Coffee for Two

"Coffee for Two"
"Coffee for Two" first appeared in Four Color #386 in 1952
Story code	W OS 386-03
Story	Carl Barks
Ink	Carl Barks
Date	March 1952
Pages	1
Layout	4 rows per page
Appearances	Uncle Scrooge Hobo Diner waiter
First publication	Four Color #386

"Coffee for Two" is a one-page funny animal comic book gag story written, drawn, and lettered by Carl Barks. The story was first published in Four Color #386 (March 1952) in black and white on the inside back cover. The issue's contents also include the 32-page Uncle Scrooge story, Only a Poor Old Man and two other one-page gag stories: "Soupline Eight" and "Osogood Silver Polish". Only a Poor Old Man and the three gag stories have been reprinted many times.

Plot

A panhandler idling on a street corner twice asks Uncle Scrooge for a dime to buy a cup of coffee as the old tightwad hurries back and forth about his business. The third time, Scrooge takes the panhandler to a diner. The old miser orders a cup of coffee. He notices a sign on the wall reading, "Second Cup of Coffee FREE!" He tells the waiter to give his free cup of coffee to the panhandler.

Analysis

"Coffee for Two" is an atypical Uncle Scrooge story. While he usually appears as a tightwad trying to save a dime in both his full-length and short stories, in this gag story Barks has deepened his character by presenting him as a somewhat charitable hero.

Visually, the panhander is positioned against a brick wall from the same "camera angle" in the first several panels, creating a visual tension for the reader that is resolved as the remainder of the story moves to the diner.

See also

• List of Disney comics by Carl Barks

References

• Grand Comics Database
• Barks, Carl (2012). Walt Disney's Uncle Scrooge: "Only a Poor Old Man". Seattle, WA: Fantagraphic Books, Inc. pp. 34, 231–235. ISBN 978-1-60699-535-8.