Life, 1916-03-02 · page 5 of 44
Life — March 2, 1916 — page 5: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page is primarily a **whisky advertisement** for Johnnie Walker Red Label, not political satire. The illustration depicts two figures: a beggar or vagrant (labeled "Johnnie Walker") and a "Special Constable" guarding a waterworks. The constable remarks he hasn't seen so much water in years and envies the "lucky beggar" guarding a distillery. The joke plays on the brand name "Johnnie Walker"—a Scottish whisky—by literally depicting a character named Johnnie Walker. The humor relies on the pun and the absurdist scenario of a constable's envy of whisky access rather than water access. The 1820 reference ("Still going strong") emphasizes the product's longevity. This is advertisement-as-entertainment typical of early 20th-century magazine advertising.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Born 1820 ~ —Still going gr } strong. Johnnie Walker: “Done your srr, RH?” Special Constable (guarding Waterworks): “You net! I HAVEN'T SEEN 80 MUCH WATER FOR YEARS. I ENVY THE LUCKY BEGGAR GUARDING YOUR DISTILLERY.” Almost any water is good with ‘Johnnie Walker.” Because the whisky is right to begin with—matured properly to go on with—and comes to you in a non-refillable bottle to finish with. 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., Wousey Distitines, KILMARNOCK. comicbooks.com