Joe Palooka

A single, oversized 1933 issue from Cupples & Leon introduced the world to Joe Palooka, a good-natured heavyweight boxer whose clean-cut charm and everyman struggles would become a staple of American newspaper strips. Though this comic book collection stands alone, it captures the early, formative spirit of the character—a gentle giant navigating the rough-and-tumble world of 1930s prizefighting. Associated most closely with creator Ham Fisher, this volume preserves the strip's original, pre-war optimism and its role in popularizing the sports-comedy genre in comics.