Judge, 1925-11-21 · page 10 of 40
Judge — November 21, 1925 — page 10: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# The Dempsey-Wills Bout This satirical comic mocks the delayed heavyweight championship fight between Jack Dempsey and Harry Wills. The joke is that the fight kept getting postponed, so the cartoon depicts each "round" interrupted by frivolous excuses: Dempsey leaving for winter, filming movies, visiting his mother in Nebraska and wife in California, sightseeing at the Leaning Tower of Pisa, and demanding more money ("kale"). The final caption—"IF IT TAKES AS LONG TO FIGHT IT AS IT DID TO SIGN IT UP"—criticizes how long negotiations dragged on before the bout actually occurred. The cartoon suggests the fighters are more interested in money and personal business than actually competing, turning an anticipated sporting event into a bureaucratic farce.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
THE DEMPSEY—WILLS BOUT Round 1 They mit. Dempsey goes South for the winter. Dempsey leaps from his corner; swings; then takes time out to fill movie contract. Round 3 Dempsey feints; then leaves to see his mother in Nebraska, his wife in California, and the Leaning Tower in Pisa. QQ \ Wills feints; Dempsey in huff walks out for more kale. sf TICKETS FOR THE BIG BOUT. ROUND 6 NOW GOING ON INSIDE. IF IT TAKES AS LONG TO FIGHT IT AS IT DID TO SIGN IT UP 8 comicbooks.com