George Woodbridge (illustrator)

Woodbridge died of emphysema at age 73, on January 19, 2004, in a Staten Island hospital. He was survived by his second wife, Deborah, and by his first wife Ines and their sons, George, Curtis (also a professional illustrator), and Christopher Woodbridge.

Woodbridge was an early advocate for and participant in the hobby of historical reenacting, particularly that of the American Revolution which was always a special interest of his. During the American Revolution Bicentennial of 1975 - 1981, he served as commander of the association of reenactors known as the Brigade of the American Revolution which participated in many events during the period. Woodbridge also was credited as historical technical adviser to the 1986 Alan Alda film Sweet Liberty.

Woodbridge illustrated several Mad books, such as Dick DeBartolo's A Mad Guide to Leisure Time and Mad's Cradle to Grave Primer (Warner Books, 1973), written by Larry Siegel and edited by Nick Meglin. When Bhob Stewart edited the Mad Style Guide in 1994, he gave Woodbridge the assignment of drawing the Mad Zeppelin from three different angles as a detailed guide for any company that might one day market a miniature model of the airship.

For Mad No. 95 (June 1965), he drew the sports satire "43-Man Squamish", prompting Ficarra to comment, "It's arguably our most requested piece to reprint. It struck a chord. Colleges all over formed teams and played this crazy game, with these ridiculous-looking helmets. George captured that lunacy." Written by Tom Koch, the absurdist article detailed the convoluted rules of an imaginary sport, and made enough of an impression to be mentioned in both men's New York Times obituaries, including the first sentence of Koch's.

In March 1957, Woodbridge began as a freelancer to Mad when Al Feldstein was the editor. Feldstein observed, "George's strong points were many. He was especially adept at delineating amusing street scenes with crowds and signs and outlandish going-ons, as well as depicting humorous interpretations of just plain people in comedic human situations. The articles he was assigned to illustrate were chosen with those superb talents in mind." Woodbridge remained with Mad for five decades. Later Mad editor John Ficarra noted, "He had a tremendous eye for detail that showed up in his drawings. We especially played to his history knowledge. When we gave him a piece on World War I, he would draw the exact gun and belt buckle they were using then."

George Woodbridge (October 3, 1930 – January 20, 2004) was an American illustrator known for his exhaustive research and historical accuracy, and for his 44-year run as a contributor to MAD Magazine. He was sometimes referred to as "America's Dean of Uniform Illustration" because of his expertise in drawing military uniforms.

He illustrated many military history books, including the Time/Life Civil War history, George Neumann's Collector's Illustrated Encyclopedia of the American Revolution and Frederick P. Todd's three-volume American Military Equipage, 1851–1872: A Description by Word and Picture of What the American Soldier, Sailor and Marine of These Years Wore and Carried. He was named a fellow of the Company of Military Historians in 1961.