Judge, 1927-10-08 · page 16 of 36
Judge — October 8, 1927 — page 16: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a satirical sports column by Judge magazine's social critic (signed "Judge Jr."). The author attacks tennis—specifically the National Singles at Forest Hills—as an effete, overly-civilized "sport" unworthy of spectation. **The Satire:** The piece ridicules tennis players (notably Bill Tilden and René Lacoste, famous 1920s champions) as "cissy" figures in "white panties," comparing them unfavorably to Roman gladiators. The author argues that once any activity becomes too perfected and professional, it loses genuine sport value and becomes "mechanical and monotonous." **The Hypocrisy:** The column also mocks tennis stars' dramatics and temperament while simultaneously celebrating their "good sportsmanship"—revealing class anxieties about genteel sports versus working-class activities (trolley cars). **Context:** This reflects 1920s debates about "amateur" versus "professional" athletics, masculine versus feminine sports, and which pastimes suited respectable society. The theatrical references (Mary Dugan, Ann Harding) suggest this appeared during the Jazz Age when entertainment and sports competed for leisure attention.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
JUDGE \AIG- Sitting in the Forest Hills amphitheatre and watching the National Singles being played, it reminded me of that famous old painting of the Roman gladiators, and I looked down into the arena half expecting to see two bold riors clad in mail hacking at each other with broadswords . . . but . . . what I beheld was a couple of cissy looking figures in white panties batting a rubber ball at each other across a net! . Leaning far over the wall I stuck both thumbs down! Ce a I am a great lover of sports, but here is a game that leaves me absolutely cold. . . . I like to play it, especially after a few cocktails, but when it comes to sitting around with ten thousand other people and watching, say, Bill Tilden and Rene La Coste knock a ball at each other all afternoon I begin to look around for my nearest exit. he Tennis, Golf, Ping Pong, Cro- quet and such ladylike games ought to be confined to dubs and amateurs . they ones the n get any fun out of such pastimes .. . ra man has socked a ball across a net so : dso many times it to be a sport and becomes mechan and monotonous. .. . Oscar, Slide 36, please! .. . at the risk of being lynched by the United Tennis Fans of the World I will state right out in public that I'll bet Tilden and La Coste could have played almost as good a game if they had both been And apropos of nothing at all, the best show I’ve Trial of Mary Dugan”... thing plus a cludes our favorite—Ann Harding! We are the only + LATE blindfolded! . . . in other words a game is not a sport if you're too good at it! ... there’s no fun in it! ... It’s great sport running a trolley car for example, but not for a motorman! —p— And then our tennis stars are so, oh, so temperamental! . . . if one of their drives happens to go out an eighth of an inch they tear their hair and put on an act that would make a prima donna green with envy . and they're so d--m polite! . Good sports- manship can be ried too far! ... T hope Rene La Coste will prove a good example to our ping pong experts . . . he goes about the game of tennis quietly and without any staginess ... if we must have tennis, let’s have more La Costes and fewer John Barry- mores ! seen so far this season is “The ’s got ev wonderful cast which hear “A la Carte” is closing, which puzzles us no end .. . two duds like “Allez Oop” and “Merry-Go-Round” keep on and “A } la Carte” closes! ... there ain’t no | justice! | OF HE CunePensn? Buty — : comicbooks.com