Editing National Lampoon (magazine) (section)

== Overview ==
''National Lampoon'' writers joyfully targeted every kind of phoniness, and had no specific political stance (even though individual staff members had strong political views). The magazine's humor often pushed far beyond the boundaries of what was generally considered appropriate and acceptable. It was especially anarchic, satirically attacking what was considered holy and sacred. As Teddy Wayne described it, "At its peak, the <nowiki>[</nowiki>''National Lampoon''<nowiki>]</nowiki> produced some of the bleakest and most controlled furious humor in American letters."<ref name=Wayne>{{cite web|title=The Lowest Form of Humor: How the National Lampoon Shaped the Way We Laugh Now|first=Teddy|last=Wayne|author-link=Teddy Wayne|date=October 29, 2013|work=[[The Millions]]|url=https://themillions.com/2013/10/the-lowest-form-of-humor-how-the-national-lampoon-shaped-the-way-we-laugh-now.html}}</ref>

Thomas Carney, writing in ''[[New Times (magazine)|New Times]]'', traced the history and style of the ''National Lampoon'' and the impact it had on comedy's new wave. "The ''National Lampoon''", Carney wrote, "was the first full-blown appearance of non-Jewish humor in years—not [[anti-Semitic]], just non-[[Jewish]]. Its roots were [[White Anglo-Saxon Protestant|W.A.S.P.]] and [[Irish Catholic]], with a weird strain of Canadian detachment.... This was not Jewish street-smart humor as a defense mechanism; this was slash-and-burn stuff that alternated in pitch but moved very much on the offensive. It was always disrespect everything, mostly yourself, a sort of reverse deism."<ref>{{cite news|last=Carney|first=Thomas |date=August 21, 1978|title=They Only Laughed When It Hurt|work=New Times|pages=48–55}}</ref>

[[P. J. O'Rourke]], editor-in-chief of the magazine in 1978, went even further in his characterization of the magazine's humor:

{{blockquote|What we do is oppressor comedy.... "[[Woody Allen]] says, 'I'm just a regular shmuck like you." Our kind of comedy says, "I'm O.K.; you’re an asshole." We are ruling class. We are the insiders who have chosen to stand in the doorway and criticize the organization. Our comic pose is superior. It says, "I’m better than you and I'm going to destroy you." It’s an offensive, very aggressive form of humor.<ref>{{cite magazine|title=Show Business: The Lampoon Goes Hollywood|date=Aug 14, 1978|magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]]|url=https://time.com/archive/6880101/show-business-the-lampoon-goes-hollywood/}}</ref>}}

The magazine was a springboard to the [[cinema of the United States]] for a generation of comedy writers, directors, and performers. Various alumni went on to create and write for ''[[Saturday Night Live]],'' ''[[The David Letterman Show]]'', ''[[Second City Television|SCTV]]'', ''[[The Simpsons]]'', ''[[Married... with Children]]'', ''[[Night Court]]'', and various films, including ''[[Animal House|National Lampoon's Animal House]]'', ''[[Caddyshack]]'', ''[[National Lampoon's Vacation]]'', and ''[[Ghostbusters]]''. The characteristic humor of ''[[Spy (magazine)|Spy]]'' magazine, ''[[The Onion]]'', [[Judd Apatow]], [[Jon Stewart]], and [[Stephen Colbert]] were all influenced by ''National Lampoon''.<ref name=Wayne />

As co-founder [[Henry Beard]] described the experience years later: "There was this big door that said, 'Thou shalt not.' We touched it, and it fell off its hinges."<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.newyorker.com/books/page-turner/drunk-stoned-brilliant-dead-funny|department=Page-Turner|title=Drunk Stoned Brilliant Dead Funny|first=Jennifer |last=Saura|date=November 19, 2010|magazine=The New Yorker}}</ref>