Life, 1911-12-07 · page 102 of 112
Life — December 7, 1911 — page 102: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains primarily **advertisements and advice columns**, not political satire. The main content is "How to Be a Practical Joker" by David R. Locke, a humorous essay defining the "practical joker" as a specific social type—someone devoted to elaborate pranks as a life pursuit. The piece uses mock-serious language to satirize this character, describing necessary qualifications: steady income to fund pranks, no moral scruples, and daily repetition of jokes until becoming notorious. An example illustrates: a prankster forges a telegram to deceive a friend, causing physical harm ("fell with a stroke"). This reflects 19th-century humor norms that seem cruel today—the comedy derives from the victim's distress. The page also includes advertisements for pianos, marriage advice books, and jewelry studs—typical magazine filler of the era. There is **no political commentary** visible; this is lifestyle and consumer-oriented content reflecting period attitudes toward entertainment and social behavior.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Leads in Tone Quality in America with it, would ¢ The } i \ ) 4 rs sdf on carriag ete Bee 5 Sule PIANO ZF) | One of the three great Pianos of the World end ws ur se jon of the other tno great pianos of the eed eae ss {sh ra Ordee Regular made “AND A LITTLE CHILD SitALL Les to THEM.” nuisance and a pest only a trifle less ter- rible than a mad dog “Secondly, the practical joker must give his entire attention to the pursuit tor one effort, though it be successful will not hold permanent distinction. It must be repeated daily, till the public shall hear as regularly of ‘ Jones's last’ as they do of bank defalcations. “Thirdly, the practical joker mus have no weak scruples. The feelings of others must not affect him, nor must apy earthly consideration turn him from bis A Happy Marriage parpost a . Depends Keckaly Shia kites: He need not have wit or originality How to Be a Practical Joker edge. of the. whole truth all that is necessary is stolidity ao) shoot oelt and sex snd Achelt money enough to keep his corps of fol: siaiy) | able. bpomiedge does not lowers to appla d and Tepeat, s come lntelligently-of tteelt, “Having designated the qualities nec- = every-day sources, essary for success in this pursuit, I shat suggest a few practical jokes which have Utiustratea) do to use again. nH, Wailine, Ad, MD. “We will suppose that A, the prac: Ne ee eee akinakiv Hines. tical joker, has a friend, B, who lives owledge & Young Mushand shoud Have, during the summer at Staten Island. has a brother in Chicago. What more exquisite piece of fun could there be than to have A forge a telegram to B, world, together mith the name and addecss of anyone thinking of buying 2 piano; we will thea mail you EREB! a book cone taining a suny and three well-hauwn compusitives for piano. the qu BY DAVID R, LOCKE (PETROLEUM Vv. ha! ha There came to Abou Ben Adhem one day a young man who insisted on being put in the way to the achievement of dis- tinction. Abou looked the young man over with great care and proceeded to give h a prescription at once. “There are various kinds of fam my son,” said the sage, “but to attain any one of them requires an adaptabil- ity to that particular one and much la- bor. It takes a great many ye tain eminence at the bar—that parts in a clear, howledge a M ee ; K nawtedge n Mother Shontd tmnnrito Her Daughter. in the name of the clerk Wiles) Kuowledgs:s SV ite'ghould Heyes Fifth Avenue Hotel, to the All In one volume, Mlustrated, $2, postpaid. lawyer; political distinction is lor “Other People's Opinions" and Table of Contents. only by years of labor, and Puritan Pub. Co., 776 Perry Bldg., Phila., Pa. may be said of the pulpit and the tri as registering his name, and was From the size your head, I should say that your s est cut to practical jc It is not t tion to have and to hold, but it nswer you, t his brother fell with a stroke o! sis in the corridor of the hot Showing one of the many new and beav- tiful designs of Studs, Vest Buttons and it strikes me you are fitted for it practical joker may, in a year's time, become sufficiently famous to have town all speaking of ‘Jones's last es gives his w ng else to take his few plain dir are necessary. “In should have a ought to be ri to be a wine, peat his good thi down the sober people themselves, would how! tain of all their joys a Cuff Links, gold and platinum mounted and set with precious stones. Made by the largest manufacturer of fine jewelry in the world. Krementz Bodkin-Clutch Studs and Vest Buttons > _ The most perfect device for fastening studs in_ stiff-bosom shirts. They go in like a needle a= and hold like an anchor. ) Ask to see them at the leading jeweler KREMENTZ & CO., 60 Chestnut S:., Newark, Nd comicbookMeom