mort Sahl Morton Lyon Sahl (May 11, 1927 – October 26, 2021) was a Canadian-born American comedian, actor, and social Satire, satirist, considered the first modern comedian. He pioneered a style of social satire that pokes fun at political and current e ...

* Lenny Bruce * Terry Southern *

Richard Pryor Richard Franklin Lennox Thomas Pryor Sr. (December 1, 1940 – December 10, 2005) was an American stand-up comedian and actor. Known for reaching a broad audience with his trenchant observations and storytelling style, he is widely regarded ...

* Joseph Heller *

Woody Allen Heywood Allen (born Allan Stewart Konigsberg; November 30, 1935) is an American filmmaker, actor, and comedian whose career spans more than six decades. Allen has received many List of awards and nominations received by Woody Allen, accolade ...

Jules Feiffer Jules Ralph Feiffer ( ; January 26, 1929 – January 17, 2025) was an American cartoonist and author, who at one time was considered the most widely read satirist in the country. He won the Pulitzer Prize in 1986 for Pulitzer Prize for Editori ...

* Dick Guindon * Herb Gardner *

Garrett Hardin Garrett James Hardin (April 21, 1915 – September 14, 2003) was an American ecologist and microbiologist. He focused his career on the issue of human overpopulation, and is best known for his exposition of the tragedy of the commons in a 1968 p ...

* Vivian McPeak *

Robert Anton Wilson Robert Anton Wilson (born Robert Edward Wilson; January 18, 1932 – January 11, 2007) was an American writer, futurist, psychologist, and self-described agnostic mystic. Recognized within Discordianism as an Episkopos, pope and saint, Wilson ...

Robert Crumb Robert Dennis Crumb (; born August 30, 1943) is an American artist who often signs his work R. Crumb. His work displays a nostalgia for American folk culture of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and satire of contemporary American c ...

Garry Trudeau Garretson Beekman Trudeau (born July 21, 1948) is an American cartoonist best known for creating the ''Doonesbury'' comic strip. Trudeau won the Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Cartooning in 1975, making him the first comic strip artist to win a ...

* Harry Shearer *

Jean Shepherd Jean Parker "Shep" Shepherd Jr. (July 26, 1921 – October 16, 1999) was an American storytelling, storyteller, humorist, radio and TV personality, writer, and actor. With a career that spanned decades, Shepherd is known for the film ''A Christm ...

* Jerry Rubin *

Abbie Hoffman Abbot Howard Hoffman (November 30, 1936 – April 12, 1989) was an American political and social activist who co-founded the Youth International Party ("Yippies") and was a member of the Chicago Seven. He was also a leading proponent of the ...

* Nicholas Kazan * Bruce Jay Friedman *

* Mort Gerberg * Bhob Stewart * Lou Myers * Phil Ochs *

Albert Ellis Albert Ellis (September 27, 1913 – July 24, 2007) was an American psychologist and psychotherapist who founded rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT). He held MA and PhD degrees in clinical psychology from Columbia University, and was cer ...

* Neil Postman * Madalyn Murray O'Hair *

Tad Richards James (Tad) Richards (born March 31, 1940) is an American writer and visual artist. He is also artistic director and former president of ''Opus 40'', the sculpture park in Saugerties, New York. Richards was born in Washington, D.C. in 1940. In 1 ...

* Edward Sorel *

Alan Watts Alan Wilson Watts (6 January 1915 – 16 November 1973) was a British and American writer, speaker, and self-styled "philosophical entertainer", known for interpreting and popularising Buddhist, Taoist, and Hinduism, Hindu philosophy for a Wes ...

References

External links

*
Full digital archive
(

open access Open access (OA) is a set of principles and a range of practices through which nominally copyrightable publications are delivered to readers free of access charges or other barriers. With open access strictly defined (according to the 2001 de ...

) at

JSTOR JSTOR ( ; short for ''Journal Storage'') is a digital library of academic journals, books, and primary sources founded in 1994. Originally containing digitized back issues of academic journals, it now encompasses books and other primary source ...

*
Full digital archive
a
''The Realist'' Archive Project
b
ep.tc
{{DEFAULTSORT:Realist, The Monthly magazines published in the United States Satirical magazines published in the United States Counterculture of the 1950s Counterculture of the 1960s Conspiracy Defunct magazines published in the United States Magazines established in 1958 Magazines disestablished in 2001 Magazines published in New York City