Captain Billy's Whiz Bang, January 1922 · page 29 of 68
Captain Billy's Whiz Bang #29 — page 29: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a joke relying on ethnic caricature, specifically mocking Jewish-American immigrants through exaggerated Yiddish-inflected English ("cannot vas," "fathair," "goil"). The humor centers on Ikey's rejection by his father for wanting to marry a woman (apparently named Rosa Lipshuts or related to her), because Papa was previously married and Rosa is Ikey's "sister." When Ikey despairs, his mother casually reveals she was also previously married and Papa isn't actually Ikey's biological father—so the marriage is permissible after all. The joke trades on both family scandal and the stereotype of Jewish immigrants having complicated domestic situations. The tone is lighthearted mockery rather than malicious, typical of *Captain Billy's Whiz Bang*, a humor magazine popular in the 1920s-30s that frequently featured such ethnic humor. The "movie title" at the bottom appears unrelated filler.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
27 Captain Billy's Whiz Bang Papa (shaking his head in the negative)— Ikey, I'm very sorry but it cannot vas. Ikey—It cannot vas, papa, for why it cannot vas? Papa—You see, Ikey, ven I vas a young man I vas married twice and Rosa Lipshuts iss your sistair also. At this Ikey could no longer contain him- self and gave vent to his feelings in an out- burst of boo-hooing. To hide his disappoint- ment he sought refuge in his room where his mother, attracted by his sobs, came to console him. Mama—Ikey, for vhy are you crying? Ikey—Oh, mama it's too terrible, it's too terrible. Mama—Tell your mama, Ikey, for vhy do you cry? Ikey did. Mama (patting her boy on the head)—Dat's all right, Ikey. You go an marry de goil. She's a good goil, she's got lots of money, and— Ikey (between sobs)—But, mama, it cannot vas. Mama—Yes, it can vas, Ikey. You see ven a young goil I vas married before also and your papa is not your fathair. * * * The Latest Movie Title THE BATTLE OF GARTER RUN.