Life — March 1, 1923 — page 2: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Analysis This page is **primarily advertising**, not satire or political commentary. It's a 1923 advertisement for the American Radiator Company's "Ideal TYPE A" boiler system. The ad features a testimonial from Edwin Goodall of Hackensack, New Jersey, who replaced his old heating plant with an Ideal boiler. Goodall's quote—"I call it almost human; its appetite is exceedingly considerate of my pocketbook"—personifies the machine as thoughtfully economical. The painting by Arthur Keller shows the boiler itself. The ad's humor is gentle wordplay about the machine's "human" efficiency rather than political satire. The message targets homeowners concerned about fuel costs, positioning the product as a practical investment that "pays for itself in the fuel it saves."