Judge, 1926-05-08 · page 30 of 36
Judge — May 8, 1926 — page 30: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a **parody advertisement** for a fictional car called the "Standstill," presented as satirical commentary on automobile safety concerns. The joke is darkly humorous: the ad claims the car is "safe" because it literally doesn't work—the engine rarely runs, it can't leave the garage, and therefore the family can't go anywhere to get into accidents. The satire targets **1920s-30s automobile safety anxiety**. As car ownership exploded and traffic deaths mounted, manufacturers marketed safety features. This ad absurdly takes that logic to its extreme: the only truly "safe" car is one that doesn't function. The illustration shows a car packed with passengers visible through a window, emphasizing the confinement joke. The tagline "Thousands of daily messages from grateful owners never come in!" is particularly biting—owners can't contact the company because they're stuck at home. This is purely **commercial satire**, not political commentary. Judge magazine frequently ran such advertisements mocking contemporary consumer culture and industry claims.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
They’re Safe in a Standstill! There is no vibration to the power- ful Standstill engine because it’s seldom running. ‘Traffic dangers have multiplied so in the past few years that every motorist feels responsible for his family’s safety. He feels secure, however, if he knows they are in a Standstill be- cause he'll never be able to get the darn thing out of the garage. Your family can’t go wrong in a Standstill — they can't go any place! “Standstill’s place is in the garage!" Thousands of daily messages from grate- ful owners never come in! comicbooks.com