Life — December 12, 1907 — page 12: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# "A Blasted Hope and Some New Attractions" This page satirizes competition between theatrical entertainment venues in early 20th-century America. The cartoon depicts a disheveled figure (likely representing vaudeville theater managers) lamenting the rise of the Hippodrome theatre and its new attractions—particularly a horse-centered spectacle called "The Four Seasons" and "The Human Daisies." The satire critiques how established vaudeville theaters felt threatened by the Hippodrome's lavish, innovative productions featuring horses, automobiles, and elaborate musical numbers. The text suggests vaudeville managers initially tried creating a chain of competing theaters but ultimately lost ground to this newer, more spectacular entertainment form. The joke is on traditional theatre's struggle against increasingly extravagant competition.