Judge — April 7, 1928

# Analysis This page is **primarily a cigarette advertisement**, not political satire. It features a Marlboro cigarettes ad attributed to the biblical figure Noah, with the tagline: "When it's dark and rainy outside, smoke a MARLBORO." The humor relies on a visual pun: Noah is depicted with two goats (rather than animals from the famous ark story), creating a playful misidentification. The ad uses Noah's association with rain and weather as a setup for the product pitch. The advertisement emphasizes Marlboro's quality—describing the "blending of smooth Turkish and sparkling Virginia" tobacco—and notes the price (20 for 20¢). The "Mild as May" slogan appears at the bottom. This reflects early 20th-century advertising's use of historical/biblical figures for brand endorsement, a common marketing practice of the era.

# "The Critic's Credo" This satire mocks intellectuals and critics by listing absurd, contradictory stereotypes they supposedly believe. Examples include claims that "all Central American bandits are ardent patriots," "Americans do not know how to play," and "all bank employees are vice-presidents." The cartoon below illustrates one such pretension: "One pedestrian who found a safe way to cross the street." The sketch shows a woman with an umbrella navigating through a chaotic junkyard of automobiles, accompanied by a small dog. The joke appears to satirize both the critic's presumed out-of-touch observations about ordinary life and, possibly, the growing chaos of 1920s automobile traffic in cities. The attribution to "Jack Shuttleworth" suggests this was a recurring satirical column.

# Analysis of Judge Magazine Page This page contains several unrelated humor pieces typical of Judge's format: **Top cartoon** satirizes superstitious belief in signs and omens—mocking people who read meaning into random events. The woman's comment about scratching wood instead of surviving a car accident ridicules magical thinking. **Middle cartoons** are brief joke illustrations with minimal political content: one references slipping hazards in Philippine/tropical settings; another is wordplay about a Christmas ladder accident. **Bottom section** includes a "Soporific" (sleep-inducing) joke about insomnia remedies and a "Fleeing Burglar" cartoon showing a thief escaping through a window, breaking a mirror—again playing on superstition about bad luck. The page primarily offers social satire targeting everyday American anxieties and superstitions rather than specific political figures or events. The advertising notices ("Drug Store," "Four-leaf Clover Club") reinforce the commercial satirical format.

# Analysis of Judge Magazine Page This page contains humor comics typical of early-to-mid 20th century American satire. The top strip shows superstitious beliefs about luck—four-leaf clovers and similar folk superstitions. The middle cartoon depicts a marital quarrel, with caption "Turk—Tsk! Tsk! She was a nice girl, but what can you do when you discover that you have married a thirteenth wife?"—satirizing either serial marriage or possibly someone's infidelity. The bottom cartoon illustrates the superstition that a black cat crossing a bird's path brings bad luck to the cat. The right panel shows what appears to be a social gathering with the caption about "Shortage gentlemen" and superstitious behavior regarding lights. These represent common superstitions of the era being mocked for satirical humor rather than political commentary. The cartoons rely on audiences' familiarity with contemporary folk beliefs and domestic comedy conventions.

# Analysis This page from *Judge* magazine shows a single cartoon titled "The superstitious fellow commits suicide." The image depicts a nighttime seaside scene viewed from a covered structure or pier. A figure appears on the right edge, seemingly about to jump into the water below. Hanging wisteria or similar drooping foliage is visible on the right, along with a crescent moon and stars above. A small sailboat appears in the distance. The cartoon's meaning is unclear without additional context. It may satirize superstition-based behavior (perhaps referencing specific contemporary beliefs or events), but the precise target—whether a particular person, social group, or cultural practice—cannot be determined from the image alone. The title suggests dark humor about someone's irrational beliefs leading to self-harm.

# Analysis of Judge Magazine Page **Top Cartoon:** Shows three men in a boxing ring. One accuses another of not finishing the fight "because yer superstitious." The response: "Well, Ump, I ain't exactly superstitious, but I'm tellin' you that guy's got a horseshoe in his glove!" This satirizes superstitions about luck in boxing—a fighter claiming his opponent has a lucky charm rather than accepting defeat. It's a humorous jab at athletes who blame external factors for losing. **"The Skeptic's Dogma":** Lists ironic superstitions presented as fact—13 at a table brings bad luck, empty barrels are lucky for bootleggers, black cats signify seal coat industry success, etc. The satirical point: even skeptics hold contradictory, absurd beliefs. It mocks how superstition persists universally. **Bottom cartoon:** Shows a pessimistic gardener planting seeds, captioned "The pessimist plants his garden seed"—likely commenting on defeatist attitudes during uncertain times.

