Judge, 1933-09 · page 10 of 36
Judge — September 1933 — page 10: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# "Pity the Poor Magician" - Judge Magazine This is a humorous piece satirizing the social burden placed on amateur magicians. The title character, Tom, is apparently known as a magician (possibly a stage performer or hobbyist), and the cartoon shows how relentlessly people exploit this reputation, constantly demanding he perform tricks at inappropriate moments. The four scenes depict escalating requests: someone asks him to retrieve pickles from a bottle, guests demand he perform at a party, a friend calls asking him to pull off a magic trick to resolve a problem, and a child insists on seeing tricks. The final panel shows a drowning person requesting he perform a swimming "lesson" while a ship sinks—the ultimate absurdist demand. The satire targets the social expectation that anyone with a specialized skill or reputation must constantly demonstrate it for others' entertainment, regardless of context or appropriateness. It's a relatable critique of being typecast by one's talents.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
ome “You don't mind both of us marrying you, do you?—I'm breaking Rev. Willets in.” Pity the Poor Magician “-ToM, s get the pickles out of this bottle You're ¢ a magician, you know.” “Look out, don’t let that magician mix the cocktail “Ante up, boys, and b cian, in cep your eyes on the pot. Tom's mt know.” you “Sorry, Tom, I'm fat ble to pull through till the cian, aren't you? Ha-h: li. You ought to be end of the week—you're a magi- “Hello, Tom, this is Bill talking. Come down and by me out, will you? Whazzat? Well, use a little of the good r ©. but hurry it up, like a good chap.” “So you're an of the tricks my huh? Well, y« can do, Only fourteen and smar nuld see whip. “Come on, help the party along, Why can't you pull of your stunts right here, just as well as on the stage?” “Well, well, well, sot hearing so much about! tag for me?” s the great magician we've bee Tell me, can you square a trate “Aw, go ahead a rabbit out of that hat.” n't be so darn bashful, just pull one “Now here's a little thing I picked up myself. You see this coin? Wateh it now—where seems to work when Im show dit go? Funny, it never ~~ MS f “Better hurry that swimming lesson—the ship's sinking!” comicbooks.com