Life, 1929-05-31 · page 12 of 36
Life — May 31, 1929 — page 12: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains three separate cartoons satirizing early 20th-century business and leisure culture: 1. **"Well, Martha, I'm surprised that you'd take up the hoochee-coochee at your time of life!"** — A wife exercises on gym equipment while her husband expresses shock, mocking women adopting modern fitness practices. 2. **"Back in Two Weeks"** — A dialogue between businessmen debating whether executives can leave offices for vacation. The satire criticizes how businesses struggle when leaders take time off, and pokes fun at executives' inability to delegate or trust subordinates. 3. **"Golfer's Son"** and **"Gardener"** — Smaller jokes about leisure activities interfering with work obligations and domestic responsibilities, reflecting tension between new recreational pursuits and traditional responsibilities. The page satirizes how American business culture resists modernization and work-life balance.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
“It’s bad business. Seems as though men don’t work nowadays the way they used to. In the old days you never heard of a business man taking a month off in the winter and another month or two in the summer, with a few odd weeks away from the desk during other seasons of the year.” “No, sir! Men used to work in those days. And the way I look at it, with competition what it is today, there’s even more need now than be- foe for steady plugging away on the job.” “I absolutely agree with you! We're liable to run into real trouble one of these days with so many business men neglecting their jobs.” “OE course, a little recreation is good “Well, Martha, I'm surprised that you'd take up the hoochee-coochee at for a man.” your time of lifel” “Oh, to be sure... By the way, “Back in Two Weeks” “I ran into George Snelling this morning. He was off for a few weeks fishing up North.” “Lucky stiff! I was talking to Bert Arnold yesterday, and he’s leaving to- morrow for the mountains.” “How do they keep their businesses going when they’re running off like that all the time? It beats me; I can’t do it.” “Same here. _ I’ve got to be on hand all the time. You can’t make me be- lieve their offices get along just as well without them.” “You're absolutely right. No or- ganization will keep going along smoothly when the head of it is away somewhere all the time on a vaca- tion.” how about a little golf this afternoon?” “Fine! I was just going to suggest it. We'll get Tom and Alec.” “Good! We can have lunch at the club and tee off at one o'clock.” “One o'clock on the dot! This is no day to spend in an office!” —John C. Emery. No doubt it has reached your ears by this time. It seems that a motor- cycle policeman overhauled a speeding car and when he pulled alongside he said, “Do you know what you been making?” And the speeder answered, “No!” So the cop says, “MY WIFE!” and pokes him in the nose. Garvener: But, Agnes, this is my new shovel and wheelbarrow. A very dreary story. comicbooks.com