We received 149 entries correctly identifying last month’s Fake Ad for Ed Nimby, the longtime fictitious politician and an acronymous man for an acrimonious time. The ad appeared on page 58 of the December Observer, but finding the last name of November’s winner proved to be a challenge for many.

Not for Silvia Ruiz! “Hello Fake Ad Creator,” she writes “You’ve really outdone yourself this month. Who knew that one of my favorite childhood movies had so much hidden meaning? The sketch of the lion under the word courage was a great clue to look further into the Wizard of Oz. Never knew that the Wonderful Wizard of Oz was an allegory or metaphor for the political, economic, and social events of America in the 1890’s and that L. Frank Baum satirized William JENNINGS Bryan as the cowardly lion. Bet the previous month’s winner Martha JENNINGS loved the way you hid her surname in the Fake Ad.”

Sandra Roth won our drawing. Sandra, please let us know where you would like to take your prize!

Oh, and frequent Fake Adder Nancie Loppnow wrote, “Do you ever consider inflation? The prize has been $25 for a very long time.”

Great question! The answer is no, but it’s a great question. And we have an even greater answer: Later this year, we’re adding an exciting new prize to the contest! How exciting? Well, we won’t give it all away here, but it’s taken us almost thirty years to make.

To enter this month’s contest, find the fake ad in hte January issue and follow the instructions in the box at the bottom of the Back Page. The fake ad always contains the name of last month’s winner in some form.