In the long history of MAD magazine,it has had many imitators.Many didn't last very long,where some managed to last a decade or two---I may be wrong,but I think CRACKED lasted the longest---anyway,one such magazine was SICK,which Joe Simon began in 1960 as a Crestwood publication,until its 62nd issue in '68,when Hewfred Publications took over.With its 109th issue,it would become a Charlton magazine in '76,finally ending in 1980.
During those final years,editor and contributing artist Jack Sparling ran a feature in the back pages,"Cher D'Flower",in which we look in on the home life of one of SICK's reporters,an attractive young female blonde who does little more than lounge around her apartment---in the nude.Although the dialogue seems to be little more than an afterthought,anyone familiar with Sparling's unique artwork,as well as fans of good-girl art and pin-up art, will appreciate this.
I had several of these issues as a kid---I was 14,so Playboy was definitely out of the question---and although those were lost to time,I managed to acquire them back several years ago,along with two issues I never had.To my knowledge,these are the complete series,at least with the nubile Miss D'Flower nude.Starting with the October '77 issue:
The December '77 issue...which,incidentally,was the first issue of SICK I ever bought,because of the Star Wars parody advertised on the cover.That's how much I was into the movie back then,I'd buy any magazine with anything even remotely related.
P.S. The parody stunk.No matter...I got this.
February '78:
April '78:
June '78:
Beginning with the August '78 issue,Sparling decided to add a new character,Ophelia Bunz.---Yes,you read that right."Bunz".---She was Cher's raven-haired,plus-sized,actress-wannabe half-sister,who ALSO had a habit of walking around naked.I dunno,maybe Sparling somehow thought the novelty of three pages of a beautiful unclad blonde was beginning to wear thin,and this was his idea to liven things up.
Note the second panel,of Cher dropping her pants;doesn't she wear underwear?
The October '78 issue---does Cher notice that her teddy bear seems to be alive?
December '78:
February '79:Note,in several panels,the return of Cher's possibly-sentient teddy bear.
Well? What would be the look on your face if an economy-sized butt just leapfrogged over you?
From the August '79 issue...I found this on the 'net,along
with two 1980 issues in which neither is nude. See at
the bottom for full details.
I recently came into possession of three more issues of SICK...I got them from the
same Canadian-based firm where I got many of the issues the images above came
from. The listings for these quite specifically said that,although Cher D'Flower
was included,these didn't have nudity.
Admittedly,my curiosity got the better of me...anyway,here they are...
From the October '79 issue:
Looks like they're not confined to Cher's apartment anymore...and isn't
Ophelia supposed to be overweight?
From the December '79 issue:
Okay,it looks like they're back at Cher's place...and their transparent
nighties offer at least a glimpse of nudity.
Lastly,from the April 1980 issue:
Are you kidding me here? What's with the Wilma Flintstone outfits? The
October '79 installment may have also been built around the goofy premise
of a fantasy sequence,but at least they were in bikinis,both regular and of
the fig-leaf variety...and why is Ophelia coming out of the shower (presumably)
wearing a rain poncho ?!?
There were only two more issues that year,with a
non-nude Cher and Ophelia. I managed to find both on the 'net,but
since the nudity's the whole point (as far as I'm concerned),I'm not
going to post either here. After those two issues,SICK ceased publication.
It's a pity artist Jack Sparling is no longer with us...besides being a great
artist,I'd love to know if the decision to cut nudity from this feature was
his idea,or he was required to do so.
