Monday, February 28, 2022

Today in Comics History, February 28: Happy birthday, Zero Mostel!

Born on this day in 1915, a man who couldn't have existed in ancient times because they hadn't yet invented the concept of zero: Zero Mostel! The great comedian, singer, and actor on stage and the screen starred in such classics as A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, The Producers, The Front and more, and he played the voice of Spell Binder in 650+ episodes of The Electric Company, where he surely met Spider-Man! And, and I almost forgot: who could forget his unforgettable star turn in the you-can't-forget-it Fiddler on the Roof, which of course led to this:


cover of MAD #156 (January 1973), painting by Norman Mingo

Which brings us to yet another application of the second rule of comics:




from "Antenna on the Roof" in MAD #156, script by Frank Jacobs, pencils and inks by Mort Drucker

Happy birthday, Zero! You're our hero!


from Movie Love #18 (Eastern Color, December 1952), pencils and inks by Frank Fogarty

1 comment:

Gloria said...

Damn, he should have played in the Fiddler film, too!

First, he was blacklisted, and then he was discarded by a film director that thought he was "too fun" for a comedy musical.