Life, 1927-07-14 · page 30 of 40
Life — July 14, 1927 — page 30: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page collects short humorous pieces satirizing contemporary foibles. Key items: **"The Spirit of St. Nicholas Avenue"**: Mocks public ignorance about Lindbergh's transatlantic flight (likely 1927), where spectators mispronounce "Lindbergh" as "Linboig," and one defends the error pedantically. **"A Terrible Weapon"**: A poem satirizing radio/wireless terminology ("cathode," "megohm," "heterodyne oscillation") being weaponized as insults—mocking how modern jargon creates the *appearance* of sophisticated abuse while remaining meaningless. The victim remains unharmed because the words are absurd. **"Rural Sports of the Future"**: Predicts aviation tourism will replace traditional countryside activities—an early satire of how technology transforms leisure. The cartoons and shorter quips (from international papers credited) all target contemporary absurdities: technological change, linguistic pretension, social hypocrisy. This was Life's standard format: lightweight, accessible social commentary aimed at educated urban readers.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Life e “fy ° Our Foolishs$pizContemporaries Fiction and Fact Fits,” in Mlustrated Sporting and Dramatic News (London). Crowds and the Open Road Fiust ying stream of mo= Makes yer feel ain't workin’ Trane (sure foristo): 1" Midays common when nobody London Opinion Traaxors paper another ear the officers found a jud attaining hooch.” n Trans The Lions WAVE WHAT A SHAME THAT WE D ASSOCIATE WITH meUTES! —Buen Humor (Madrid) The Spirit of St. Nicholas Avenue Ir was early the morning at Mitchel Field." The of St. Louis was making a few silver circles before its tant “It's spectators. other Spirit descent Linboig!” shouted one of the “Not Linboig, Lindbergh,” corrected a near-by pedant “Well,” said the “he’s flying Linboig New York Evening Post. spectator, Buddhistic Effect the third floor the 1 Ir does rather take your breath away, doesn’t it?—Cambridge Granta: “You and Thompson don't seem to be so friendly as you were, Does he owe you any mone “No; he wants te Tit-Bite. A Terrible Weapon (Embodying brand-new pos in the art of abuse, as suggested by a re port of police e t proceedings in which defendant was threatening language to a neighbor, in- said to hace used ing the declaration that he was “a red-headed, oscillating ”) I rnorent I had showed him my hate if eve that effect— I had labeled him coward and caitiff In terms of extren Mere words could ach disrespect ; From booby to bottle-nosed buffer, I used every phrase that would fit But it seemed that the wretch didn't suffer The least little bit My temper was up and in tireless Invective I rose to the In words I had learnt fr I started all over again. Grown even more brutal and brisker, The torrent gained volume and pace; “You cat's strain— m the wireless You common n his face: “You asinine amplification! You static transformer and scamp! You heterodyne oscillation! pu arrant and ignorant amp! Tl shout out your sins till shunned ‘em. megohm !" blushed.) cathode t dum!" He slunk away crushed. “Lucio,” in The you've You (He and wavered “You You mere carborun- Manchester Guardian. Rural Sports of the Future said the old fel- now we all used “Do you remember, low of the year 1960, to go down to the landing field of an eve- o watch the transatlantic airplanes “—Detroit News Wues better records are body will break them. made, some- Post-Dispa' “HM—A DANCE WHICH CONSISTS OF WRIGGLING THE nopyY WITILE YOU HOP ON ONE FOOT AND STICK Yous MovTH, 20 MIG IN TOWN POR PURLIC DANCING.” Le Monde Colonial (Paris). AND IN comicbooks.com