Life — July 5, 1923 — page 20: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This is a comic strip sequence (labeled "No. 1") depicting a domestic scenario centered on class and social anxiety. The title indicates that Skippy's father is inviting his employer to visit—a situation that triggers comedic chaos in the household. The sequential panels show family members in various states of preparation and mishap: children playing, adults organizing, furniture being moved, and apparent disorder as the family attempts to present themselves respectfully to the visiting authority figure (the employer). The humor derives from the contrast between the family's aspirations to impress and their inability to control domestic life. This reflects early 20th-century anxieties about social propriety and workplace relationships, where an employee's home life and family reflected on professional standing.