Jester of Columbia
Encyclopedia
The Jester of Columbia, or simply the Jester, is a humor magazine at Columbia University
in New York City
. Founded on April Fool's Day, 1901, it is one of the oldest such publications in the United States
.
Printed continuously at least through 1997. It was revived in 2001 after a short lapse in publication and again in 2005 after another, shorter one. Jester now produces magazines and sponsors comedy events on Columbia's campus.
Jester attempts to not repeat jokes or features, except for a letters to the editor section, an editorial, called the "Editaurus," an obituary
section succinctly named "Deaths," and a couple of "list" pages containing short jokes and lists. However, there are no recurring subjects, and news-style pieces rarely appear, except as "sampled" documents. Within individual issues, there are also recurring references, including ones regarding Picabo Street
, the Zune
, and Q-Zar
.
, where an audience was forced to watch other students eat dinner for 30 minutes while listening to madrigal
s.
Jester also performs a number of pranks, most recently establishing a pseudo-rivalry with the Columbia Undergraduate Science Journal, culminating in a staged theft of issues, attached rebuttals, and a parody website.
The Columbia Spectator reported the event as an actual disappearance.
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. Founded on April Fool's Day, 1901, it is one of the oldest such publications in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Printed continuously at least through 1997. It was revived in 2001 after a short lapse in publication and again in 2005 after another, shorter one. Jester now produces magazines and sponsors comedy events on Columbia's campus.
Issues
Excluding brief lapses in publication, the Jester has always produced issues. Jester publishes four or five times per year, with articles loosely centered around a broad theme. These have recently included "Justice," "Liquid," and "Technology." Issues contain a wide array of articles and jokes, such as narratives, dialogues, and articles composed of short paragraphs discussing a theme. To heighten the effect of period pieces or specific jokes, articles appear as fake documents found and scanned into the issue. Illustrations are a significant part of the magazine, with visual gags and fake ads bringing greater variety.Jester attempts to not repeat jokes or features, except for a letters to the editor section, an editorial, called the "Editaurus," an obituary
Obituary
An obituary is a news article that reports the recent death of a person, typically along with an account of the person's life and information about the upcoming funeral. In large cities and larger newspapers, obituaries are written only for people considered significant...
section succinctly named "Deaths," and a couple of "list" pages containing short jokes and lists. However, there are no recurring subjects, and news-style pieces rarely appear, except as "sampled" documents. Within individual issues, there are also recurring references, including ones regarding Picabo Street
Picabo Street
Picabo Street is a retired American alpine ski racer. She won gold medals in super G at the 1998 Winter Olympics and in downhill at 1996 World Championships, along with three other Olympic and World Championship medals. She also won World Cup downhill season titles in 1995 and 1996, the first...
, the Zune
Zune
Zune is a digital media brand owned by Microsoft which includes a line of portable media players, a digital media player software for Windows machines, a music subscription service known as a 'Zune Music Pass', music and video streaming for the Xbox 360 via the Zune Software, music, TV and movie...
, and Q-Zar
Q-Zar
Q-ZAR is a type of laser tag that was developed by Geoff Haselhurst and Omnitronics in Perth, Western Australia...
.
Other activities
In addition to publishing the magazine, the group puts on comedy events, containing sketches, improv comedy, and an event reminiscent of the antics of Andy KaufmannAndy Kaufmann
Andy Kaufmann is a former basketball 6'5 or 6'6 swingman/small forward who starred at the University of Illinois during the late 1980s and early 1990s.-High school:...
, where an audience was forced to watch other students eat dinner for 30 minutes while listening to madrigal
Madrigal (music)
A madrigal is a secular vocal music composition, usually a partsong, of the Renaissance and early Baroque eras. Traditionally, polyphonic madrigals are unaccompanied; the number of voices varies from two to eight, and most frequently from three to six....
s.
Jester also performs a number of pranks, most recently establishing a pseudo-rivalry with the Columbia Undergraduate Science Journal, culminating in a staged theft of issues, attached rebuttals, and a parody website.
The Columbia Spectator reported the event as an actual disappearance.
