Alphonse and Gaston

A lighthearted newspaper comic strip that began in the New York American and Journal in 1902, Alphonse and Gaston is best remembered for its two bumbling, overly polite Frenchmen whose exaggerated courtesy ("After you, my dear Alphonse!") became a lasting catchphrase. Though it ran for only a single issue, the strip's satirical take on excessive politeness left an indelible mark on early comic humor.