The Outbursts of Everett True



The Outbursts of Everett True is a two-panel newspaper comic from the 1900s with a setup as follows:

Panel 1: Someone annoys Everett True. Panel 2: He yells at and/or physically punishes whoever annoyed him.

The simple setup just works, however, because all the situations are things people could relate to at the time, and many of them apply even today. For example, Everett is attending a baseball game when a group of men crowd him and say to him "Did you see that?" "Did you see that hit?" "You should have seen that!" He beats them up, saying "Yes, I saw that! And I'd love to see what's going on in the field right now if you'd all get out of my face!" Or Everett is being told by his doctor that he doesn't really have a medical problem and that he's just imagining the pain. In the next panel, Everett's beating up his doctor and telling him "This pain is all in your head. It's not really there. You're just imagining the pain."

And so on. Just think of your own personal pet peeve about everyday life, and imagine someone beating up the person responsible for it. Everett True becomes your hero.

The strip is definitely a product of its time however. Some of the situations that occur in the comic don't really make sense in modern society due to changes in social norms or lifestyle (people don't ride horses anymore, for instance), and there's occasional Values Dissonance. Everett only beats up men, and mostly just yells at women. Sometimes he gets back at women other ways, such as throwing a woman's puppy out the window because she was openly doting on it too much and annoying the other passengers on the train, or destroying a counter where several female clerks were working. There are some strips where Everett is the target of punishment for his wife, Mrs. True. Adding to the charm is that frequently Everett True uses verbose, but not imprecise language to scold whoever is annoying him at the time.

Still, by and large, The Outbursts of Everett True is entertaining if only to watch a parade of Asshole Victims get what they deserve.

An archive of Everett True strips can be found on the Wayback Machine here.


 * Abusive Parents: At least one strip notes that he has two children.  One wonders just how often he must beat them, given how little it takes to set him off.
 * An Aesop: There were regular strips in which Everett True retaliated against people who were casually cruel to animals, children, or who tried to take advantage of women. Or just in general he stood up and said everything everyone else was afraid to say.
 * Asshole Victim: The big part of the fun. Many of them are still assholes by today's standards.
 * Corruption of a Minor: Everett catches a man attempting to convince young boys to steal things, and naturally unleashes his wrath on the man.
 * Disproportionate Retribution: Many, if not most, of Everett's responses will appear this way to the modern eye (and no doubt did to the contemporary eye, as well).  For instance, he savagely beats a young man for using a system of simplified spelling promoted by the then-President of the United States.
 * The Edwardian Era
 * Escapist Character: True, who responds (without consequences) the way most people would want to react to the minor and not-so-minor irritations of life.
 * Gosh Darn It to Heck: Naturally, due to the standards of the time, nothing approaching swear words are used. That doesn't stop Everett's rants from being entertaining.
 * Hair-Trigger Temper: Everett, who explodes into violence at the smallest provocation.
 * Missing Episode: In the early years of film, a short silent movie was made based on the comic. It ended up being mostly about Everett running away and hiding from his angry wife, according to a review written in a newspaper at the time. However, the film has been lost to time. No surviving prints are known to exist.
 * Outdated Outfit: Everett True's clothes are dated even by Edwardian Age standards. Also invoked when he is depicted wearing a stove-top hat and someone remarks: "You must have bought it before The Civil War."
 * Rant-Inducing Slight: Everett tends to wildly overreact, but damn if it isn't satisfying.
 * Stout Strength
 * Values Dissonance: To some readers, Everett will come across as a dangerously violent lunatic who has no ability to cope with things he dislikes except for physical assault.
 * Wouldn't Hit a Girl: Everett doesn't use violence on women who annoy him, but usually yells at them instead. Sometimes he embarrasses them instead, such as spraying them with a hose.