Life, 1911-02-23 · page 34 of 44
Life — February 23, 1911 — page 34: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a satirical advertisement contest announcement from Life magazine (October 1910-April 1911). The joke targets automobile manufacturers competing for advertising prominence in the publication. **The Setup:** Life announces two prizes—a gold cup for the most advertising lines, and a "Booby Prize" (slang for a fool's prize, given as mockery) for whoever advertises *least* in the magazine. **The Satire:** Life mocks both the auto industry's desperation to advertise and the magazine's own mercenary nature. The text admits candidly that winning the cup simply requires spending money on ads in LIFE—it's not about quality or merit. By contrast, the Booby Prize humorously "honors" restraint, positioning non-advertisers as courageous rebels. **The Punchline:** Life then claims King George V, Speaker Joseph Cannon, and opera star Enrico Caruso have agreed to judge—absurd selections implying the entire enterprise is ridiculous. The underlying point: Life profits from advertising volume, not editorial quality.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
After That Booby Prize A Great Light Is beginning to dawn upon everybody connected with LIFE'S World-Stirring Auto Race. Up to recently, the contestants have been straining every nerve to win the gold cup which has been offered for the greatest number of lines of auto advertising be- tween October, 1910, and April, 1911. Now it is beginning to be apparent the real honor must lie with the one who wins the Great Booby Prize. Why? Simply because one is a question of advertising. Anyone can win the cup who advertises in LIFE enough. But to win the Booby Prize you mustn't adver- tise in LIFE any more How the Contestants Stand : Locomobile.. Baker Electric. Columbia.. Franklin. White... Hupp- Yeats Oldsmobile. Haynes... Peerless. . Abbott Detroit. Cunningham.. Hudson Motor.. Hupmobile. McFarlan Maxwell-Briscoe.. Overland. Stearns. Stevens-Duryea.. Anderson. Speedwell Premier.. Chalmers... Palmer & S Stoddard Dayton. Thomas Flyer. Waverley. . Kelly Motor Corbin Motor.. Alco. . Atlas Moto Marmon.. Carhartt Elmore.. U. S. Motors. Moon Motor National Motor. Brewster.. Club Car, . 1,680 lines »288 lines .1,278 lines 260 lines ,260 lines 260 lines 260 lines 868 lines 840 lines 840 lines 840 lines 840 lines 840 lines 672 lines 658 lines 644 lines 644 lines 448 lines 448 lines 448 lines 420 lines 420 lines 420 lines 336 lines 315 lines 224 lines 210 lines 219 lines 57,912 lines than you can possibly help, and it requires some- thing greater than genius to succeed in business without advertising in LIFE. Could anything take more courage ? Who will win it? A glance at the contestants in the centre column of this page will reveal the interesting fact that over half are contesting for this great prize. It’s anybody's race. In the meantime the work of securing a com- petent committee to de- cide what the Booby Prize shall be is still going on. We take pleasure in an- nouncing that King George, Joseph Cannon and the Honorable Enrico Caruso have already ac- cepted. Remember, any auto ts eligible. ole ted cart Jost livit Wee comicbooks.com