Life, 1928-06-07 · page 12 of 54
Life — June 7, 1928 — page 12: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a satirical political advertisement for Will Rogers' fictional presidential campaign. The page mocks political conventions and campaign practices of the era. The central image shows a caricatured face (Rogers), labeled "Our Candidate: He Chews to Run"—a joke about Rogers' distinctive habit of chewing gum. The text claims the "Rogers Bunkless Party" will attract disaffected voters from both major parties. The satire targets typical campaign tactics: the page lists prominent supporters (Henry Ford, Babe Ruth, etc.) and claims the campaign won't buy votes or use "soft soap." It ridicules how political campaigns promise much while delivering little, suggesting Rogers—as an outsider humorist—offers an honest alternative to conventional politicians. The humor relies on readers' familiarity with Rogers as a public figure known for folksy commentary.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
10 for (or perhaps dident dare expect as much as) a cure, why I am the fellow that will give it to him. I not only will relieve him, but I AB- SOLUTELY WILL CURE HIM, OF BEING A” FARMER. I will make him so discouraged with life that he will have to open a Filling Station. There he can sit and watch the rest of the World go by. Now these are the only two questions that I am covering in my piclicnanary Lil FE platform, is Farm Relief, and Prohibi- tion, but they are the Major ones, with a possible addition of coming out strongly against “Cold Storage Chicken at Ban- quets” that will be our keynote plank. These in addition to our one and only Slogan, “ELECT ROGERS AND HE WILL RESIGN.” Which is the greatest Campaign promise ever made. In Europe Public men DO resign. But here it’s a lost Art. You have to Impeach ‘em. NOTICE In accordance with Will Rogers’ original campaign promise, his platform will be so wide that “William Howard Taft could stroll with Marie Dressler and Sophie Tucker on either judicial wing, and not take undue precaution of step. ping off.” More planks will be an. nounced on this page in future issues, All those who are anxious to support the Will Rogers Bunkless Party are invited to contribute pet planks of their own, THE ROGERS CAMPAIGN IS GOING STRONG All We Need Now Is a Few Voters AuMost every political boom turns out to be a dull, sickening thud. But not this one. From now on, the Will Rogers Bunk- less Party is sure to attract hordes of converts. As soon as the Republican and Democratic Conventions are over, all those who weren't nominated at either function will come out strong for Our Candidate. We won't mention any names—but our private spies in Kansas City report that there are several thousand 100°, Re- publicans there who are planning to jump the party if Hoover is nominated, and several thousand more who will walk out if Hoover isn’t nominated. The same con- ditions will obtain in Houston two weeks from now. After every political convention, the number of people who are dissatisfied with the nomination far exceeds those who feel that an ideal choice has been made. So the prospects look pretty sweet for Our Candidate. The Rogers Party is a Home for Dissatisfied Voters, of which there is always a healthy majority. What- ever pens at Kansas City and Hous- ton, we're bound to win. As we have announced before, there will be no bunk in the Rogers Campaign. No cigars will be passed around; no babies will be kissed; no salve or soft soap will be handed out, even to those who ask for it. Furthermore, we can’t afford to buy any Votes. Mr. Rogers himself stated, in his Speech of Acceptance, “Our support will have to come from those who want 3 Our Candidate He Chews to Run NOTHING, and have the assurance of getting it.” Those who want to join the party with that explicit understanding are invited to do so. Among those who have already in- dorsed Our Candidate are the following: Henry Ford, Judge Ben B. Lindsey, Gen. William Mitchell, Harold Lloyd, Nicholas Murray Butler, Babe Ruth, Roy W. Howard, Ring Lardner, William Allen White, Tex Rickard, Rev. Francis J. Duffy, Clare Briggs, Charles Dana Gibson, Glenn H. Curtiss and Grantland Rice. We want voters, but they must be amateurs. Some ugly rumors have been going the rounds regarding the why and wherefore of the Will Rogers Bunkless Party. We have been advised of a whispering cam- paign against Our Candidate, the sources of which are not hard to trace. For one thing, it has been reported that the Rogers-for-President Boom is subde propaganda, designed to promote the po- itical ambitions of Alfred E. Smith. Other reports have it that the Rogers- for-President Boom is subtle propaganda, designed to cheat Alfred E. Smith out of the nomination, We have even received a wire from Mrs. George S. Clinton, of Oakland, Cali- fornia, as follows: “DON’T MAKE ROGERS CAMPAIGN FACETIOUS GET DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL NOMINATION AWAY FROM AL SMITH.” It is claimed by some that Will Rogers must be a Democrat, because he once made a speech at a Jackson Day dinner. Others state definitely that he must be a Republican, because he has written pieces for the Saturday Evening Post. “There- fore,” argue our enemies, “if Will Rogers belongs to one party or the other, he can’t be running honestly on an Anti-Bunk platform.” All this is slanderous and untrue, but it is certainly encouraging. It proves that Our Candidate has begun to terrorize his opponents and that they are determined to discredit him, by fair means or (prefer- ably) foul. bee pr by thee ting 31 syelun ssssshif boun-d shunz! ny-trat spurte abbuv a mut uss rol milly-tu orijy-t shunz, weeeun erry-ku We ha beeen / peepulz ulllowe: diffyrur Fast Be comicbooks.com