Life, 1928-08-23 · page 25 of 36
Life — August 23, 1928 — page 25: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains several satirical pieces from the 1928 U.S. presidential campaign: **"Herb and Al"** depicts a conversation between Herbert Hoover and Al Smith, the Republican and Democratic candidates. The satire mocks their disingenuous claims of running a "clean, mudless campaign" while blaming surrogates (Jim Reed and William Allen White) for negative attacks. The joke is their transparent hypocrisy—both deny responsibility for their supporters' attacks while admitting they agree on everything, making their competition absurdly artificial. **Other items** include: - A "Correction" poem satirizing the stereotype that Americans care only about money while Chinese scholars pursue learning—inverting it to mock the original prejudice - A joke about grandmothers smoking (social commentary on changing norms) - Reversible and Siren Stuff sections offering brief satirical one-liners on billboards destroying forests and infidelity The page exemplifies *Life* magazine's tradition of sharp political and social commentary through humor.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
LIFE Juxxs: My wife played bridge last night. Binks: Sorry, old man, I haven't got a cent. prejudice in this and all other matters, and to confess that my judgment is warped and therefore unreliable in the case of Colleen Moore. But there is one thing I shall never admit—viz., that a machine gun can ever be funny. R. E. Sherwood. Recent Developments, a confidential guide to current moving pictures, will be found on page 26. Correction Americans, I've heard it said, Think only of the dollars; While Chinamen go in, instead, For being weighty scholars. This fallacy is too immense! Te isn’t even funny. Americans have all the cents, And Chinks the yen for money. Carroll Carroll. Herb and Al Hoover: Congratulations, Al. I thought for a while I wasn’t going to have such a worthy opponent against me. SmitH: Same to you, Herb. I don’t know of anybody I'd rather be up against than yourself, We'll have a clean, mudless campaign. loover: We certainly will! But, by the way, Al, I can’t help wishing you'd put a muzzle on this man Reed. He's always calling me Sir 'Erbert ’Oover. SmitH: Now listen, Herb—I'm not responsible for what Jim Reed says. In fact, I regret that he is taking the cam- paign down off a high plane. And while I think of it, what about this guy William Allen White? He's changed ‘his mind enough times to be a woman, and he GranpMotHer: And what are you thinking about now, my dear? Geanvoaucnter: I was just wondering—how long it’s been—since grandmothers were allowed—to smoke. “Oh, Henry! I don't think I wanna go down!” doesn’t believe in forgetting the past either! He'll bear watching. Hoover: White's statements are abso- lutely unofficial, Al. If he wants to get nasty, I can’t stop him. We can’t always control what your supporters say—you know that, Al. Situ: Sure, Herb, It’s all right with me as long as you and I don’t get into any arguments. Hoover: An argument between us two? Why, that would be impossible. You and I agree on everything. don’t we? Situ: We certainly do. In fact, Herb, I thought for a while you were going to be a Democrat. Hoover: No, Al—I decided I'd rather be President. Hugh Layne. REVERSIBLE “Bur don’t these billboards you're utting up obscure the view of the forest?" “They would, but you sce, we're cut- ting down the forests to make more bill- boards.” SIREN STUFF Mrs. Brown: So your husband was lost at sea? Mrs. Green: Yes, a bathing beauty got him. comicbooks.com