Judge, 1922-10-14 · page 24 of 36
Judge — October 14, 1922 — page 24: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page celebrates three American cultural figures circa the early 1920s. **Sinclair Lewis** (top left) is praised for his novels "Main Street" and "Babbitt," which satirized American small-town life and materialism—the satire here notes he's becoming so wealthy from writing *about* shallow materialism that he risks becoming the very thing he critiques. **Don Marquis** (top right) is honored as a witty columnist and creator of literary characters including Archy (a cockroach). The reference to "The Old Soak" suggests his popular humorous writings. **Pola Negri** (center, holding a megaphone) is welcomed as a new film star, with her debut "Bella Donna" noted as surprisingly fitting for her talents. Negri was a Polish-American actress entering Hollywood prominence. The "Please Pass the Laurel!" heading frames these as contemporary achievers deserving recognition—essentially Judge's endorsement of notable American cultural contributors of the moment.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Wide World. T°? the man who glorified the American small town, who took “Main Street” by its shab- by shoulders and shook it intoa prominence that made it think it was a Fifth Avenue; whose “Babbitt” is creating more comment than the “six best sellers,” and who, if he doesn’t watch out, will find himself be- coming too wealthy to bother with literature: Mr. Sinclair Lewis Please Pass the Laurel! TO that genial psychologist and wise philosopher, whose keen and witty commentary on life has so endeared him to the readers of his column; to him who has given us Archy, Hermione, Capt. Fitzurse and “The Old Soak,” and whose object in life is the happiness of his fellow-creatures: Don Marquis O that latest American beauty to be added to our garden of film celebrities; whose unsuspected loveliness gives promise of great joy to those who make golden oppor- tunity of the silver screen, and whose first picture under American management, “Bella Donna,” fits her too well to seem a title of mere chance. Welcome to our cinema, Miss Pola Negri! comichooks..