Facts:   - name: norman mingo      - birth date: 20 january 1896    - death date: 08 may 1980   Based on these bullet points, write a short biography describing the life of norman mingo .
Answer:
norman theodore mingo -lrb- 20 january 1896 -- 8 may 1980 -rrb- was an american commercial artist and illustrator .he is most famous for being commissioned to formalize the image of alfred e. neuman for `` mad . ''a prolific magazine illustrator in the norman rockwell vein , mingo resided in the chicago area for numerous decades before latterly retiring to tarrytown , new york .in his pre - `` mad '' years , he worked as an illustrator for various advertising agencies and magazines , including `` american weekly '' , `` ladies ' home journal '' and `` pictorial review '' .he provided a bikinied pin-up girl for a 1946 mennen skin bracer advert , signed with his distinctive mingo script .in addition to pin-up art , he also illustrated for paperbacks -lrb- pocket books -rrb- and paper dolls -lrb- deanna durbin -rrb- .in 1956 mingo answered a new york times ad for an illustrator , and was selected by `` mad '' publisher william m. gaines and editor al feldstein to create a warmer , more polished version of a public domain character the magazine had been using .previously , the magazine had printed a rougher image and redrawings of the character , which were randomly dubbed `` melvin f. coznowski '' or `` mel haney '' in addition to `` alfred e. neuman . ''the pollyannic simpleton had appeared in many guises and variations since the 19th century , including in dental advertisements that assured the public of minimal tooth-pulling pain .permanently named alfred e. neuman , the character became mad magazine 's mascot with issue # 30 .in november 2008 , mingo 's original cover featuring the first `` official '' portrait of neuman sold at auction for $ 203,150 .norman mingo crafted several `` mad '' covers in 1956-7 before leaving the magazine .he returned to `` mad '' in 1962 and painted most of its front covers until 1976 .his last `` mad '' cover appeared on issue # 211 -lrb- december 1979 -rrb- .combining the regular issues -lrb- including some back covers -rrb- , the reprint `` mad specials '' and...