Life, 1911-12-21 · page 42 of 44
Life — December 21, 1911 — page 42: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a Christmas gift advertisement promoting three illustrated calendars for 1912. Rather than satire, it's a straightforward product pitch targeting affluent readers. The three calendars featured are: 1. **Life's Calendar** by James Montgomery Flagg—featuring whimsical drawings (cover shows a child in a rocking chair) 2. **Phillips Calendar** by C. Coles Phillips—seven sheets with his distinctive Art Nouveau-style female portraits 3. **Gibson Calendar** by Charles Dana Gibson—noted as a "departure" for Gibson, showing an elegant woman Each calendar costs $2.00 (expensive for 1912) and emphasizes being a thoughtful yet affordable gift—useful, beautiful, with legible dates and color artwork. The ad stresses that recipients will see the giver's name daily. This represents typical early-20th-century luxury gift marketing targeting middle-to-upper-class consumers.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Order at once Before it is too: late | Lifes | Calendar 1912 Front cover in color by James Montgomery Flagg. Six sheets in brown and tint of original drawings by Balfour Ker, W. L. Jacobs, P. D. Johnson, and others. Hung on heavy silk cord. Size 15 1-2 x 121-2. In mailing box. Price $2.00. iG Calendars for 1912 Now about a certain number of Christmas presents that you wish may contain just the right senti- ment to your friends—not too ex- pensive, not too trivial—can you think of anything that fits so exactly as a LIFE calendar? Every day they look at it they remember you. Usefulness and Beauty. These two things have established the fame of the LIFE Calendars all over the world. Legible dates. Two months toa page. Each page a pictorial gem. Colors. A seven-sheet calendar with drawings in color by C. Coles Phillips. These inimitable, unique drawings of Mr. Phillips combine to make the most attractive calendar offered. Hung on heavy silk cord. Size 12 1-2 x 151-2, In mailing box. Price, $2.00. Gibson. Price, $2.00. (Dest Th Caine All stationers, or address LIFE 17 West 31st Street New York “Whe ‘Gibson Calendat 102 them A seven-sheet calendar by Charles Dana Gibson. Front cover in color—a departure for Mr. Size 15 1-2 x 121-2. In mailing bor. against Oar int Flor comicbooks Mend