Captain Billy's Whiz Bang, April 1923 · page 9 of 68
Captain Billy's Whiz Bang #44 — page 9: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page from the satirical magazine contains three humor items: 1. **Reader's Poem to Captain Billy**: A WWI veteran ("Twenty-ninth veteran—a former doughboy") sends humorous insults to the magazine's editor, Captain Billy, mocking his appearance and suggesting his photograph was made for his "red-headed wife." The joke plays on self-deprecating humor common to the era. 2. **Miami Bathing Suit Arrest**: A brief anecdote about police arresting a woman for wearing a one-piece bathing suit in Miami—satirizing the era's strict morality laws regarding women's swimming attire, which were genuinely enforced in the 1920s. 3. **Editorial Note**: Captain Billy welcomes submissions on any paper quality, joking that the magazine farm has "corn cobs" (waste material) available. This humorous invitation encourages reader participation, a key feature of *Whiz Bang's* interactive format. The page reflects 1920s popular humor: post-war irreverence, bathing suit controversies, and reader engagement.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Captain Billy's Whiz Bang 9 Well, here goes, Old Top—I certainly agree with your sentiments. My dear Captain Billy, I want you to know, I looked in the Whiz Bang and saw your phot); They said it was made for your red-headed wife, And it's surely a wonder you still have your life. In a contest for beauty this venture I make, If they'd just give you justice you'd win the mud cake One glance at your mug—oh, I do not know how, But I ran in the stable and kissed the black cow; If you'll just let the whiskers grow out on your face, In the dog-catcher's wagon you'll soon have a place. If you print this here pome, it won't cost you a dime, But in parting I'll state that your face is a crime. My compliments to you; I wish you much joy, From a Twenty-ninth veteran—a former doughboy. WHILE in Miami I was told the police had arrested a beautiful girl for walking down Flagler Avenue in a one-piece bathing suit and that she was being held by the judge for further examination. A CERTAIN editor once cautioned: “Send us poems written on only one side of the paper. We need the other side.” Whiz Bang Billy isn't so particular. He welcomes your poems, jokes, jests and jingles. We don't need the paper but we do need you. The Whiz Bang Farm is covered with corn cobs.