Click the image to see a larger version.

I must preface this by saying I never expected to see anything like this.

Tom Corbett was a popular science fiction character in the 1950s, inspired by the Heinlein novel Space Cadet. He started out life as Tom Ranger, in an unperformed radio play written by Joseph Greene. His name was changed to Tom Corbett based on input from Heinlein. The comic strip only ran from September 1951 to September 1953, drawn by Ray Bailey, but the character also appeared in comic books, novels, and a TV show. The character, along with the Heinlein novel, popularized the term "space cadet," which I think has fallen out of common usage these days but was a popular phrase for many years.

The stories always have something to do with Tom's adventures with his friends at the Space Academy, and the training that they undergo in order to become members of the Solar Guard. I've been a fan of science fiction and space adventures since I was a kid, and I don't remember many of them, or any of…

Click the image to see a larger version.

I couldn't find very much information about this strip. Even the Comiclopedia entry for the cartoonist, Bill Williams, doesn't mention it at all. It ran from 1965-1971, and appears to be about the woman that Santa is speaking to, Dolly. From the few strips I saw, she seems to work a variety of different jobs, possibly because she's not very good at keeping them. I'm not sure exactly why Santa would need to go through Customs, unless his flying reindeer were unavailable somehow and he had to take a plane. I guess even magical reindeer need a sick day now and then.

Click the image to see a larger version.

Tiny Tim was a comic strip created by Stanley Link, about a small boy named Tim and his sister Dotty, who were only two inches tall. The strip ran from 1933 to 1958, and over the course of the strip the brother and sister grew to eight inches tall, then to normal child size, then back to two inches tall, and then gained the ability to switch back and forth between two inches and normal child size. They had many adventures in the tiny world over the course of the strip's run, and gained some animal friends along the way, including the bird, Paddy, who you see in the final panel.

This particular strip is interesting, because I'd never thought about Santa Claus preparing for Christmas Eve in this way. I thought the myth was that Santa could use his magic to shrink to the right size so he could fit in any chimney, or whatever opening was available to him, so he didn't need to worry about fitting in anywhere. In fact, it seems like that story would fit quite well in a…

Click the image to see a larger version.

Smokey Stover here seems to be about as aware of what a bridge lamp is as I was when I first saw this particular strip. I'm not very knowledgeable about the names of home furnishings (but don't worry, Google has educated me). I imagine this is the type of thing that happens when you overhear a conversation between your significant other and someone else, telling them how much they wish they had a thing, but you don't know what the thing is. Then again, it could happen when they tell you directly what they want and assume you know what that is. This is always dangerous. If you really want someone to get you something, provide photo references and, where available, a link to a reputable online merchant that sells them. Otherwise, especially with people who are as bad at gift giving as me, you will always be taking a chance.

Click the image to see a larger version.

I always enjoy comic strips that are humorous on several levels, not just one. Brother Juniper being as excited as he is about Santa arriving is funny, and the fact that he utilizes a Flintstones style answering service is also funny, but I like the caption the most. The addition of the "would you believe" is what gets me. He didn't have to include it. The image would have worked just as well if he hadn't. The fact that it's there just makes it that much better, though.