Life, 1921-04-21 · page 2 of 36
Life — April 21, 1921 — page 2: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page is primarily **a Michelin tire advertisement**, not political satire. It advertises Michelin's ring-shaped inner tubes for automobile tires. The visual joke contrasts two tire designs: Michelin's "ring-shaped" tubes (shown as a perfect circle that "fit without stretching, wrinkling or pinching") versus competitors' straight tubes that must deform to fit round tires. The cartoon character (Michelin's mascot Bibendum, the rotund "Michelin Man") illustrates the concept—his round body mirrors the ring-shaped tube design. The copy argues that asking automobile owners which tube is "best" will confirm Michelin's superiority. This reflects early 20th-century automobile advertising conventions, emphasizing technical product advantages with humorous visual comparison.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Michelin Red Inner Tubes being ring- shaped like all casings fit without stretching, wrinkling or pinching. Ask any automobile owner what make of inner tube is best Other tubes being straight must wrinkle or stretch in an at- tempt to conform to the shape of the tire. MICHELIN TIRE COMPANY, MILLTOWN, N. J. Other Factories: Clermont-Ferrand, France; London, England; Turin, Italy comicbooks.com