Quick Facts
Biography
John Ficarra (born ca. 1948) is an American publishing figure. He was hired as assistant editor of the American satire magazine Mad in 1980, shortly after his debut as a contributing writer. He became editor-in-chief (a position he shared with Nick Meglin until 2004) in 1984, when the incumbent (Al Feldstein, born 1925, died 29 April 2014) retired.
As Editor of Mad
In March 2013 Ficarra was interviewed by Film Society of Lincoln Center, to explain how Mad created its annual movie-parody issue.
In a July 2014 interview with Nerd Reactor, Ficarra explained the changes being made to Mad in an effort to make it more relevant to the 21st century.
In August 2014 Ficarra participated in a Warner Brothers interview, to explain the creative process at Mad.
In response to the 2015 attack on the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, on 11 January 2015 Ficarra made a personal appearance on the US television show CBS Sunday Morning, to describe the chilling effect which such attacks were having on the previous freedom of expression enjoyed by cartoonists in the Free World.
In December 2015 Ficarra was interviewed by MStars News, to explain how the magazine created its annual 20 Dumbest People, Events & Things of 20xx issue.