Life, 1929-05-17 · page 16 of 52
Life — May 17, 1929 — page 16: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains two satirical cartoons mocking contemporary business practices. The top cartoon, captioned "They don't seem to answer!", depicts three men appearing to attempt communication with an unresponsive figure, likely satirizing the then-current trend of corporate mergers. The accompanying poem by Arthur L. Lippmann playfully imagines merging all desirable female traits into one "perfect woman." The lower cartoon shows a Scotsman who stole a car, receiving a bill for gas from the owner—a joke about unexpected consequences and petty vindictiveness. The bottom illustration depicts a high-pressure salesman claiming to be "sick" and unable to work, with his chief rejecting excuses. This satirizes aggressive sales tactics and the pressure salesmen faced in early 20th-century business culture. Both cartoons mock commercial excess and workplace absurdities of the era.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Mergers Since big mergers are now all the rage, I’ve no doubt it would be lots of fun If from commerce I borrowed a page And I merged all my girls into one! I would merge every lovable trait Of each one to achieve my success So.the maiden that I would create All the following charms would pos- sess: She'd be blessed with Penelope's eyes. She’d have Annabelle’s beautiful hair. And Dolores who's worldly and wise To my merger would lend savoir faire. Yes, I'd merge all the maidens I name Into one simply marvelous peach, Into one irresistible dame Who'd retain the best features of each! —Arthur L. Lippmann. Pa ae And what if the meek do inherit | the carth—they'll only start backyard gardens with it. Buorto: They don’t seem to answer! 4 \ A Scotchman stole an automobile, but the police got him because after he had the car a while he sent the owner a bill for the gas he was using. “Did You Call For Help,” politely suggested the butler as he applied for a position. Hron Pargssurs SacesMan: Chief, 1 can't work today. Sick! All int No pep! comicbooks.com