Life, 1924-05-08 · page 28 of 42
Life — May 8, 1924 — page 28: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page from *Life* magazine reviews several recent books, primarily focusing on "Behold This Dreamer!" by Fulton Oursler. **The Main Review:** The illustration shows two men in conversation outdoors, likely depicting characters from Oursler's novel. The review discusses a protagonist named Charley, described as an artistic genius trapped in mundane circumstances—stuck supporting a philistine family (particularly a father-in-law who runs a brush factory) while working tedious jobs. The satire centers on the tension between artistic aspiration and bourgeois mediocrity: Charley is intelligent enough to dream of better things but lacks the discipline or opportunity to achieve them, instead reduced to petty office work and domestic frustration. **Social Commentary:** The review satirizes both the dreamer's impracticality and the philistine world that crushes artistic sensibility. Charley's family represents American materialism and cultural indifference. **Other Reviews Mentioned:** Brief mentions of "White Stacks" (a country-house comedy) and "Phryne" (short plays) appear, offering lighter literary fare in contrast.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Fulton Oursler (Macau on the peculiar pr The id a seems t his soul he cann a vision ii pected to have much head. One good Madonna multitude of its creator's bust 1 coin rs deal of wife ing as well as the thr iberius Of course the Str ily, Charley Turner's ii were the commonplace s people designed to drive man of artistic sensibilities into distraction. At the I wd deal e. there | be said for he Strickers Even if old J was th kind of 1 wi al his mimeographed) mail and | pulled) platitudes from th i Rotary Club folders as orig in, xl-for lars a week to his “g nothing” in-law, who when he Id have beer making out bills, was balanc ing a window pole on his nose ' ‘y c u some cause for exasperation | and juggling o s. Clar arley's drud when Charley overlooked ing wife, ha sisting her with thes oper dishes and retired to his room play the oc But that is not the point Charley was a genius. He had a dream to which he pictures or m lly ad no training in ei wasn't which he do and he tion, He fh ped out interior decorator in cam woman. had come off on his lips the he kissed her, and that wa that. Venu at the bottom f the sea to-day were them, Imagine Helen of Tre ing her nose! When some of these r d to the Strick ua can never forgive him. “BI HOLD THIS DREAMER!” by with which Charley accompanied 1 eventually pick ot breathlessly for two hours, to have a nice little cell for him in a quiet ir an author turn about suddenly nes the delight- Charley feels at And here cot neatly from every tangle in which he has f without a shot being fired or a drop of blood rmity atic asylum for the first in his life ir ever, as he couldn't very well thing else, | suppose he t be forgiven school patter did to a peaceful roulette system worked by the ‘over that “White is the name gf the house itself rove a delusion and snai to any of his readers. Neither “af Its results are too piking. SS ander Woollcott’s journal- animadversic ed he fore, have been gath- ered into a volume h hold. He loathed his father-in-l brush factory, and thought onl personalities of New York, and things king sor tivation, they here, make up the Entertaining as well a Kummer (Dorrance) three short plays, but my reaction to it rather than d gst the expository Italic of but her lip-stick was dead. Aphros ess on, you will be in he second play, is embedded the Hotel hefore Six days of sem e—he was throug somewhat ema going to be pretty difficult to get any ctions were TE comicbooks.com