Life, 1929-05-17 · page 13 of 52
Life — May 17, 1929 — page 13: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains several unrelated comic vignettes satirizing early 20th-century life: **Top section**: A joke about movie "talkie" technology—a writer tested an actress as a potential voice for sound films, finding her unsuitable. **Middle cartoons**: Humorous domestic and social situations, including a joke about rabbits being "smart" and a divorce motto ("One man's mate is another man's poison"). **"Exchange" poem**: A romantic verse about couples sharing troubles and secrets while dining. **Bottom cartoon "Presence of Mind"**: Depicts a car accident scenario where someone demonstrates composure—likely satirizing overconfidence or absurd responses to crisis. The page exemplifies Life's satirical approach to modern conveniences (sound film, automobiles) and contemporary social behaviors, using humor to comment on technology adoption and human folly.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
For the benefit of p> ~x movie title writers &e. who will now have to write dialogue for the talkies there is some talk of a move to have comic magazines pub- lished in the form of phonograph rec- ords. ; just terri- bly heard,” pro- tested the movie star as she wit- nessed the show- ing of her in- itial Talkie test. “Why would you standing on a dime be like Woolworth’s?” “I'm cornered!” “Well stupid—it would be Nothing Over Ten Cents.” X marks spot where body was found. The man who invented the phrase “pretty as a picture” had evidently never seen a tabloid newspaper. Fonp MorHer—Quiet Dear, sandman is coming. Mopern Cxttp—Okay mom, a dol- lar and I won't tell pop. the USE LIFE’S TICKET SERVICE Life No matter how influential you are, you'll never feel as important as a man looking at a small town through the win- dow of a dining “Pheasants, Junior, not rab- bits! Rabbits aren't smart!” Divorce Morro—One man’s mate is another man’s poison. Presence of mind. “Hello—Cal?—this is Hoover—Say—where the heck did you put that electric button that opens up expositions?” Exchange Tell me your troubles, darling; Tell me your hopes and your fears. Tell me what ails you, sweetheart; Tell me what brought on your tears. Tell me your heartaches, honey; Tell me your woes while we dine. Tell me your troubles, baby; Then, darn it, I'll tell you mine! comicbooks.com