Judge — May 22, 1926 — page 35: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This is a **reader-participation contest**, not a finished cartoon. Judge magazine invited readers to submit funny endings to an incomplete comic strip, offering $25 as a prize—a significant sum in this era. The strip shows three panels: a man with an umbrella stands near a fence; a person sleeps in a bed; below, a cow marked "DRINK Moo Moo" stands near a small figure labeled with what appears to be a vendor or person. The setup is deliberately vague, inviting creative interpretations. The joke format was popular in humor magazines of this period—readers could submit their own punchlines, creating participatory entertainment. The professional ban on artists suggests this was meant for amateur humorists. The contest reflects Judge's business model: engaging readers directly while generating cheap content. The incomplete third panel awaits the reader's comic conclusion, turning the magazine into an interactive publication rather than passive reading material.