On Harvard Lampoon's 150th, Celebrate Careers In Comedy
The Harvard Lampoon, a student-run comedy publication, is celebrating its 150th anniversary, highlighting its long-standing influence on American humor. In the past, comedy was not seen as a viable career, so many contributors pursued traditional professions after college. Despite this, the Lampoon has launched the careers of numerous prominent comedians and writers over the decades.
- ▪The Harvard Lampoon was founded 150 years ago as an undergraduate humor magazine.
- ▪For much of its history, comedy was not considered a legitimate career path for its members.
- ▪Many Lampoon alumni went on to work in law, medicine, or business instead of comedy.
- ▪The publication has significantly influenced American comedy and launched several notable entertainment careers.
Opening excerpt (first ~120 words) tap to expand
“In college, you had certain career paths. There was law, medicine, that kind of thing. You didn’t get on the Lampoon in order to have a career in comedy because there were no careers in comedy.” That’s how Michael Arlen, Harvard class of 1952, described career options for himself and other past writers at the Harvard Lampoon, the undergrad comedy publication that Arlen was a part of. While the Lampoon’s elite members have produced brilliantly for 150 years, for a majority of those 150 years comedy wasn’t a career path. Which means comedy writing is what Harvard Lampoon writers did in the seemingly carefree years of college before being mugged by a post-collegiate reality that involved “real jobs” in law, medicine, Wall Street for certain, along with “business” of other stripes.
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Excerpt limited to ~120 words for fair-use compliance. The full article is at RealClear Markets.
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