Life, 1922-09-28 · page 12 of 36
Life — September 28, 1922 — page 12: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This cartoon satirizes early Hollywood filmmaking. A movie director (center-left) attempts to film a lion in a cage with actors, promising one actor ("Sam") he'll escape safely. Sam expresses doubt, noting the lion snaps its jaws faster than it shakes its tail—making the timing unreliable. The humor targets the improvised, dangerous nature of early cinema, where safety precautions were minimal and directors made bold assurances about stunts. The "uncertainty" of the title reflects both the unpredictable animal and the dubious promise of survival. The page also includes "Pantun of the Pantun," a poem explaining the French poetic form, demonstrating the magazine's literary content alongside humor.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
LIFE Pantun of the Pantun hey all seem quite anxious to climb, ‘dE French have an odd way of writing A poem that’s called a pantun; Just two lines are destined to fall; And though at first sight uninviting, To see that they jingle and rhyme, I'll show you the way it is done. That's the easiest part of it all A poem that’s called a pantun, Just two lines are destined to fall, With a jingle that’s truly its own; The first and the third go descending,— I'll show you the way it is done, That's the easiest part of it all,— If you're willing to wait and be shown While the other lines all go ascending. The first and the third go descending (The pantun is finished at last), While the other lines all go ascending, ’ With a jingle that’s truly its own, As I warned you full well in the past. Each line is moved up to repeat; lf you’re willing to wait and be shown, It’s not very much of a feat. The pantun is finished at last And though at first sight uninviting, As I warned you full well in the past, The French have an odd way of writing. F, M. Each line is moved up to repeat, They all seem quite anxious to climb; It’s not very much of a feat To see that they jingle and rhyme. Uncertainty Come, Sam, you will be out of that cage in two shakes of Movie Director (persuasively) : the lion’s tail! Sam: - Yes, Boss, but dat lion snaps his jaws twice’t as fast as he done shake his tail! comicbooks.com