Life — December 21, 1928 — page 23: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This is a single-panel cartoon from Life magazine's humor section (page 21). The joke depicts a woman at what appears to be a Pullman parlor car ticket window, requesting "two uppers, please"—referring to upper berths on a sleeper train car. The humor lies in a double entendre: "uppers" could refer to both train berths and stimulant drugs (slang for uppers/amphetamines). The cartoon plays on this ambiguity, suggesting the woman is innocently requesting train accommodations while the visual presentation allows readers to interpret her request as drug-related. The three "Pullman and Parlor Car Ticket" windows visible establish the setting as a legitimate transportation context, making the misinterpretation the source of the joke's humor.