Cheap Laffs: The Art of the Novelty Item » (Bargain)

Newgarden's beautiful catalog of the cheap trick makes straight-faced art of bad taste—fake vomit, snake-springing nut cans, the whoopie cushion, and all things demented. "Before there were Jeff Koons and Howard Stern, Mel Brooks and John Waters, Garbage Pail Kids and Ren and Stimpy, there were millions of novelty creations filling a visceral and inexhaustible need," he writes. "Vulgar, sadistic, stupid, odd, amusing, outlandish, brilliant, execrable, infantile, morbid, and exquisite, these artifacts represent the long-forgotten stock in the sub-basement of our culture." Newgarden would know—he created the parent-revolting Garbage Pail Kids. The items are lovingly documented with Schmelling's color photos. Annotation ©2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR