Mad Magazine 50th Anniversary
Marred by Near-Tragedy
New York City, NY | As humor publication Mad Magazine passed the half century milestone, two medical scares put a damper on the month-long festivities at its home office in New York.
Staff writer Melvin Kaputnik lost consciousness and suffered head injuries after a co-worker had an unexpected reaction to one of Kaputnik's magazine articles. A witness described the scene as near pandemonium.
"We heard unusual loud noises coming from the ad sales office, so we all rushed over to see what was wrong. There was one of our account executives reading a copy of the magazine. His mouth was open and he was making these short hacking sounds. None of us had ever heard anything like it."
Another witness said, "At first I thought he was having a stroke or gagging on a chicken bone. Then Melvin yelled out 'He's laughing! He's actually laughing!!!' That's when Melvin fainted and hit his head."
Kaputnik was rushed to the emergency room at Gaines Memorial Hospital and treated for a mild concussion. The account executive was held for observation, but later released.
One older employee said she wasn't surprised by the mix-up, since a majority of current staff have only been working there for ten or fifteen years, and no one has laughed out loud at Mad Magazine since 1967.
Editor's Note: Congratulations to Mad Magazine and sincere wishes for a happy 50th anniversary.
