By Ward Sutton
SuttonImpactStudio.com
After a 22-year career as a freelance illustrator, Sam Viviano became the art director of Mad magazine in 1999. I've had the pleasure and honor of working with Sam for many years, and he was gracious enough to take time to speak with me about his unique career.
WARD SUTTON: You are a man of multiple talents--illustration and art direction. Do you like one better than the other?
SAM VIVIANO: I took on the job of art director for Mad 16 years ago. And they said it wouldn't last! To be honest, I still feel like an impostor. I never pictured myself in this role. I always think of myself as an illustrator and cartoonist.
WARD SUTTON: And you still illustrate--in fact, you recently won an award from the National Cartoonist Society, correct?
SAM VIVIANO: Yes, I won the Magazine Illustration Award for my work in 2008. It was the first thing I'd ever won since high school. Finally, I can call myself an award-winning illustrator! [laughs]
Last year I was named to the MIN Editorial and Design Hall of Fame for my work as art director here at Mad. I've got a nice glass plaque on my desk and the satisfaction of knowing I'm not only an award-winning illustrator but an award-winning art director as well. Now I can die a happy man.
WARD SUTTON: Do you write cartoons as well?
SAM VIVIANO: No--and I
used to shy away from the label "cartoonist" because it implies writing
and drawing both. But my strengths are in visualizing--what is the
best way to present an idea or tell a story?
WARD SUTTON: So art directing is a natural extension of that talent.
SAM VIVIANO: Yeah.
When I was just drawing for Mad, I was like a utility infielder: I
could kind of illustrate anything they needed--a cover, a poster,
articles.
But when I became art director at Mad, I knew I
was not going to be the best at every part of the job. One of the
things I did in that first year or two was to start adding people to the
staff. And the people I hired had to be better than I was. I could
compose illustrations well, from the crucial standpoint of telling a
story. But in terms of type, and pure design, I didn't really have the
training or experience. So I hired people--some were better at pure
design, some were better at pastiche, some were better at storytelling.
So now when stories come up, I think, "Who is the best person on our
staff to design this?"
WARD SUTTON: How do you think art directing Mad is different than working on other magazines?
SAM VIVIANO: Having
never worked on any other magazine as art director, i have no idea. But
I think at Mad, partially it has to do with the nature of the material.
The magazine is very visually driven--not so much from a design
standpoint but more broadly--almost everything is illustrated. I doubt I
would feel at home as art director of any other magazine. At another
magazine, I would feel nonplussed with all the type and photos compared
to all the funny images we work with at Mad.
Also, on the Mad
staff it feels less about holding a specific position than that you are a
part of the group; everybody works together to eke out the magazine
somehow.
WARD SUTTON: Your first illustration for Mad was in 1981. How did you make the leap from illustrator to art director in 1999?
SAM VIVIANO: After
DC Comics took over Mad, there was apparently a mandate to get a "name"
art director. There were a lot of portfolio reviews, but the editors
couldn't find anyone they were happy with.
I didn't think I was
even in consideration. To me, art directors came from the world of
design, not the world of illustration (with the few exceptions of people
like Paul Davis and Milton Glaser).
One night, after a casual
conversation with (current Mad editor) John Ficarra, a light bulb seemed
to go off above his head, which I somehow failed to notice. The next
day he offered me the job.
"Are you kidding?" was how I
responded. "Do you think I'd be more valuable to you as art director
than as an illustrator?" John said yes. John will tell you now that
those first few weeks I was like a deer in the headlights--I had no
idea what I was doing.
I'm not entirely sure what led Mad to
offer me the job. Around that time, I had been experimenting with
computer-generated imagery. They probably thought I knew more than I
did. But as opposed to those "name" art directors who had been gunning
for the job, I had a presence in the Mad cosmos, so that pleased the
administration of DC Comics, which published Mad (and still does).
