Judge, 1917-04-07 · page 19 of 28
Judge — April 7, 1917 — page 19: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a **Johnnie Walker whisky advertisement**, not political satire. The cartoon depicts four well-dressed men in formal attire from around 1820 (the birth year referenced), suggesting the whisky's established heritage. The humor plays on a drinking joke: one character claims "laugh and the world laughs with you," but his friend corrects him—if you don't drink Johnnie Walker Red Label, "you will drink alone," implying the whisky is essential to social gatherings. The advertisement emphasizes that Red Label whisky is aged over 10 years before release and maintains consistent quality worldwide. The "non-refillable bottle" reference suggests the product's quality is guaranteed by its sealed packaging. The figures appear to be generic gentlemen representing the brand's long history and respectability rather than specific political or social caricatures. This is period advertising using humor to promote premium Scotch whisky to American consumers.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Born 1820 —still going strong. One Who Knows: “LAUGH AND THE WORLD LAUGHS WITH You.’ ” One Who Knozws Better: “But i you pox’r prixnk ‘Jounnre Wacker’ Rep Lapet, you with DRINK ALONE.” When friends who are “in the know” gather together, there will you find “Johnnie Walker” in a non-refillable bottle. Every drop of Red Label is over 10 years old before released from bond—the non-refillable bottle does the rest. GUARANTEED SAME QUALITY THROUGHOUT THE WORLD Agents: WILLIAMS & HUMBERT, 1158 Broadway, NEW YORK. JOHN WALKER & SONS, Lrp., Wiusky Distitters, KILMARNOCK, Scoteanp, comicbooks.com