Life, 1926-12-30 · page 14 of 37
Life — December 30, 1926 — page 14: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
**"The Gay Nineties" cartoon** depicts two men examining a "dicky shirt"—a false shirt front that created the appearance of formal dress without requiring a full garment. The text explains this was a clever 1890s fashion hack: cuffs fastened inside the coat sleeve gave the illusion of a complete outfit while reducing laundry needs. This is satirizing the period's fashion pretensions and the gap between appearance and reality. **"The Female Acrobat" section** appears to be a humorous piece set in Oshkosh about a female acrobat's performance. The dialogue suggests she's struggling during her act ("Allez Oop!"), with audience members commenting on her difficulty staying awake and her poor balance. The accompanying joke about wives doing housework provides social commentary on gender roles of the era.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
The Gay Nineties AN INTIMATE GLIMP: TO A BOUDOIR OF THE COZY NINETIES SHOWING, AMONG SEV- ERAL OTHER THINGS, AN UP-TO-THE-MINUTE GENTLE: RIOD KNOWN AS THE DICKY SIRT. THIS ING Ee K, WE MIGIIT SAY, WITH THE READY-TIED BAT-W TOGETHER IN THE BACK. AND THESE TWO, PL COAT SLEEVE, NECK-AND-N 3 TIE WHICH SNS S CUFFS THAT FASTENED INSIDE MADE SARTORIAL SMARTNESS IN THOSE DAYS A VERY PROVIDED, OF COURSE, YOU KEPT YOUR COAT ON. The Female Acrobat “Allez Oop!” 1 dead out there? THE MPLE MATTER— here we are in Oshkosh Same old punk dressing little noise out there. “Allez Oop!” Al. That got to ‘em. this performance. Say, are th same old tough spot on the bill, same old audience sitting on their hands. “‘Hoop-la!” Can you beat it? Not a bit of applause and that stunt alw: went big in this house before. Gee, I'm glad Joe and Al do all the work and I don’t have to do nothing but pose. I won't even bother to turn any cartwheels ok at that trying to mal the come-on Anything to keep awake while the ap in the third row me. Shall I give him Sure, might as well. s do their last balance. Al's do- his one-arm stand now. My cue an over and look scared. Golly, I almost yawned then. Well, it’s about time they unfroze and made a Nice work, “Hoop-la!” It'll feel good to sit down and quit grinning. Oh, well, Sioux Falls next week. “Ring it down, Benny.” Robert Lord. “ OE'S your wife care for house- work?” She likes to do nothing better.” comicbooks.com