The Not Man first appeared on t-shirts while touring behind Spreading the Disease. Vinyl copies of Among the Living immortalized the newly minted mascot with an insert. By consciously shunning the skull-centric imagery that haunted the heavy metal landscape, Anthrax used art as an extension of their legendary sense of humor.
By 1988’s State of Euphoria, the Not Man was king of the Anthrax universe. In a literal embrace of their cartoonish personality, a caricature of Anthrax graced the rear sleeve with the Not Man towering over the band. Unlike Iron Maiden, Anthrax never slapped their mascot on an album cover. Although the Not Man never appeared on the front of an LP, his delinquent hijinks added personality to the Antisocial picture sleeve.
“Antisocial” went on to become the band’s signature song thanks to a well-received video. Cameras captured the Not Man spray-painting his likeness on stage and interacting with the audience. The Anthrax mascot truly shined in the context of merchandising. An endless stream of t-shirts kept both the Not Man and Anthrax in the public eye as legions of headbangers proudly displayed their allegiance to the rising thrash band.
If you believe Charlie Benante, the mascot was inspired by the drunken escapades of manager Jonny Z. The strange birth of the Not Man gets even weirder. By affixing rubber faces to a mechanical plastic body, the assorted puppets became axe-wielding maniacs. They seemingly danced to the tune of “When the Saints Go Marching In,” making the macabre concoction just plain creepy.
01 - 04 - Merchandising prints.
05 - Cover of the single “Antisocial”, 1988.
