Although it has an editorial staff and featured the works of certain creators (Don Martin, Al Jaffee, Dave Berg) for decades, humor magazine Mad has no permanent staff writers or artists. Since the publication accepts work from freelancers, that means the editors have to turn down plenty of what gets sent their way. But this is still Mad, a publication that prides itself on thumbing its nose at the rules, so even their standard rejection letters have the magazine’s wisecracking, irreverent spirit. Dangerous Minds has recently uncovered a real gem: a genuine Mad rejection letter from the 1960s, back when Al Feldstein was still editor. Feldstein retired from Mad in 1985 and died in 2014, but his anarchic spirit lives on in artifacts like this:
Dear Contributor:-
Sorry, but we’ve got bad news!
You’ve been rejected!
Don’t take this personally though. All of us feel rejected at one time or another. At least, that’s what our group therapist tells us here at MAD. He says we shouldn’t worry about it.
So that should be your attitude: “What-Me worry?”