Alan Dunn – A New Yorker State of Mind

Some Holiday Shopping

Above: Ilonka Karasz designed six children's rooms for a holiday display at Saks Fifth Avenue, featuring colorful rugs (left) and nursery screens (detail at right) among other items. In a House and Garden article, Karasz wrote: "Through new theories of design, production and distribution, [these rooms] have more vision than the manufacturer who still insists upon Little Bo-Peep." (MoMA.org/1stdibs.com)

In the Days of Yore, Christmas celebrations were largely adult- or family-centered affairs, that is until the Industrial Age enabled the mass production of toys and other goodies. Beginning in the 1870s, Macy’s began offering impressive toy displays, and even children in the hinterlands could get in on the action with a Sears catalog, the company raising its game in 1933 with the introduction its Wish Book.

November 30, 1935 cover by **Alice Harvey**. From 1925 to 1943, Harvey (1894–1983) contributed three covers and more than 160 drawings to *The New Yorker.* I highly recommend **Liza Donnelly’s** *Very Funny Ladies* for more about Harvey and other women cartoonists.

**Alice Harvey** came to New York from Chicago with her friend **Helen Hokinson** in the early 1920s, finding early success submitting to *Life, Judge* and other publications before she and Hokinson joined the fledgling New Yorker in 1925. (Photo from Michael Maslin’s essential *Ink Spill*).

The New Yorker was no exception when it came to toy shopping, featuring exhaustive lists of toys, games and other items for children available at the city’s major retailers.

BEFORE ONLINE SHOPPING…A crowd of holiday shoppers outside New York’s Macy’s department store, 1939. (Vintage.es)

These lists were in the back of the book, following Lois Long’s “On and Off the Avenue” fashion column. Here are some excerpts:

KEEP THE KIDDOS BUSY…Clockwise, from top left: Bloomingdale’s offered an Optics Set, while Macy’s featured **Lester Gaba’s** soap sculptures (including Popeye, Olive Oyl and Wimpy), 8mm Mickey Mouse and Silly Symphony cartoons, and “Jack & Jill” portable children’s record players. (scrappyland.com/acghs.org/etsy.com/worthpoint.com)

Of course it wouldn’t be Christmas in New York without F.A.O. Schwarz, and if you shopped at Saks you could be dazzled by children’s rooms designed by Ilonka Karasz.

GIFTS FOR THE MODERN KID…At F.A.O. Schwarz you could find Foxblox and Buck Rogers costumes, while Saks featured children’s rooms and furnishings designed by **Ilonka Karasz**, including a colorful nursery screen. (Pinterest/invaluable.com/worthpoint.com/cooperhewitt.org/reddit.com)

* * *

Pouting Plutocrat

In his “Notes and Comment,” E.B. White took issue with J.P. Morgan’s gripes about taxation while grouse hunting in Scotland.

* * *

A City Resurrected

Founded in 1632, Williamsburg, Virginia played an important role in colonial and revolutionary America, but by the 20th century it had become a quiet and rather neglected little town. Then in 1924 the town’s rector, Rev. W.A.R. Goodwin—bolstered by the successful restoration of his parish church—approached oil tycoon John D. Rockefeller Jr. for funds to restore the entire colonial capital. As John Peale Bishop noted in these excerpts from “Onward & Upward With The Arts,” the project left some residents scratching their heads.

MY VISION, YOUR MONEY…The **Rev. W.A.R. Goodwin** (left), rector of Bruton Parish Church, shared his vision for Williamsburg with philanthropist John D. Rockefeller Jr; top photo, paved streets and modern utility lines were removed as part of the restoration, circa 1930; bottom photo, pre-restoration photo of Duke of Gloucester Street—all businesses located on Market Square, including these, were demolished during the restoration. (colonialwilliamsburg.org)

RENEWED OR REMOVED…Clockwise, from top left, the 18th-century John Crump House was in a sad state in this 1895 photograph; the Crump House after its 1941-42 restoration; workers examine the old foundation walls of the Governor’s Palace; Williamsburg High School was demolished to make way for the Governor’s Palace reconstruction, seen in the background.(yourhistorichouse.com/colonialwilliamsburg.org)

* * *

At the Movies

John Mosher had high praise for King Vidor’s Civil War romance, So Red the Rose. Although it did not have the epic sweep (or epic length) of 1939’s Gone With The Wind, Mosher and other critics praised the film’s human qualities. It did not, however, do well at the box office.

FRANKLY, MY DEAR…a line that would have to wait for another Civil War romance…clockwise, from top left: **Randolph Scott** and **Margaret Sullavan** play kissing cousins in *So Red the Rose*; Mosher singled out **Walter Connolly** for his performance as the family patriarch; child star **Dickie Moore** and Sullavan in a scene from the film. (IMDB/Letterboxd.com)

HIDDEN TALENTS…In two other films, Mosher found the performances of the lead actors to either be upstaged or muffled in period costume. Top, **Paul Cavanagh, Miriam Hopkins,** and Joel McCrea in *Splendor.* Below, **James Cagney** and **Margaret Lindsay** in *Frisco Kid.* (IMDB/TCM)

* * *

From Our Advertisers

We start with this advertisement from The Limited Editions Club, founded in New York by George Macy in 1929. The 29-year-old Macy, determined to make his living from books, focused on publishing beautifully illustrated classic titles in limited quantities, available to subscription-paying members. Illustrators of the editions have included Pablo Picasso, Henri Matisse, Reginald Marsh, Norman Rockwell and many other noted artists. The ad below includes an excerpt from a Sinclair Lewis essay that extolled the virtues of investing in fine books.

