Judge, 1897-06-05 · page 16 of 16
Judge — June 5, 1897 — page 16: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page satirizes various eccentric "geniuses" whose talents are either useless or socially burdensome. Each cartoon mocks a different type of crank: **Musical Genius** laments the "poor victims" forced to hear him practice instruments—humor lies in his self-absorbed obliviousness to others' suffering. **Political Genius** complains about being out money from a newspaper puff piece, revealing vanity masked as charity. **Literary Genius** boasts about profiting from autographs on postcards, prioritizing profit over art. **Tower Rotter** and others appear to represent similar pretentious or delusional characters. The central large cartoon shows a phonograph expert ("Brainey") who can reproduce anything from political speeches to dog fights with "startling accuracy"—mocking both his inflated self-importance and the era's fascination with recording technology. The satire targets late-19th-century American society's tendency to celebrate mediocre talent and self-promoters who mistake notoriety for genuine genius.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
area aes a Ee eo CRACK cCumen * L {fg MACRO ber Der Aominta—“'I cannot account for your sadness .at times, my wonderful frie usicat Genius (remorse/ully)—" 1 am thinking of the host of poor victims that were obliged to hear me learn all these instruments." Brainey, the versatile phonographic genius, the thplece_of all original celebritl a Anything, from politcal speeches, made at Canton, lown ‘to the fapersocstion at dog Oght mnciodion, rendered. ‘with startling original accuracy. y, Rocks, before you ot ‘club we'se out yer reckord Posricat cenivs—"'I'll get square with that editor that put me dowa #3 2 charitable geat, in. my newspaper puff, I'm $18.42 inthe hole on* Gue ‘for this raft of begging letters, aad they're still coming.” tw nov Ccontemptuously) — “ Winder-panes ! Hunt til het you guy fer wtdertand dat ev'ry notch on shot handle reppersents de life Lireaany camius — Tweaty-five dollars in two-cent postage stamps ests for my autograph. Hurrah! I'll do t trick on postal ards and blow the’ remaining $13.50 in on rent to-morrow." Noes eee convalescence 3. he is: he had one of “Oh, no; they have been reading of a chine that can fly drawin's published in a Sunday paper all rite. See? and are wondering how soon the inventive geni be with them." ComymonT 1897 BY THE JUDGE PUBLISHING COMPANY OF KEW YORK ‘Sackett 8 Wiheims Litho Co New York “GENIUS” CRANKS. syWhat seems to be the joke in the serial inventive ward —' ast comicbooks.com