Judge, 1923-04-21 · page 14 of 36
Judge — April 21, 1923 — page 14: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This satirical cartoon by Ralph Barton mocks theatrical productions and actors of the period. The top panel ridicules Sacha Guitry's play "The Comedian," where actor-manager Lionel Atwill directs from the audience during performance—an unusual and pretentious staging choice that Barton finds absurd. The detailed aisle reference ("left center aisle, between rows A to G") emphasizes the absurdity. The bottom panel targets actress Pauline Frederick's transition from Hollywood to stage acting in "The Guilty One," suggesting the play is foolish and she struggles with legitimate theater. Barton caricatures her exaggerated facial expressions and shows co-star Charles Waldron barely maintaining composure—implying the production is laughably bad. The satire targets theatrical pretension and actors' self-importance during this era of transitioning entertainment mediums.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
ALL THE THEATER’S A STAGE TO GUITRY—by RALPH BARTON Mr. Lionel Atwill, as the actor- manager in Guitry’s “The Comedian,” directing, from the audience, Miss Elsie Mackay and Mr. H. Cooper Cliffe while Mr. A. P. Kaye looks on. (N. B.—Young ladies will be gratified to know that it is the left center aisle, between rows A_to G, in which Mr. Atwill mingles with the audience dur- ing Act IT.) Miss Pauline Frederick finding it a little difficult to leave off Holly- wooding and take up acting in the foolishest play going—“The Guilty One.” Mr. Charles Waldron (left) struggling against staggering odds to keep a straight face. comicbooks.com