Above, frontispiece from The Limited Editions Club’s 1930 publication of **Thomas De Quincey’s** *Confessions of an English Opium-Eater,* illustrated by **Zhenya Gay**. (librarything.com)

…as the holidays grew near the automobile ads grew more luxurious…this Cadillac spot featured an illustration of posh tots driven by their chauffeur…

…and from Packard, an automobile designed with the assumption that you already had a liveried driver…

…colorful ads also came our way from Firestone…

…and Goodyear…these two companies were the largest suppliers of automotive tires in North America for more than 75 years…

…World Peaceways continued their series of provocative anti-war advertisements…

…Kent Ale was produced by Krueger Brewing Company, one of the first breweries to use cans that were coated with some substance referred to as “Keglined”…

…a detail from an Abercrombie & Fitch advertisement, which suggested “Nudist Glassware” as a unique gift idea for the holidays…

…while The New Yorker suggested a subscription (or three) as a gift that keeps on giving…curiously, the magazine used the talents of artist Lowell Leroy Balcom (1887-1938) to render this woodcut illustration of Eustace Tilley…

…James Thurber kicked off our cartoons with a familiar theme…

…and Victor de Pauw offered up this Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade image to calendar section…

…what de Pauw illustrated…

To promote his *Silly Symphonies* animated short, “The Three Little Pigs”, **Walt Disney** designed a balloon based on Practical Pig (the one with the brick house). The balloon was featured in the 1934 and 1935 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parades. (YouTube)

…William Steig stepped in for Al Frueh in providing the illustration for the “Theatre” section…

…and Steig again…

…Robert Day gave us an airhead at a balloon factory…

…Day again, with some evicted ghosts…

…Helen Hokinson went plant shopping…

…and found a surprise in the kitchen…

…Alan Dunn offered a challenge to the Salvation Army…

…Alain received a special layout for this cartoon…

…which was arranged thusly…

…Gluyas Williams was back with his look at club life…

…and we close with Rea Irvin, and the science behind a holiday feast…

…and before we go, our cover artist, Alice Harvey, was publishing New Yorker-style cartoons in Life magazine at least three years before the New Yorker got off the ground. Here is an example of her early work, published 103 years ago on December 28, 1922:

Next Time: Two Nights at the Opera…

Seeking Decorative People

Above: New Year’s Eve at the “El Morocco” Night Club at 154 E. 54th Street, New York, 1935. (Posted on Reddit)

Lois Long took her nightlife seriously, and when it didn’t live up to her standards—defined by the wild speakeasy nights she wrote about after joining The New Yorker in 1925 —she was crestfallen, to say the least.

November 16, 1935 cover by **Leonard Dove**. This is one of Dove’s fifty-seven New Yorker covers; he also contributed 717 cartoons to the magazine.

Above: Leonard Dove’s self portrait, 1941; photo: 1947. Born 1906, Great Yarmouth, England. Died, Gramercy Hotel, New York City, 1972. *(Thanks to **Michael Maslin’s** indispensable Ink Spill)*

When Long joined The New Yorker she was a 23-year-old Vassar graduate, and at age 34 she was not expecting to re-live those heady days; but nightlife in 1935 made her wonder where all the interesting people had gone. Instead of the smart and beautiful speakeasy set, she found people who couldn’t hold a conversation, who cared more about being mentioned in the newspapers by “Cholly Knickerbocker” (a pseudonym used by society columnists)—they simply lacked the “sparkle” she so craved. In this excerpt from her column, “Tables for Two,” she explained:

ALL SHOW, NO GO…**Lois Long** recalled the heady days of the original torch singer **Helen Morgan**, but her new club, The House of Morgan, offered up tired vaudeville instead of the singer herself. Above, images of the club from **Christopher Connelly’s** *The Helen Morgan Page*. Top, center, detail of Morgan from the 1935 film *Sweet Music.* Next to Morgan is a photo of Long from the PBS documentary *Prohibition*. *(helen-morgan.net/PBS.org)*

* * *

At the Movies

Our film critic John Mosher was in good spirits after taking in MGM’s Mutiny on the Bounty, and especially the inspired performance by Charles Laughton as the cruel, tyrannical Captain Bligh…

LET’S HAVE A STARING CONTEST…**Clark Gable** (left) portrayed Fletcher Christian, the Bounty’s executive officer, who disapproved of the cruel leadership of Captain Bligh, portrayed by Charles Laughton (right) in *Mutiny on the Bounty*. *(theoscarbuzz.com)*

…two other pictures reviewed by Mosher were less than inspired, but at least the George Raft/Joan Bennett gangster film, She Couldn’t Take It, offered a car chase, and the occasional surprise.

