Life, 1914-04-02 · page 45 of 68
Life — April 2, 1914 — page 45: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a **full-page advertisement**, not political satire. It promotes the Ohio Electric Car Company's 1914 automobile model. The ad targets women specifically, emphasizing the car's ease of operation—its "magnetic control and magnetic brake" eliminate "effort and worry." This appeals to female drivers of the era, when cars required significant physical strength to operate. The photograph shows well-dressed women inside an elegant vehicle with luxurious features: sashless windows, wide doors, and a disappearing front window. The headline "PREFERRED!" suggests women drivers prefer this model for its beauty, simplicity, and comfort. The ad reflects early 1900s marketing strategies that positioned electric vehicles as particularly suitable for women because they required less mechanical skill than gasoline cars. This was a significant selling point during automobiles' early adoption period.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
PREFERRED! Women who look for beauty—women who demand simplicity—alike choose the Ohio Electric | The exclusive magnetic control and magnetic brake of the Ohio Electric have eliminated all the effort and worry of driving, and left nothing but the pleasure. And the 1914 models of the Ohio, with sashless glass all around, extra wide doors, disappearing front window and many other refinements are, we believe, the most beautiful pleasure vehicle ever produced. Literature on request. The Ohio Electric Car Co., 1505 Bancroft St., Toledo, Ohio Gideon Electrica, Lid. Ontario Distributors. Toronto, Canada Ohio Electric Magnetic Control—Simple as comicbooks.com