Life, 1926-08-12 · page 15 of 36
Life — August 12, 1926 — page 15: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page from *Life* magazine satirizes literary commerce and author negotiations. The top illustration shows a farmwoman greeting two traveling salesmen, with text mocking summer boarders and rural hospitality. The main content—"What They Really Say"—contrasts polite euphemisms with crude negotiations between novelists and publishers. First Novelist claims to have rejected a lucrative offer to preserve artistic integrity, while Second Novelist openly acknowledges selling serial rights for money. The satire exposes the gap between authors' public claims of artistic purity and their actual mercenary motivations. The boxed quote about tipping barbers adds another layer of middle-class hypocrisy. The final section, "The Trouble," presents a brief comic exchange on proxy marriage, likely referencing contemporary marriage law debates. The satire targets author pretension and commercial dishonesty in publishing.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Mrs. Farmer (who takes summer boarders): WE HAVE A SPEAK-EASY IN THE WOODSHED AND A NIGHT CLUB IN THE BAR A WEEK. drawn apart from the crush ie successful novelists have at a tea and are talking ear- nestly, though quietly. A gushing lady remarks, “I'd love to hear what they are discussing; some abstruse literary problem, don’t you think?” Vinst Noveuist: He’s one tough buyer, Jones of Belser’s Weekly. Ten thousand, he offered me. Imag- ine. Ten thousand for the first serial rights to a high-grade novel. ‘> Novenist: He's a hard er, all right. t: I took him over pretty, though. “I’m not offering you a set of answers to a crossword puzzle contest,” I told hi “This is a novel. Fifteen thousand’s the price.” That's the way to talk to those sharpshooters, Seconp: I wish I had your ability to overcome sales resistance, but I have to leave all that to my agent. First: Jones asked for time to think it over. ‘Nothing doing,” I flashed. “Take it or leave it, right here and now. If you think you can WE WANT OUR NE AND THE HIRED GIRL TAK YORK GUESTS TO FEEL AT HOME. What They Really Say duplicate an article like this for fif- teen thousand, you're welcome to go into the open market and buy.” Seconp: That's telling him. First: I was right, too. He couldn’t touch anything like it at the price. Imagine. A novel that doesn’t marry the hero and heroine until they’ve lived together for fifteen chapters. If that’s not worth a thousand a chapter, what is? Seconp: A thousand a chapter is cheap, I'd say. NOW OU TELL ONE “AM heartily opposed to the tipping habit,” he said, as the barber was shav- ing under his chin. A BATH IN THE DINING-ROOM TWICE First: Well, that’s the argument that clinched the sale. When I fin- ished presenting that angle, Jones reached for his fountain pen and signed. Best day’s work I’ve done ear. Seconp: You've got a rest coming to you after that. Finst: Yes, but I won't get it. I've got to see a man to-morrow who might buy the movie rights. And there are second serial rights and the book rights still unplaced. That will mean plenty of selling before they're led, and delivered. suppose you'll have to ing again soon, too. Finst: Really, I don’t know when I'll get around to that. I'm kept so busy selling my stuff, I have hardly any time left for writing it. James Kevin McGuinness. The Trouble ILLIS: Do you approve of marriage by proxy? Gitus: Y if you could stay married that way. comicbooks.com