24—The Daily Collegian Friday, Sept. 24, 1982
College to sex to taxes: Parody is in vogue
By SCOTT KRAFT
Associated Press Writer
NEW YORK First there was
Mummy, Muffy and the absolutely
to-die crew that made "The Preppy
Handbook" a nationwide success.
Now the joke's on everything from
college life to macho men to sex
manuals and tax guides.
Parody is in vogue. Publishers who
say "the best humor is what is true"
are finding success in books that poke
fun at the familiar. You might call it
101 uses for a paperback book.
Examples abound. For the home
handyman, there's "Do-It-Yourself
Brain Surgery & Other Home Skills."
The "other skills" include inventing a
ST. PAUL'S UNITED METHODIST CHURCH
250 E. College Ave.
Sunday Worship 9:15 & 10:45 am
Students/Young Adults Class 10:30 am
Robert M. Vowler, Minister
September 26 Sermon:
"The Church is of God"
miracle drug, building an ocean liner,
crocheting your own suspension
bridge and cloning yourself.
Before you start home cloning, the
guide advises, "Wash your hands and
put out your cigarette." For brain
surgery, you need a sharp knife, a
hand drill and boiling water. •
To crochet your own bridge, you
need 1,622 tons of 20-ply synthetic
yarn and 980,000 large buttons. To
invent a miracle drug, you need a
Swiss bank account ("to make provi
sions for your staggering profits"), a
pill-making machine and a gross of
white mice.
Parody's resurgence began with
"The Preppy Handbook," which has
sold 1.3 million copies at $3.95 each
and is in its 24th printing. Several new help. It has a chapter on "learning to
parodies 'already have risen to the top kiss right," "fumble-free undres
of the trade paperback sales lists and sing" and "it payi to advertise." The
more than a dozen others are due out intimate details are illustrated with
this fall. teddy bears.
Two of Preppy's co-authors have "The Original Up Your Ineome
written "Welcome to Mount Merry Tax" advises taxpayers with four
College," a college catalog that offers spouses to "declare yourself a reli
courses in small talk, applied sexuali- gious institution" and claim non-prof
ty and Yiddish for gentiles. ,There's it status.
also Physics for Dilettantes, Laundry "Real Men Don't Eat Quiche," a
Problems and Remedial Television. spoof of the macho image; is No. 2on
The entire description of one English The New York Times list of trade
course reads: "f ucn red ths sntnce y paperbacks. In a similar vein is "The
en tak ths cors." Manly Handbook," with a cover
For those who have trouble recog- showing a muscular, tatooed arm
nizing members of the opposite sex, crushing a beer can. Rule No. 1 for
an illustrated sex manual called being a manly man is: "Don't wear
"How To Do Sex Properly" might designer jeans."
Sunday, Sept. 26 11:00 am
Sigma Chi sponsors
The Sigma Chi Derby Dash
K (6.2 mile) Run
2 niile Fun Run
in cooperation with
Tuborg Beer
G. Heileman Brewing Co.
La Crosse, Wisconsin
Registration Thurs. and Fri.
Ground Floor HUB 8:00 am-5:00 pm
OR on Race Day 9:00 am-10:00 am
at Sigma Chi Fraternity
_ 400 E. Prospect Ave. ,
entry fee $5.00 includes T-shirt
BENEFITS
Big Broth'er, Big Sister of Centre County
AKL's,
We're blasting off for
the Balloon Derby!
Get PSYCHED!
Love,
The Kappas
Freedom of Choice
SAW - SUBARU®
Denny Behrer
New & used foreign and domestic cars
Nino, Sports
322 E._& Main St., Boalsburg
466-6266
WORSHIP SUNDAY
10 a.m., Eisenhower Chapel
1 1 :45 a.m., Grace Lutheran Church
(corner, Beaver & Garner)
5:30 p.m., Eisenhower Chapel
Sponsored by The Lutheran Student Parish
•
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A - . . 34144121 4474,
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Very Conducive to
friendliness GI mashing
a ct 0?? Y 110015
00 PH 6.000 se.
EVERY FRIDAY
JUNCTION of COLLEGE . 4 GARPER STATE COLLIGE.
Plenty of parking behind the Station 11 am -2 pm daily