[paw broon]

As I've never liked Joe Palooka, I was surprised that this raised a smile. I know nothing about the creator so can't comment. But this comic was quite amusing, apart from the horrible looking Little Max.
So it's a one trick thing but so are so many humour comics imo. I was baffled by the wooden carriage that he pulled the lady about in. What in heaven's name was that all about?
The Ju Jitsu strip made me smile more than the rest.

Link to the book: Humphrey 22

[crashryan]

I was baffled by the wooden carriage that he pulled the lady about in. What in heaven's name was that all about?

That's the Humphreymobile. Humphrey was a kindly but dumb (and how!) blacksmith in a rural town. Thanks to a long story arc he felt compelled to go to New York to fight Joe Palooka. He built the Humphreymobile out of "an abandoned wash-house" (but it sure looks like an outhouse to me). He pedalled it all the way to New York, and--

Anyway, if you want the whole story in capsule form, the text feature on the inside front cover of Humphrey #1 sketches in the background and the strip reprints pick up where Humph decides to go to "Noo York." Humphrey soon wore out his welcome for me as he grew stupider over time. His dialect also got thicker, sometimes making it a bit of a chore to read.

I don't know what the heck Little Max is about. His appearance creeps me out and I can't see any point to most of his stories.

[crashryan]

After some googling I found an origin story for Little Max in an AP story from 2018. It described a plaque being added to a Joe Palooka monument in Pennsylvania's Hanover Township.

The Home Builders Association of Northeastern Pennsylvania partnered with retired Wilkes-Barre jeweler Max Bartikowsky to place a cast bronze plaque on the Joe Palooka monument on Route 309 in Hanover Twp.[...] Bartikowsky grew up on South Franklin Street in Wilkes-Barre near the Fisher family residence. He was the inspiration for the comic strip character named ?Little Max,? who was featured in numerous Palooka comic adventures. Bartikowsky, 87, who now lives in Forty Fort, said he frequently dressed up in this father?s shoes and hat as a young boy, a sight Fisher noticed and adapted to ?Little Max? in the cartoon strip. Fisher ?was a friend of the family?s,? Bartikowsky said.[...]In the comic strip, ?Little Max? was portrayed as a shoe shine boy. Bartikowsky said he didn?t actually shine shoes, but that was part of the character.

Apparently Little Max started out as a fan of Joe's who began hanging out with The Champ.

[The Australian Panther]

When Bud Fisher's strip was in Newspapers.[See how old I am?] I found the Humphrey stories more interesting than anything happening with Joe Palooka. Maybe so did Ham Fisher. Never did see the point of Boxing Strips.
Remember, at this time Lil Abner was also hugely popular. It has similar grotesque characters than Little Max.
Both strips have disappeared like they never existed, and there is not much interest in collecting them, that I can see. Different Times.