Life, 1927-05-12 · page 27 of 43
Life — May 12, 1927 — page 27: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains three satirical pieces mocking early 20th-century society: **"Justice in Gehenna"** (top left): Satan welcomes a "Writer of Ladies' Wear Advertisements" to Hell, sarcastically praising the absurd flowery language used in fashion advertising—mocking how copywriters use elaborate euphemisms ("steam," "tinsel influence," "silken poetry") to hide unflattering truths about clothing. **"At the Art Galleries"** (lower left): A brief joke about Picasso's popularity, suggesting people admire modern art without understanding it. **"Just Between Us Girls"** (right): A monologue by a young woman (Lloyd Mayer) satirizing how girls pretend to be athletic and outdoorsy to impress men, when they actually prefer sitting around. She highlights the performative nature of femininity—girls adopt false personas based on what they think men desire, rather than being authentic. The page collectively ridicules advertising fakery, pretentious art appreciation, and performative gender roles.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
1 L in Gehenna ATAN: I am sure you will be comfortable here, & Mr. Writer of Ladies’ Wear Advertisements, for you will find the atmosphere soft and shimmering, with a new note of distinction which is really fascinating in that miracle of chicness, the steam, slyly concealing plump lines and cleverly emphasizing the slim ones, and you cannot help noting the conces- sion to individualized taste in that necessary complement, the flame, with just enough of that desirable worldly look tempered by charming enhancement kL of the silhouette with emphasis on the tinsel influence. And these cinders! Are they not charm- ing with their gloriously fresh motif of conservative smartness governed by essential color cadences which breathe luxurious refinement? Silken poetry, I say. (dad so on throughout eternity.) Gerald Cosgrove. Ft the But Galleries E: Why are you so fond of Picasso? Sur: Picasso like nice things. dt “How, my dear Ambrosine, do you account for the well-nigh excessive length of girls’ necks in this day and age?” “It’s all attributable to the homely old economic principle, ma chér-—you know, the supply increasing in proportion to the demand.” Le SUST BETWEEN US GIRLE “S] Y dear, I'm all hot and BOTHered—I mean I could ACtually ROLL over and BUTter my- self with disMAY because I honestly think it does you NO good to sort of preTEND that you are an OUT- door GIRL type when you are just NORmal and would HEAPS rather sit AROUND and do NOTHing, do you know what I MEAN? I mean I think simply LOADS of girls will go to practicably ANY lengths to sort of give the imPRES- sion that they are athAletic and all when they are actually perfectly PUNK at games and things like that because they have the iDEA that M who are kind of VIRulent and everything simply aDORE a girl if she is athAletic and the OUT-door type and I mean simply OOdles of girls say they SIMply aDORE out-door SPORTS like SAILing and SWIMming and everything, but I mean they can _practicably NEVer go sailing without being SEAsick and their iDEA of SWIM- ming is to reCLINE on the BEACH in a snappy BAthing suit from PARis and FLIRT madly with everybody. But, ANYways, I AC- tually think the ONly way to do is to be NATural because I mean MEN will think all the MORE of YOU if you are not all the time pre- TENDing to be something you are NOT, because I think it is only a question of TIME when they find you OUT—I mean I ACtually DO!” Lloyd Mayer. Eup ext Advice NC" eenaN : Do you believe the business man should go into politics ? Pouitician: Certainly, provided he has plenty of mone; willing to spend it and goes in on my side. 25 comicbooks.com