Life, 1928-10-26 · page 2 of 40
Life — October 26, 1928 — page 2: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is **not a political cartoon but a Stutz automobile advertisement** from Life magazine's heyday as a humor and lifestyle publication. The ad argues that Stutz cars represent "modernism" by meeting contemporary conditions (crowded highways, modern engineering demands) rather than outdated designs. The ornate decorative frame ironically contrasts classical, old-fashioned styling with the car's modern features—a visual joke about modernism itself. Key selling points emphasized: low weight equals safety, beauty, comfort, and speed. The ad targets affluent readers by positioning Stutz as the intelligent choice for drivers navigating 1920s America's changing infrastructure and traffic conditions. The page demonstrates how Life blended satirical humor with high-end advertising to wealthy audiences.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
MODERNISM! THIS NEWEST CAR MEETS THE CONDITIONS OF TODAY—RATHER THAN THOSE OF TEN YEARS AGO Even the byways are crowded now. Twenty-five million cars travel American highways. Conditions have changed. But the old principles of motor car con- struction are still largely adhered to by the ponderous organizations of giant outputs, too unwieldly to keep pace with the real advancements of modern engineering. The low swung weight of the new Stutz series means supreme safety—and very much more. By getting the mass of weight near the ground, yet with standard road clear- ance, we have made possible a car of skimming, secure speed, with low sweep- ing lines, and supreme comfort that comes from the minimizing of all side- play, dip and chuck. Low-weight means safety—beauty—com- fort—speed—to meet modern conditions. Particularly you will want to see how these factors have been applied to our newest and improved models—now on display at all Stutz salesrooms. THE LOW-WEIGHTED STUTZ EDI SG lM oT, MEANS SAFETY-+-BEAUTY+COMFORT- SPEED Sew} comicbooks.com