Life, 1923-12-13 · page 24 of 36
Life — December 13, 1923 — page 24: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page from Life satirizes the carefully managed public images of political and business leaders. The main article "Photographing the Great" critiques how prominent figures—including Kaiser Wilhelm, Mussolini, President Coolidge, Taft, Lloyd George, and Bryan—meticulously control their photographic personas, always projecting "character" and stern competence rather than their actual selves. The piece notes the irony that American financiers photograph with intimidating "firm mouths and chins," yet appear ordinary in person. The cartoon below depicts a motorist stuck in deep snow, cheerfully offering a ride to a woman who hesitates, not wanting to be mistaken for a "hiker"—reflecting 1920s-30s social anxieties about respectability and class appearance. The humor highlights how people carefully manage their public image, mirroring the article's theme about the gap between curated presentation and reality.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
n - LIFE - Photographing the Great T is one of the delights, or discomforts, of greatness that | it is photographed every day, and twice a day on special occasions. The craving of the public for new photographs of the great is uncontrollable. A picture taken day before yesterday is as out of date as a map of Europe printed year before last. The Kaiser, when he was the Kaiser, spent all his time being photographed in the uniform of a conqueror, and wearing his best viking expression, for the indulgence of his enraptured subjects. The great are very particular about expression. They are photographed, like actors, “in character.” Mussolini, who is keeping the Italian cameras hard at work, is always “the strong man of Italy.” At times there is such concen- trated strength in every line of his face that it looks incapable of relaxation. One wonders if he has slack moments when his lips are not set, and his eyes are not piercing, and only the wife of his bosom is permitted to gaze at his reposeful and uncompelling countenance. President Coolidge presents the same general character- istics, modified as befits an American whose powers are constitutional, and dependent on the will of the people. He is always the man of action, the man of the moment, with bent brows, firmly closed mouth, and a general air of putting things resolutely through. By the side of this stern competence, the broad, benignant smiles of Mr. Taft, the broad, oppressively humorous smiles of Mr. Lloyd George (nobody could be so humorous as Mr. George looks), the broad, effulgent smiles of Mr. Bryan, seem to belong to heydays and holidays. They have nothing in common with greatness at its appointed task. An English novelist has expressed a sort of wondering delight at the photographs of American financiers, “eag] faced gentlemen with intimidatingly firm mouths and chins.” Something must be done to financial chins in the secrecy of the photographic studio. When, as occasionally happens, we are permitted to gaze at a captain of industry in the theatre, or at a public dinner, his chin seems as the chins of other men. But his picture, when seen in supplements of Sunday papers, or in a magazine article on “Master Builders of American Commerce,” is always true to type, and possesses the kind of chin associated intimately with millions Agnes Repplier. The Contrast Sow, up to the hubs of the wheels, made the going hard. “Whatever possessed you,” they asked him, “to bring out your car to such impassable drifts?” The motorist laughed happily. “Why, this isn’t anything,” he said. re bowling along beautifully. You've never been over this road of a summer Sunday, have you?” And at once they were all sympathy. RAWFORD: What do you think of wireless? CrassHaw: Wonderful invention. When the paper comes my wife is satisfied with the radio supplement. “Pp BE HAPPY TO GIVE YOU A LIFT, MA’AM—IF YOU'RE GOING MY WAY.” “ou! THANK YOU KINDLY, SIR, BUT I WOULDN’T LIKE YOU T0 THINK I WAS ONE OF THOSE AWFUL HIKERS.” comicbooks.com