Life, 1923-06-28 · page 12 of 37
Life — June 28, 1923 — page 12: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page satirizes aggressive advertising campaigns of the early 20th century. The main article, "Sit Down! Stand Up!" complains about conflicting advertisements urging contradictory behaviors—one campaign telling readers to "Eat More Bread" while another advocates "Stay at Home More." The author humorously notes these campaigns involve various industry groups (raisin growers, dental associations, railroad companies promoting train travel, shoe manufacturers). The cartoon below, titled "An Iron Policeman," shows a stern officer in a motorcar, appearing to enforce compliance with these competing consumer directives. It satirizes how advertising had become so pervasive it felt like mandatory social control—"iron" suggesting both the vehicle and inflexible authority. The satire mocks the absurdity of competing commercial interests claiming to know what's best for the public.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
LIFE Mey, bres oon reais Phase Ge aye Sit Down! Stand Up! HAVE been eating three or four times as much bread since somebody started to advertise “Eat More Bread.” Bread and raisins. (Somebody else is advising me to eat lots of raisins. It increases the zinc or copper in your system. No, I am getting the raisin campaign mixed up with the Zinc Association advertising. I believe it is lead that you get from raisins.) But I have come to the conclusion that I am going to have a funny diet and a funny existence if I take all the advice that I am getting in the advertisements. “Ride on Trains,” says one great series of advertisements. The rail- roads must be behind that, although, for all I can tell, it may be the plush manufacturers. They may have it figured out that if more people ride on trains, these people will wear out more plush in seats in railroad coaches, and the railroads will have to buy more plush, But I get a conflicting urge from that other great series of advertisements which tells me to “Stay at Home More,” and which pictures so passionately the comforts of home. I had my grip all packed the other day to ride on a train (just anywhere, so it was on a train), when I happened to read one of those stay-at-home ads, and I immediately unpacked my things and put on my house slippers and—I have it! It is the House-Slipper Manufac- turers’ Association that is running those stay-at-home ads! If I eat more pie as the National Guild of Pie Crafts- men advocates, and more spaghetti as the North American Alliance of Spaghetti Weavers desires, and more beans as the Bean Growers insist, and more ice cream as the Ice-Cream Freezer Cog-Wheel Founders’ Association ad- monishes, and more bananas as the Canadian Banana Growers recommend, and more asparagus as the Interna- tional Asparagussers counsel, I think I'll be in a position to take the advice of that latest campaign on which | have seen advance proofs: “Use More Coffins.” The source of some of this indirect and abstract urging is so mystical and far-fetched as to be almost irritating I thought it was the candy manufacturers who were tell ing me to “Eat More Caramels,” and discovered a tiny signature at the bottom which indicated a state dental association as the author of the series. And the thing that has come nearest to bewildering me beyond recovery has been to read, during the same day, an advertisement by the Trouser Manufacturers beseech- ing me to “Sit Down More,” and another advertisement by the Shoe Sole Association of New England convincing me that I should “Stand Up More.” Don Herold. Very Transparent SAW a manly arm about her waist, His lips to my love's lips were pressed; In tenderest confidence she let her head Upon his massive shoulder rest. His fingers through her lovely tresses strayed, But still it somehow came to pass I was not jealous—for we stood alone Before the looking-glass ! Alico’ Harvey— Y IRON POLICEMAN comicbooks.com