Life — February 25, 1926 — page 35: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This is a car advertisement, not political satire. It features Mrs. Oliver Harriman, a New York society leader, endorsing the Willys-Knight Great Six automobile. The ad uses her social status as a testimonial—implying that if a wealthy, taste-conscious society woman approves of the car's quiet operation and refined appointments, it must be desirable. The humor is subtle: the ad gently mocks wealthy elites by suggesting their primary concerns are discretion ("wonderfully quiet") and decorative "appointments" rather than performance. For modern readers, it demonstrates early 20th-century advertising's reliance on celebrity endorsements and the assumption that aspirational consumers would trust the opinions of the wealthy and fashionable.