Harvey Kurtzman

Who was Harvey Kurtzman?

Harvey Kurtzman was an American cartoonist and editor of comic books and magazines. His large body of work includes writing and editing the parodic comic book Mad from 1952 until 1956, and the sexy and satirical Little Annie Fanny strips in Playboy from 1962 until 1988. His work is noted for its satire and parody of popular culture, social critique, and an obsessive attention to detail. His working method has been likened to that of an auteur, and those who illustrated his stories were expected to follow his layouts strictly.

Born to Jewish immigrants, Kurtzman took early to cartooning. After graduating from New York's High School of Music & Art, he spent the 1940s doing freelance work for various publishers and publications before getting regular work at EC Comics in 1950, writing and drawing for their New Trend line of comic books. He wrote and edited the Two-Fisted Tales and Frontline Combat war comic books, where he also drew many of the carefully researched stories, before he created his most-remembered comic book, Mad, in 1952.