Apocalypse Mad

May 26, 2006 1:24 AM

The Apocalypse According to Mad Magazine? Basil Wolverton, best known for his work on early issues of Mad Magazine, was also a Minister in the Radio Church of God. This church, founded by Herbert Armstrong, father of Garner Ted, believed the Apocalypse would happen sometime in 1972, and Wolverton's illustrations were in pamphlets designed to alert the public to this fact. 1972 has passed, the church has splintered, and Herbert is long dead - but nonetheless he has a blog. As a bonus, you can view Basil's apocalypse in 3-d. Wolverton links via
posted by Rumple (11 comments total)

A little more Wolverton.
posted by Rumple at 1:29 AM on May 26, 2006

My favorite was Boils and Darkness, cuz first it was just a Plague of Boils, and then it was Boils and Darkness.
posted by overanxious ducksqueezer at 1:43 AM on May 26, 2006

The guys are a barrel full of fucking laughs:

The same dark powers that murdered Yitzhak Rabin, the vulture Shimon Peres and criminal company, continue to sell out Israel and betray Jerusalem to the Germans and Jesuits. The fascist EU prepares to occupy Israel!

posted by psmealey at 4:15 AM on May 26, 2006

Looks like Xenu's space planes dropping the thetans into a volcano.
posted by Mayor Curley at 4:31 AM on May 26, 2006

Wacky Radio Church O' God stuff aside, Wolverton is just a wonderful artist. I've thought about doing a post on him myself.

Thanks.
posted by marxchivist at 5:07 AM on May 26, 2006

I could dig the apocalypse if it were a wolvercalypse.
posted by SmileyChewtrain at 5:23 AM on May 26, 2006

Wow, I haven’t seen these since I was a kid. As much as they used to terrify me they also inspired me. I think Basil is a big part of why I now draw for a living.
posted by subtle_squid at 6:03 AM on May 26, 2006

Wolverton's apocalypse has been posted on Metafilter before (by me, actually), but it wasn't on the front page. The fact that the man was bazoo should be apparent from his work. But man, what an original.
posted by Faze at 6:28 AM on May 26, 2006

See, now, I just knew there was something screwy about that guy.
posted by soyjoy at 7:21 AM on May 26, 2006

Yeah, I remember seeing these a few years ago, probably linked on Fallout forums. I would like to get my hands on wallpaper sized copies. Perfect for the desktop!
posted by JJ86 at 7:33 AM on May 26, 2006

Faze -- yes, you did, I should have given you ups, but it got lost in the shuffle.
posted by Rumple at 9:06 AM on May 26, 2006