Publisher Description

We live in a time much like the postwar era. A time of arch political conservatism and vast social conformity. A time in which our nation's leaders question and challenge the patriotism of those who oppose their policies. But before there was Jon Stewart, Al Franken, or Bill Maher, there were Mort Sahl, Stan Freberg, and Lenny Bruce—liberal satirists who, through their wry and scabrous comedic routines, waged war against the political ironies, contradictions, and hypocrisies of their times.

Revel with a Cause is their story. Stephen Kercher here provides the first comprehensive look at the satiric humor that flourished in the United States during the 1950s and early 1960s. Focusing on an impressive range of comedy—not just standup comedians of the day but also satirical publications like MAD magazine, improvisational theater groups such asSecond City, the motion picture Dr. Strangelove, and TV shows like That Was the Week That Was—Kercher reminds us that the postwar era saw varieties of comic expression that were more challenging and nonconformist than we commonly remember. His history of these comedic luminaries shows that for a sizeable audience of educated, middle-class Americans who shared such liberal views, the period's satire was a crucial mode of cultural dissent. For such individuals, satire was a vehicle through which concerns over the suppression of civil liberties, Cold War foreign policies, blind social conformity, and our heated racial crisis could be productively addressed. 

A vibrant and probing look at some of the most influential comedy of mid-twentieth-century America, Revel with a Cause belongs on the short list of essential books for anyone interested in the relationship between American politics and popular culture.

Author Biography

Stephen E. Kercher is assistant professor of history at the University of Wisconsin - Oshkosh.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments Introduction: Liberal Satire in Postwar America Part One: The Positive Uses of Humor 1 Bill Mauldin and the Politics of Postwar American Satire 2 "We Shall Meet the Enemy": Herbert Block, Robert Osborn, Walt Kelly, and Liberal Cartoonists' "Weapon of Wit" Part Two: The Cleansing Lash of Laughter 3 Comic Revenge: Parodic Revelry and "Sick" Humor in the 1950s Satiric Underground 4 "Truth Grinning in a Solemn, Canting World": Liberal Satire's Masculine, "Sociologically Oriented and Psychically Adjusted" Critique 5 Spontaneous Irony: The Second City, the Premise, and Early Sixties Satiric Cabaret and Revue Part Three: The Politics of Laughter 6 "We Hope You Like Us, Jack": Liberal Political Satire, 1958-63 7 "Are There Any Groups Here I Haven't Offended Yet?": Liberal Satire Takes a Stand 8 "Well-Aimed Ridicule": Satirizing American Race Relations 9 Mocking Dr. Strangelove; or, How American Satirists Flayed the Cold War, the Bomb, and American Foreign Policy in Southeast Asia Part Four: The Limits of Irreverence 10 "Sophisticated Daring" and Political Cowardice: Television Satire and NBC's That Was the Week That Was 11 Satire That Would "Gag a Goat": Crossing the Line with Paul Krassner and Lenny Bruce Conclusion Liberal Satire's Last Laughs Notes Selected Discography and Bibliography Index

Review

"Stephen Kercher's evocative survey of postwar political satire is almost encyclopedic in its range and impeccable for its clear writing and sound scholarship. Many still think of the 1950s as an era of monolithic conformity, yet this irresistible vein of black humor, from Sid Caesar to Lenny Bruce, offered a tremendous outlet for wildly inventive parody and social criticism. This book should delight those who remember the period and enlarge the understanding of those who don't." - Morris Dickstein"

Review Quote

"The prose never becomes overwhelmed by detail and the judgements are consistently informed, balanced and judicious. An added pleasure is the reproduction of some memorable cartoons among the various illustrations. Altogether it is an impressive achievement."

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