# Judge Magazine Satire Analysis This page satirizes superstition and magical thinking through dark humor. **"The Cautious Man"** mocks Kenneth Covington, a man obsessed with avoiding bad luck—he detours around cemeteries, won't walk under ladders, carries rabbit's feet, and stays in bed on Friday the 13th. The bitter punchline: despite all precautions, he dies from accepting a drink from a stranger—a risk his superstitions never addressed. The joke is that paranoid avoidance of imaginary dangers leaves one vulnerable to *real* ones. **The top cartoon** depicts shipwrecked sailors atop wreckage. One complains about spilled salt (bad luck), missing the absurdity: they're already shipwrecked, so salt superstitions are pointless. **"A Fine Hoo Do You Doo"** presents a tailor asking a writer for a check. The writer refuses, claiming he's jinxed—everything he writes "comes back." The tailor mocks this, suggesting superstition prevents honest payment. The magazine ridicules how people cling to irrational beliefs even when circumstances prove such thinking useless.

# Political Cartoon Analysis: "Bridegroom—Look at that darn fool!" This Judge magazine cartoon depicts a bridegroom observing someone engaged in reckless behavior—apparently someone driving or operating a vehicle dangerously in an urban setting, with the cityscape visible behind them. The bridegroom's exasperated exclamation suggests commentary on public safety or traffic dangers, likely from the early automotive era when reckless driving was becoming a social concern. The cartoon appears to be satirizing dangerous driving habits, using the bridegroom's perspective to frame the criticism. The setting suggests this addresses contemporary urban traffic problems. Without additional context, the specific identity of "that darn fool" remains unclear, though the joke centers on public disapproval of dangerous vehicular behavior as a social problem worthy of ridicule.

# Senator Heflin and the Presidency This Judge magazine page satirizes Senator J. Thomas Heflin of Alabama through absurdist "superstitious forecasts" predicting his presidential nomination. The humor relies on ridiculous pseudo-historical "evidence": a backward-spelled Chinese bird prophecy, a Revolutionary War anecdote about a patriot disguised as a pony, and Jules Verne's submarine invention. The satire mocks both Heflin's actual candidacy prospects and the superstitious reasoning some voters employed. The scattered jokes about water-drinking, German waiters, and vacations appear unrelated, suggesting the piece targets Heflin's implausibility as a serious contender through absurdist non-sequiturs rather than direct political critique. The page exemplifies Judge's humorous approach: instead of reasoned argument, Dr. Seuss presents deliberately ridiculous "logic" to undermine confidence in Heflin's viability.

# Judge Magazine Cartoon Analysis This page contains two separate satirical cartoons about marriage and relationships. The **top cartoon** jokes about domestic life: a host offers a guest a homemade cocktail instead of his wife's cooking, implying her food is so bad it's dangerous. This reflects early 20th-century humor about wives' cooking abilities. The **bottom cartoon** satirizes divorce culture. A man named Valeska refuses marriage to her lover, claiming he'd be her *thirteenth husband*—mocking her serial marriages and divorces. The "thirteenth" reference suggests superstition about bad luck, darkly joking that becoming her next husband would be doomed. Both cartoons reflect Judge magazine's satirical commentary on changing social attitudes toward marriage and the emerging phenomenon of divorce becoming more common and socially visible in American society.

# The "Thirteen Club" Annual Dinner This cartoon satirizes the "Thirteen Club," a real organization of superstition-defiers who deliberately flouted bad-luck beliefs, particularly the notion that thirteen was unlucky. The club members held annual dinners on the 13th, often with thirteen guests. The joke shows well-dressed club members huddled under umbrellas indoors during their dinner—suggesting that despite their brave skepticism about superstition, they still behave superstitiously by taking protective measures. A bird perches ominously overhead, possibly hinting at further "bad luck" befalling them. The cartoon mocks the contradiction between the club's stated purpose (dismissing superstition) and their actual paranoid behavior, suggesting humans cannot truly escape their fear-based beliefs.