Jester of Columbia
The Jester of Columbia, or simply the Jester, is a campus humor magazine. Legendarily founded on April Fool's Day, 1901, it is one of the oldest such publications in the US. Revived in 2001 after a 12-year lapse in publication and again in 2004 after a shorter one, Jester has once again begun to produce magazines as well as sponsor comedy events on Columbia's campus. It is widely acclaimed as "somewhat funny every now and then," a major achievement for any college humor publication.
During the 2006-2007 school year, Jester was embroiled in a bizarre (and possibly one-way, i.e., as a Jester-only prank) feud with the Columbia Undergraduate Science Journal.
Jester covers
The Jester has always been known for its artistically sophisticated covers, a trait which reached its peak during the 1930s, when Ad Reinheardt, later a notable abstract expressionist painter, was one of its editors.
Left: Columbia Lion by Ad Reinhardt, Right: A 1934 issue featuring stories by football captain Cliff Montgomery and Arnold Beichman
1934 cover featuring the crew team, by Ad Reinhardt
Jester alumni
- I.A.L. Diamond, Hollywood comedy writer
- Allen Ginsberg, poet of the Beat Generation
- Gerald Green, writer
- Tony Kushner, playwright
- Robert Lax, poet
- Joseph L. Mankiewicz, screenwriter
- Thomas Merton, author and monk
- Ted Rall, political cartoonist
- Ad Reinhardt, artist
- Ed Rice, journalist
- Ralph de Toledano, journalist, co-founded the National Review and edited Newsweek
- Lynd Ward, artist
- Herman Wouk, writer
- Ed Koren, cartoonist
