NOUN, VERB, ADVERB: What Illustrators Can Learn from Mad Libs

Or, why did a hippopotamus enter a hip apartment?

It’s a/an (ADJECTIVE) world out there. A/an (ANIMAL) is President of The United States of America. (COUNTRY) has (VERB, PAST TENSE) its neighbor, (COUNTRY). Extreme weather (VERB ENDING in “S”) us every day. Hopefully, we’ll soon see the (NOUN) at the end of the (NOUN).
⁣
Until then, let’s talk about what illustrators can learn from Mad Libs.
⁣
Roger Price was born on March 6, 1918, in Charleston, West Virginia. Between 1934 and 1938, he attended the University of Michigan and the American Academy of Art in Chicago. Price later wrote for Bob Hope; he performed on Broadway; and he appeared in television game shows.⁣
⁣
Leonard Bernard Stern was born on December 23, 1923, in New York City. After attending New York University, he became a successful television writer. His credits include Get Smart, The Honeymooners, and The Steve Allen Show.⁣
⁣
1953 was an eventful year for Price and Stern. Stern and his wife divorced. Price’s activity book, Droodles, became a phenomenon. And the two friends invented Mad Libs.⁣
⁣
Price and Stern found a name for it in 1958, while they were enjoying a meal at Sardi’s. They overheard an agent saying to an actor that it was “mad” to “ad-lib” an interview.⁣
⁣
After failing to find anyone to publish Mad Libs, they self-published it. Price illustrated the cover. The first Mad Lib became a hit after Stern used it to introduce Bob Hope on The Steve Allen Show. Together, with their high school friend, Larry Sloan, they formed Price Stern Sloan (or PSS!).

The rest is history…⁣

Since then, hundreds of Mad Libs have been published. Many a road trip, sleepover, and family game night were (and still are) made all the better, and funnier, through creative, and often gross, parts of speech. Be honest: How many times have you used “poop” or “fart” or something a little more… adult, as an answer? A million?

But what do Mad Libs have to do with illustration—especially narrative illustration? Let’s (VERB) the answer to that question.