Life, 1922-07-20 · page 35 of 36
Life — July 20, 1922 — page 35: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a subscription advertisement for *Life* magazine employing dark humor about heat-induced desperation. The "Cold Facts" section uses exaggerated, absurdist statistics claiming that when surveyed about summer heat, respondents reacted so desperately that hundreds jumped off the Brooklyn Bridge or walked into rivers, while thousands fled to "Upper Iceland." The joke plays on the common complaint "Is it hot enough for you?"—treated here as so unbearable that people choose death or emigration as alternatives. This reflects early 20th-century American anxieties about urban summer heat before widespread air conditioning. The ad then pivots to promoting a *Life* subscription as a "cool" escape from the heat, requesting a dollar donation. The illustration shows a skier descending a snowy slope—reinforcing the "cold" theme as desirable relief. The satire mocks both the triteness of heat-related complaints and uses dark humor typical of *Life* magazine's irreverent style to sell subscriptions.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
A Few Cold Facts Last SUMMER 3,619 people were asked if it was hot enough for them. Of this number, 419 immediately jumped off the Brooklyn Bridge, 387 walked into rivers where there were no bridges, and 7,423 bought one-way tickets for Upper Iceland and points north. Don’t get cold feet this July—if you want to make Lirz possible the rest of the summer, chip off the coupon and slide it along to us, adding One Dollar in Cold Cash. You will be rewarded Tenfold. This is the Zero Hour; Let’s go! Special Introductory Offer 10 Issues, $1.00 — (Canadian, $1.20; Foreign, $1.40) Your Special Offer is a cool proposition. However, there is no law against sub- Z i =a ~ Here is an scribing for a year, 52 issues, $5.00. icicle dollar bill. (Canadian, $5.80; Foreign, $6.60) =” Thereby saving $2.90 over the news- stand price. LIFE, 598 Madison Ave., N. Y., Dept. 230. *Baby talk. nwen ) SZ comicbooks.com