Crazy (1973) 16

The third time really wasn’t the charm for Marvel Comics.

Still under the Atlas Comics moniker in 1953, the Marvel Comics to come published Crazy as a comic book. It lasted seven issues.

Crazy (1973) 16

Now under Marvel Comics, the company attempted to dust off material from its now defunct Not Branch Echh title with a second four-color offering. This one only lasted two issues before it, too, was canned.

The third titular Crazy was done as a black-and-white magazine in an attempt to ride the coattails of the uber popular MAD Magazine and lesser clone, Cracked. Crazy as a magazine would last 10 years and 94 issues.

Issue 16 featured its nebbish mascot holding up a line of angry children as he spewed his wish list to Santa. The cover was trumpeted as a “special Xmas Rated Issue.”

The lone holiday feature was the Movie Monsters’ Christmas Lists featuring the wants and wishes of Dracula, the Mummy, King Kong, The Werewolf, the Creature (from the Black Lagoon), Godzilla, Doctor Frankenstein and the Invisible Man. All were compiled by Michael Pelowski.

The remainder of the book featured the standard fare such as a twist on Marriage Vows, Carsick Child, Spinoffs of Jaws, etc.

The main feature was penned by Len Herman and rendered by Marie Severin as they took on Good Times in Gook Times.

Good Times began as a popular prime time sitcom developed by executive producer Norman Lear. It aired on CBS from 1974 to 1979 featuring a black family of five living in the projects of Chicago trying to make a living.

James “J.J.” Evans Jr. became a break out hit and the series soon devolved to one liners from the skeletal star as his catch phrase, “Dyno-mite,” was shoe-horned into each episode.

Severin was just one of the industry legends who contributed to the magazine. Others included Stan Lee, Will Eisner, Vaughn Bode, Harvey Kutzman, Mike Ploog, Basil Wolverton and Mike Carlin. Marvel mainstays Roy Thomas and Marv Wolfman would take turns editing the publication.