Created in darkness by troubled Americans: the best of McSweeney's, humor category

brief parody of a talk show that falls apart about halfway through / Tim Carvell

spirit of Christmas / Kurt Luchs

briefing : a play in one act / Stuart Wade

On the implausibility of the Death Star's trash compactor / J. M. Tyree

Preview of summer camps / Jeff Johnson

Comments written on evaluations of my speech on needle-exchange programs / Andy Rathbun

newest from Jokeland / Brodie H. Brockie and R. J. White

Excerpts from my speech on forest-fire prevention / Arthur Bradford

As a porn movie titler, I may lack promise / John Moe

I know what you did two moons ago (the revenge) / Brian Kennedy

Words that would make nice names for babies, if it weren't for their unsuitable meanings / Stephany Aulenback

Reviews of my daydreams / T. G. Gibbon

Insomniacs! : I bring words of hope and wisdom / Jason Roeder

ten worst films of all time, as reviewed by Ezra Pound over Italian radio / Greg Purcell

Group mobilization as a desperate cry for help / Christopher Monks

Fire : the next sharp stick? / John Hodgman

Not very scary movies / Joshua Watson

Candle party / Alysia Gray Painter

It's not actually a small world / Tom Ruprecht

Unused audio commentary by Howard Zinn and Noam Chomsky, recorded summer 2002, for The Lord of the Rings : The Fellowship of the Ring DVD (platinum series extended edition), part one / Jeff Alexander and Tom Bissell

Canceled regional morning TV shows / John Moe

letter from Ezra Pound to Billy Wilder, 1963 / Greg Purcell

Journal of a new COBRA recruit / Keith Pille

logic puzzle and hangover cure / John Hodgman

Some people don't like celebrities / Michael Ian Black

Tips from Jokes and how to tell them, published in 1963 / R. J. White

How important moments in my life would have been different if I was shot in the stomach / Jake Swearingen

No justice, no foul / Jim Stallard

Actual academic journals which could be Broadway shows if they had exclamation points added! / T. G. Gibbon

My beard, reviewed / Chris Bachelder

name game / Stephany Aulenback and Sean Carman

Circumstances under which I would have sex with some of my fellow jurors / Peter Ferland

bet / Arthur Bradford

dance lesson / Tim Carvell

Attack of the fabulous! / Mark O'Donnell

Pirate riddles for sophisticates / Kevin Shay

short fictional passage entitled "Drift nets," in which several enterprising characters troll the high seas, exploring abandoned trade vessels for "pirated" goods, and learn to cope with distinct personalities in a close-knit, high-stress environment / Todd Pruzan

Ineffective lines deleted from final revisions of violent box-office hits / Dan Kennedy

graceland for Adolf / Zev Borow

Trinity / Neal Pollack

Pop quiz / Sean Condon

Bad names for professional wrestlers / Jeff Johnson

Evidently, it was live then / Dan Kennedy

Upcoming titles from Gavin Menzies, author of 1421 : the year the Chinese discovered America / Paul Tullis

Good westerns, not porn / Ross Barnes

Norse legends reference pages / Kevin Guilfoile

Goofus, gallant, Rashomon / Jim Stallard

Not-good titles for romantic films / Tim Blair

Black, gray, green, red, blue : a letter from a famous painter on the moon / Ben Greenman.