Life, 1920-11-25 · page 12 of 45
Life — November 25, 1920 — page 12: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page presents a satirical "All-American football team" composed entirely of prominent U.S. politicians from the 1920s era. The caption explains that Life's football inspector selected this lineup because November allows the magazine to discuss politics without mentioning elections or "Commencement Day." The joke is a visual pun: instead of actual football players, the positions list real politicians like Franklin D. Roosevelt (Harvard), Josephus Daniels (Navy), and others, treating them as if they were athletes. The accompanying illustrated figures show these politicians in football uniforms and poses. This satirizes political figures by comparing their "performance" to sports competition, mocking their strategic maneuvering and competitive nature through the football metaphor.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
LIFE The All-American Political Team Selected by LIFE’S Football Inexpert pee magazine or newspaper in the United States which allows the month of November to slip by with no attempt to designate an All-American team is as hopelessly out of date as the magazine or newspaper which goes through June without king reference to brides or Commencement Day. Therefore the editors of Lire, ever mindful Tackles The line will be decidedly strong in this feature of play. Josephus Daniels, of the Navy, and Albert S. Burleson, who hails from the Lone Star state, have both been on the gridiron for a long, long time, and have become case-hardened and tough- ened, as a result of the severe of their time-honored obligations to the great reading public, have in- structed their leading Football In- expert to select an All-American aggregation of political stars—bas- ing his selections on the perform- ance of the various contestants in season which ended on Novem- ber 2nd. Josephus Daniels (U. His job is no sinecure, James M. Cox (0 for it is not easy to pick an all- star team when there are so few stars to pick from, but he has done his best with the mediocre material at hand. His selections follow: THE LIN Franklin D. Roosevelt: (Harvard) Boies Penrose (Harvard). Wm. H. Taft (Yale)... Hiram Johnson (California) Albert Burleson (Texas), Calvin Coolidge (Amherst) Henry C. Lodge (Harvard) ) ‘A. Mitchell Palmer (Swarthmore) Warren G. Harding (Ohio) Woodrow Wilson (Princeton)... Wm. J. Bryan. 7 Will Hays George White }.. : Wm Randolph Hearst... roasting which they have received. “UP They have both been consistently eo successful in smothering all inter- Left Tackle ference, and, although they have -Left Goad displayed their greatest strength Right’ Guard while fighting on the defensive, they have many qualities of an of- “Right Tackle pRlett: End fensive nature. Burleson, !Quarter-back i in pare Left Halfback ticular, is well posted in all Right Half-back essentials Coach ‘Water Boy ‘Cheer Leaders - Official Scorer Guards Boies Penrose, the Pennsylvanian, who is one original old guards, will Ends Calvin Coolidge, who wore the purpie at Amherst and has since worn the purple on Beacon Hill, and Franklin D. Roose- velt, of Harvard and the Navy, seem to be the logical candi- tes for the wing positions. Both young men are nimble and alert, and ready to tackle anything that may way. During the past season they have demonstrated that they can handle any forward passes that are thrown to them from the backfield—no matter how weakly or inac- curately they may have been hurled—and they have both been adept in fumbles. name for come their recovering Coolidge made a himself in 19190 when he scored several touch- downs against the Boston Police team. strong A. RURLESON 1, JOUNSON, wT. RG. aided and abetted by aggressive, peppery fire-eater on the squad—Hi Jol man who hung the “ No Admittance” sign on the Golden Penrose has won well-deserved laurels for his steam-ri tactics in crushing all opposition, and is able to block any who attempts to get through, over or by him. Johnson has the tendency to be head- strong, and on one occasion at least has been known to execute a shift when the sig- nals called for a mass for- mation. His ability as a kick- er, however, should more than make up for this slight defect. Center No one will dispute our choice for the pivotal posi- tion. William Howard Tait, the wiry son of Old Eli, is the most reliable passer in the country, and will have a _Steadying effect on all the Bb. PENROSE J. DANIELS, ROOSEVELT LG. 1 comicbooks.€ami