Life, 1924-11-20 · page 8 of 40
Life — November 20, 1924 — page 8: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains three distinct humor pieces satirizing early 20th-century American life: 1. **Top cartoon**: A gate guardian questions a visitor about an appointment with "Mr. Sponduick," satirizing the pretentious gatekeeping of wealthy households. 2. **Main article** "How to Be a Success in Your Own Home Town": The author boasts about visiting New York and various cities, ironically claiming superiority while acknowledging his small hometown's mundane qualities (17,561 citizens). The satire mocks provincial pride and self-deception about local importance. 3. **Bottom cartoon**: A man's car has a cat hiding underneath; the joke plays on the absurdity of the situation and the man's obliviousness. The **"Maddening"** and **"Minister"** jokes at bottom are brief quips about asylums and family life, typical of the magazine's quick-hit humor format.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
‘ LIFE * a E> MR. SPONDULICK IS IN CONFERENCE. Youthful Salesman: Not FOR THIS EVENING, MISS. HAVE YOU AN APPOINTMENT? HAVE you? How to Be a Success in Your Own Home Town , friends, I visited New York, but I want to tell you that our new sewer system has that town pushed off the map.” (Keys of the Home Town are presented to the speaker by admiring fellow citizens.) “And as for Philadelphia—I just wished I could bring ‘em all here and show ‘em our Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Monument.” (Delega- tion of enchanted women places wreath of applesauce leaves on speaker's fevered brow.) “Chicago's all right. of course, but for real business ability and hustle our town's got it all over Chicago and then some.” (Chorus of school-children garbed in white, sings “Hail to the Chief.”) “Of course, I looked in on Cleveland and Cincinnati but Pup: THERE'S A CAT IN HERE SOMEWHERE; I CAN HEAR IT PURR! I stayed at the hotel thinking about our fine new garbaxc disposal plant and getting more kick out of reading t! home papers than trailing around those towns.” (Ex citable maiden lady of uncertain age rushes up and plants a lingering smack upon speaker's weather-rough«! cheek.) “Louisville's got some fast horses but I'd put uj lags against ‘em any day in the week, includir (Delegations from the Kiwanis, Rotary aml Clubs advance, give the countersign and present t speaker with a fur-lined drinking cup.) “I hit a lot « other places on my trip but I couldn't do much for 'em some of the places, like Boston and Detroit, may be little bigger in population, although I’m not so sure er don’t lie, but what we lack in size we make up in t! quality of our 17,561 citizens, I'll tell the world.” (May« declares a half-holiday, while the newly formed municips! band breaks out into the national anthem or a hymn or something and bosses of both parties unanimously decid upon the speaker as their next nominee for Congress.) Frank H. Williams Maddening INISTER: In visiting the lunatic asylums, are y« allowed to take the patients little presents? Missionary: Oh, yes; everything except crosswor! puzzles. THE real movie hero is the man that goes every night with his wife and children. comicbooks.com