Judge, 1927-02-26 · page 13 of 36
Judge — February 26, 1927 — page 13: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# What This Page Means This is a satirical piece about the **Beaux Arts Ball**, an annual high-society event. The author jokes that he always *intends* to attend and appreciate the elaborate decorations and costumes, but ends up spending the entire evening in hotel rooms socializing instead—never actually seeing the official pageant. The humor targets wealthy socialites who attend such prestigious events primarily for private socializing rather than genuine cultural appreciation. The small cartoon shows "the man who tried to get an idea of a levee"—referencing the ball's New Orleans 1803 theme—apparently observing the scene from outside the main action. The author's closing suggestions are mock-serious: perhaps the committee should skip the expensive ballroom entirely and donate funds to scholarships instead. He also thanks whoever left champagne in a hotel room—highlighting how the real "action" happens in private spaces, not the official celebration. This critiques the performative nature of elite social institutions.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
JUDGE IG Every year, about a week before the Beaux Arts ball, I always make a firm resolve, not to miss the brillia and beauty of this auspicious occasion and, to make it a point to take in the decorations, the wonderful cos- tumes and the pageant, and every year, the day after the ball I read about the decorations, the won- derful costumes and the pageant in the papers . . . ever since the Beaux Arts ball became an annual institution I have been an enthusiastic attendant and_ the only decorations I have ever noticed were the Gainsborough prints on the hotel room walls, the only costumes I h were worn by the crowd in the same hotel rooms, and the pageant has consisted of the stream of people going in and out of said hotel rooms . . . in spite of this fact, I have alw had a wonder- ful time, and r ng that there are probably thousands of others WE MAN wo “RID © GET ACA S LEVEE ” Tn i LA who have annually done likewise, I hereby suggest to the Arts committee that next ye: they dispense with the entirely and increase their Schol- arship fund just that much more. 3. I'd like to thank the gen- who left the bottle of champagne in the bureau drawer of Room 314. In order to make the joke clear on the little sketch that “Mac” has made here, it might be a good idea to inform our readers that the costumes of the Beaux Arts ball were of the period of New Orleans of 1803. Ce aed Two shows, witnessed _ last week, should, to my mind, both be considered for prizes . . . the first, “The Road to Rome,” ought to be awarded the Pulitzer prize for the best play of the for originality, intelligent writ- (Continued on page 29) nason . . « comicbooks.com