Reading – Wacky Packages

Last month, when I ran across the special on Wacky Packages (mentioned here), I ordered myself a copy of the Wacky Packages* book (click here for several photos of the book at www.wackypackages.org). Well, like many art books there aren’t a lot of words in here (though the Wacky Days intro by Art Spiegelman is an excellent glimpse into the creation of the series), but there are a hell of a lot of great images.

Covering the first two years of the trading cards’ existence (skipping the 1967 die-cut cards and 1969 ads for reasons I can’t even begin to guess at), Wacky Packages includes all 223 of the images released in 1973 and 1974. And it’s page after page of funny, funny stuff.

The Wacky Packages Wikipedia entry provides historical information on the series, and links, but none of that matters once you pop this book open and start flipping through it. With gross, twisted parody ads of popular and famous products (it’s amazing how many of the images still work today), Wacky Packages — and its underground comix art style — had to have been a strong influence on the “lowbrow” art movement (Wikipedia entry) and no doubt helped influence many of the designer toy artists working in the field today. (Even if they don’t immediately recognize the influence, it’s hard to see how any artist deep in lowbrow today can’t help but love Wacky Packages.)

And it looks like the book has been doing well. A first printing sold out, the second printing is now available, and a second volume — Wacky Packages New New New** — is scheduled for release next April. That’s a hell of a lot of mileage for a series of funny trading cards printed back in the seventies.

Wacky Images Online

To look over several of the images from the series, jump over to John Mann’s Wacky Packages Site.

*Affiliate link: Orders using this link earn battlegrip.com cash, which is applied to buying toys.

**Affiliate link: Orders using this link earn battlegrip.com cash, which is applied to buying toys.