Life, 1922-02-02 · page 6 of 34
Life — February 2, 1922 — page 6: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
The central cartoon depicts a classical theatrical character—Pierrot, the sad clown figure from commedia dell'arte tradition—standing in a doorway on a cold night. The poem by Oliver Herford accompanying the image plays on this stock character's melancholy romantic fate: unrequited love, wandering, and ultimate destiny to meet another Pierrot after years of waiting. This appears to be sentimental rather than political satire, using Pierrot as a universal symbol of romantic disappointment and artistic suffering. The surrounding "Life Lines" section contains brief satirical notes on contemporary events (Washington conferences, patents, elections), but the Pierrot piece is pure theatrical nostalgia—a poetic meditation on love and loss dressed in traditional pantomime language.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
‘HE Conference delegates are leav- ing Washington. Everything pact. aL In times of peace treaties, prepare for Borah. aL A dispatch says that a French- man has invented Banana Dress Goods. Their merit lies in the fact that a dress made from them is easy to slip on. aL The fundamental patents on the vacuum cleaner have been upheld by the courts. A sweeping decision, that. aL Wedding of Princess Mary to Draw Royalties.—Head- line. Author, author ! aL “I may not look so bright and radiant as the younger set,” said the 1888 bottle of hooch, “but, thank God, I’m pure!” JL Alma Mater of the new School of Book. Reviewers: “Merrily We Roll a Log, Roll a Log, Roll a Log.” aL Senator Jones is going to re- quest a rule to make senators stick to the point. Who is going to find the point for them? aL Mechanical toys are being improved, but they still do not keep Father amused for more than three or four Sun- days after Christmas. Germans Complain of French Soldiers on Rhine—Head- line. Is this the celebrated Rhine whine? JL President Harding shook 6,576 hands at his New Year’s reception. That would be pretty good training for a fellow going into the cocktail business. is The tax is now off railway tickets, so Although the world is now safe for all a fellow has to do to save enough to Democracy (sic), France refuses to balance his Christmas outlay is to take scrap her submarines. wants to crack the safe. a long trip. Pauvre Pierrot OU may call forevermore “Pierrette !” In the cold outside her door Chills perhaps but nothing more You will get. Though your journcy’s end is here, And you are so near, so near To your Sweet, Though a thousand years you wait Each the other, ’tis your fate Ne’er to meet. Offspring of an Artist’s brain You must long for Love in vain, For although You have come to Life, it’s true Life will never come to you Pierrot! Oliver Herford. Perhaps she aL “,.. But that, alas! would throw all our modern novel- ists out of employment’— From an editorial. What do you mean, alas? aL In Payta, Peru, says a scien- tific journal, the interval be- tween showers is about seven days. The interval being broken, we take it, every Saturday r aL Of course, 1922 is young, but Admiral Sims hasn't heen misquoted yet. aL You've got to give Bryan credit for repression. He hasn't written about “Wood- row Wilson As I Know Him.” aL Count Szechenyi Named Hungarian Envoy. — Heud- line. “Named” is right. Now will some little boy pronounce it? According to London -!n- swers, Persia has no old maids. But who takes care of the Persian cats? aL It will probably cost New York City half a million to remove the snow from the streets this winter. The money, of course, comes out of a slush fund. Doubtless Japan named the battleship Mutsu after one of the dogs of war. +L Well, the Conference ad- journed without fixing a hot- cake-and-maple-syrup ratio for restaurants. JL What De Valera wants to give Ireland is Home Drool. comicbooks.com