The Art of Parody

Friday, October 31st, 2014 • Design

Ubiquitous early-1970s magazine ad for Earth Shoes (directly below; click for full size), and, below that, a 1974 National Lampoon parody of the same ad (for “Earth Tires”):

The “Earth Tires” ad was almost certainly written by P. J. O’Rourke (whose conservative leanings went against the grain of the rest of the masthead), author of a surrounding automobile magazine parody called Warm Rod, and visually executed by either Peter Kleinman or Michael Gross (designer of the Ghostbusters logo, among many other things), whose work at NatLamp pioneered the art of finer-grade satire that works by means of a flawless visual reproduction of the source material.

Note especially how the parody picks up the didactic tonality, the “technical” illustrations, and the overblown presentation of “Inventor Ann Kalsø” (who becomes the clearly insane “Ert Krapsø”).