Life, 1924-01-10 · page 17 of 44
Life — January 10, 1924 — page 17: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a comic strip rather than political satire. It depicts a young boy named Skippy listening to an elaborate tall tale from an adult ("Papa"). The story concerns a greedy king who demands gold from a poor farmer with a beautiful daughter who spins wool. The humor derives from the classic setup of an implausible fairy-tale narrative (spinning straw into gold appears to reference the Rumpelstiltskin tale) being delivered to an eager child. The punchline—the farmer's garage burning down, disrupting the scheme—undercuts the fantasy with mundane reality. The strip's title suggests Skippy appreciates entertaining stories regardless of their logical consistency, a relatable aspect of childhood credulity that audiences would find humorous.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
ry Skippy: PAPA, PAPA, TELL ME A STORY, PLEASE, PAPA, HUM, A STORY TELL ME. “WELL, ONCE UPON A TIME THERE WAS. GREEDY KING.” WHAT. KING?’ A KING! ANY KING!” A VERY “on, “HOW DO YA SPIN WOOL, PAPA?” “LET ME WHEN TRE KING SAW THIS HE SAID TO THE FARMER: ‘IP YOUR DAUGHTER CAN SPIN GOLD OUT OF A ROOMPUL OF STRAW—I WILL MAKE HER THE QUEEN. “WHAT WAS THE MATTER WITH HIS OWN QUEEN?” “ME WAS A BACHELOR.” “YOU SAID HE WAS A KING.” “YES, A KING, AN UNMARRIED KING,” “ALL THAT NIGHT THE POOR FARMER'S DAUGHTER CRIED AND CRIED AND CRIED, ‘I DON’T KNOW HOW TO SPIN STRAW INTO GOLD! OM, WHAT TO DO! WHAT TO Do!” “PAPA, GOADIE’S GARAGE BURNED DOWN TO-DAY.” “TAKE THAT D—— THING OUT OF ILERE Skippy “NOW THE KING WANTED ALL THE GOLD IN THE LAND, $0 ONE DAY ME RAN ACROSS A POOR FARMER.” “WHAT WAS THE MATTER WITH HIS BRAKES “WE DIDN'T HAVE A CAR! WELL, ANYWAY, TH FARMER HAD A BEAUTIFUL DAUGHTER WHO WAS SPINNING WOOL,” DID THE KING DO RUT TAKE THIS BEAUTIFUL GIRL AND LOCK MER IN A ROOM FILLED WITH STRAW.” “YA KNOW WHAT I'D DO IP A KING LOCKED A BEAUTIFUL DAUGHTER OF MINE IN A ROOM FULL OF STRAW?” “NEVER MIN) AND GET To bep!” He Knows a Good Story When He Hears It comicbooks.com