Life, 1906-07-05 · page 13 of 40
Life — July 5, 1906 — page 13: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
**Top Cartoon ("Hooray—Independence Day!"):** Shows a rotund figure in Uncle Sam attire setting fire to a Joan of Arc statue. The text explains this satirizes "Uncle John" (apparently a recurring humorist character), mocking his wit at the expense of French cultural icons. The joke plays on American mockery of French tastes and Norman architecture, presented as crude but "good business for the market." **"The Comic Tourist" Section:** Discusses how American humor relies on exposing civilizational contradictions. It references Mark Twain's similar satirical approach. **Bottom Cartoon ("Snap-Shots in Hades"):** Appears to depict someone labeled with American business/advertising references as punishment in the underworld—satirizing American commercial excess and defacement of cultural decency through advertisements.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
“LIFE: can morals, and the uplifting of the American stage, to satirizing—not unkindly—our kin across the sea; and the genial author of “Susan Clegg” has started to tell us in the Century Magazine what a facetious “Uncle John”’ thinks of France. It’s ‘be funny or die” with Uncle John, just as it was with the <= “Innocents” forty years ago. He is witty at the expense of Norman architecture, of Coeur de Lion’s heart, of the buming of Joan of Arc. Joan, especially, presents herself to him asthe humorous feature of Rouen, “Strikes me it was an enterpris- ing idea to bum Joan in the market, anyhow—good busi ness for the market. Folk come to sce the statue, and incidentally buy some peanuts.” Perhaps this is American humor, but FAS MOORAH—INDEPENDENCE Day! The Comic Tourist HENEVER our stock of native American humor is running low, whenever the incongruities of our amazing civilization (we live in the b land of contrasts) fail to offer inspiration, we resort to the time-honored ex- pedient of the “funny business” abroad. Mark Twain taught us this scheme forty years ago, and the novelty of the device took away our breath, and shook our sense of propriety to its foundations. Now the novelty has. worn a trifle threadbare, and our sense of propricty has had time to recover its steadfast and cold-blooded pn to amuse depresses the most cheerful reader, and to travel from foreign town to town on the lookout for something to laugh at is to confuse re- lations, and to destroy the surprises of which laughter is bom. It is possible to offend every canon of good taste without being funny at all However, enterprising syndicates find it worth while to send a humorist acrdss the sea, with directions to be as waggish as he can; and enterprising publishers stand ever ready to print a comic edition of Baedeker. Mr. George Ade has tumed his attention from the pointing of Ameri- SNAP-SHOTS IN HADES THE PUNISHMENT OF THOSE WHO ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE DEFACEMENT OF AMERICAN SCENERY WITH . ADVERTISEMENTS 809 we hope not. Perhaps if a Frenchman came here, and split his sides over the assassination of President Lincoln, we should find his sprightliness egreeable; but the chances are egainst it. y thing is not laughable, clse where would be the point and pleasure of a laugh? Agnes Repplicr. Abroad E READ in the papers that Mr. and Mrs. Longworth have gone abroad. Mr. Longworth is a member of Congress, and ought to be in Washington working at his job. We trust his pay will be docked. It may be recalled that he is the Ohio gentleman who married a daughter of Pres'dent Roosevelt. Mr. Bryan, is spoken of for Demo- cratic candidate for President again. He also is abroad. We have not leamed whether he is lecturing there. He is com- ing home in September, but can come at any time,as he is not under investigation. comicbooks.com