STERILITY ISSUES…Top, **Gary Cooper** and **Ann Harding** needed a bit more life in Peter Ibbetson; at least **Joan Bennett** (bottom photo) found some action in She Couldn’t Take It. (IMDB)

* * *

From Our Advertisers

Not all fashion advertisements in The New Yorker were aimed at the posh set…Macy’s offered some thrifty selections, including a French-inspired “Theatre Curtain Blouse” that could be opened in the back “so as to reveal your own lily-white vertebrae”…

…I am puzzled by the “Duchess” types that appeared in food and beverage ads in the back of the magazine…we’ve seen some angry duchesses in ads for tomato and pineapple juice, and here we have one who has stooped so low as to shell her own peas…

…a side note, the Duchess’s peas came in a can bearing the old Green Giant logo, a savage, bearskin-clad figure…he was redesigned by ad executive Leo Burnett in 1935 to become the friendlier “Jolly Green Giant”…

…the makers of Camels presented football coach Chick Meehan in cartoon form to extol the wonders of football and smoking to a young woman…Meehan coached football at Syracuse, NYU and Manhattan College…

…the football theme segues to our cartoon section, beginning with this spot art by James Thurber…

…Christina Malman’s spot drawings could now be found in every issue, and usually more than one…

…this one by Robert Day also caught my eye, maybe because I like chickens, and dogs too…

…Day again, on the streets of Manhattan…

…Barbara Shermund showed us a wolf in wolf’s clothing…

…Alan Dunn seemed to be channelling Barbara Shermund here…or maybe Dunn’s wife Mary Petty had some influence…

…William Crawford Galbraith eavesdropped on some wagering waiters…

…Carl Rose found an outlier at the modern Walker-Gordon Dairy Farm…

…The Rotolactor featured in Rose’s cartoon was a mostly automatic machine used for milking a large number of cows successively on a rotating platform…first used at the Walker-Gordon Laboratories and Dairy in Plainsboro, New Jersey (pictured below), the Rotolactor held fifty cows at a time, and hosted about 250,000 visitors annually…

…and we go from cows to cats, courtesy Helen Hokinson…

…and Charles Addams booked an unusual perp…

…on to the November 23 issue…

November 23, 1935 cover by **Antonio Petruccelli.** Petruccelli (1907-1994) began his career as a textile designer, becoming a freelance illustrator in 1932 after winning several *House Beautiful* cover contests. This is one of four covers he produced for *The New Yorker.*

Antonio Petruccelli. Here are samples of Petruccelli’s remarkable work. *(Helicline Fine Art)*

Worth the Wait

The highly-anticipated circus-themed spectacle Jumbo finally opened at the Hippodrome. In his That’s Entertainment! blog, Jackson Upperco observes that Billy’s Rose’s Jumbo was “more circus than musical comedy,” a production that “was largely an excuse for Mr. Rose to present a circus.” It was headlined by comedian Jimmy Durante and bandleader Paul Whiteman, with a score by Rodgers & Hart. Here are excerpts from a review by Wolcott Gibbs:

JUMB0-SIZED ENTERTAINMENT…Clockwise, from top left, Hippodrome billboard promoting Jumbo; built in 1905, the Hippodrome provided entertainment to thousands who couldn’t afford a Broadway ticket; a circus tent was erected inside the 5,300-seat theatre for the spectacle; *Jumbo* was one of the most expensive theatrical events of the first half of the 20th century. *(Facebook/Library of Congress/Broadway Magazine/jacksonupperco.com)*

* * *

At the Movies

Fyodor Dostoevsky’s 1866 novel Crime and Punishment was adapted to film by both French and American producers in 1935, but critics including The New Yorker’s John Mosher mostly preferred the French version, titled Crime et châtiment.

DOUBLE FEATURE…American and French producers each turned out a film adaption of **Fyodor Dostoevsky’s** novel *Crime and Punishment*. Top photo, **Marian Marsh** as Sonya and **Peter Lorre** as Roderick Raskolnikov in Columbia’s *Crime and Punishment*; bottom photo, **Madeleine Ozeray** as Sonia and **Pierre Blanchar** as Rodion Raskolnikov in *Crime et châtiment.* *(silverscreenmodes.com/SensCritique.com)*

…Mosher reviewed another crime thriller, Mary Burns, Fugitive, but found some comic relief in two other films…

BAD CHOICE IN BOYFRIENDS was the theme of *Mary Burns, Fugitive*, starring (top left) **Sylvia Sidney** and Alan Baxter; top right, **Joan Bennett** and **Ronald Colman** in the romcom *The Man Who Broke the Bank at Monte Carlo*; bottom, **Fred Allen** and **Patsy Kelly** provided some laughs in musical comedy *Thanks a Million*. *(IMDB)*

