Life, 1909-12-23 · page 22 of 28
Life — December 23, 1909 — page 22: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a self-promotional page for *Life* magazine's upcoming "Chorus Girls' Number." The satire mocks contemporary anxieties about chorus girls—young women performers in theatrical productions—by presenting them as a matter of national importance. The joke operates on multiple levels: Life ironically treats chorus girls as "natural resources" worthy of government statistics, inflating their cultural significance. The statistics claiming growth from 600 (1850) to 60,000 dancers connects them absurdly to national defense concerns. The motto—"You can lead a chorus girl to fire-water, but you cannot make her think"—delivers a sexist punchline typical of the era, while the phrase "kicking all the time" references both the high-kick choreography of chorus lines and stereotypes about dancers' behavior. The illustration shows an elaborately dressed woman, likely caricaturing a chorus girl's glamorous stage appearance. The overall tone is tongue-in-cheek; Life uses mock-serious language to advertise an issue devoted to titillating entertainment rather than serious journalism—acknowledging this honestly with phrases like "we blush as we write these words."
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
NEXT WEEK Chorus Girls’ Number “ee See cm. Do Chorus Girls ' Serve a Useful Purpose? This is a question that every true-born American has asked himself, at one time or another. It is a question that ought to be settled, once and for all. We may not hope to evade it. We must grasp the subject firmly; we must sit in the-baldheaded row and focus our minds on it; but we must not allow ourselves to be carried away with it. Chorus girls have come to be recognized as one of our great natural resources. In 1850, according to the Bureau of Sta- tistics, the number of chorus girls actively engaged in providing mental nourishment for the élite, was only 600. Last year it had increased to 60,000. Have our national defences increased in proportion? And in case we were invaded by an army of foreigners could we protect our interests? Fortunately LIFE’s immense pictorial and literary resources are available, and next week the whole affair will be settled. When the Chorus Girls’ Number is out, we shall all know where we stand. We shall prove, to the satisfaction of all patriots, that just because our chorus girls are kicking all the time, is no reason why they are pessimists. This number is going to be a lallapaloosa. (Need we expatiate ?) It is really shocking. (We whisper this confidentially.) It is a startler. (We blush as we write these words.) OUR MOTTO You can lead a chorus girl to fire-water, but you cannot make her think. COMING Jan. 6.—Great Auto Number. Cover by Phillips. Feb. 10.—Valentine. Cover by Irvin. Same old All records broken in this number. love. themes. We wonder if people will ever get Jan. 13.—Just plain LIFE. Cover by Von Dresser. tired of this sort of thing? We hope you will have insters’. Cover by Hutt. A Squeezer. the bad taste to enjoy this number. nother Regular. Cover by Phillips. Feb. 17.—Motor Boat. Cover not now determined —Lincoln., Cover by Harting. This is prac- upon. This motor boat number is a serious problem. tical y a general number. We call it Lincoln, We are doing it, as we said last week, to please the because of Mr. Harting’s great cover—an impres- advertising department. We hope they will like it. sive picture of Lincoln. | AU REVOIR! I comicbooks.com