Judge, 1922-09-09 · page 4 of 36
Judge — September 9, 1922 — page 4: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# "Be It Ever so Humble You Always Can Move" This satirical piece by John Held Jr. contrasts two couples with opposing lifestyle preferences. Joan and Peter, "fed up with city life," purchase a country home. Meanwhile, Pearl and John, "bored with the country," rent a city apartment. The joke hinges on the grass-is-always-greener theme: both couples simultaneously long for what the other has abandoned. The cartoon mocks the restlessness and dissatisfaction of 1920s urban professionals, suggesting that neither rural nor urban life fully satisfies them—they perpetually chase an idealized alternative. Held Jr.'s minimalist, fashionable illustration style captures the era's modern sensibility while satirizing the era's consumer culture and lifestyle aspirations.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Be It Ever so Humble > You Always Can Move by John Held. Jr. FY gt Vom a ae Joan and Peter, fed up with city life, long Pearl and John, bored with the country, for a snug little nest in the country long for a neat little apartment in town So Joan and Peter yY FF _ bought a snug little c nest in the country And Pearl and John rented a neat little & Ny apartment in town a yen Wr © Now Pearl and John long for a snug little nest And Joan and Peter long for a neat little apart- in the country ment in town