* * *

From Our Advertisers

Readers of the Nov. 23 issue opened to this lovely image…

…which sharply contrasted with the clunky Plymouth ad on the opposite page…

…not so clunky was this colorful illustration promoting Cadillac’s economy model, the La Salle…

…the back cover was no surprise, with yet another glamorous cigarette ad…

…our cartoonists included Richard Decker, and a fashion faux pas to open a boxing match…

…George Price eavesdropped into some football strategy…

…Carl Rose spotted a canine unbeliever…

…Richard Taylor was back with his distinctive style…

…Al Frueh continued to illustrate the latest fare on Broadway…

…Otto Soglow crept in for a snooze…

…and we close with James Thurber, and some literary cosplay…

Next Time: Some Holiday Shopping…

Jimmy Comes Home

Above: Former New York Mayor Jimmy Walker and wife Betty Compton, aboard the S.S. Manhattan in 1935. (New York Daily News Archive)

The Roaring Twenties and Jimmy Walker seemed made for each other. A dandy with a taste for fine clothes, late-night parties, and Broadway showgirls, the 97th mayor of New York was a darling of the media…until the market crashed; as nest eggs evaporated along with jobs, folks quickly lost their taste for such frivolity.

November 9, 1935 cover by Daniel “Alain” Brustlein. This was the first of nine covers Brustlein created for the magazine. An Alsatian-born American artist, cartoonist, illustrator, and author of children’s books, Brustlein (1904–1996) contributed to *The New Yorker* under the pen name “Alain” from the 1930s through the 1950s.

**Daniel “Alain” Brustlein**, in an undated photo. During the height of Abstract Expressionism Brustlein became a reputable painter, exhibiting his work in New York and Paris. *(derfner.org)*

The fall of 1935 marked three years since Walker had left office, and for nearly two of those years the city had been governed by the reformist Mayor Fiorello La Guardia. New Yorkers, it seemed, were ready for a dose of Jimmy when he returned from his European exile, hailed by a throng of media and well-wishers.

Writing for Airmail, longtime New York journalist Sam Roberts observes that the city loved Walker, “a charming hellion, a witty, self-effacing, glib humanist, far more flawed, too, and compassionate than pictured previously, a man elevated and condemned by his own character, created and ultimately consumed by his times. He conjures up the anti-Trump—a dodgy philanderer who governed by making people feel good rather than angry.”

WHERE’S THE PARTY?…Former Mayor **Jimmy Walker** and his wife, **Betty Compton,** returned to New York in the fall of 1935 amid tremendous fanfare. *The New Yorker’s* **Morris Markey** noted that at least 160 media representatives were on hand for the couple’s arrival. *(YouTube)*

Walker (1881-1946) fled to Europe in November 1932 amid a bribery scandal that had prompted his resignation. Accompanied by Ziegfeld Follies singer Betty Compton (1906–1944)—whom he would marry in Cannes the following April—they would bounce around the continent until Walker determined that the danger of criminal prosecution had passed.

In his “A Reporter at Large” column, Morris Markey wrote about the media’s reception of the exiled mayor, “an army of reporters and photographers, sound engineers and announcers and contact men”…all assembled to inform the world of the return of a “discredited politician.”

HE GOT AROUND…During his time in office from 1926 to 1932, Mayor Jimmy Walker never seemed to miss a moment in the spotlight. Clockwise, from top left, Walker presided over the first shot in the city’s annual marble tournament on June 3, 1928; with actress **Colleen Moore** at the 1928 premiere of her latest film, *Lilac Time;* testifying on bribery charges before the investigative committee of Judge Samuel Seabury, 1932; with Betty Compton following their 1933 wedding in Cannes. (*New York Times/konreioldnewyork.blogspot.com/villagepreservation.org)*

Markey continued to convey his astonishment at “the monstrous complexity, the fabulous opulence, of the machinery put in motion to inform the universe of Mr. Walker’s arrival upon his native shore.” This included a massive cocktail party—hosted by The United States Lines—for more than two hundred press representatives and other officials.

After all the commotion, Walker would settle into a job as head of Majestic Records, adopt two children with Compton, and host his own radio series on WHN, Jimmy Walker’s Opportunity Hour.

Compton would divorce Walker in 1941 and remarry. Becoming ill after the birth of a son, she would die at age 38 in 1944. Walker would die two years later at age 65 of a brain hemorrhage.

CALLING ON THE ROOSEVELTS…**Jimmy Walker** and Betty Compton at the White House in 1937. It was pressure from FDR that led to Walker’s resignation in 1932. (Wikipedia)

* * *

High-flying Hooplah

While New Yorkers were going gaga over Walker, folks in the Bay Area were all atwitter over the first air-mail flight across the Pacific, loading a Pan Am Clipper to the gills with all manner of collectables. E.B. White noted:

BELLYFUL…On Nov. 22, 1935, Pan American Airways made aviation history as the China Clipper lifted off from Alameda, beginning the world’s first trans-Pacific airmail service. Captained by Edwin Musick and crewed by famed navigator **Fred Noonan**, the Martin M-130 opened a new era of long-distance flight across the Pacific. Noonan, who charted many commercial routes across the Pacific, would go missing along with **Amelia Earhart** during their ill-fated flight in July 1937. (Library of Congress)

* * *

Wise Men From the East

“The Talk of the Town” visited with Soviet satirists Ilya Ilf (1897–1937) and Evgeny Petrov (1903–1942), who were in New York preparing for a ten-week road trip to California and back. On assignment as special correspondents for the newspaper Pravda, they later published a series of illustrated articles, “American Photographs,” as well as a book titled Single-Storied America (the summer 2004 issue of Cabinet Magazine features an account of their journey as well as a number of their photographs).

