Life, 1910-12-08 · page 41 of 44
Life — December 8, 1910 — page 41: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is primarily **advertising and self-promotion** for Life magazine's upcoming issues. The page announces two special editions: 1. **"Scat!" (Winter Travel Number)**: A humorous teaser promising the issue contains "nothing of geographical interest" and is "a reliable guide to nowhere"—self-deprecating satire about the magazine's comedic rather than informative purpose. 2. **The Christmas/Gasoline Number**: A 110-page issue (Life's largest) devoted heavily to automobiles. The text **sarcastically admits** that Life functions essentially as an auto industry publication, read by car owners and advertised in by car manufacturers. The phrase "we simply stop at nothing" pokes fun at their own single-minded focus on making this number a commercial success. The cartoon of a cat saying "Scat!" reinforces the winter travel issue's humorous irreverence. Overall, this is Life magazine's self-aware mockery of its own editorial priorities and advertiser relationships—using satire to promote its own product.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
“Scat!” or Winter Travel Nun:ser of Life will be out on time next week. This number is guaranteed to contain nothing of geographical interest to anybody. It’s really a reliable guide to nowhere. You learn nothing from it. On the other hand, it con- tains fifty-seven varieties of pleasure, from the quiet inward ripple of subjective joy to the outward and visible laugh of diaphragmatic disturbance. A remarkable cover, by the way, by Balfour Ker. \HE monumental That 7 Christmas number of Life contain- ing 110 pages Gasoline Number is approaching. (the largest number ever issued) is now on. sale throughout the country. If you have been so busy that you haven’t seen it, buy a copy of it now and take home. SPECIAL OFFER.—Three Months $1.00. (Canadian, $1.13; Foreign, $1.26. Open only to new subscribers. No subscriptions renewed at this rate. This offer is net. Subscription, $5.00 Canadian, $5.52 You must know that LIFE is, if anything at all, an automobile periodical. It is read by the people who own automobiles, and it is advertised in by the people who sell them. Consequently, we spread ourselves on this annual auto number. We simply stop at nothing to make it an unpar- alleled success. It will contain so many super- latively superior sensations that the mind reels in contemplation of them. 110 pages. 25 cents. Foreign, $6.04