Judge — December 18, 1920 — page 12: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# "The Sensitive Gentleman and the Whistling Boy" This single-panel comic strip (12 frames) depicts a confrontation between a well-dressed, portly gentleman with a cane and a small boy. The gentleman appears increasingly agitated by the boy's whistling—indicated by "b" and "b b b" sound-effect marks throughout the sequence. The satire mocks refined, sensitive masculinity: the gentleman's exaggerated reactions to minor annoyance contrast sharply with his pretense of gentlemanly composure. By the final panels, his composure completely crumbles as he chases the boy in frustration. The joke targets affected propriety and the gap between social pretense and actual behavior—a common Judge magazine theme. The "sensitive gentleman" cannot maintain his dignified facade when provoked by something as trivial as a child's whistling.