Judge, 1927-04-09 · page 13 of 36
Judge — April 9, 1927 — page 13: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Analysis of Judge Magazine Page This page contains two satirical pieces targeting American class anxieties in the early 20th century. **"Reassurance"** mocks social climbing and snobbery. A nervous guest at an elite Tillinghast dinner party finds a Statler Hotel towel in the bathroom—a mass-market hotel chain. This humble discovery that his rich hosts use ordinary hotel linens reassures him they're not truly superior, restoring his confidence. The satire targets both the pretentious wealthy and the insecure social-climber desperate for validation. **"The Former Department Store Elevator Operator"** celebrates upward mobility through consumer goods. An elevator operator now owns a home he tours like a department store inventory—proudly listing every possession (rugs, piano, Victrola, clothing). The joke satirizes how material accumulation defines American success, with even humble workers measuring their worth by what they own rather than who they are. Both pieces reflect 1920s anxieties about class, consumerism, and the American dream's promise that anyone could climb the social ladder through wealth and goods acquisition.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
| JUDGE “Listen, girls, she’s looking for the Mothers’ Meeting, and I can’t convince her that this is it!” Reassurance thing, is good. Only on the rarest occasion does it wilt. But this dinner party was such a one. The Til- linghasts were so rich, so over- poweringly rich, and so haughtily aloof. “Golly,” I. muttered, slinking up the padded velvet of the stairs, “why on earth did I come? I shan’t have a comfortable minute. I beg your pardon—” The flunkey merely inclined slightly. Even he was a superior Tillinghast sort of creature. Crimson with embarrassment, I floundered blindly through the first open door. The bathroom. I gazed into the mirror. That moist, red, coarse face— could it be my own? I blinked. It was. I could see Mrs. Tillin hast’s expression as she gaz down upon me, tall, acidulous, tight-lipped. But they simply had to be cultivated by young men with bonds to sell, the Tilling- hasts. Angrily, I dashed cold water on my face. Wondered, in the next breath, if I dared despoil one of those magnificent filet guest towels, “There might,” I said for- lornly, “be an old soiled one un- derneath.” I felt, and hauled forth the bottom one. One that felt soft. A bath towel. Somehow, they make you feel less gui It had a stripe down the center. A stripe with letters on it. My fingers trembled as I held it out, unbe- lievin, to read, “The Statler Hotel My assurance rose once more. The ‘Tillinghasts and I spoke the same language. They were no better than Twas. Chest out, I strode into the hallway, past the flunkey, down the red velvet stairs. Nothing mattered now. ANLEY Jones The Former Department Store Elevator Operator Shows a Friend Through His Home First floor! Living and dining- rooms, kitchen, rugs, foyer, lino- leum, butler’s pantry, sun poreh, cooking utensils, draperies, etch- ings, lamps, books and book ; radio, piano and Victrola, dining and living-room furniture, dishes, knives and forks, chinawé e, cut glass, silverware and linens— watch your step! Going UP! Second floor! Bedrooms, b room, sheets and pillow beds, mattresses, men’s and chil- dren’s clothing, women’s dresses, hats, shoes, toilet articles, chif- foniers, drugs, medicine chest, carpets, men's furnishings and costumers—watch your — step— going UP! Third floor! Attic! Trunks, suit-cases, curios and antiques. Going down! Watch your step! —A. L. L. Mrs. Gorrrety—Those young people have blue blood in their veins Mrs. Nurteu—Dear me, couldn’t something be done for them? comicbooks.com