Paul Laikin

Paul Laikin was an American comedy writer and editor whose sharp, offbeat humor shaped satire across magazines, television, and trading cards for decades. Born Paul I. Laikin on October 24, 1927, in Brooklyn, New York, he graduated high school in 1944 before being drafted into the Army the following year. He served as a corporal in Germany, playing bugle calls, and was stationed at the former Dachau concentration camp. After his discharge in 1947, he studied English at Columbia University and began writing for top comedians including Jackie Gleason, Milton Berle, and Alan King. Laikin joined *Mad* in 1957, later editing Jim Warren’s *Wildest Westerns* and spending three years as editor of *Cracked*, where he became best known for his work. He also contributed to *Crazy Magazine*, *Sick*, and *Mad* itself, with a catalog spanning 22 issues from 1958 to 1994. Satirist Jay Lynch called him an important figure in postwar satire, and publisher Jim Warren deemed him “one of the funniest minds in the world.” Laikin died on May 12, 2012, leaving a legacy as a versatile, behind-the-scenes force in American humor.