Life, 1917-02-01 · page 39 of 40
Life — February 1, 1917 — page 39: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This cartoon by K.L. Roberts satirizes New York ticket speculators—scalpers who resold theater tickets at inflated prices. The joke: a newcomer to Heaven encounters a scalper selling "best seats" for $50, only to have St. Peter reject the ticket as worthless fraud. The satire works on two levels. First, it mocks scalpers' brazen dishonesty and predatory tactics (threatening the buyer, fabricating scarcity). Second, it uses the afterlife as absurdist commentary: even in Heaven, these con artists operate. St. Peter's exasperation—and his final solution to send them to New York—suggests scalpers are so corrupt they belong nowhere but that morally bankrupt city. The humor hinges on readers' contemporary frustration with theatrical ticket fraud, a recognized social problem in early 20th-century New York. The piece positions theater-goers as victims of systemic exploitation by organized scalpers.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Why New York Ticket Specu- lators Are the Worst in the World S the newcomer approached the pearly gates a suavely-smiling in- dividual darted out from behind a near-by cloud and thrust a handful of tickets before his face. “Best seats in the house!" hissed the possessor of the tickets. “The only seats from which you can get a clear view of the gold-paved streets and hear the full chorus of harps. Standing-room only inside. If you don't take one of these they may not Tet you in!” “Thanks,” replied the newcomer; “T think I'll try at the gate first.” “Have it your own way,” sneered the ticket-seller. “Five minutes be- fore you came along a man refused to buy a ticket of me, and St. Peter slammed the door in his face. But don’t mind me! Go right ahead if you want to take the chance!” “How much?” enquired the new- comer weakly, “Only fifty dollars,” murmured the ticket-seller, glancing over his shoul- der apprehensively. “ Right in a front- row seat, next to the river of the water of life.” And as the newcomer peeled fifty dollars from his roll the ticket-seller parted with a ticket and vanished rapidly into a cloud. Thereupon the newcomer knocked loudly on a pearly gate, and presented his ticket with a confident mien. “Here! here!” cried St. Peter, when the newcomer forced the ticket into his hand. “ What's all this?” ticket for a front-row seat,” re- plied the newcomer calmly. St. Peter growled ferociously and shook his fist at infinity. “ Drat those Ce BILTMORE Where the social life of New York centers by day and evening CLOSE TO ALL THEATRES AND SHOPS The road builders of California know the value of natural sceni¢ attractions. .---- Anetwotk of Peneg, motor roa } Sierras and the blue Pacific.induding fam: Ous El Camino Luxurious resott hotels are but a few hours motor trip apart: - - Four daily California trains via the Santa Fe, and the Santa Fe de-Luxe weeklyin winter. Fred Harvey serves the meals all the way: - Grand Canyon and Petrified Forest en route-- - + - Booklets of trains and trip upon request--- + ++ W. J. Black. Pass Tra. Mgr. A.T.&S.F.R 1062Ry. Exch Chick ° ticket speculators!" said Ire.“ That ticket isn’t worth the paper it's printed on! We don’t sit on seats up here: we sit on clouds! They're a fine lot of robbers. The board of governors Down Below won't admit 'em, because they corner all the tickets for the cool spots on the brimstone lakes and charge a drink of water for each ticket. I can’t let ‘em in here, because they'd pry up the golden pavement and sell it for junk in less than a day! PETER J. CAREY, PPONTER I don’t know what to do with em!” “Why don't you send 'em to New York?" enquired the newcomer, who had an inte ace. “New York will stand for anythin * By George!" cried St. Peter, “I'll do it!” K. L. Roberts. “Dox’t you find it hard these times to meet expenses?” ard? Man alive! I meet expenses at every turn.”"—Boston Transcript, comicbooks.com