Life, 1916-08-24 · page 13 of 42
Life — August 24, 1916 — page 13: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
**Main Content:** This page features an article about "Great Americans" focusing on **A. Hollowhead Dubbe, the well-known society reporter**, described as someone "who writes such frightfully bully things." **The Satire:** The piece satirizes both society reporters and wealthy socialites. It mocks Dubbe's breathless coverage of high-society figures (Mrs. Solomon and her wives) while critiquing the women themselves—their shallow concerns with laundry bills, housekeeping, and maintaining social status despite marital arrangements. **The Joke:** The term "Hollowhead" in the reporter's name suggests the satirical target: society journalism is portrayed as empty-headed gossip-mongering, while the socialites exist in equally vacuous worlds of etiquette and conspicuous consumption. **Secondary Element:** A small illustration labeled "A Set of Shakespeare" appears to show athletic/acrobatic figures—likely another satirical reference, though its specific meaning is unclear.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
GREAT AMERICANS A. HOLLOHEDD DUBBE, THE WELL: NOWN SOCIETY REPORTER, WHO WRITES SUCH FRIGHTFULLY BULLY THINGS neutral admirer that her kitchen or her nursery may have been neglected. Or when Mrs. C. sings like a diva, he forgets that another voice to which he once loved to listen has lost its sweet- ness and volume through the lack of culture, No, we must all admit that Solo- mon’s view of the matter was sensible, if comprehensive. When he said to Mrs, Solomon No. 1, “‘Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away with me to a cabaret or a ‘movie, he was reasonably sure that she had the togs to go in, and that Mrs. S. No 2 would be at her post of duty, washing the supper dishes and put- ting the babies to bed. When he in- formed Mrs. S. No, 3 that her eyes were “dove’s eyes,” that her lips were “like a thread of scarlet,” and her teeth “a flock of sheep coming up from 309 the washing,” he neither knew nor cared whether she could swap views with him concerning the probabilities of Hughes’ election or the situation in Mexico. He deferred the considera- tion of these matters until he could discuss them with Mrs. S. No. 4, who wore glasses and did her hair in a peanut. And when he felt disposed to enlarge upon the Barbizon School, or the Futurists, with Mrs. S. No, 6, who cultivated artistic leanings, he did so with the calm assurance that Mrs. S. No. 7 was wrestling with the grocery bills and wondering how many “pieces” she could afford to send to the laundry. Solomon was the great specialist in wives, and we feel assured that they suffered less from brain fag than does the solitary modern mate who is striv- ing to keep up in the procession, look after her home, maintain her social status, attend to little Willie’s nose and tummy and satisfy big Willie’s multi- farious and changing ideals and yearn- ings. “Go forth, O ye daughters of Zion, and behold King Solomon with the crown wherewith his mother crowned him in the day of his espousals, and in the day of the gladness of his heart.” Sallie Pate Steen. HE injustice of society in distribut- ing its rewards is exactly equalled by its injustice in inflicting punish- ments, A SET OF SHAKESPEARE comicbooks.com