Judge, 1927-02-05 · page 10 of 36
Judge — February 5, 1927 — page 10: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Judge Magazine: "The Swineherd" This is a humorous fairy-tale adaptation satirizing 1920s social pretension. A foreign prince seeks marriage with a wealthy princess who runs a cigar store and handles betting—suggesting nouveau riche vulgarity. When rejected, he disguises himself as a swineherd and constructs a musical banjo to win her favor, referencing Hans Christian Andersen's "The Swineherd" tale. The satire targets: - **Class mobility**: The "self-made" princess contradicts aristocratic expectations - **Gender roles**: A woman rejecting suitors based on her own judgment - **American references**: "Fort Wayne," the "Hall-Mills case" (a 1920s murder scandal), "Junior League" ground the European fairy tale in contemporary U.S. culture The bottom cartoon jokes about propriety and stranger-danger etiquette, offering light social commentary on acceptable behavior. The overall tone is urbane, irreverent comedy for Judge's sophisticated audience.
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Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
; : JUDGE The Swineherd ERE is a brand new one about a little European kingdom named Arthritis or something. It would be a good idea to take this story into a : and prop it up against a whisky sour before you start because you might need it by curtain time. Well, anyhow, there was this little kingdom and the king had a daughter which had won everything from the Black Bottom contest to the billiard championship, she was so good- looking. But they wasn’t a bird in the neighborhood who she wanted for a husband; she had all the money she wanted on account of she ran a cigar store on the side and handled bets for the customers at times. So one day a foreign prince who we will call Tom Mix came in the door of the ce and asked for her. When she came out, he showed her a tabloid with her picture in it and said he had seen her pan under the Bronx Beauties contest and would she marry him. She looked him over from head to heels. ” she says, “what y you went to?” s. “I meant to go to Harvard, but I stopped off in . rummy college did you “Brown,” he “Just for that I'm gorna fix you proper!” says the prince. Providence for a drink of water and the train left.” “Ah s the princess, “that ex- plains — thi faraway look. Well, kid,” she says, “you got the same chance with me that a Zionist has in a parochial school, so get out of this kingdom before I throw you out!” hollers the prince, burning etme tell you: LE wouldn't AN \ WM WY Pa—Whyn't she tell that guy to stop kissing her? Ma—He's a stranger to her and she doesn't like to bring up the subject of kissing. marry you if you was the last mamma on earth!” “That's good,” says the princess coldly, “I hear they’s an orphan girl out in Fort Wayne which might give you a tumble. Why don’t you look her up?” “Allright!” says the prince, “just for that one I’m gonna fix you proper. When I get through with you the Hall-Mills case will look like a straw- berry festival alongside you!” And he rushes out the door. So he went to a farmer in a large way near the palace and told him he wanted a job tending swines. He looked the part so he got the position. The work was hard but he could al- ways razz the swines, who never talked back, and he always had time to think. So one day he worked up a new kind of banjo which would play all sorts of flossy tunes when you pushed a button. He was sitting out in the pen one day with his charges grouped around him doing their arithme amples and was listening to his banjo when the prin- cess walked by with some of her swell Junior League friends. She looked at him but she didn’t remember the (Continued on page 24) Ly comicbooks.com