Unfortunately Warren was not reading the Saturday Evening Post in this photo, he is reading a Mad Magazine. For several years I remember copies being around the house. Such a crazy magazine.
By searching online I was able to find a copy of the cover of this issue. It is dated October 1962. The copy in the picture above looks pretty new. Everybody seems to be wearing cool weather clothes so it could well be October of 1962. Warren and Pearl were both high school freshman in 1962. Hugh was printer/owner of Cleage Printers.
Old Plank was the farm house on two acreas that my family owned near Wixom, Michigan. We spent as much time as we could there and were often joined by other family members who also made the short drive from Detroit.
You can read more about Old Plank in these posts:
I remember reading a few issues of MAD magazine from time to time, but I can’t recall where I found them? My husband might have bought one now & then – not sure? But you described it right – a crazy magazine!
Your cousin looks like he is hiding from the camera.
Maybe he was but I think he was just reading.
I remember friends loving Mad Magazine, but I never got into it. (pretty cool dating the photo by finding the same magazine online!)
I was pretty happy to find it there too. Wait, I thought I’d added the cover but hadn’t. Now added so you can see the date too.
I love it when a camera catches these unstaged moments that remind us of everyday pleasures, like lounging about with cousins doing more-or-less nothing. I didn’t grow up with MAD so it took me a while after coming to this country to even begin to appreciate its particular brand of zaniness, but there were always copies around at my boyfriend’s house, and later, I think my sister liked it as well. “Old Plank” is so evocative–how great to have a family farmhouse to get away to! Do you know where the name came from?
It was located on Old Plank Road. I don’t know how the road got it’s name. It was dirt/gravel by the time we got there. I wish we had someplace like that near here to all get away too these days.
I have seen Mad too. That is a great cover.
oh I Loved MAD ! For some reason (maybe cos it was good!!??) It traveled across the Atlantic Ocean to UK from the late 50s onwards. Wonderful humour that I’m sure must have influenced Monty Python .Beatles etc……
When I was looking for covers, the first one I found was from the UK.
Such a clever post Kristin. I wish I could even begin to think how I am going to match the prompt this week.
Wasn’t an easy one but the next two weeks are really hard for me to come up with.
One of these days that may be true, but I doubt it 😉
What a perfect match for the prompt. I loved Mad magazine too but we weren’t cool enough to have it sitting around the house. Someone would bring it to school and we passed it around at recess. Great cover!
We were certainly cool 😛 . If only…
Great photo for the prompt.
The background curtains made me laugh. They remind me of a holiday house we had in our family, in an isolated spot where it didn’t matter about privacy. I thought curtains were meant to curtain the windows:)
I noticed that short curtain on the door window. An adult on the porch could see over the half curtains over the windows. There were no neighbors nearby though and traffic was sparse and from a passing car nobody could see in.
Dear Kristin – to let you know I have nominated you for One Lovely Blog Award – see my post – http://scotsue-familyhistoryfun.blogspot.co.uk/2014/10/one-lovely-blog-award.html
Thank you for the nomination ScotSue. I appreciate it but have decided that I can’t in good faith accept awards because I just don’t have the time to pass them on and to the other things tied to them. I do thank you for thinking of Finding Eliza though.
We had Mad Magazine — my brother and I loved it, especially the Spy vs. Spy! Love the totem pole, with Alfred E. and the dog…
I’ve never heard of a MAD magazine ~ But what a lovely name for a farm.
MAD Magazine was new to me too, but what a great choice of theme for your post linked to this week’s prompt. So apt!
I remember reading MAD when I was a teenager; I suspect we would wonder why if we saw one now.
I was never interested in Mad magazine but your cousin looks enthralled. The picture definitely has a holiday house feel to it. Regards Anne
I’ve definitely seen copies of MAD magazines about, but don’t believe I’ve read any myself. Great you could find a copy of the cover of the issue that Warren is reading. The boy at the bottom of the totem pole would be grimacing not smiling if he thought about what the dog might be about to do!