Life, 1923-12-27 · page 4 of 37
Life — December 27, 1923 — page 4: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a satirical one-act play about marriage and infidelity set in a Manhattan apartment. The plot involves Leaf (a butler), John Hemmingway (a husband), Clara Hemmingway (his wife), and Harry Clifford (a friend). The satire centers on marital deception: Clara believes her husband no longer loves her and has transferred her affections to Harry Clifford. Meanwhile, John is preoccupied with mundane concerns like shoes and whisky. The joke appears to be about how couples misread each other's intentions and emotional states, with the "front and back" title suggesting the gap between public appearances and private realities in marriage. The cartoons illustrate various comedic domestic moments with period-typical drawing style.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Front and Back A Really Realistic Romance in One Act HARACTERS (in Order of Ap- pearance): Leaf, a butler; John Hemmingway, a husband; Clara Hem- mingway, a wife; Harry Clifford, a friend. Scene: The living room of the Hem- mingways on upper Time: The present. Park Avenue. Leaf enters right center and pretends to dust off various knickknacks, imi- tation books and fake rubber plants. While he is engaged in this subterfuge, John Hemmingway enters left, clears his throat times and directs Leaf to bring him a whisky and soda Leaf says: “Very good, sir,” and exits right, where he hangs about the wings and has a conversation with the prop- erty man about the Big Fight. In the meantime, Clara Hemming- way has entered left. She informs her husband, John, that she no longer loves him, explaining that he has treated her as if she were a mere child and that her affections all belong to Harry Clif- ford, who is in his dressing room, perusing a copy of Variety. Leaf finishes his talk with the prop- erty man, and enters right with a tray containing a decanter of lukewarm ginger ale and a couple of chipped glasses, which he offers to Hemming- several way. The latter, who has been study- ing the new pair of shoes he has just purchased in West Forty-Eighth Street, waves him away, and swears that he will shoot Clifford “down like a dog.” Opening a drawer in the desk (center), he produces an empty revolver, which he thrusts into his pocket, exits left and makes straight for his dressing room, where he removes his coat and lights a cigarette. Clara sinks into a sofa, and buries her face in her hands as she sobs that she didn’t mean to tell Hemmingway about Harry, who, having put aside copy of Varicty and a little more greas: paint on his chin, enters right. Clara tushes to him, and says that John (Hemmingway) knows all. By this time, traces of the Hes Leaf has removed all , Number 9, and cold creamed his face, while Hemmingway is shooting dice with the electricia Clara and Clifford are discussing what they had best do just as John (Hi mingway), who has enters center in a rage. rolled a seven He draws empty revolver from his pocket, ar makes as if to fire, when he suddenly recognizes Clifford as an old colleg: friend who had saved his life during a croquet match years before in India “Bill!” he cr: “Harry!” shouts Clifford. (It appears they had known each other under the above And joyously they hasten to the side board, where Hemming names. ) pours ov two brimming glasses of ginger ale, which they toss off with pseudo-gusto just as the curtain falls. Charles G. Shaw. Customer: 1 WANT AN OVERCOAT THAT WILL KEEP ME WARM, THAT WILL PLEAS! MY WIFE, THAT MY SON WILL BE ASHAMED TO BORROW, THAT MY CHAUFFEUR WILL BE GLAD TO HAVE NEXT YEAR, THAT MY DAUGHTER WON’T HIDE, THAT MY PARTNEK WILL BE ENVIOUS OF, THAT NO ONE WILL TRY TO STEAL—WELL, YOU UNDERSTAND. comicbooks.com