Life, 1926-12-16 · page 25 of 34
Life — December 16, 1926 — page 25: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is **not a cartoon or satire**—it's a straightforward luxury automobile advertisement from Life magazine's early era. The page promotes Cadillac's "New 90 Degree" models, emphasizing their superiority over competitors and even previous Cadillac models. The key selling points are: 1. **Customization**: 50 body styles and 500 color/upholstery combinations offered "individualization of the motor car"—a novel luxury concept for the era. 2. **Market dominance**: The text claims Cadillac is "so far ahead" competitors can barely compete. 3. **Brand loyalty appeal**: Even longtime Cadillac owners will be "startled" by improvements. The photograph shows period automobiles parked under trees, presenting the car as a status symbol for the wealthy. This reflects 1920s-1930s advertising culture, when automobiles were luxury goods and Cadillac represented peak American automotive prestige. The emphasis on customization reflected emerging consumer culture and individualism.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
™ ever-increasing number of people are discovering that the new Cadillac sur- passes, in every phase of luxurious and de- pendable frsseporenssory, ai nything they had fo} ever known before, even in former Cadillacs. This ability to excel—to obtain results so superior as actually to startle even those who had been familiar with Cadillac over many years—has carried the Cadillac of CA. DECREE b | today so far ahead of its own fine field as almost to discourage emulation. The unbounded satisfaction which this new Cadillac brings its owners is still further heightened by the fact that, with 50 Body Styles and Types and 500 Color and Upholstery Combinations, Cadillac has practically achieved the individualization of the motor car. DIVISION OF CENERAL MOTORS comicbooks.com