Judge, 1927-05-28 · page 11 of 36
Judge — May 28, 1927 — page 11: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Judge Magazine Satire Analysis This page is a humorous first-person narrative about achieving a "nervous breakdown"—presented as a desirable status symbol in 1920s society. The narrator admits manufacturing one by simply *declaring* having one, then convincing the governor to authorize a vacation to Atlantic City. The satire targets several period anxieties: the fashionable status of mental exhaustion among the elite, the ease of gaming the system, and the absurdity of Atlantic City's aging tourist culture. Sketches show the narrator's driving mishaps and observations of elderly beachgoers. A secondary joke involves an auction where he impulsively bids $3 on a vase, joking it's large enough to hold bandleader Paul Whiteman (a contemporary celebrity), then repurposes it as a cocktail shaker. The humor relies on understated deadpan delivery and mocking Jazz Age pretensions—the idea that "nervousness" had become a status symbol worth faking among the leisure class.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
JUDGE 40 UP WIG: For years I’ve had a_ secret ambition, and at last it has been realized... . I’ve had a nervous breakdown! . .. This may seem rather trivial but if you have ever tried to get one you will re: S what it means! ... I did every- thing possible to bring it on, but the faster the pace I traveled the better I felt... . Then, suddenly, I realized how it was done... . It’s as simple as rolling off a log! - All you have to do is say, “T’'ve got a nervous breakdown, and there it is! . . . I spoke thusly to the governor and after giving me her suspicious look he snarled, “well, you better go down to Atlantic City for a few days... .” fh Having never been there be- fore I was, of course, thrilled no end. ... I got hold of Mac and we decided to drive down... . And in order to get in condition for the long trip we spent four hours of intensive training at Olsen's. ... When it came time for the big hop Mae was nowhere to be seen. I looked under every table in the place a) but there was no sign of hit 3 However, being a man of stamina and LWA T= about to pass him and show him a little real speed my Hispano Sketched from right out on the Board- walk, the middle. I showed the sand artist my sketches and he threw me up nickel! a ight, not in the suiza had and burnt out a bearing! Atlantic City is my great place to die in. most of the people on the board- walk, including yours truly, cer ainly looked as if they were hold ing out on the grave... pected to see nothing but bathing beauties life I’m the one on boardwalk full of octogenarians. ... And no wonder they old after paying the bills. . . ae 1) perseverance and knowing that I would never be promoted to ship- ping clerk if I fell down on the assignment I went down all by myself and seven or eight other people . . . and kindly note the marked improvement in the art work on this page! th And speaking of nervous break- downs I hope the bird that driving the yellow Gardiner ro ster out of Perth Ambo A. M. Friday morning, paragraph because just as I was a nervous breakdown fh idea of a And I ex and all I saw was a looked . 1 remarked to the pushing my the and sir, that’s the hotel guests paying their bills!” fe And have you ever taken in, or I should ; taken in, one of those auction say, been sales? ... Feeling very reckless I bid $3.00 on a vase that was big enough to hold Paul Whiteman and, by golly, I got it! .. . However, it will make a great — cocktail shaker. 2. . (Continued on page 29) AU tx LOW “ A+ } comicbooks.com