Judge, 1936-01 · page 10 of 36
Judge — January 1936 — page 10: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Explanation for Modern Readers This page contains two cartoons satirizing early 20th-century American life. **Top cartoon ("I'm returning this one—it whistles naughty songs!"):** A customer returns a whistling tea kettle because it emits inappropriate sounds. The humor lies in the kettle's "naughty" whistling being treated as scandalous—reflecting period attitudes about propriety. **"The Pep Talk":** A boxing manager (or possibly a nightclub manager) lectures a young fighter/bartender named "Kid" about professional conduct. The advice mixes boxing and bartending metaphors—the manager warns against wild swinging, emphasizes showmanship ("smile when you're putting one over"), and advises proper technique over raw aggression. This satirizes the performative nature of both professions and the gap between street-level and professional behavior. **Bottom cartoon ("They're havin' a little argument"):** Construction workers "argue" while their equipment fights it out, with the boss passively watching—a visual pun on workplace conflict. The overall tone mocks working-class ambition and the "rules" of various trades.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Judge WHISTLING TEA Kerne 13% A WHISTLING pAyy Always Bors “Pm returning this one—it whistles naughty songs!” The Pep Talk 2 manager was speaking. “Kid,” aid, “you've got the stuff it by up here in the big time and I've liked you ever since I saw you working out in that fourth-rate club and brought you up here. I know you are me down but lately you ig so well. There you've got to learn about this racket if you want to be the tops.”” “WI vate you look swell but when you get up before the crowds you start shaking like a rank amateur. You've simply got to cut out that wild) swi it looks terrible. And you've g , that idea that you have to floor a man with one punch not ng to ain't been doi ten you ate working out in pri- The customers here want a run for their money know you can lay the take your time and do a finished job of it; feel your man out first and find out take it.” other thing: if he ed hold your head nd smile when you're higher 4 one ove Tt always has an effec the other fellow. You can do it, Kid Now take this cocktail shaker and get out there and show them you're a real bartender,” UR wife doesn't burn the candle at both ends, but she squeezes the toothpaste that way. “They're havin’ a little argument, and I'm just lettin’ "em fight it out.” 8 comicbooks.com