Life, 1917-11-15 · page 17 of 40
Life — November 15, 1917 — page 17: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains two distinct satirical pieces from Life magazine during WWI. **"Who's Nobody and Why"** attacks Baron Pricebooster, a profiteer exploiting wartime food shortages. The text condemns him as a self-made businessman avoiding military service through age and obesity while price-gouging the hungry public. The moral critique is severe—he's depicted as damned unless he makes amends, destined for hell as punishment for profiting off civilian suffering during wartime. **"Gastronomical"** is a brief joke about rationing during the war. The humor plays on food restrictions—"meatless," "wheatless," "sweetless," and "heatless" days were actual government conservation measures. The punchline suggests dining on an "installment plan" spread across three nights because portions are so meager each night provides only one course of a full meal. Both pieces reflect WWI-era anxieties: food scarcity, profiteering, and sacrifice. The Baron represents widespread anger at those exploiting national hardship.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
THE WILLOWBYS' WARD. 2% HAVING BEEN ARRESTED FOR SPEEDING, MOLLY "PHONES FOR BAIL Who's Nobody and Why Gastronomical Baron Pricebooster _ “NYJHEN shall we dine with you?” TT Beinictare which ssabsent from this “Well, we have a meatless, a wheatless, a sweetless space—hecause we were ashamed to and a heatless day every w You might come on the insert it—is that of Baron Pricehooster, installment plan—say, three nights running.” a self-made hog who is doing more than his usual share of profiteering just now. Not content with exemption from mili- tary service—secured because of ad- vanced age, obesity and the gout—he seeks further to im- prove (!) his swinish self by giving the war-pinched public an extra pinch in the way of starvation prices. The inscrutable wisdom of Providence allows the Baron to control part of the nation’s necessities for a little while; but the blood of innocent women and children is upon his soul, and unless he makes whole-hearted and wholesale amends ere he departs this mortal life he will be shocked to discover himself before the throne of Justice, a helpless wretch, a good-for-nothing nobody, a choice morsel of fat eternally consigned to squirm and sizzle in the devouring flames of hell. Edmund J, Kiefer. CALLED TO THE COLORS comicbooks.com