Funny Stuff #40
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join freeFunny Stuff #40 is a representative artifact of DC's mid-Golden Age funny-animal publishing program, a genre strand that DC pursued in parallel with its superhero line throughout the 1940s. The presence of Superman and Clark Kent in the issue — a pattern the series established as early as issue #22, where Superman crossed into the anthropomorphic world under the alias 'Mister Incognito' — demonstrates how DC deliberately integrated its marquee superhero property into the comedy-anthology format, an unusual cross-genre experiment rare in mainstream comics of the era. That same cast of recurring animal characters (Dunbar Dodo, Fenimore Frog, J. Rufus Lion, Blackie Bear, Blabber Mouse) would later be retroactively folded into DC's Pre-Crisis multiverse as inhabitants of Earth-C, giving this title an unexpected cosmological legacy that stretched into the 1980s with Captain Carrot and His Amazing Zoo Crew. The issue also features a Captain Tootsie advertisement strip by the C.C. Beck studio, making it a small crossroads of Golden Age commercial and narrative comics craft.
In "The Whale Who Wanted to Fly," Fenimore’s romantic plans hit a snag when he needs cash for a date with Gertrude—so he turns to Dunbar for a truth serum, hoping to expose which of his friends are lying about having money. Otto Feuer’s expressive art brings the wacky misadventure to life, with every panel bursting with charm and comedic timing. A 10-cent comic from 1948, this issue stands out for its playful premise and distinctive visual style.
In this 1948 Funny Stuff tale, Fenimore sets out to impress Gertrude by borrowing money for a date, only to turn to Dunbar for a truth serum when his friends all claim they’re broke. The serum’s effects quickly turn the situation into a chaotic, laugh-filled test of honesty among the animal crew.
ComicBooks.com Value
This exact issue on ebay
Read it digitally
Sell my copy
Have this issue — or a whole collection? Get a fair offer from us, skip the marketplace fees and the hassle.
We Buy Collections ▸History
Funny Stuff launched with a cover date of June 1944 as part of DC's (then National Comics) deliberate expansion into humor and funny-animal anthologies, edited by Sheldon Mayer, whose own sensibility for slapstick and character-driven comedy shaped the line. The series ran for 79 issues before retitling as Dodo and the Frog with issue #80, reflecting the growing dominance of the Dunbar Dodo and Fenimore Frog feature. By 1948 — the year of issue #40 — the title had settled into a stable anthology format mixing several rotating strips, with contributions from artists including Otto Feuer (Dodo and the Frog covers and interiors), Rube Grossman, and Harris Steinbrook, alongside regular full-page Tootsie Roll advertisement strips drawn by the C.C. Beck and Pete Costanza studio.
Trivia · 8 facts
- Funny Stuff was a DC (National Comics) funny-animal anthology that debuted with a cover date of June 1944 and ran for 79 issues before becoming Dodo and the Frog.
- The series was edited by Sheldon Mayer and featured recurring strips including The Dodo and the Frog (Dunbar Dodo and Fenimore Frog), J. Rufus Lion, Blackie Bear, The Three Mouseketeers, and Blabber Mouse.
- Superman and Clark Kent appeared in the series as early as Funny Stuff #22 (June 1947), where Superman visited the anthropomorphic world under the alias 'Mister Incognito' — a Pre-Crisis multiversal crossover flagged by the DC Database.
- Issue #40 (1948) features Superman and Clark Kent alongside the series' regular funny-animal cast, continuing the title's cross-genre practice of slipping DC's flagship superhero into a comedy-animal context.
- Captain Tootsie — a C.C. Beck and Pete Costanza creation originally produced as a full-page Tootsie Roll advertising strip — appeared regularly in Funny Stuff issues of this era, including in and around issue #40.
- The characters of Funny Stuff, including those in this issue (Dunbar Dodo, Fenimore Frog, J. Rufus Lion, Blackie Bear), were later identified by DC as residents of Earth-C and became part of the Pre-Crisis multiverse framework explored in Captain Carrot and His Amazing Zoo Crew (1982–1983).
- Otto Feuer was the primary cover artist and Dodo and the Frog interior artist for the series during this period; Rube Grossman contributed strips for characters such as J. Rufus Lion and Blabber Mouse.
- The series carried a 10-cent cover price and ran at 52 pages full color during its mid-run issues.
Cast · 11 characters
Full credits
Reprints
Reprinted in House of Secrets #22 (1959)
Key issues in Funny Stuff
Reviews
Reader reviews
No reader reviews yet.