Life, 1924-09-25 · page 14 of 37
Life — September 25, 1924 — page 14: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains a satirical article "My Insanity" about using an insanity defense in court, alongside a large cartoon depicting a lion in a top hat conducting an orchestra of hyenas. The main cartoon satirizes a theatrical production, with the caption explaining: "What's Jimmy Lion doing with all the laughing hyenas? He opens tonight in a new musical comedy, and he's going to plant those boys in the audience." The joke references a common vaudeville/theater practice of planting shills (paid audience members) to generate fake laughter and enthusiasm. The hyenas—typically associated with mockery—represent these planted laugh-producers. The well-dressed lion conductor symbolizes the theatrical impresario orchestrating manufactured entertainment and artificial audience response, satirizing show-business deception and the artificiality of commercial entertainment.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
12 My Insanity HAVE always believed in doing the conventional thing, so when I killed Brown I decided to make insanity my defense. “It’s got to be insanity or nothing,” I told my lawyer, firmly, “What's the good of my being read about by the best people if they don’t recognize me as one of themselves? So insanity we decided it should be. “Lil have a bunch of the best-known alienists in the country up here to- morrow,” promised my lawyer. “But remember, all I can do is sign them up; I can’t control their verdict.” “Right-o,” I replied cheerfully, “Just leave that to me.” The next morning our group of famous experts arrived. I told them how I laughed uproariously at sub- titles; invested in Fuller and McGee; defended Congressional methods; be- longed to the local Rotary; and used the words moron, Babbitt, hundred per- cent., sex-appeal, primitive, go-getter, and high-brow on every possible occa- But to no avail; they insisted on calling me sane, Low-grade, but sane. “By the T suddenly remarked, as they prepared wearily for the next sion “WHAT'S JIMMY LION DOING WITH ALL TH 1 ANOTHER FALL FASHION TLESH-COLORED NECK PROTECTORS THE HEAVY PARKING DATE. FOR round, “as I understand it, you're doing all of this purely in the interests of truth and justice, aren't you? That is, you don't expect my lawyer or me to pay you for your time?” With one accord they stared at me— then rose grimly. !” they said. Gardner Rea. ie any revue you will find a lot of old jokes that are shaky on their pins and lot of young women that aren't. E LAUGHING Life Lines TH! old crack about Washingtor D. C., must now be revised to, “Las in war, last in peace, and first in th American League.” aL This doesn't seem to be the year wher men would rather be right than be President. aL America is a coffee-drinking nation says a visiting Briton. Well, you can’t expect strangers to recognize the stuf hy the taste. LL Secretary Hughes says we will not in terfere in South American politics. He'd better tell that to the marines. . LL Statistics show that Canadians are emi grating to the United States at the rat. of 200,000 do it to escape from th Americans at home. aL When “Ma” Ferguson takes office, w may expect to hear of the Governess of Texas. aL The Invisible Empire is becoming more invisible every day. see ea lle ctw HYENAS? “HE OPENS TO-NIGHT IN A NEW MUSICAL COMEDY, AND HE'S GOING TO PLANT THOSE BOYS IN THE AUDIENCE.” comicbooks.com