AMERICA WAS A GAS…Soviet satirists **Ilya Ilf** (left) and Yevgeni Petrov check out New York before heading into the American heartland on a ten-week road trip, a highlight being the countless full-service gas stations they encountered along the way. After seeing skyscrapers and mountains and other wonders, the pair agreed that the most enduring image was the one at right: “an intersection of two roads and a gasoline station against a (back)ground of wires and advertising signs.” Sadly, Ilf died two years later from tuberculosis; Petrov died in a plane crash in 1942 while working as a war correspondent. (Aleksandra Ilf archive/Cabinet Magazine)

* * *

A Jumbo Career

Wallace Beery (1885–1949) got his start in the comedy silents of the 1910s and became a star before the sound era made him an even bigger one; by 1932 he was the world’s highest-paid actor. Alva Johnston’s profile (titled “Jumbo”) took a look at Beery’s life and career (illustration by Al Frueh). Excerpts:

COURTING AND SPARKING…Sid Miller (**Wallace Beery**) spikes the lemonade as he woos Lily Davis (**Aline MacMahon**) in a scene from the 1935 film, *Ah Wilderness! (letterboxd.com)*

* * *

A View and Corbu

Art and design critic Lewis Mumford was well-known for his hypercritical eye, but occasionally he could be moved to rhapsodize, in this case about the opening of Fort Tryon Park, and particularly about the view it afforded visitors. He reserved his criticism for one of the latest works by Le Corbusier (aka Charles-Édouard Jeanneret), on exhibit at MoMA.

MAGNIFICENT is the word **Lewis Mumford** used to describe the view from Fort Tryon Park. This scene is taken from Linden Terrace to the west: a barge on the Hudson River and the Hudson Palisades beyond, with the Englewood Cliffs campus of Saint Peter’s University on the top. *(Wikipedia)*

IRRATIONAL?…Mumford was not pleased with **Le Corbusier’s** latest work, *Le Petite Maison de Weekend (Villa Henfel),* which was featured on the cover of the MoMA exhibition catalogue (upper left). Mumford saw the design as a pathetic escape from the architect’s renown rationalism. *(MoMA/Fondation Le Corbusier)*

* * *

At the Movies

It was a mixed bag at the movies for critic John Mosher, who was delighted by a Soviet take on Gulliver’s Travels, rendered with puppets engaged in a proletarian struggle…

KOMRADE GULLIVER…The Soviet stop motion-animated fantasy film, *The New Gulliver,* was a communist re-telling of Jonathan Swift’s 1726 novel. The film depicted Lilliput suffering under capitalist inequality and exploitation, with Gulliver enabling a proletarian revolution against the Lilliputian monarchy. (revolutionsnewstand.com)

…but Mosher was less than delighted with the latest from Hollywood, including a sedate The Three Musketeers, a “conventional” remake of D.W. Grifffith’s 1920 melodrama Way Down East, and the romcom Hands Across the Table, which the Times called “uproariously funny” but Mosher deemed barely worth a chuckle.

OUTCLASSED BY PUPPETS…**John Mosher** found the latest from Hollywood underwhelming. Clockwise, from top, **Onslow Stevens, Moroni Olsen, and Paul Lukas** in *The Three Musketeers*; **Rochelle Hudson** and **Henry Fonda** in Way Down East; **Fred MacMurray** and **Carole Lombard** in *Hands Across the Table. (mabumbe.com/zeusdvds.com/Wikipedia)*

* * *

From Our Advertisers

The Dorothy Gray salons didn’t mince words when it came to a woman’s beauty regimen…without their help, claimed this ad, the poor “Mrs. Madison” would be “frankly plain,” with a face too wide and eyes and mouth too small…

…notable in ads for men’s and women’s clothes were the presence of cigarettes…all three of the men in this spot are having a smoke in their smart attire…

…White Rock gave their logo-bearer Psyche a rest in 1935 with a variety of ads including this one…

…the makers of Bisquit assumed their customers could read the French dialogue, or at least pretend to…

…when we (of a certain age) think of Marlboro we think of the rugged Marlboro Man, but in 1935 the brand was exclusively marketed to women…

…and who knows what Old Gold’s target was here…definitely women smokers, who were the growth market, but men would take notice of the George Petty pin-up…

…the makers of Pabst Blue Ribbon Beer, who endured Prohibition by offering products like Pabst-ett cheese spread, were ready to grab a big market share after Repeal…

