Life, 1920-05-06 · page 4 of 56
Life — May 6, 1920 — page 4: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a **straightforward advertisement, not satire or political commentary.** The page promotes Michelin Universal Cord tires through the Michelin Man mascot (the iconic "Bibendum" character shown three times around the large tire). The ad employs the familiar advertising approach of the era: listing three technical reasons for product superiority (tread compound, tread design, oversized body construction), then using a casual call-to-action ("just give the Michelin Universal Cord a trial"). The Michelin Men are depicted as cheerful, anthropomorphic figures in their characteristic segmented/striped appearance. There is no political or satirical content—this is simply period tire marketing from Michelin's Milltown, New Jersey factory, targeting automobile owners concerned with durability and skid-resistance.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
The Michelin Universal Cord, the newest product of the oldest pneu- matic automobile tire manufac- turer, is the best tire for your car for three reasons: Ist The new Michelin tredd-compound offers unequalled resistance to the destructive effects of friction, heat. moisture and age The improved Michelin tread design effec tively opposes skidding in any direction. It further increases the durability of the tire by retaining the broad, flat traction-surface intro duced by Miche so widely copied ina few years ago and since The super-sturdy oversize body is built up of cords that ere not micrely corted but ac tually impregnated with rubber. forming a tremendously tough, resihent mass which assures greatest freedom from blow-outs. If you are not yet a Michelin user, just give the Michelin Universal Cord a trial. That is all we ask. MichelinTireCo.,Milltown,N.J. Other factories: Clermont - Ferrand, France; London, England; Turin, Italy Dealers in all parts of the world A Sturdy Oversize Cord Tire that Establishes a New Stand- ard for Supreme Durability and Freedom from Skidding comicbooks.com