Mad #403 (Nick Meglin and John Ficarra) - Full-Color with Advertisements Issue - March 2001

Well, not really.  The ads are all in color but there are still 24 pages in good old black-and-white.  On page one, the editots promised "... full-cover editorial pages and advertisements ..."  This issue was expanded from 52 to 60 pages (counting the cover as four pages).  However, the nine full pages of ads actually reduced the total pages of zany content which included two full pages of ads for Mad publications.  Thus ended over 45 of years of non-acceptance of outside advertisements.  The comics and the first few magazines had some ads.  I do not mind the ads as long as they do not cause a reduction on content.  The first full-cover advertisers were Corn Nuts, PlayStation, Portal Runner, Finger Eleven, Sim Coaster, Cheez Whiz, Dark Age of Camelot and Altoids.  Tom Richmond did a great job with "Malcontent in the Muddle" (a show I never watched).  "Monroe" was as disgusting as ever.  And, the Herman Mejia drawings for "Cheesy Angles" were excellent.  The best article of the issue was black-and-white "The Home Despot" written by Jeff Kruse and Russ Cooper.  I think I may have one of those "Downspout Stabilizing Gauges" around here somewhere.  [JAM 1/27/2014]

Departments:
Dysfoxtional Family - Malcontent in the Muddle
Serge-In General - A Mad Look at Libraries
Mail Dominance - A Kid's Guide to Writing Letters
Joke And Dagger - Spy vs. Spy
Angster's Paradise - Monroe & ... The Special Delivery
I Feel Your Vein - A Bloody Mess
Shyamalan-A-Ding-Dong - Unbearable
Hoops! They Did It Again - 10 Sure Signs You're Suffering from March Madness
Grieving Las Vegas - Mad's Celebrity Cause-of-Death Betting Odds [Eminem]
The Depths of Repair - Home Despot Sales Circular
Angio-Plasticman - Dick Cheney Electrocardiograms We'd Like to See  [fake department]
Title Wave - 2000: The Year in Film
Clothes Minded - Other Fashion Names That Are Actually Acronyms
Berg's-Eye View - The Lighter Side
Chicks with Kicks - Cheesy Angles

Fold-In - Manager and Kid