Author:
Title: MAD No. 8
Place Published:
Publisher:EC [Indicia: Educational Comics Inc.]
Date Published: December, 1953-January, 1954
Description: CGC certified: VF (8.0). Off-white to white pages. Grader notes: Light creasing to cover; light spine stress lines to cover.

CGC Census: 128 graded copies (122 Universal, 6 Restored).

GPAnalysis: An 8.0 sold for $311 in 12/02; an 8.5 sold for $1000 in 7/22.

Credits: Cover: Harvey Kurtzman. Scripts: Harvey Kurtzman and Jerry De Fuccio? Art: Harvey Kurtzman, Wally Wood, Jack Davis, Bill Elder.Batboy & Rubin Rub DC the Wrong Way: Classic Batman and Robin parody by Kurtzman and Wood, in which Kurtzman – stung by DC's legal threats over his "Superduperman" story in MAD #4 – littered the script with wiseguy disclaimers aimed at DC's tone-deaf copyright patrollers: "NOTICE! This story is a LAMPOON! If you want to spend your dime on cheap, rotten lampoons like this instead of the ever-lovin' genuine, real thing... GO RIGHT AHEAD, BOY!" Gaines and Kurtzman explained the reasoning behind this batty byplay in the liner notes to Russ Cochran's 1986 MAD reprint set, volume 2:

Q: Was there a story behind all the signs saying "This is a lampoon" in "Batboy and Rubin?"

Gaines: That was because of the "Superduperman" lawsuit.

Q: Is there a story there, or is it nothing more than they sent you a letter from a lawyer?

Gaines: That's really all there was to it, a letter from a lawyer, but it evolved into an interesting story. National Comics threatened to sue for "Superduperman." And at that time my attorney, Dave Alterbaum, who recently died, was unfortunately also their attorney.

Kurtzman: Wasn't exactly what you'd call a fighting attorney.

Gaines: So he said, "Bill, you can't do that." And I said, "Well, OK, I can see their point." I mean after all, we stole their comic hero and we tore him to pieces, and they didn't like it. "OK." Harvey was the one who said, "This is ridiculous. I think we should be able to do it." And he insisted that we get another opinion.______________________________________________________________

A limited edition of ten hardcover catalogues is available, in addition to a few dozen softcovers. Fun reference, great keepsake, fully illustrated, chockablock with obscure facts, gags, bon mots. Softcovers are $40, deluxe hardcovers with dust jackets and limitation plates are $200. These books always go fast so don't delay. To order, contact ivan@pbagalleries.com.

Consignments welcome for PBA's Summer 2024 Comic Book sale. Top prices for Pre-Code Horror, Golden Age, Silver Age, original art and ephemera. Find out why PBA is the new fan-fave of funnybook fiends. "This is some of the best commentary I've yet seen on the quality of the content of comic books... Priceless." – R. Crumb. Send inquiries to ivan@pbagalleries.com.

Coming Soon: The DC Universe Collection Part 3: The Golden Age (August 2024) and Weird Tales and Amazing Stories: The PBA Pulp Sale (September 2024). Contact ivan@pbagalleries.com to get on the notifications list.