Mad #141 (Albert Feldstein) - Catch-All-22 Issue - March 1971

Catch-22, the 1961 novel by Joseph Heller (1923-1999) is my favorite novel of all time.  I have read it several times.  I could flip to any page and the words just flow.  The quality of Mr. Heller's first novel was so good that he could never approach it again.  In 40 years, he wrote just seven novels but he will always be remembered for the first.  The movie directed by Mike Nichols is also excellent considering the formidable task of boiling Heller's work down to a two-hour story.  The Mad parody by Stan Hart and Mort Drucker shows a great deal of respect for the movie made by Nichols.  The scenes drawn by Drucker are faithfully recreated and the caricatures are flawless.  One can easily relive the movie by thumbing through these seven pages.  This is certainly not the funniest movie parody to appear in Mad but it may be the best because of its accuracy. [JAM 2/15/2010]

The war hawk on page 21 is wearing a Morse Code peace symbol ("V").

Departments:
War Is Heller - Catch-All-22
Don Martin - On a Streetcorner Downtown; One Hot Day on the Desert; One Evening in a Bathtub
Printer's Devilment - Clippings to Leave Lying Around
Joke And Dagger - Spy vs. Spy
Abusement Park - Get-It-Out-of-Your-System Land
New Leash on Life - Obedience Training
Parade Unrest - Marching Songs for Crusaders, Militants, etc.
Fowl Play - Hawks & Doves
Inside-Ouch - A Mad Peek Behind the Scenes at a Shopping Center
Tanks a Million - A Mad Look at Tropical Fish
Berg's-Eye View - The Lighter Side of Clubs and Organizations
Sleeper Play - The Psychology of Snoring
Aloha-Ha-Ha - How-Are-Ya Five-O

Fold-In - Telephone