Life, 1925-12-17 · page 15 of 40
Life — December 17, 1925 — page 15: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains three satirical pieces targeting upper-class excess and pretension circa early 1900s: **"Poor Madame"** mocks wealthy women's obsession with French cosmetics and beauty treatments. The author suggests these products are expensive, ineffective luxuries that promise impossible results. **"Gentlemen Friends"** is a brief, cynical poem about male courtship—suggesting men propose primarily for financial gain rather than genuine affection. **"Extravagance"** satirizes wealthy women's wasteful spending habits: perfumed baths, taxis, expensive lunches, French lingerie, and silk stockings—frivolous luxuries while ignoring serious obligations like rent payments. **"Father Got Just What He Wanted"** (cartoon) shows a man delighted after his wife spends their money, implying marital financial conflict. **"In Florida—Now"** presents family discord over wealth-sharing and Christmas expectations. The page's recurring theme: mocking the idle rich's conspicuous consumption and moral emptiness.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
“SURE, CAROLINE! That's TH’ Toys Pour Madame [ROM our own Salon de Beauté in Newark, chére madame, our staff of iste-compounders have evolved. the er cri in a préparation de toilette a miracle veritable, Sparvarnish Finish it is called, madame, a liquid cheek and lip rouge which imparts a len, wanton touch of heathery h to the most jaded pan. All the slow of roguish winds and sunlit moors has been captured in Sparvarnish Fin- ish. The art of this addition to the toilet table, madame, lies in its ability to conform to the different expressions of milady’s face. You may smile, or even laugh heartily, without that fear which every woman knows, the fear of cracking. Rain cannot affect it, nor will it run under the soleil of Palm Beach or the Riviera. Hit it with a hammer or allow your charming bébé to pour scalding water on it. Put hot dishes on it if you like—there will be no white ring afterward. Like the fin- ish on your Hispano-Suiza town car, madame, it only needs, after a hard night, the application of a soft cloth to restore its éblouissance. In quart cans at paint shops of the better sort, $50.00 the can, Rollin Kirby. NSIBLE GURL! TH’ MORNIN’ AFTER CHRISTMAS. Gentlemen Friends . HO'S that waiting for you, Myrtle? FI Theatre Seats.” MAN supposes he propo: Your Candy-and- ers or your Dinner?” Naw, that's just my Transportation. aking me downtown to meet my SCS, FATHER GOT JUST WHAT HE WANTED, You WON'T BE CRYIN’ YER EYES OUT OVER A LOT 0’ BROKEN Will yer?” Extravagance I love to do mad, extravagant things. eee LOVE to loaf in a perfumed bath, when T am already half an hour late for the office. I love to take a taxi for a distance that any person in his right senses would walk. I love to lunch at Pierre's when Childs’ would do me as much good. I love to wear handmade French un- derwear, although no one knows the difference. I love to wear all-silk hose when lisle tops would do as well. I love to buy Tabac Blond when I should be paying my rent. eee I love to do mad, extravagant things, But I never get the chance! Martha L. Wilchinski. In Florida—Now OTHER: Willie, you ought to be ashamed for not sharing your new water-front lot with your little sister. If you don’t act better Santa won't bring you that acreage in Vista Her- mosa for Christmas. comicbooks.com