Life, 1927-01-27 · page 23 of 35
Life — January 27, 1927 — page 23: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains satirical commentary on 1920s American society: **"Don't Tell Me!"** - A humorous piece where a reader claims indifference to major contemporary issues (Volstead Act/Prohibition, Mussolini, Army-Navy games, Senator Smith) while passionately insisting he knows nothing about baseball—then immediately contradicting himself with detailed memories of the 1919 Black Sox scandal, a major sports corruption event. **"Long Live Inspiration"** - Mocks a man who earned money by submitting "embarrassing moment" anecdotes to tabloid papers, then spent it on an etiquette book. The joke: he's now considering adopting a baby to manufacture more "childish sayings" for profit. **"Just Between Us Girls"** - A wealthy woman's breathless monologue about charity visits to poor tenement districts. The satire targets her performative charity, condescension toward the poor, and inability to actually help while maintaining social distance. **"100% Proof"** - A brief joke implying the father couldn't afford college, so claimed he was "sending" his son (likely to work, not school). All pieces satirize American attitudes about wealth, class, and pretense.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Life Don’t Tell Me! DON'T know what's wrong with Volstead or the night clubs or Mussolini. I don't care whether the next Army-Navy game is played in Oslo, Norway, or Omaha, Nebraska. I don’t care a hoot if Senator Smith of Illinois is Mr. Smith or Hon. Smith from now on. I know nothing about foreign entanglements, poison liquor, French debts or the next man Tunney will fight. y, don’t tell auything about Il, Mister. Es- pecially if it concerns Ray Schalk, or this g, or the so- Black Sox. I was right there, on Labor Day, in 1919— a double-header — yes, sir. My brother ran a hot-dog concession, at the left end of the south bleachers, and, say heard the bat boys ing their in- side dope, and—well, don't tell, me about baseball. That's all! James A. Sanaker. called THE PRISONER’S SONG Long Live Inspiration N the course of six months Mr. La able to get six accounts of various published in the tabloid papers in the conducted by the tor of the “Embs department, At one dollar an “Em- barrassing Moment,” Mr. Casey accumulated — the sum of six dollars, with which he purchased a copy of “How to Act Like a Well-Bred Per- son,” by the Earl of Wabble. During rrne Casey was ors of his a y contests” rassing Moments” the next six months Mr, Casey eagerly read his book and did not commit a single breach of etiquette which would have furnished material for an Momen Be in need of an occasional extra dollar or two, Mr. Ca is think- ing of adopting a baby on the assumption that a good | [thy infant should utter at least one hundred “Childish Say- ings” between the ages of two and four. E. T. Conroy. “WAS THE GIRL YOU’RE GOING TO MARRY EVER BEEN MARRIED BE “you WOULDN'T KNOW ANY oF THEM.” WOE be visiting comMITtee of the Ju estly, my dear, it’s the MOST ever KNOWN because I mean you have to VISit all these TENement house D1Strict effects and sort of SE how these simply AWful POOR people LIVE and everything because I mean it HELPS them if you sort of SEE how they LIVE, I mean, because I mean it en- COURages them or something when you make these VISits, do you know what I M ? But I mean it is ACtually a FOUL exPErience to VISit all these simply VILE places, my dear, because I mean it kind of dePR 3 {Tfully just to SEE all that MIS 1 "t REALLY DO hing aBOUTit,I mean, be Kand are se I mean I've been on this PO ior LEAC d no bringing UP hing, do you know can you poor things TRACtive because I mean they have HONest- ly not had any adVA) tages because I mean practically them cannot even SPEAK the English LANGuage dear! OF E I never ACtually see them PERsonally—I have the 2UR sort of go N and ASK how they ARE!" Lloyd Mayer. 100% Proof “ HAT makes you so certain you can't afford to send your son to college “I'm sending him.” comicbooks.com