My
wife thought I wouldn't be happy working in an office environment after
working by myself in my studio. But I'd been doing what I was doing for
22 years and felt I needed a new challenge. So I decided to give it a
year and if I didn't like it I would go back to what I was doing before.
Here I am 16 years later--I guess it worked out.
WARD SUTTON: Are there times when you assign a project to an illustrator that you think, "I wish I could do this one ..."?
SAM VIVIANO: I
do some freelance work here and there and that satisfies my
illustration jones. For years I used the pseudonym credit of "Jack
Syracuse" for my illustrations in Mad--it became an in-joke for
readers. But illustrating would come out of my personal time--not my
time at the office. Sometimes, when we couldn't find an illustrator, I'd
say, "Okay, I'll do it over the weekend."
My favorite part of
the job is working with the illustrators. My god, I'm friends with Al
Jaffee (famed creator of the iconic Mad "Fold-In") and every two months I
tell him what to do. It's the stuff of fantasy!
WARD SUTTON: Were you a fan of Mad as a child?
SAM VIVIANO: I
was a comic book nerd until early high school. In those years, the
lines weren't drawn the way they are now: if you collected comics, you
collected Mad. But I didn't see myself as being a Mad artist--I wanted
to draw comic books.
At 15, I made my first visit to New
York and realized my dream of getting to visit DC Comics. I met with
(famed Batman artist and DC Editorial Director) Carmine Infantino, who
introduced me to (70s superstar comics artist) Neal Adams. Neal spent
an hour with me, telling me how bad my drawing was. I loved every second
of it. Having Neal Adams tell you how bad your drawing is way better
than hearing your mother tell you how good it is.
The next year I
returned and met with (artist and editor) Dick Giordano. He said, "You
should be drawing funny." As a 16-year-old, I felt he was devaluing the
superhero drawings I was showing him. Since then I've learned he was
very perceptive; it was valuable to hear someone say that. He was the
first one who articulated that for me.
"Funny" is something
inside. People who don't have it can try to draw funny and it MIGHT
work. But for some artists, even when you do something serious, the
humor comes out. (Legendary Illustrator) Jack Davis is the best example:
even when he was drawing horror stuff it still looked very funny.
(Above): Illustration by Jack Davis
WARD SUTTON: How did you break into Mad?
SAM VIVIANO: My
first portfolio was a mishmash of stuff. Art directors would ask, "What
do you DO?" I realized it was a specialist's marketplace. I asked
myself, "What do I do best? What do I like to do best?" I decided to
draw funny pictures of other people. Caricatures. People would say, "You
should go to Mad."
When I called (then-Mad art director) John
Putnam, he said, "It's a closed shop." Back then, artists would come in
to drop off their pieces and pick up their next assignments. With their
full roster, they filled issues month after month like that. People used
to say, "Somebody has to die before you get into Mad."
Well, as
fate would have it, in 1980 (Longtime Mad cover artist who formalized
the image of Alfred E. Neuman) Norman Mingo passed away. (Mad editor) Al
Feldstein called not long thereafter and asked, "How'd you like to do a
cover?"
WARD SUTTON: Your first assignment for Mad was a cover? The "Who Shot J.R.?" cover?
SAM VIVIANO: Yeah,
I had spent time visiting the office and everyone was friendly, but
that cover came out of nowhere. I gave it my all--I actually did the
whole thing a second time when I was dissatisfied with my first attempt.
But by 1981 standards, the issue didn't sell very well, and I don't
think Al was comfortable working with new artists. My second Mad job
didn't come for four years.
WARD SUTTON: Wow. Okay, I
want to jump backwards a bit. My earliest memories of your work are from
Dynamite magazine, back in the late 70s. I loved that magazine as a
kid. What was it like to work for them?
SAM VIVIANO: I think of Dynamite and
(sister Scholastic publication) Bananas together. Dynamite came first,
created by Jeanette Kahn, who went on to become president and editor-in-chief of DC Comics.
