Judge, 1925-01-17 · page 11 of 36
Judge — January 17, 1925 — page 11: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# "The Absorbing Adventures of Professor Blotter" This satirical piece mocks Professor Blotter, a fictional "inventor" hired by New York City's traffic commissioner to solve urban congestion. The joke centers on absurd "solutions": reading traffic diagonally to spell a four-letter insult about Mayor Hylan; eliminating pedestrians by giving each citizen a motor car; and burying pedestrians with shovels. The satire targets both municipal incompetence and the era's naive faith in mechanical/technological fixes for complex social problems. Mayor Hylan (New York's actual mayor 1918-1925) appears as a punchline—suggesting widespread criticism of his administration's traffic management. The humor relies on exaggerated impracticality: the "solutions" would obviously fail or cause chaos. The final quip about "dry" spots references Prohibition-era concerns.
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—————e The Absorbing Adventures of Professor Blotter As a result of Professor Blotter's ‘ Tey ex king during the nd use it for milk- he w position r of the Municipal Traffic pended in h recent cam ing co as Dire Commis: Blotter, le of the crossword puzzle to the traffic prob- lem in New York. IT found that if the traffic were read diagonall, to right, on the far side of numbered streets only, it would spell out a four-letter word) synonymous with Mayor Hylan.” dis of the city traffic pting this principle of Blot- vr’s—the venerable scientist often ves the practical de ventions to the lesse been giving his attentic ils of his in- Is—he has to the prob- lem of climinating the pedestrian from the city streets. “At first thou ght it seemed best to ould jump r 1 up and “This would be said. down,” he in raccoon’ s. = “Oh, look, Henry! The little dar- ling has developed a sense of humor already!” sai AHA | ih ee, Mayme, it’s lucky that guy's sweetie ix concare!” sure to get rid of most of the podes- trians in the If in addition these with a pick anc can and a packet o| v bury th urse of time, tering s could in and plant a ne strok pedest hetter plan.” he I simply request the jon to furnish ¢ child in New ¥ with an individual motor sequently no one will | tinned, “TL city administer man, womat pedestrian nd we ea away with But how about the traf sped. T've settled the traffic problem replied — Blotte Please don't bring it up ¢ Corey Ford ly. sae Now that discovered, rything else has been plorers might start expeditions to find the reputed “dry” spots in the United States, comicbooks.com