Life, 1914-12-17 · page 5 of 40
Life — December 17, 1914 — page 5: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page is primarily a **Johnnie Walker whisky advertisement** masquerading as editorial content in Life magazine. The cartoon depicts two mountain climbers—labeled "English Climber" and "American Climber"—at a precarious mountain peak. The English climber spots something below, while the American confidently identifies it as a bottle of Johnnie Walker Red Label whisky. The joke plays on stereotypes: the English climber's cautious skepticism versus the American's brash certainty and product loyalty. The ad emphasizes the whisky's "non-refillable bottle" and guaranteed quality "over 19 years old." This reflects early 20th-century advertising practice where satirical magazines like Life accepted paid content framed as humorous editorial material. The transatlantic comparison was a common advertising trope appealing to American consumers' sense of superiority.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Born 1820 —Suill going strong. English Climber (looking over): “I say, THAT'S SOMETHING LIKE A ‘DROP ’—EH, WHAT!” American Climber (otherwise engaged): “ Bevieve me, 1t 1s SOME vxop; 11's ‘Jounnte Waker’ Rep LABEL—STRAIGHT OUT OF THE NON-REFILLABLE BOTTLE.” The satisfaction of getting a whisky of undoubted superiority is only equalled by the certainty of always getting it at its best—that is why “ Johnnie Walker” is put in the non-refillable bottle. Every drop of “ Johnnie Walker” Red Label Whisky is over 10 years old. GUARANTEED SAME QUALITY THROUGHOUT THE WORLD Agents: WILLIAMS & HUMBERT, 1158 Broadway, NEW YORK JOHN WALKER & SONS, Lro., Wuisxy Distitiees, KILMARNOCK. comicbooks.com