Life, 1916-04-06 · page 14 of 80
Life — April 6, 1916 — page 14: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a **full-page advertisement** for The Gorham Company, silversmiths and goldsmiths based in New York. There are no cartoons or satirical content on this page. The ad makes a marketing argument: "Family Silver" doesn't require expensive, ornate pieces—modest silverware of good quality counts too. The pitch emphasizes that Gorham silverware, having served American families for 85 years, deserves the title "Family Silver of the Nation." The closing line—"Silverware with the Gorham name costs no more than silverware without it"—is the core sales message: you're not paying extra for the prestigious brand name. This reflects early 20th-century advertising that positioned quality goods as accessible to middle-class families, not just the wealthy.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Wwe tw Se we ere err? eZ ees “| : : Se “The Family Silver” The family silver does not and need not always imply the possession of gorgeous silver service and’ ornaments. Silver knives and forks and spoons and a tea service are not less “Family Silver” because they fulfil requirements rather than exceed them. But what is important is that your silverware, however modest in extent, shall be of a calibre to deserve the name of “Family Silver.” And that is another way of saying your silverware must be Gorham Gorham Silverware is used more and known better than any other silverware on the American Continent. It has been in the service of the American people for 85 years and may be fairly described as “The Family Silver of the Nation.” Silverware with the Gorham name costs no more than silverware without it THE GORHAM CO. Silversmiths and Goldsmiths FIFTH AVENUE AND 36th STREET 17-19 MAIDEN LANE NEW YORK comicbooks.com