Life, 1925-01-22 · page 12 of 36
Life — January 22, 1925 — page 12: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
The top cartoon shows a social gathering where someone asks "Do you suppose there is any way to get a drink in this place?" with the response "I don't know—have you tried asking for it?" This satirizes Prohibition-era (1920s-1930s) hypocrisy: the illegal concealment of alcohol in supposedly "dry" venues. The humor lies in the obvious pretense—everyone knows drinks are available under-the-table. The page also features "American Inventors' Series" on Jesse James (presented as a highway bandit who invented "garage traps"), and two joke sections titled "The Party Line" and "Deadly." These contain humorous anecdotes about everyday American life—gossip, family matters, and relationship absurdities. The content reflects typical Life magazine satire: poking fun at social conventions, modern inconveniences, and American cultural peculiarities of the era.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
oo fy “pO YOU SUPPOSE THERE IS ANY WAY TO GET A DRINK IN THIS PLACE?” The Party Line “I NOTICE how folks thet has a lot of ancestors to talk about is like to have no children to speak of. “Cy Moon brought Sarah a box of candy from th’ city an’ it seemed so queer-like of him she got it analyzed. It warn't poisoned, though, so she's thinkin’ of havin’ th’ doctor for Cy. “Mary Troy was braggin’ t’other day how her boy got A-A-A onto his school report, an’ I says to her, "You ought to be proud, between thet an’ your man gettin’ K-K-K onto his nightshirt.’ “A parcel of automobile folks stopped yesterday an’ bought my parlor rug fer forty dollars thet I got fer twenty-five at ‘The Modern Furniture Store’ a year ago. It looked older on account of th’ dawg sleepin’ on it. I was thinkin’ I'd go into th’ business if I knew th’ name onto it. “I'd ast you over onny they ain't nothin’ happened I can’t tell you over th’ phone.” James K. McGuinness. Deadly “E DON'T KNOW—HAVE YOU TRIED ASKING FOR IT?” E: I don't believe you really American Inventors’ Series Jesse J. Garage OT the least picturesque of the figures of the early West was Jesse James Garage, a gun-toting bandit out of the pages of fiction. He terrorized the highways during the late cighties, holding up rich and poor alike, until he was captured and hanged in 1891 Jesse J. Garage scorned the rough-riding habits of the ordinary highwayman, and carly discarded the conventional bandanna handkerchief and leather chaps for mechanic's cap and greasy overalls. His success instituted a series of atrocities that has persisted to the present day. Jesse’s methods were simple. Under the guise of good Samaritan he would erect a small shack at the side of the road, where weary travelers would halt for aid in their troubles. He was even known to fell large trees or spread broken glass or tacks in the road to attract patronage. When the victims were in the grip of this unscrupulous bandit he would attack them with a small blunt instrument like a monkey-wrench, later sending them on their way broken and penniless. Dens of this type are variously known to-day as “Garage- traps” or “Garages,” or even “Highway Filling Stations.” Corey Ford. You Never Know Your Luck ULU: How come yuh is always lookin’ fer a job an’ neber findin’ one? Mose: Dat’s skill, yoman. Skill! hate me! Sue: Don't you? Well, if I had one word still to solve in a crossword puzzle and you were the only person in the world who knew it, I wouldn't let you help me. HE most used expression in America—“Program com- ing in fine.” THE CROSSROAD PUZZLE comicbooks.com