Judge — August 3, 1929 — page 1: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Judge Magazine Cover Analysis **August 3, 1929** This cover depicts a woman in 1920s dress with wings, looking back over her shoulder. The caption reads "Pardon My Back!" The image likely satirizes women's fashion of the era, specifically the trend of backless or low-backed evening gowns that were scandalous by contemporary standards. The added wings transform the figure into an angelic or supernatural being, suggesting ironic commentary—perhaps mocking the contradiction between conservative social values and the increasingly daring fashions women wore during the Jazz Age. The "pardon" construction implies women were apologizing for (or defiantly refusing to apologize for) displaying their backs in public, a modest body part by today's standards but genuinely controversial in 1929.