…Otto Soglow, still contributing to The New Yorker despite taking his Little King to Hearst, drew up this potentate for a tomato juice spot…

…which segues to our other cartoonists, beginning with Al Frueh and his take on the latest Broadway hit, Jubilee!…

…Robert Day saw action on the gridiron…

…unless I missed something, this might be Richard Taylor’s first New Yorker cartoon…

…James Thurber put a unique spin on a bowling ball…

…Alan Dunn was all in knots at a crime scene…

…Dunn again, pondering the wonders of a makeover…

…Barney Tobey eavesdropped on a Downtown subway…

…Fritz Wilkinson looked to return a defective pet…

…Carl Rose needed two pages to illustrate his epic cartoon (caption added at the bottom for readability)…

…and we close with Helen Hokinson, and a whiff of scandal…

Next Time: Seeking Decorative People…

Notes and Comment

Above: Among E.B. White's notable happenings in the fall of 1935 was a streamlined baby carriage for the toddler of tomorrow. (Pinterest)

Occasionally, E.B. White would allow his seemingly random thoughts to fill out his “Notes and Comment” column, observing in no particular order various happenings of the day.

Sept. 28, 1935 cover by **Antonio Petruccelli,** who began his career as a textile designer. In addition to four *New Yorker* covers, Petruccelli (1907-1994) illustrated twenty-four Fortune magazine covers as well as several covers for *House Beautiful, Collier’s, Life* and other magazines.

What he accomplished, however, was a collection of snapshots of life in Manhattan and abroad. Here is the first part of E.B. White’s “Notes and Comment” for Sept. 28…

PERENNIAL PROBLEM…**E.B. White** noted that more than 51,000 Americans died in car accidents in an 18-month span, a number that is oddly similar to today’s statistics (although the U.S. has more than double the population today). At left, photo by **Weegee** (aka Arthur Fellig) of a wrecked taxicab in New York City, circa 1930s; at right, a streamlined baby buggy, 1930s. (Instagram/Pinterest)

…White also noted a number of cultural events, from airmailed lobsters to a new slogan for the State of Maine…

HODGEPODGE…Clockwise, from top left, **Leo Reisman** brought the sound of music to the beautiful Central Park Casino ballroom (adjoining photo), which was designed by Joseph Urban; in 1927 **Clarence Chamberlain** became the second man to pilot a fixed-wing aircraft across the Atlantic and the first to carry a transatlantic passenger—in 1935 he accepted a contract from boxer/restauranteur Jack Dempsey to fly two-hundred Maine lobsters to NYC; safari film celebrities **Osa and Martin Johnson** bought a picnic basket at Abercrombie & Fitch; the state of Maine announced plans to add “Vacationland” to license plates—a slogan still in use today. (IMDB/centralpark.org/alchetron.com/ebay)

* * *

Class Acts

Lois Long continued to chronicle the nightlife scene in her “Tables For Two” column, observing the efforts of nightclub impresarios to promote their establishments as epitomes of sophistication.

WHY GO HOME?…**Lois Long** noted the many reasons why New Yorkers might stay out into the wee hours. Clockwise, from top left: Gossip columnist **Walter Winchell** as photographed by Edward Steichen in 1930; nightclub impersario and former Village speakeasy king **Barney Gallant**; the exclusive confines of El Morocco; Romanian-born American crooner and actor **Georges Metaxa** made the society ladies swoon at the Stork Club; the Stork Club’s Cub Room in 1944 occupied by **Orson Welles** (left) among other notables; entrance to the club, 1930s. (CondeNast/boweryboyshistory.com/Pinterest/Wikipedia/NYPL)

* * *

From Rough to Refined

Alva Johnston profiled acclaimed film director W.S. Van Dyke (1889–1943), whom Johnston portrayed as a tough guy who slipped effortlessly from the rough and tumble world of Westerns to the sophisticated heights of high society films such as 1934’s The Thin Man.

LOW TO HIGH…**W.S. Van Dyke** moved from making Westerns to more sophisticated fare including 1934’s *The Thin Man.* (Facebook/Wikipedia)

* * *

Silly Mystification

Book reviewer Clifton Fadiman began his review of T.E. Lawrence’s Seven Pillars of Wisdom by first clearing the air about the enigmatic writer and diplomat who had recently died in a motorcycle accident. “Wittingly or unwittingly, willingly or unwillingly, he exhaled during his lifetime a vapor of silly mystification,” Fadiman wrote about Lawrence, who was known to embellish accounts of his adventures in the Arab world. Here is an excerpt of the review:

LITERARY COSPLAY…**T.E. Lawrence** (1888-1935) in an undated photo. Writing for the *New Criterion,* **David Fromkin** noted the importance of Lawrence’s prestige to the British Empire. “T. E…was of his time and ours. Of all the public figures of the twentieth century, across a wide range of interests, issues, and attitudes, he best expresses the century. ” (The New Criterion)

* * *

At the Movies

Critic John Mosher reviewed one of Will Rogers’ final films, Steamboat Round the Bend, released just weeks after Rogers’ death in an Alaska plane crash. Mosher found the film “satisfying.”

