Judge — June 26, 1920 — page 27: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This page satirizes **Guy Empey**, a silent film actor/director of the era, through multiple comedic vignettes about his film "Oil," a drama about oil field workers. The captions mock Empey's acting ambitions and the film's melodramatic plot: - Top scenes show characters demanding payment or attention - Center images depict exaggerated oil-industry drama (sleeping crooks, oil derricks, explosions) - Right panel features Florence Evelyn Martin, described as the film's "sweet hero-wine" The satire targets **silent film conventions** of the period—overwrought emotional scenes, contrived plots, and the gap between actors' artistic pretensions and commercial entertainment. References to "salute," "crooks," and "thrill" suggest Judge is mocking both the melodramatic storytelling and Empey's self-importance as a filmmaker. The magazine uses this spread to ridicule Hollywood's emerging industry and its dramatic excesses, typical of Judge's satirical approach to popular culture.