Jester alumni
- Allen GinsbergAllen GinsbergIrwin Allen Ginsberg was an American poet and one of the leading figures of the Beat Generation in the 1950s. He vigorously opposed militarism, materialism and sexual repression...
, poet of the Beat GenerationBeat generationThe Beat Generation refers to a group of American post-WWII writers who came to prominence in the 1950s, as well as the cultural phenomena that they both documented and inspired... - Gerald GreenGerald Green (author)Gerald Green was an American author, journalist, producer and director.-Biography:Green was born in Brooklyn, New York as Gerald Greenberg. He was the son of a physician, Dr. Samuel Greenberg....
, writer - Tony KushnerTony KushnerAnthony Robert "Tony" Kushner is an American playwright and screenwriter. He received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1993 for his play, Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes, and co-authored with Eric Roth the screenplay for the 2005 film, Munich.-Life and career:Kushner was born...
, playwright - Robert LaxRobert LaxRobert Lax was an American poet, known in particular for his association with famed 20th century Trappist monk and writer Thomas Merton. A third friend of his youth, whose work sheds light on both Lax and Merton, was Ad Reinhardt. During the latter period of his life, Lax resided on the island of...
, poet - Joseph L. MankiewiczJoseph L. MankiewiczJoseph Leo Mankiewicz was an American film director, screenwriter, and producer. Mankiewicz had a long Hollywood career and is best known as the writer-director of All About Eve , which was nominated for 14 Academy Awards and won six. He was brother to screenwriter and drama critic Herman J...
, screenwriter - Thomas MertonThomas MertonThomas Merton, O.C.S.O. was a 20th century Anglo-American Catholic writer and mystic. A Trappist monk of the Abbey of Gethsemani, Kentucky, he was a poet, social activist, and student of comparative religion...
, author and monk - Ted RallTed RallTed Rall is an American columnist, syndicated editorial cartoonist, and author. His political cartoons often appear in a multi-panel comic-strip format and frequently blend comic-strip and editorial-cartoon conventions. The cartoons appear in approximately 100 newspapers around the United States...
, political cartoonist - Ad ReinhardtAd ReinhardtAdolph Frederick Reinhardt was an Abstract painter active in New York beginning in the 1930s and continuing through the 1960s. He was a member of the American Abstract Artists and was a part of the movement centered around the Betty Parsons Gallery that became known as Abstract Expressionism...
, artist - Ed RiceEd RiceEdward "Ed" Rice was an American author, publisher, photojournalist and painter, best known as a close friend and biographer of Thomas Merton...
, journalist - Ralph de ToledanoRalph de ToledanoRalph de Toledano was a major figure in the conservative movement in the United States throughout the second half of the 20th century.-Early years:...
, journalist, co-founded the National ReviewNational ReviewNational Review is a biweekly magazine founded by the late author William F. Buckley, Jr., in 1955 and based in New York City. It describes itself as "America's most widely read and influential magazine and web site for conservative news, commentary, and opinion."Although the print version of the...
and edited NewsweekNewsweekNewsweek is an American weekly news magazine published in New York City. It is distributed throughout the United States and internationally. It is the second-largest news weekly magazine in the U.S., having trailed Time in circulation and advertising revenue for most of its existence... - Lynd WardLynd WardLynd Kendall Ward was an American artist and storyteller, and son of Methodist minister and prominent political organizer Harry F. Ward. He illustrated some 200 juvenile and adult books...
, artist - Herman WoukHerman WoukHerman Wouk is a Pulitzer Prize-winning American author of novels including The Caine Mutiny, The Winds of War, and War and Remembrance.-Biography:...
, writer - Judd GreggJudd GreggJudd Alan Gregg is a former Governor of New Hampshire and former United States Senator from New Hampshire, who served as chairman of the Senate Budget Committee. He is a member of the Republican Party and was a businessman and attorney in Nashua before entering politics...
- Ronald M. Deutsch, journalist and writer
External links
- Jester website
- "Jester Holds Court Again", an article in the January, 2002 edition of Columbia College Today