Life — June 3, 1926 — page 10: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Concerning Simon This satirical cartoon strip mocks Junior Simon Power, a student at Gadget University who returns home from school. The humor centers on his father Poppa's exasperation with Junior's behavior and academic struggles. The narrative shows Junior writing home claiming his "angel baby" is "hoofing off the track" (likely slang for misbehavior), while Poppa suspects he's lying. When Junior returns with a cartload of books on "How To Think For Others," Poppa becomes infuriated, accusing him of wasting money on "super-sanctimonious" self-help literature rather than practical education. The joke satirizes both pretentious academic pursuits and the generational conflict between a practical, hard-working father and an allegedly self-deluded son wasting family resources on dubious educational materials.