SOUTHERN CHARM was laid on thick in *Steamboat Round the Bend,* which featured **Anne Shirley** and **Will Rogers** in one of his final film roles (Rogers filmed In Old Kentucky before *Steamboat,* but In Old Kentucky wasn’t released until Nov. 22, 1935).

Mosher also took in another “revue” film, Broadway Melody of 1936, which served as a showcase of MGM’s star power.

THE MGM STABLE OF STARS showcased in *Broadway Melody of 1936* included, at top, the elegant **Eleanor Powell;** below, Powell (left) joins brother-sister dancing team Buddy and Vilma Ebsen in a down-home skit. Buddy Ebsen’s “carefully preserved homeliness” (quoting **John Mosher**) served him well 27 years later when he was cast as Jed Clampett in TV’s The Beverly Hillbillies. (IMDB)

Mosher also endured a “perfunctory” performance by Bette Davis in Special Agent, and a “mousy” Madeleine Renaud in Maria Chapdelaine.

PHONING IT IN…**Joe Sawyer, Bette Davis** and Ricardo Cortez in Special Agent. (IMDB)

NOT GAGA-WORTHY…Critic John Mosher thought French actress **Madeleine Renaud** (center) was too “mousy” to be cast against the rugged beauty of the Canadian frontier in 1934’s *Maria Chapdelaine*. Based on a romance novel written in 1913 by the French writer Louis Hémon, the film cast Renaud as a young woman enduring the hardships of rural Quebec while she is pursued by three suitors. An IMDB reviewer writes that this early **Julien Duvivier** film “is mostly of pictorial interest: the location shooting in Quebec is impressive, but the story is thin-to-nonexistent. Madeleine Renaud is cute but not magnetic enough to have three men going absolutely gaga over her.” (IMDB)

* * *

From Our Advertisers

Forstmann Woolens kicks off our advertisements with this image of attenuated women posed in the autumnal landscape of Central Park…

…what is notable about this Arrow Shirts ad is the formal attire of father and son at a baseball game, not at all unusual in 1935…

…Seagram’s continued its aggressive campaign to promote its lineup of seven “masterpieces”…

…Coca-Cola also had a substantial war chest, marketing its product for home consumption, which still seemed to be somewhat novel…

…the back page ad went to the makers of Lucky Strike, pursuing that growing market of women smokers…

…Richard Decker drew up an ad for a more wholesome product…

…while Peter Arno put pen to paper to promote his “puzzle-cartoons” in the New York Post…

…which segues to our cartoon section, and Arno again with some office hijinks…

…Christina Malman’s wonderfully unique spot art was making regular appearances in the magazine’s pages…

…Perry Barlow served up some dinnertime etiquette…

…Carl Rose found order in the court…

…James Thurber continued to mesmerize…

…Helen Hokinson’s Ladies Club took a stand against fascism…

…Alan Dunn looked in on a polite perp…

…Mary Petty encountered a challenge in a dress shop…

…Gilbert Bundy revealed an odd duck among the fox hunters…

…and we close with Barbara Shermund, ready to curl up with a good (or bad) book…

Next Time: School Days…

Down to Earth

Above: Will Rogers (with hat) visits with pilot Wiley Post near Fairbanks, Alaska, hours before their fatal crash on August 15, 1935. (okhistory.org)

It would be a challenge to find a place for a multi-talented, mega-star like Will Rogers in today’s over-saturated and segmented media landscape—he was a trick roper, vaudevillian, social commentator, comedian, journalist, author, and radio and film celebrity. His early fame on the vaudeville circuit, including the Ziegfeld Follies, would spark a film career in 1918 (he would appear in 71 films), and a 1922 town hall speech would lead to a nationally syndicated newspaper column. When radio became a nationwide phenomenon his voice could heard coast-to-coast. He was seemingly everywhere.

August 31, 1935 cover by **Harry Brown.** Brown illustrated eighteen covers for *The New Yorker.*

Rogers (1879-1935) was also a big promoter of aviation, and he gave his audiences many entertaining accounts of his world travels. In the summer of 1935 he announced plans to join famed aviator Wiley Post (1898-1935) on a flight to Alaska and beyond. It appeared to be routine, making the trip’s tragic ending all the more poignant.

Although E.B. White often seemed stuck in the past—he preferred Model Ts and rattily omnibuses to more more modern conveyances—he was a flying enthusiast, never missing a chance to hop aboard an airplane and marvel at the scene far below. However, when tragedy struck, White would become circumspect. When Notre Dame coach Knute Rockne’s Fokker Trimotor crashed into a Kansas wheatfield, White expressed doubts about air safety and pondered “safer” alternatives such as autogiros (a kind of early helicopter that wasn’t so safe or practical). Such doubts returned in his “Notes and Comment” for August 31, 1935:

The fated aircraft, a Lockheed Orion, was heavily modified by Post into a floatplane; one wing was even salvaged from a wrecked Explorer (an older Lockheed model). The pontoon floats he attached were also designed for a larger aircraft, which made the nose-heavy Orion even more unwieldy.

