SCREW #147 featuring cover art by YOSSARIAN, plus a tasteless Vietnam-era house ad!

Here's SCREW #147, dated December 27, 1971. This is from the era when Steven Heller was art director, and Jim Buckley, (SCREW's co-founder) was still on the masthead). Another interesting tidbit from this issue's masthead: in addition to his position as Executive Editor, Al Goldstein is also listed as "Food Editor."

Cover art is by Alan Shenker, (aka YOSSARIAN). Shenker, (a talented contemporary of underground comix titans like R. Crumb and Spain Rodriguez) was also SCREW's art director for a bit. Remembrances of Shenker, (who died in 2013) can be found here and here. 

I've also included a scan of SCREW #147's back cover, which features a typically tasteless house ad that references heroic Buddhist monk Thich Quang Duc, who had famously set himself on fire to protest the Vietnam War in June 1963.  

For the last time: AL GOLDSTEIN IS NOT DEAD.

12/16/13: Confusion erupted early this morning when readers of magician Penn Jillette's Twitter feed read the following: "I'm in NYC. Today I visited my hero and friend Al Goldstein as he dies in the hospital, 

and tomorrow night I celebrate Lou Reed's Life. NYC"

Some readers, (including websites The RawStory.com and RealPornWikiLeaks) took this as a death announcement, which prompted Jillette to issue the following correction: "My buddy and hero, Al Goldstein is NOT dead.  He is unresponsive and not doing well, but he is alive. Try to stop the rumors. Thanks."

I now have a picture in my head left over from my old St Vincent's Hospital paper route: a type of patient the hospital personnel call a "gomer." These are bedridden old guys, mouths generally hanging slack, hovering unconscious in the twilight zone between life and death. They never bought any newspapers. Sobering and saddening to imagine one of humanity's most vociferous specimens reduced to this state. Think about it 

while you watch some vintage Midnight Blue clips: http://www.youtube.com/user/MBVids

(art by yours truly for the cover of SCREW #1,804, December 2006, art direction by Kevin Hein)