Orange Is The New Black is an edgy, beloved TV series about women in prison and the douchebags trying to use them to land a book deal. And, at least at first, it’s not the usual MAD fodder. Fortunately, we were able to trick John Ficarra, MAD’s editor-in-chief, into thinking we were a legitimate publication and got to ask him a few questions about how to send up a show about lesbianism, cheating, and Larry being the worst.
OITNB is a bit outside MAD’s usual purview. What led to parodying it?
Actually, it’s not as far outside as you might think. Over the years we’ve done many movies that might surprise you. For example, we spoofed Midnight Cowboy, still the only (then) X-rated film that MAD has ever done. (Though I’m reasonably certain the writers have watched other X-rated films under the guise of “working for MAD”.) The Royal Tanenbaums, Terms of Endearment, and many more that you don’t necessarily associate with MAD. For our 300th issue we went back and did Casablanca and Gone With the Wind, two films made before MAD was publishing.
MAD is a reflection of what’s happening in, or ingrained in, our society. And certainly OITNB and House of Cards (coming soon!) are two shows that have captured the imagination of the American public. We have a bookazine coming out in January, MAD Spoofs Movie Classics, that will have many of these less-than-predictable movie spoof choices. Because I am the editor of MAD, I feel obligated to admit to your readers that my last sentence was a shameless plug for an upcoming product available at newsstands and bookstores everywhere January 23, 2015. Ditto that last sentence as well.
What’s the process of writing a parody of a show with some pretty heavy themes like this one, especially with kids reading? What do you address and what do you perhaps elide a bit?
We have a policy of never talking down to our readers, which is a challenge given that average I.Q of a MAD reader is significantly higher than the idiots who create MAD. Generally we’ll handle adult themes more with words than visuals. So most heavy theme stuff goes right over our younger reader’s heads. Though again, you may be surprised to learn that the average age of a MAD is 19, and the median age is 24. (If Bob will turn 32 on his next birthday and has been reading MAD for 14 years, how many more years will Bob have to read MAD before the median age will change? Be sure to show all your work.)
What’s your favorite reaction to a parody MAD’s run?
One in which the people we parody don’t sue us!
A close second would be our LA Law spoof. A few days after it came out, my old editing partner, Nick Meglin, got a call from one of the stars in the show, Harry Hamlin. He told Nick to look for something in the mail. A few days later a photo arrived of the entire LA Law cast posing in the exact positions we had them on our cover. The show’s creator, Stephen Bochco, blacked out his tooth and assumed the role of Alfred E. Neuman. It was great. We have it framed in the offices. Another time we spoofed the show thirtysomething. The cast and writers loved it so much they invited us to the set and eventually wrote a part for Nick in the show. The show was soon thereafter cancelled and if you ever get a chance to see Nick’s performance you can see why the network pulled the plug.
Most shows and movies love being spoofed in the magazine. It’s a badge of (dis)honor recognizing that what they’re doing has arrived in pop culture. And if they don’t like it, what – me worry?
The parody ran in MAD #530, and you can see the whole thing, including proof that MAD’s staff hates Larry even more than you do, below.
We know it’s tiny, but the Geneva Convention doesn’t let us post MAD spreads at full resolution. You can find the whole thing right here. And special thanks to John Ficarra, even if he did sic Al Jaffee on us.
