Origins of the Sunday Comics by Peter Maresca for August 14, 2013

what a great drawing, the bit in the middle with everyone laughing at a guy being hit by a safe would have been enough but the rest of it just makes it crazier, seeing these pages is a real treat

Well, I see they had the old Acme safe gag back then.

An early version of America’s Funniest Home Videos.

Reminds me of the Saturday morning cartoons when I was young (50+ years ago). Think about it, the roadrunner and Wiley Coyote, Tom and Jerry, Looney Toons in general. Same idea, different media.

O_O gee old comics are weird XD

O_O notice the building in front of the dude getting smashed says burial company/funarals directed O_O

I agree humans laughts of the suffering and pain of others, why?

A lot of the old comics were like this—Bringing Up Father being a good example. Mad Magazine did a interesting—but dark—take on this strip; one minute average comic, next a step in real life to explain why violence isn’t funny. A good read if you can find it.

I only laugh when it is self inflicted, like Tru Channels Dumbest……… I never watch or laugh at pranks because they are cruel so easy and the person being pranked isn’t in on it, which of course is the point, but cruelty is not funny.

I’m not sure of the “tragedy” of the panel at the 10 o’clock position. Multiple births? A man doing the “woman’s work” of pushing a stroller?

WSR you’re right, and (if memory serves) the strip was split between the “cartoon” parody version by Bill Elder and a “realistic” (very violent) parody version by Bernie Kriegstein (in Mad no. 17) available in reprint editions. Wicked stuff.

what in the world is that