"Why Tell the Truth" from Humbug #2 (2009, Fantagraphics) is a bold, self-aware experiment in comic form, written by Harvey Kurtzman and presented with a cover by Arnold Roth. The story unfolds with a stark warning, then pauses with two blank pages before a sudden, jarring twist on page 31 with the word "April Fool!" — a moment that redefines the reader’s expectations without revealing its deeper implications.
Contains 65 stories
Why Tell the Truth
3 pp · Humor
A White Christmas
1.33 pp · Humor
Gift Wrapping
3.25 pp · Humor
How Westerns Affect TV
2.75 pp · Humor
Holiday Phone Call
2 pp · Humor
The Man of 1000 Faces 500 Bodies and 348 Voices, Growls and Shrieks
2 pp · Humor
No Challengers for Patterson?
2 pp · Humor
A Christmas Carol
6 pp · Humor, Satire-Parody
Galcream No More Greasy Palms!
1 pp · Humor, Satire-Parody
Frankenstien and His Monster
4 pp · Humor, Satire-Parody
1957 in Revue
3 pp · Satire-Parody
Rocket to the Moon
1 pp · Humor
Ingenuity in Packaging
2 pp · Satire-Parody
Misleading Columns
3 pp · Satire-Parody
Indoor Track
2 pp · Satire-Parody
Sputniks!
2 pp · Satire-Parody
Crime in the U.S.A.
5 pp · Satire-Parody
Fun with Hamlet & His Friends
3 pp · Satire-Parody
Have Gun You Better Travel
3 pp · Satire-Parody
Orval Faubus Humbug Hero of 1957
1 pp · Satire-Parody
Scared You, Hey?
2 pp · Satire-Parody
Jailbreak Rock
3 pp · Satire-Parody
Humbug Album of American History George Washington
1 pp · Satire-Parody
Everybody is Reading Car Magazines
5 pp · Satire-Parody
Favorite Formulas for Finishing Films
2 pp · Satire-Parody
Miami
3 pp · Satire-Parody
Real, Old-Time Cowboys
1 pp · Satire-Parody
Snow Sculpture
2 pp · Satire-Parody
Old Sputnik Prints
4 pp · Satire-Parody
TV Choreography
3 pp · Satire-Parody
A Humbug Valentine Bonus
1 pp · Satire-Parody
Saint Patrick's Day
1 pp · Satire-Parody
The Best Television Commercials 1958
4 pp · Satire-Parody
Log of the Solar Hawke
2 pp · Satire-Parody
Finding The Mummy
1 pp · Humor
Russia Spurs U.S. Education
2 pp · Humor
Basic Field Manual U.S. Armnaviator's Handbook
3 pp · Humor
Sports Car Racing
2 pp · Humor
Diving for Pearl
1 pp · Humor
The Little Goldy Book Alphibet book
4 pp · Humor
The Following Four Pages Are Like Nothing You Have Ever Read in a Magazine Before
3 pp · Humor
A deadpan warning on page 23 sets up a bizarre twist: the next two pages are utterly blank, then, on page 31, the punchline arrives with a dry "April Fool!" — a classic Humbug gag delivered with perfect timing and zero explanation, relying entirely on the surprise of the empty pages and the punchline’s sudden reveal.
Panicky Patriots
1 pp · Humor
Spring Training
3 pp · Humor
Adhesive Bandages
1 pp · Humor
A Quiet Night
1 pp · Humor
I Will Train You to Make Big Money Repairing Television-Radio
1 pp · Satire-Parody
Mayday Parade
1 pp · Humor
Flyashi Gordonovich
4 pp · Humor, Satire-Parody
Economy Optimists
1 pp · Humor
New Streaked Toothpaste with Streaks, Zigzags, Dots!
1 pp · Humor
Untitled Humor story
2 pp · Humor
Rocket Clubs
3 pp · Humor
The Temporary Recession
1 pp · Humor
Old Yaller
2 pp · Humor, Satire-Parody
Spring Rambles
2 pp · Humor
Useful Cut-Out Cards
1 pp · Humor
Perspiration
2 pp · Humor
Humbug's Gardening Guide
7 pp · Humor
Tarzan's on the Way However...
1 pp · Humor
Speed Business with Telegrams
1 pp · Humor
Randan
2 pp · Humor, Satire-Parody
The Wedding Photographer
2 pp · Humor
Are You a Conformist?
1 pp · Humor
