Life, 1923-01-11 · page 35 of 36
Life — January 11, 1923 — page 35: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a promotional page for *Life* magazine's "Western Number" issue (January 18th). Using Wild West cowboy imagery and slang, it advertises the upcoming issue and invites subscriptions. The page lists famous contributors—Will Rogers (humorist), Benchley (likely Robert Benchley, humorist), and cartoonists Held and Sullivant—presented as cowboy characters with Western nicknames ("Sure-Shot Sherwood," "Wild Bill Hanemann"). The satire plays on the contrast between *Life's* sophisticated urban readership and crude Western stereotypes. The "Ranch Boss" character (the magazine's editor) extends a folksy invitation to subscribe for three months. The illustrations—a bucking bronco and a cartoonish cowboy—reinforce the tongue-in-cheek "roughneck humor" theme. This reflects the 1920s trend of using Western imagery to market entertainment and convey masculine, adventurous appeal to city dwellers.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
WHOOPEE! Ride’Er, Cowboy - Let’Er Buck! Cure on, you Mavericks, take the hobbles off the old paint-horse and strike out for the new excitement over at the Double-L Ranch—the big- gest roundup of A-1 brand humor that ever made a sheep-herder go loco. Which the same is the Western Number of LIFE, due to hit town on Thursday, January 18th, with the greatest bunch of busters you ever saw in one corral; quick on the draw and able to ride any Pegasus pinto without once choking the horn. Some of the boys positively due to appear are: WILL ROGERS FOOTLIGHTS BENCHLEY HILO JACK HELD CATS HERFORD SURE-SHOT SHERWOOD SANTIAGO AZOY SWEDE PETERS WILD BILL HANEMANN HIPPO SULLIVANT (WARNING: Any hombre wishful to start anything, remember that Sheriff Go-get-"em Shipman will be in charge!) And speaking of LIFE, friend, why don’t you go heeled with a sense of humor right along? It don’t cost much to pack a trial—put a head stall over an iron man, and send it to the Ranch Boss, pronto. He'll rustle you a copy every week for 3 months. Don't disobey that there Impulse, ’ Ranch Boss, pard! “a LIFE Ranch, ¥ ($1.20 if you had to go ever the border; $1.40 if you live in foreign p: comicbooks.com