Speaking of gonzo newspapers, here’s an issue of National Informer published today in 1972, with its “truthful news of all the facts of life.” That in itself is a higher level of satire than yesterday’s competitor Rampage ever managed. This issue of Informer is all sex, with wonder pills, wonder drugs, hookers, and bedroom variations galore, including dominant women—and men whose egos can’t handle it. There’s a photo of a model captioned: “If you want your little to girl to grow up to be a big girl don’t let her start taking birth control until seventeen.” We had to read it twice. Is that some sort of incest quip? There’s nothing these tabloid editors wouldn’t print.
Informer also once more welcomes resident seer Mark Travis. We remember when he took over for the (not so) Great Criswell. Of the two, we liked Criswell better. Plus he had a better handle. Travis predicts the rise of disposable clothing, a massive outpouring of U.S. budget on artificial lakes, and a sudden trend of home rifle ranges. These seers were early versions of modern day cable pundits—they could constantly be wrong and still keep their jobs. But once we accept these papers as satire, then it’s clear that the predictions were supposed to be wrong. It’s excellent work if you can get it. Twenty-plus scans below.