My first job for
Dynamite was in 1978. The art director was Greg Wozney, who was the
nicest guy. He worked his own way, in his own studio and not in the
office. His philosophy was, "Find the right guy, give him the job and
leave him alone." It's not necessarily the way I art direct Mad today (I
always try to find the right guy--or gal--but I don't always leave
'em alone), but it was a wonderful way for me to thrive as a young
illustrator.
I have very fond memories--I'd have carte blanche.
For one piece, I was asked to include likenesses of a few of the
celebrities mentioned in the article. I decided to draw all 35 of them!
WARD SUTTON: One
of your pieces for Dynamite that I've never forgotten was the cover
with "The Bee Gees Vs. The Beatles" from the time of the Bee Gees' Sgt.
Pepper movie. Looking back now, and realizing what a flop that film
was, I wonder if you had wanted to mock the Bee Gees with a little more Mad edge than perhaps you were allowed to at the time?
Well,
Scholastic wanted the magazine release date to coincide with the film's
release date, so as we were putting it together we didn't know it would
be a flop! No, I had a ball drawing the musical characters, although I
thought the idea was hysterical. The Bee Gees were just dopey disco
versus the meat and potatoes music of the Beatles.
That was
actually my first cover--not just of Dynamite, my FIRST COVER. It was a
big deal. I remember doing the research--buying Bee Gees magazines,
etc. For me it has a place of importance as much as my first Mad cover.
WARD SUTTON: I did some research and found that there were actually two issues of Dynamite that had Alfred E. Newman on the cover.
SAM VIVIANO: Yes. The one that has Al sticking his tongue out is the first issue I had work in.
WARD SUTTON: That's prophetic!
SAM VIVIANO: The
people at Dynamite were big fans of Mad. You have to remember Mad had a
huge circulation at that time, and it was really important to the age
level of Dynamite readers.
WARD SUTTON: Bananas had a lot of humor. You drew one hilarious cover parodying the Rocky sequels that looked straight out of Mad.
SAM VIVIANO: Yeah--with the old Rocky ... little did we know that it would literally come to pass!
Dynamite
and Bananas collected a huge number of up-and-coming illustrators--some went on to big things. (Famed lettering and logo artist) Michael
Doret designed the logos for both magazines.
In the late 70s and
early 80s there was a whole community of hungry, up-and-coming
illustrators in New York. Each weekend there'd be huge parties ... people
doing the same thing, on the same trajectory. Without even talking shop,
there was a sense of osmosis that you'd absorb from each other. It was a
real moment.
WARD SUTTON: You've had a wealth of experience.
SAM VIVIANO: I
have a healthy ego, but it's a realistic ego. There's only one Mort
Drucker. Only one Jack Davis. My place in that scope of things never
came close.
I don't know where I exist in the history of
illustration, in the history of art direction. But I've had an
interesting career: Two decades as an illustrator, hopefully two decades
as an art director, decades teaching. I worked for artists' rights
through the Graphic Artists Guild in the 70s and 80s. I'm happy with my
lot at Mad, I love the people, love the magazine. Every two months when
the boxes of the new issue arrive from the printer--seeing the magazine, seeing that it's something real-- it is concrete, all 60 pages, and I
think, "I made that."
I packed a car after college and moved to
New York. I crashed with relatives for six months until I was able to
rent my own place. To me, New York, as I'd seen it in comics and movies,
was the Emerald City. Even today I pinch myself being here: I'm living
that dream I had when I was a little kid.
Resources:
A Complete List of Sam Viviano's Covers and Illustrations for Mad
Sam Viviano's Wikipedia Page
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When Cartoonists Illustrate! Part 2: Derf
An Interview with Seattle Art Director Art Chantry
When Cartoonists Illustrate: Part 1: Kate Beaton
Alt Week: Guest Editor Cartoonist-Illustrator Ward Sutton