Life, 1920-03-04 · page 63 of 78
Life — March 4, 1920 — page 63: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is **not a political cartoon or satire**—it's a full-page advertisement for The Cheney talking machine (phonograph), published in *Life* magazine around the 1910s-1920s. The ad compares a musical virtuoso's skill to The Cheney phonograph's acoustic quality. The image shows an ornate cabinet-style phonograph with decorative inlays and legs. The copy claims the device applies "acoustic principles" to reveal "hidden overtones" in recorded music, positioning it as a high-end music device for discerning listeners. The tagline "The Longer You Play It The Sweeter It Grows" is a sales slogan, not satire. The small diagram shows the phonograph's internal mechanics. This represents early 20th-century advertising that appealed to consumers' aspirations for refined taste and technological sophistication.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
\ The Master Touch « of the virtuoso, searching out rare harmonies in a score of music, has its counterpart in the pure voice of The Cheney. Through an original application of acoustic principles, The Cheney has made a wonderful contribution to music. Records awaken to new loveliness. Overtones heretofore hidden are revealed. The painstaking care given to the perfection of each detail in The Cheney stamps it a masterpiece. “THe Loncer You Pray It Tue Sweeter Ir Grows.” CHENEY TALKING MACHINE COMPANY - CHICAGO Dealers Everywhere Ch CHENEY comicbooks.com