Judge, 1924-01-19 · page 14 of 36
Judge — January 19, 1924 — page 14: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is satirical advertising by Ralph Barton mocking women who marry for alimony. The "course" promises men can profit without working by marrying women, then divorcing them to collect support payments. The four illustrated books parody the process: securing a husband, becoming unbearable enough to force divorce, winning in court, and collecting regular checks. The cartoons show exaggerated scenarios—judges, courtroom drama, women receiving money. The satire targets **women**, portraying them as scheming gold-diggers who strategically marry and divorce to extract income. It reflects 1920s anxieties about changing divorce laws that granted women alimony—then a relatively new financial protection. Rather than defending this as women's economic security, Barton frames it as a fraudulent racket women exploit. The joke assumes readers will find the concept of women profiting from marriage/divorce morally outrageous, making this primarily misogynistic humor about female avarice and manipulation, wrapped in mock-instructional format.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
LEARN ALIMONY!—by RALPH BARTON A new, easy way to become an alimoniste at home in your spare time. Don’t delay! Begin studying at once! What others have done, you can do! 761,197 unmarried men are at large to-day in New York City alone. Millions in the United States. Thousands of our graduates are now making $25 to $1,000 per week and more, and they do ABSOLUTELY NO WORK for it! Most of them never even thought of marriage before they took our course. It is simple! It is delightful! It PAYS! Send at once for our four wonderful, illustrated books of instructions. Send no money. Pay when you get the alimony. Book I tells you how to secure the husband. | &/ 4 Book II tells you how to make yourself an ronda ~4 2 unbearable wife. Book III tells you how to dress Be and behave in the divorce court. Book IV tells what hundreds of other women are doing with their weekly and monthly checks. comicbooks.com eee Ee