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Arie Kaplan (b. August 26, 1974) is a writer and comedian. He is the author of the book Masters of the Comic Book Universe Revealed!, and a writer for MAD Magazine. He is a member of the Friars Club and he hosts "MoCCA Mondays," a series of discussions with writers and artists at the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art. He lives in New York City.

Personal

Kaplan attended the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University.

On May 30, 2004, Kaplan married playwright Nadine Graham.^[1] "I'm very goal-oriented. I pursue something until I've worn it down to a nub. That's what I did with Nadine."

Writer

Kaplan's biggest contribution is to writing. Specifically, Kaplan has explored the role Jews have played in comedy writing and comic art. He has hosted university panel discussions with cartoonists Samuel Gross, Mort Gerberg, and Peter Kuper about Jewish humor and cartoons about aging. ^[2] He reviewed the art of Jewish comic Arthur Szyk.

MAD Magazine

He has described it as a dream to work for pioneering satire publication MAD Magazine. "MAD made its debut in 1952 as a comic book (it became a magazine in 1955 to avoid censorship) founded by Jewish 'red diaper baby' Harvey Kurtzman, an eccentric iconoclast who inspired fierce loyalty among his admirers," wrote Kaplan.^[3]

Freelance work

He was featured in the book MADvertising: A MAD Look at 50 years of MADison Avenue.^[4] In addition to his position with MAD, he has contributed to MTV's TRL and the Cartoon Network's Codename: Kids Next Door. HeHe has written for animation studios such as JibJab and Noodlesoup Productions.

Book: Masters of the Comic Book Universe Revealed!

In Masters, Kaplan profiles the lives and careers of a diverse range of icons of the comic book genre, including Stan Lee (Spider-Man); Neil Gaiman (Sandman); Marjane Satrapi (Persepolis, Art Spiegelman (Maus); Dwayne McDuffie (Static Shock); and Will Eisner (The Spirit).^[5] At an event at MoCCA celebrating the release of the book Kaplan was asked what the comic artists he interviewed—such as Eisner, Spiegelman, and Gaiman—have in common. He said that they were "elevating the art" and showing comics to be "art with a capital A."^[6] On the panel to discuss Kaplan's work was Jerry Robinson, legendary creator of the Joker, Robert Sikoryak, who does comic adaptations of literature, and Danny Fingeroth, former Spider-Man editor at Marvel Comics and author of "Superman on the Couch: What Superheroes Really Tell Us About Ourselves and Our Society."

Current and future work

Kaplan signd a book deal to turn his "Kings of Comics" magazine series on the history of Jews in comics into a novel.^[7]

Comedian

Kaplan's writing work blends with his work in entertainment. He is the writer/creator of the children's comic strip "Danger Dave, Action Kid."^[8]

Stand-up work

Writing credits

Quotes

• "Jews built the comic book industry from the ground up, and the influence of Jewish writers, artists, and editors continues to be felt to this day."^[9]

References

1. ^ Anna Jane Grossman, Countdown to Bliss, New York Observer, March 22, 2004; Page 12.
2. ^ [New York Sun Calendar, The New York Sun, June 24, 2004; Page 15.
3. ^ From Self-Caricature to Self-Confidence, via MyJewishLearning.com.
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6. ^ Gary Shapiro, In Comics, Villains Needed, The New York Sun, August 31, 2006; Page 13.
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9. ^ A Brief History of Jews in Comic Books on MyJewishLearning.com.

External links

• Arie Kaplan's Website
• Masters of the Comic Book Universe Revealed! ISBN 1-55652-633-4
• MoCCA Mondays Schedule
• Debra Rubin, Did you hear the one about the Jewish comedy writer? The Jewish State, 2/28/03