Life, 1920-08-05 · page 18 of 48
Life — August 5, 1920 — page 18: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
**Main Cartoon ("Why There Was No Church Service"):** The illustration depicts a tall church tower surrounded by a large crowd wearing hats, with what appears to be a toucan perched atop the steeple holding various items. The accompanying dialogue (by Henry William Hanemann) is a witty exchange between a lady and the bird about consumerism and freedom. The satire targets early 20th-century consumer culture: the bird represents exotic temptation and entertainment that distracts people from traditional institutions (the church). The lady's constant desire to buy things reflects emerging consumer materialism, while the bird's refusal to return to nature satirizes people preferring artificial urban pleasures. The church sits empty because the crowd is distracted by commercial entertainment and shopping—a critique of how consumer capitalism was displacing religious life in American society. **Lower Section:** Includes a generic "campaign speech" template (mocking political rhetoric's predictability) and a brief comic about "savings accounts"—where the father's definition that savings equals what government takes after necessities is dark humor about taxation or financial hardship.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
-LIFE. “ What earthly use are you?” asked the lady, suddenly tak- ing a practical turn of mind. “T'm exotic—if you know what that means—and I stimulate the imagination. What use are you? There's been a cons able amount of eflort spent in dressing you up like this; » must have some value. Y you ought to be some goo: where. But if you had anything better to do, I doubt if y be about here, trying your blandishments on me. Gurk!” “Funny bird,” said the lady, “I like you.” “Funny lady,” answered the bird, “permit me to return the compliment. You and your sisters provide me with much en- tertainment—more than you provide for your men creatures, I don’t doubt.” I'd like to buy you,” said the lady, © you would,” answered the bird. “And you'd like to buy the monkey in the next cage, and the lingerie up the block, and the hats around the corner. In fact you spend most of your happiest moments looking for things you'd like to Iny Well, go ahead—if your men creatures will stand for it. As for buying me, please don't.” “But [ won't,” “Thanks,” said the toucan, and he breathed a sigh of relief continued the lady. or, funny bird,” said the lady, “wouldn't you like to he hack in the jungle where you came from—free of that horrid brass cage? “ Back in the stupid old jungle?” exclaimed the bird, who was really an old reprobate. “Never! I can have more fun here in five minutes than I could have there in five million cons. No, indeed, dear; I'm having a glorious time.” Well, bye-bye, funny bird,” said the lady. “1 must be go- ing “Come again, dearie,” said the bird. “I'll be glad to see you. As long as I'm kept from you by this substantial brass caye, I imagine I'm fairly safe.” Henry William Hanemann, LIFE'S Little Campaign Speeches Good Any Time, Anywhere, Keep One on Hand for Use in HE issue, friends, is plain. It could not be obscure to the men and women who compose this audience, much as our opponents desire to obscure it. If we did not fully compre- hend the issue and how our enemies seek to camouflage it, we would hardly be here this evening. Nor are my hearers in doubt as to how our candidate pro- poses to meet this issue. Never, from the moment of his nomi- nation in that great free assemblage in Chicago (San Fran- cisco) has there been any doubt. Like Washingtor d Lincoln, he stands fearless and defiant of the forces which seek his defeat and, yes, friends, your defeat, also and that of the hopes you hold most dear. We know the issue. We know how our candidate will meet it. Let us go forward to the battle inspired by the conscious- ness that on our side we have the right, saying with the great poet, “ Thrice armed is he who hath his quarrel just!” Savings Account ON: Dad, what is a savings account? Fatuer: A savings account is that’ part of a man’s in- come which the government takes after permitting him to pay WHY THERE WAS No CHURCH sevice for the necessities of life. comicbooks. Som