Mad #420 (Nick Meglin and John Ficarra) - George Woodbridge Issue - August 2002

George Woodbridge (1930-2004) came to Mad in 1957 when editor Al Feldstein recruited artists to replace the Kurtzman gang who moved to Trump and then Humbug.  Although Woodbridge was not as popular or prolific as some of the others - Mort Drucker, Don Martin, Dave Berg and Bob Clarke et al. - who all started with Mad at the same time, he was the go-to guy for historical drawings and especially anything requiring military uniforms.  His attention to detail and accuracy was next to none.  He was the artist who drew Mad's best article (in my mind) of all time - "43-Man Squamish" written by Tom Koch (Mad #95).  His double-splash for this issue ("Mad Scans the Human Body") was the last of his regular assignments for Mad.  He did return as did others for the tribute to Dave Berg in Mad #427, but Mad #420 is the issue that marks the end of the Woodbridge era.  Mike Slaubaugh's "contributor list" shows that 268 issues of Mad contained original Woodbridge drawings.  With a bit of sad irony, it was noted in the Letters page that fellow contemporary artist, Dave Berg had died just as Mad #420 was going to press.  [JAM 3/27/2014]

Color Pages: 39 of 56 pages (70%)
Humorous Content: 47 of 56 pages (84%)

Departments:
Dark Side of the Tunes - Mad's 50 Worst Things About Music
Tales From the Duck Side - Last Bango in Paris
Angster's Paradise - Monroe and ... Disney World Part II
Joke And Dagger - Spy vs. Spy vs. Spy
The Regis Link - The Everlasting, Ridiculous Impact of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire
Bakula to the Future - Endless-Prize
Serge-In General - A Mad Look at Cruises
Ozzjest - Shoddy Osbournes Merchandise We'll Be Seeing Soon
Diagnosis Murdered - Mad Scans the Human Body
Who's Your Caddy? - A Mad Look at Paternity Suits on the PGA Tour  [fake department]
An Embarrassment of Richard's - An Important Product Recall Notice From Heavenly Slumber, Inc.
Can You Smell What the Rock is Filmin'? - The Scorpion Ka-Ching!

Fold-In - Clergyman