Life, 1927-10-13 · page 26 of 44
Life — October 13, 1927 — page 26: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page presents Life's humor contest where readers submit clever excuses ("alibis") for domestic failures. The winning entries mock married life and broken promises. **Alibi #39** (top): A husband excuses his failure to provide a luxurious life by claiming he and his wife only wanted each other—a romantic deflation of his earlier courtship promises. The joke satirizes how marriage transforms idealistic vows into modest reality. **Alibi #44** (bottom): A domestic servant named Mandy must explain why her biscuits are so hard the employer's husband broke his teeth. The cartoon depicts a common early-20th-century household scenario where servants bore blame for domestic mishaps. Both entries use humor to critique post-marriage disillusionment and the class dynamics of domestic service. The contest itself was interactive entertainment—readers submitted their own witty excuses for everyday failures, reflecting this era's fascination with clever wordplay and domestic comedy.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
24 PRIZE WINNERS ALIBI NUMBER THIRTY-NINE The Mrs.: "MEMBER WHAT you SAID BEFORE I MARRIED You? po yot CALL THIS LIVING LIKE A QUEEN AND WEARING DIAMONDS? The Mr.: WELL, HONEY, You SEE, rr’s tis way. .All we wanted in life was each other—and that's just what we've got. This Alibi, which wins the first prize of $50.00, was submitted by H. M. Carowett, Carondelet Street, New Orleans, Louisiana Five second prizes of 210.00 each have been awarded to the following: J. J. Feericx, Brooklyn, York; Braine C. Biorer, § Hill, Pennsylvania; Harry Brooklyn, New York, for va of the Alibi: “Those were only cam- paign promises.” Mas. Joun R. Browas, Belton, Texas, for the Alibi: “You said, ‘Oh, sweetheart, that’s too good to be and I took you at your word.” Epwarp O. Jackson, Clinton, Missouri, for the Alibi: “When I produced that popular fiction I didn't think it would be such a good seller.” The Ace of Aces (to friend outside the den): They tell me that some movie magnate is going to put this act on an airplane and make a non-stop flight from California to New York with us. ALIBI CONTEST Conditions of the Contest on page 40 $100.00 Weekly in Prizes THis week's Alibi-needing situa- tion concerns Mandy, the perfect treasure of a cook that the good housewife thought would solve all the food problems for many months to come. But it seems that Mandy has fallen down on the job. She has baked such a batch of biscuits as would disgrace even a newly-wed bride, and the housewife is disap- pointed. In righteous anger she has invaded the kitchen, and Mandy is called upon to explain her failure. What can she say? If you can help her to finish her explanation in twenty-five words or less you will be eligible to win one of the excit- ing prizes, which are as follows: First Prize, $50.00 Five Second Prizes of $10.00 each ALIBI NUMBER FORTY- FIVE will be published in) Lire next week, with a new set of prizes offered. Read the conditions on page 40 carefully—and go to it! ALIBI NUMBER FORTY-FOUR | Lady of the House: MANvyY, YoU TOLD ME YOU WERE AN ALL- CED COOK, BUT TO-DAY THE BISCUITS ARE sO "ROUND EXPERIED HARD MY HUSBAND BROKE HIS HAPPE Mandy: WELL, MA’AM, YUH SEE, IT WAS DIS WAY... H ON THEM. HOW DID IT ee comicbooks.com