Life, 1926-09-23 · page 12 of 40
Life — September 23, 1926 — page 12: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a satirical biographical sketch of "William Smith," a bank accountant whose name and coat of arms suggest he's meant as an everyman character. The humor derives from Smith's comical inadequacy: he's the "frailest of the bunch" he ankled with, lacks social standing despite wide acquaintance, and fails to attract women. The satire mocks Smith's attempts at self-improvement—he pursues bodybuilding (Indian clubs, dumbbells), reads about becoming a "He-Man," and seeks to impress society. Yet he remains unsuccessful and unmemorable to women, who can't even recognize him afterward. The cartoon ridicules masculine insecurity and the era's commercialized self-help culture promising transformation through purchased apparatus and lifestyle changes—a timeless satirical target.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
10 ABOUT W_ItLtetTtAM S M ITH a bank ac- countant and his name was William Smith. His —_ frame it was the frailest of the bunch he ankled with. S Our hero, mr. smith, affections ly referred to as old smith once, This worried honest Wil- liam, who deplored his lack of heft, for when William shed his raiment there was very little left. rar. smith's raiment, after shedding and before hangin; Now William’s one ambi- tion was to be a ladies’ man but he knew his sketchy chas- sis was a hindrance to his plan. william’s grandfather, at a certain age. In spite of wide acquain- tance, social rank and class enough, ladies didn't fall for William—William didn't have the stuff. His heart was heavy in him and his soul was all but sunk, when he found an ad- vertisement by the great Pro- fessor Buna; folks, meet professor bung! “Do you want to be a HE: MAN? Eat raw meat? And bust hoss-shoes? Want to fascinate the women?” Wil- liam fairly gulped the news. h heco’s rapt expres~) json immediately afver x gulping as per 5 He bought the apparatus and he bought the books and charts; he lived the rules consistently and not by fits and starts; mr. smith waiting in vain for Social butterflies to fall for him. mister smith rassling with another dumbell. see our text.! he rassled with the Indian clubs, the dumb-bells and the weights, till he felt his chest expanding and he dreamt of heavy dates. We hand it to Professor, he made good with William Smith—absolutely made him over, alienating William's kith, To the aftersaid contingent Smith was just the same as dead, with this overgrown behemoth masquerading in his stead. perfectly fascinating society thing] failing to toss a fit’over our | hero's rebuilt chassis. __ His energy prodigious couldn't stand the bankin ruck, so, consistent with his powers, Willizm navi- gates a truck. our hero despond: He is a Super-He-Man but he wears a clouded brow for the ladies that he coveted won't recognize him now. Erce'me or U2! something”. or I'll | SF) bust ya 22 one!” # smith nagging a swank party to get | silly over nis but suck is Rot ‘ie comicbooks.com