Life, 1923-05-03 · page 34 of 40
Life — May 3, 1923 — page 34: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains two satirical pieces about social embarrassment: **"They danced only one dance"** is a Listerine advertisement disguised as a short story. It depicts a common social anxiety: a man secures a dance with an attractive woman at a country club, but she refuses a second dance, claiming tiredness. The implication—made explicit in the accompanying text—is that she declined due to his bad breath (halitosis). The satire targets both the social humiliation of the situation and the marketing anxiety created by the advertisement itself, which warns that people won't tell you about your breath problem, making you vulnerable to rejection. **"It's All the Rage"** is a dialogue satirizing the craze for mahjong, the Chinese tile game that became wildly popular in America during the 1920s. The humor lies in the woman's vague, confused explanation of the game's rules—she can barely describe the gameplay or remember terminology correctly (repeatedly mispronouncing "mahjong")—yet she insists it's "simply fascinating." The satire mocks both the fad itself and people who enthusiastically adopt trends they don't fully understand. The page also includes period advertisements for women's undergarments and dress linings.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
They danced only one dance T all happened at the country club. She was simply wonderful and he just had to meet her. At last he secured the dance upon which his entire evening had been centering itself. It proved both his first and last dance with her. Of course, he asked her again, but she pleaded she was very, very tired. Quite naturally he suspected some other reason. x Ok Ok The insidious thing about halitosis (the medical name for unpleasant breath) is that you, yourself, rarely know when you have it. And even your closest friends won't tell you. Sometimes, of course, hali- tosis comes from some deep- seated organic disorder that re- quires professional advice. But usually—and fortunately—hali- ‘tosis is only a local condition that yields to the regular 41se of Listerine as a mouth-wash and gargle. This halts food fermentation in the mouth and leaves the breath sweet, fresh and clean. So the systematic use of Lister- ine this way puts you on the safe and polite side. You know your breath is right. Fastidious people everywhere are making it a regular part of their daily routine. Your druggist will supply you. He sells lots of it. It has doz- ens of uses. Read the interest- ing booklet that comes with every bottle—Lambert ‘Phar- macal Company, Saint Louis, U.S. A. For HALITOSIS use LISTERINB LIFE - It’s All the Rage SHE Do you know the new game? "He I’ve heard about it. Mu-Jou, isn’t it? SHE No, it’s called Mor-jang. HE Oh, Mo-jung. SHE No. Mar-junk. HE Mah-jank. SHE Well, anyway, it’s simply fasci- nating. HE Really? SHE You play with the loveliest little counters. HE Oh, yes. And don’t you build walls? SHE That’s right. And there’s a north wind and a south wind and an east wind and a—er—er—- HE A west wind? SHE That's it! A west wind. And there are “bamboos” and “dragons” and “flowers” and “‘dots” and characters. HE It sounds interesting. SHE After you build the walls you throw dice. HE Dice? SHE Yes, dice. And then you play. HE Not till then? SHE No, not till you throw the dice. HE I see. SHE Then you draw and you discard. HE Of course. SHE And you “Chung” and you “Pow.” He Oh! SHE And you end by going “Moh- junk.” He Mu-jang. SHE And you really understand it? HE Perfectly. c. GS. Trade-mark Varner s WRAP-AROUND The Invisible Corset HIS Warner’s Wrap-around is deftly designed to give a flat back and long, girlish lines with- out any suggestion of a corseted appearance. Low-topped, fashioned of dainty silk novelty cloth with panel of all- over elastic at the hip, this style, No. 0917, is ideal for medium and average figures, Price, $3.50 Other Wrap-arounds for slen- der, average and full figures, $1.50 and up. Wrap-arounds are made only by The Warner Brothers Company, New York, Chicago, San Francisco. Made also in Canada by The Warner Brothers Company, Montreal. NAAD Ready-to-wear DRESS LININGS The modern dressmak- ing convenience. For new gowns or making over old ones. Distinc- tive and refined work- manship, Perfect fitting. Silk, Net, Nainsook and Messali Manufactarers 101 Franklin St., NewYork Made by the makers AIA sine SHIELDS comicbooks.com