Mad (magazine) - Alfred E. Neuman

Alfred E. Neuman

The image most closely associated with the magazine is that of Alfred E. Neuman, the boy with misaligned eyes, a gap-toothed smile and the perennial motto "What, me worry?" While the original image was a popular humorous graphic for many decades before Mad adopted it, the face is now primarily associated with Mad.

Mad first used the boy's face in November, 1954. His first iconic full-cover appearance, in which he was identified by name and sported his "What, me worry?" motto, was as a write-in candidate for President on issue #30 (December 1956). He has since appeared in a slew of guises and comic situations. According to Mad writer Frank Jacobs, a letter was once successfully delivered to the magazine through the U.S. mail bearing only Neuman's face, without any address or other identifying information.