Life, 1928-03-22 · page 6 of 34
Life — March 22, 1928 — page 6: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page from *Life* magazine contains several humorous pieces satirizing early 20th-century social behavior and attitudes. The main cartoon depicts two men encountering a massive tree, with the caption joking that it will produce "toothpicks" rather than "happy homes"—satirizing optimistic but impractical social planning. "A Day with a Bathing Girl" mocks the vanity and routine of fashionable young women at beaches, chronicling her constant primping, sunburn remedies, and leisure reading of romantic fiction. "Some Interesting Facial Expressions" catalogs various social embarrassments—church etiquette failures, musicians' mishaps, and class anxieties—aimed at genteel readers. The bottom cartoon gently satirizes police interactions and the excuses offered for minor infractions. Overall, the page satirizes early 20th-century middle and upper-class social pretension, vanity, and the gap between aspiration and reality.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Bystanver: Ah, I suppose that lordly tree will make Woovsman: Nope. many happy homes? Toothpicks. Some Interesting Facial Expressions for Youthful Rembrandts to Shoot At XPRESSION of portly business man trying to enter large public dining-room and not keep step with very limber blues of orchestra. Expression of lady in church pew which has been supported for three generations of her family when stranger is ushered into it by thoughtless deacon. Expression of gentleman over forty-five who has just been in- cluded in a classification as “I tell you, when fellows have reached the age of you and me—” Expression of driver who has stopped suddenly, only to hear traffic cop’s “Go ahead; I don’t mean you. I'm after the fellow behind you.” Expression of golfer who has just made a hole in one trying to achieve modest look of Lindbergh. Expression of lady who has just i told by her husband, “What of i upon reporting that Junior has just said “Damn” for the first time. Expression of person with faulty ear for music who has stood up in an audience, mistaking “My Country, ‘Tis of Thee” for “The Star- Spangled Banner.” Harry Irving Shumway. It Often Happens HAT on earth drove Simpson to try the simple life?” “Oh, some sort of a complex.” A Day with a Bathing Gir A. M.—Gets up. Puts on lipstick. Puts on sun- burn remedy. Puts on bathing suit, 9 a, M.—Walks down to the beach, buying a hot dog for breakfast op the way. Lies down on sand. Powders nose, 10. a. M.—Sits up in sand. Pow. Says, ders nose. Puts on lipstick. “Gosh, the sun's hot!” 11 a. m.—Lies on stomach in sand, Reads a book entitled, “Love Secrets of a French Vamp.” 12 m.—Buys hot dog for dinner, Says, “Gosh, the sun's hot!” 1 p. m—Lies on back in sand Reads “Love Secrets of a French Vamp.” M.—Powders nose. Puts on rouge. Gets up and goes down to water, sticks one foot in and imme diately comes back again. 3-4 s on side in sand. Reads crets of a French Vamp. ‘osh, the sun's hot!” 5 p. M.—Goes home, buying hot dog for supper on the way. Takes off bathing suit. Powders nose. Pats on rouge. Puts on lipstick. Puts oo sunburn remedy. Vincent Clark Odell. WISE man is one who goes slow about making another prediction after his first one has come true. Tue Potice Are Funny Tat Way “Why didn’t you try to keep out of jail?” “I did, ma'am. And I got two months extra for resisting an officer.” Cor ator nin shot wat her She to 1 thin tect! the “Th Don this ever rain comicbooks.com