Judge, 1930-11-15 · page 13 of 36
Judge — November 15, 1930 — page 13: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Explanation for Modern Readers This page contains two satirical pieces: **Top section (4-panel comic):** A man with a telescope makes extravagant claims about seeing distant worlds and cosmic phenomena. The joke mocks street hustlers and con artists who sell cheap novelty items (a ten-cent telescope) with absurd promises. It's satire on gullibility and fraudulent salesmanship. **"Beyond the Horizon" story with illustration:** A shabby stranger accosts the narrator on Broadway, claiming to recognize him, then launches into pretentious philosophical monologues about cosmic vision while standing outside the Ziegfeld Theatre (where *Smiles* starring Fred and Adele Astaire is playing). The satire targets affected intellectualism and contrarian posturing—the stranger preaches about infinity and enlightenment while dismissing visible, concrete entertainment. The closing caption joke undercuts all this grandiosity: a couple simply wants to go on the porch, suggesting ordinary human desires trump pretentious philosophy. Both pieces ridicule con artists, pseudo-intellectuals, and those who sell false promises of deeper meaning.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
JUDGE | “Nope,” [ admitted. “Can you?” “Ah,” he replied, “ean 1? “Can 1? I can dise world . n the worlds outside our and their planets. [can plainly see the courses of the moons governing the tides of seas you never dreamt of. Tecan...” “How?” T asked He let go of my ? into the blackness of the d-out a crazy-lookir He shouted: Through this telescope! inister, only ten cents a lor —Davin S. Lruan It’s nice to spend the cold winter evenings in a nice, warm home, espe cially when the snow is beating against the windows and the radio is howling next door, “What caused the smash-up?" Beyond the Horizon {pI was walking down Broadway one night—on my way to a ren lezvous with Beth—a shabby little nan stepped out of an alley and srasped my arm, “Didn't T meet you ence in Denver?” he asked. “You might have,” I conceded. I've been there.” “Weren't you the fellow I saw with cood-looki x blonde on the corner of Colfax and Willian night about n-thirty 2” "1 questioned. “Wednesday,” he s I saic minut he commanded, ng my other arm, “Can you see inything beyond those lights?” Those lights announced the fact that Mr. Florenz Ziegfeld presented Fred and Adele Astaire and Marilyn Miller in “Smiles.” I didn’t see any- thing beyond them, 1 told him so, “You should,” he said. “You should see the infinity of it all... . Of life, of death, of love and of space. You should see the path of the outmost star and the road of the most far-flung sun. You should sce to realize that forty-times-forty centuries look down ipon you...” A ‘couy laughing, attr: And I was getti He continued: Streets one So long.” of bystanders started ting more bystanders. x irked. And you—you can't see ten feet from these maddening mazdas.”” I felt like, well “Well, can you ind of like a dope. he challenged. “Gosh, Millicent—can't we go out on the porch?” 11 comicbooks.com