Life, 1916-12-21 · page 34 of 36
Life — December 21, 1916 — page 34: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains three distinct elements: **Left side:** A LIFE magazine subscription advertisement disguised as satirical copy. The "King of Gladness" pitch humorously sells magazine binders at $1.50, emphasizing their superior design compared to competitors' riveted binders that prevent reading. **Center story:** "Love Still Reigns" is dark satirical humor about marital devotion. A husband commits multiple felonies—murder, robbery, assault—to purchase an expensive fur coat for his wife as proof of love. The punchline subverts romantic sentiment: after he recounts his crimes, his wife reveals he bought her the *wrong cloak*, making his sacrifice pointless. The satire critiques both masculine materialism and female materialism in marriage. **Right side:** Period advertisements for Herbert Tareyton cigarettes, a garage, and Bell-Ans indigestion remedy. The "Love Still Reigns" story exemplifies Life magazine's satirical approach: taking contemporary social values (consumerism, romantic love, gender dynamics) to absurd extremes to mock them. Modern readers would recognize this as dark comedy commentary on consumer culture and relationship expectations.
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Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Why Not Be a King of Gladness? It is easy if you only know how and have the price. Save up a dollar and a half out of your princely income and forward it to this office. By return mail or express we will send a binder for your loose copies of Lire. You know what most binders are? It takes a trained band of mechan- ics to get the periodical clamped into them, and when you get it in, one half of the inside column is riveted together so tight that you can not read. Our binder is not like this. It binds like a breeze. You can actually read your copies of Lire after they have been joyfully inserted. Price $1.50 in the United States. Foreign $1.75. Step this way, please ! Lire, 17 West 31st St., N. Y. Love Still Reigns T last. It was three o'clock in the morning. The young husband, a look of fierce determination and unalloyed sat- isfaction upon his face, and staggering beneath the weight of a large bundle, made his way stealthily up the stairs of his own home and confronted his wife. In the dim gas light she looked at him reproachfully, but he stopped her with a gesture. “Wait,” he said, “until you hear my story. I am late on purpose. Have con- fidence in me. Do you remember, Marie, one week ago we stood together in the salesroom of one of the largest fur stores in the metropolis, and that you, looking at one of the sable cloaks that was there, said that you wished I was a big enough man in the business world to be able to buy that cloak?” Her face rapidly changed. “Robert.” she whispered, “do you mean——" “Wait. I want to prove to you that I PETER J. CAREY, PRINTER Nd Herbert Tareyton London Cigarettes Herbert Tareyton London Smoking Mixture % 1b. 50 — __ Sample upon request Falk Tobacco Co. S8West25"St. NewVork, love you, To-night, after everyone had left the office, I opened the safe, killing the janitor who was trying to protect it. I took eight thousand dollars in hard cash and made my way to the home of the head salesman of the fur company. At first he refused to come, but upon my threatening his life, he accompanied me to the salesroom, and after paying the money I gathered the cloak in my arms, and, having been chased by the police, and shooting several of them, I came here. In fifteen minutes from now I shall be on my way out of the country, a fugi- tive from justice, but carrying in my heart the living proof that even in this day when the cost of living is so high, and men have become so degenerate, it is possible to prove my love. Farewell, Mar While he had been talking his wife had rapidly taken the paper off the pack- age and had spread the cloak upon the bed. There were sounds of hurrying feet in the distance. Her husband was Preparing to depart. She grabbed him by the shoulder. “Must you go?” “1 must away. There is not a moment to lose—even now my life hangs in the balance. Why do you detain me?” She looked at him reproachfully. “Perhaps I am wrong to detain you, but I thought you would like to know that you picked out the wrong cloak. The one I wanted was the one next to it. Farewell.” 10 £ 12 “Steeteote” Edwants ready- Kinase garage, £09.00 completes Pate tory price. Pireproct. Portable, Quicaly wt op. All styice and else faraces and portable. baiidingn, > BELL-ANS Absolutely Removes Indigestion. One package proves it. 25c at all druggists.