Outbursts of Everett True

A single-panel comic strip by James Swinnerton featuring Everett True, an irascible character prone to violent outbursts over minor social transgressions. Here, True threatens a lazy man with physical retaliation while a woman and child look on in shock. The strip employs bold ink cross-hatching and exaggerated caricature typical of early newspaper comics. Everett True exemplified the recurring-character format that helped establish newspaper comics as a distinct medium separate from editorial cartooning. The strip's appeal rested on True's unpredictable aggression and the contrast between his overwrought reactions and trivial provocations—a formula that influenced countless humor strips throughout the 20th century.