Life, 1925-10-22 · page 70 of 74
Life — October 22, 1925 — page 70: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is primarily **advertising disguised as editorial content** for *The Golden Book Magazine*, a 1920s literary digest. The pitch: *The Golden Book* claims to solve a real problem—that libraries contain vast amounts of mediocre material alongside rare masterpieces. The magazine promises to curate "the very best" stories, poems, and literary works from world literature, translated and beautifully printed, saving readers from tedious searching. The endorsements from figures like Charles E. Hughes and Irvin S. Cobb lend credibility. The offers ("best novelettes out of 10,000," etc.) suggest rigorous editorial standards. **The satire angle** (if any exists) is subtle: the ad's breathless tone and elaborate promises reflect 1920s consumer culture's tendency to market convenience and cultural refinement as purchasable commodities—the idea that good taste can be delivered monthly by subscription. The page also includes a "Recent Developments" section reviewing silent films, which was standard *Life* content of the era.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
The Best Stories Ever Written ‘“‘and Good Education Thrown In" Ha VE YOU discoverel The Golden Book Magazine? In the brief eight months of its career nearly a quarter of a million people have become devoted to it. Many were attracted by its dis- tinctive covers—and on closer ex- amination found the most distin- guished list of authors ever grouped together in any magazine anywhere. Many first read The Golden Book on the enthusiastic word of well-in- formed friends. Many were told about it—as a compliment to their good taste in reading—by discerning book and magazine dealers. A Success From The Start Every new issue is quickly snapped up at newsstands. The first sold at a premium of $1.00 and $2.00 a copy. And yet—every day there are well- informed persons who hear of The Golden Book for the first time, and who would not have allowed them- selves to miss a single issue had they known about it before. What is your taste in reading? Are you one of these well-informed people now hearing about The Golden Book for the first time? Have YOU Ever Done This? Have you ever spent an afternoon in a great library looking for something ex- ccedingly interesting to read? Of course THs new magazine idea makes it possi- ble for you to enjoy in a short period what it has taken others thou- sands of hours just to find! it’s there, but—how much dull, dry ma- terial must be waded through to earn the rich reward of a pure gold masterpiece! And how many of the rarest reading treats are hidden away, unavailable in any library! . Have you ever wondered which of the present-day authors are really worthy to be associated with the “Old M. Imagine having somebody whose judg- ment you can invariably depend upon, searching the libraries of all the world for you—public and private alike. Able to gain access to the best no matter where it is. Translating the real gems for you no matter what language or what age they originally appeared in, Finally laying the finished result of it all before you, beauti- fully bound, on rich book paper, printed in large clear type that is a pleasure to read. That is what The Golden Book is—a NEW KIND of story. magazine. Isn't} such an unusual magazine just the kind you have longed for, all these years, in vain? How You Can “Test” It For Yourself The Golden Book contains only the very best | that the “Masters of the Magic Word,"” past and present, have written in each language. To pace your mind with theirs is to acquire 7 Culture. delightfully y; “it will ad greatly in promoting ace 7 quointance with good literature,” Charles E. Hughes. i WA “For me,” 10ys Irvin S. Cobb, “The Golden Book fills a Perse Intro- satisfied need.” ductory Do you want to “try this re Offer markable new magazine for 5 monrus "J a short while? A tempo- / rary introductory price has’ been arranged, ‘to enable you to do this. Reviews Corp. Read the Introduc- , tory Coupon be- La AG low. 7 Rs Latroductory Pt $1.00 (instead of the regular price THE BEST NOVELETTES OUT OF 10,000 THE BEST SHORT STORIES OUT OF 100,000 BEST GEMS OF VERSE / OUT OF 1,000,000 /’cw.... of Bo, per. copy)'$3 Ou per year. 7 (Am enclosing $1 herewith.) Z Street... (Ut full year’ Recent Developments (The regular Silent Drama depart ment will be found on page 24.) The Tower of Lies. A beautiful production, by Victor Seastrom, of a story that doesn’t quite ring true. The Man on the Box. Acrobatic comedy, with Syd Chaplin, The Circle. If you saw Maugham’s great play, then for heaven's sake don't see this. It will break your heart. The Freshman. Harold Lloyd in some typical college humor. The Pony Express, Great charac- terizations, but an incoherent plot. The Merry Widow. Erich von Stroheim has the last laugh on those who scoffed at him as a pig-headed Hun. This is a fine picture. The Girl Who Wouldn't Work. Potentially an excellent picture, but actually rather weak. The Coming of Amos. Rod La Rocque involved in various weird com- plications on the Riviera. Siegfried. A German production of heroic stature. The Gold Rush. Great. Shore Leave. Richard Barthelmess is more engaging than ever. The Phantom of the Opera Strange goings-on backstage at the Paris Opera, with Lon Chaney. Sally of the Sawdust. D. W. Grif fith proves that the heroes of yester day are the dubs of to-day. The Unholv Three. The best crook story since “The Miracle Man.” Don Q. The best Douglas Fairbanks picture since “The Thief of Bagdad.” The Wanderer. Poetic and mov- ing parable. R. E. S. BOW LEGS? Quer Garter (pat’d) Makes Trousers Hang Straight If Lees Rend Un or Out Se Harness’ Moral Springs Free Rookiet—Piain Realed Envelone THE T. GARTER CO. Dest. 38 NEW LONDON, NEW HAM?. Going to Travel? Then by all means refer to the travel section of Harper's Magazine—Every month you will find many alluring sugges: tions and vivid pictures of America and faraway places including the announcements of 2 large number of Tourist Agencies, Railroads, Steamship Lines, Resorts and Hotels. Sailing Dates in Every Issue For the convenience of our readers we will publish each month the sailing dates for Europe and ot countries togetter with the dates of special tours cruises. Feel perfectly free to write us—Our Trarel Bureau will gbdly furnish any information desired. HARPER'S MAGAZINE 49 Eaet 33rd Street, New York, N. Y. comicbooks.com