Judge — May 15, 1920 — page 4: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Political Cartoon Analysis This Judge magazine cartoon satirizes Hollywood's exorbitant salaries during the silent film era. The drawing shows a woman (likely a movie actress or "movie queen") kneeling while a man in formal dress stands behind her, appearing dismissive or condescending. The caption reads: "Don't Worry; She Is Only Earning Her Salary of One Million a Year as a Movie Queen!" The satire targets the perceived absurdity of million-dollar annual salaries paid to film actresses—astronomical sums for the period. By depicting the actress in a submissive, degrading posture while earning such vast wealth, the cartoon mocks both the excessive compensation and the power dynamics of Hollywood's studio system. The joke suggests that despite their enormous pay, actresses remained subservient to studio interests and male authority figures.