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As It Happens

Alberta boy who looks like Alfred E. Neuman gets his photo in MAD Magazine

What, me worry? A 7-year-old redhead named TJ Desjarlais certainly isn't. MAD magazine thinks he's a dead ringer for Alfred E. Neuman — so they featured his gap-toothed face in the June edition.
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TJ Desjarlais (left) is featured in the June edition of MAD Magazine because of his resemblance to Alfred E. Neuman (right). (Carly Desjarlais, MAD Magazine)
As It Happens5:00Alberta Boy featured in MAD Magazine

TJ Desjarlais is seven-years-old. He lives in Medicine Hat, Alberta. And he looks a lot like pop culture icon Alfred E. Neuman. Now, as an added bonus, MAD Magazine has printed his photo.

"He's got the red hair, the freckles, the same ears and then, a few months ago, he lost one of his front teeth. It kind of finished the look," Carly Desjarlais, TJ's mother, tells As It Happens host Carol Off.

Desjarlais posted a picture of her son on Twitter and tagged MAD Magazine. It got the editors' attention.

The picture is in the June edition of the magazine, which went on sale in April. The caption under the photo reads:

TJ Desjarlais says he is loving the attention from being in MAD Magazine. (Carly Desjarlais)

"Carly Desjarlais of Medicine Hat, Alberta sent in this picture of her son TJ, who recently lost his front tooth. We're willing to bet that whatever the Tooth Fairy brought him, it wasn't enough to make up for this kind of humiliation"

For his part, TJ is enjoying his new celebrity status. "[It's] awesome because I'm famous now," he says.

And the fame might continue. According to Canadian Press, Desjarlais submitted a video of TJ on his bike to "America's Funniest Home Videos." The clip has been accepted, but no air date has been announced.

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