Life, 1911-11-02 · page 13 of 56
Life — November 2, 1911 — page 13: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page collects six October-themed satirical cartoons mocking contemporary 1910s-1920s concerns: 1. **Top**: "Meeker, Colorado, is so healthy..." jokes about health fads and wellness tourism. 2. **"Electric Spanker for Boys"**: Satirizes new technology marketed to parents as educational/disciplinary tools. 3. **Pastor's quote on teaching love**: Mocks religious hypocrisy regarding education and morality. 4. **Wireless transmission**: References the era's fascination with new wireless technology. 5. **English curator's comment**: Appears to critique American cultural pretensions and art collecting. 6. **Halmsey/Standard Oil barrels**: Satirizes the oil industry (likely Standard Oil's dominance), showing transformation "from wine butt to oil barrel"—suggesting industrial capitalism replacing traditional commerce. The cartoons use exaggerated caricature and wordplay typical of Life's satirical approach to technology, religion, and business.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
MEEKER, COLORADO, 1S $0 HEALTHY THAT UNDERTAKERS LEAVE. Octover ATR CHAtOR, ANEW ELECTRIC SPANKER FOR BOYS. PASTOR SAYS:~ "HOw TO MAKE Love = _ ENGLISH CURATOR SAY3:- "AMERICA 13 THE SHOULD BE TAUGHT Inf SCHOOLS: S DUMPING GROUND FOR SPURIOUS WORKS OF AAT? MSEY nowt ones. (STANDARD OL BUTT OF MALS.” ! A CHOICE PIECE OF TURKEY. ‘ FROM WINE BUTT TO O1L BARREL. comicbooks.com