Life, 1915-04-29 · page 5 of 44
Life — April 29, 1915 — page 5: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a **Johnnie Walker whisky advertisement** disguised as satirical humor, dated 1820. The cartoon shows three figures: an old man reading a newspaper labeled "Born 1820—Still going strong," a small jester or comedic figure in the middle, and a well-dressed gentleman on the right wearing a top hat. The "joke" is a pun: when asked what a "paradox" is, the Dry Joker responds "Why, 'Johnnie Walker.'" The paradox being that you can "pour out" whisky from the bottle without depleting it—implying the bottle's superior quality and value. The advertisement emphasizes the whisky's age (over 10 years old by 1925) and guaranteed quality, positioning Johnnie Walker as a luxury product through this clever wordplay.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
4 pHESQSS=S SSS SES SSA SSS MEE OS OE SE SaaS Ww TO — \\ Nut: “Tsay, oLp CHAP, WHAT IS A PARADOX?” Dry Joker: “Wuy, ‘ JounnieE Watker.’” Nut: “I can’t see 1t.” Dry Joker: “WELL, YOU CAN POUR OUT WHAT YOU CAN'T PUT IN!” The reason is because of the wonderful “ Johnnie Walker” non-refillable bottle which ensures you that you get the same superior quality of whisky that the distillers put in. Increased reserves of Red Label are now being put into bond to meet the enormous increased demand anticipated in 1925. 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, LTD., WHISKY DISTILLERS, KILMARNOCK. comichooks.