BUILT FOR SPEED…A Lockheed Model 9 *Orion* parked at Boeing Field, Seattle, in May 1935. With 200-mph speed, the single-engine passenger aircraft (5 to 6 passengers) was faster than any American military aircraft of the time. It was Lockheed’s last aircraft to use wood construction in the frame, which was lightweight but not designed for longevity on major airlines. (James Borden Photography Collection)

TIGHT QUARTERS….Interior view of a Lockheed *Orion* 9. No doubt much of the passenger space was loaded with gear for the trip to Alaska. (James Borden Photography Collection)

When Post and Rogers arrived in Juneau, local bush pilots doubtfully regarded the Orion and asked Rogers about the flight plan. “Wiley and I are like a couple of country boys in an old Ford—don’t know where we’re going and don’t care,” he said. They were actually headed to Point Barrow, and from there planned to hop over to Siberia.

After stopping in Fairbanks they set off for Point Barrow in bad weather. Lost in the murk, they landed short of their destination in the shallow waters of Walakpa Lagoon, fifteen or so miles southwest of Point Barrow. Post and Rogers then took off—despite warnings from locals about the conditions. But the weather wasn’t the worst problem: Post had a bad habit of taking to the air in an abrupt, steep climb, which likely caused the engine to stall. Powerless, the ungainly aircraft plunged into the lagoon and landed on its top. Post and Rogers were killed instantly.

JUST A COUPLE OF COUNTRY BOYS…Top photo, **Will Rogers** on the wing of the Lockheed floatplane belonging to famed aviation pioneer **Wiley Post**, hours before their fatal crash on August 15, 1935. Below photo, inverted wreckage of the float plane in Walakpa Lagoon. (Wikipedia/vintageaviationnews.com)

Rather than eulogize the fallen Rogers, “The Talk of Town” offered up an anecdote about his rise as a newspaper columnist, which was sparked by a backhanded endorsement speech:

A HUMAN FACE…Top left, **Will Rogers** backstage with the 1924 *Ziegfeld Follies* cast. At right, Rogers made his film debut in the now lost silent film *Laughing Bill Hyde* (1918) with co-star **Anna Lehr.** The magazine ad at right quoted producer **Rex Beach,** who called Rogers “the most *human* player who ever faced a camera.” (Will Rogers Memorial Museum/Wikipedia/IMDB)

FINAL CURTAIN…Top photo, **Will Rogers** with co-star **Anne Shirley** in *Steamboat Round the Bend.* Rogers wrapped filming just before heading to Alaska. The film was released posthumously on September 6,1935. Bottom image is a detail from a full-page ad in the October 1935 issue of *Picture Play Magazine.* Oddly, the ad makes no mention of Rogers’ death, proclaiming that “Will blazes a new path in his screen career as he scores his greatest triumph!” (theretrorocket.blogspot.com/IMDB)

* * *

Putting it Mildly

In “Onward & Upward With the Arts,” H.L. Mencken continued to explore the quirks of American language, this time looking at the pervasive (and evasive) use of euphemisms by “professional uplifters.” Excerpts:

INTELLIGENCE TEST was suggested by “professional uplifters” as a polite replacement for giving someone “The Third Degree.” Image is from the 1941 noir thriller *I Wake Up Screaming,* starring **Victor Mature**, pictured here getting his “intelligence test.” (cinematography.com)

* * *

At the Movies

We join film critic John Mosher to take a look at the latest epic from Cecil B. DeMille, The Crusades, which to Mosher’s disappointment was a rather mild epic, with little to astonish. However, our critic did find something to admire in a more recent historical drama, Diamond Jim.

ANTISEPTIC EPIC?…Clockwise, from top left, movie poster for The Crusades offered up an image one typically does not associate with religious warfare, but you had to bring ’em in somehow; **Henry Wilcoxon** and Ian Keith in a scene from the film; co-stars **Loretta Young** as Berengaria of Navarre and Wilcoxon as Richard the Lionheart; the film also featured **Joseph Schildkraut** as Conrad of Montferrat and **Katherine DeMille** as Princess Alice of France (bottom left). A talented actress, Katherine reportedly landed the role as a Christmas gift from her adoptive father, **Cecil B. DeMille**. (cecilbdemille.com)

HEY BIG SPENDER…At right, **Edward Arnold** in the title role (here with **Eric Blore**) in *Diamond Jim.* At left, **Cesar Romero** moves in on Diamond Jim’s love interest, portrayed by **Jean Arthur.** (Rotten Tomatoes/IMDB)

* * *

From Our Advertisers

We begin with this advertisement from Lord & Taylor, featuring the latest fall fashions for young women heading to college…notable here is the inclusion of Mickey Mouse in the illustration…the animated rodent was in vogue as much the latest fashions…

…John Hanrahan, whose advertising savvy helped guide The New Yorker through its lean early years, was publisher of the richly designed Stage magazine, promoted here on the inside front cover…

…soft drink giant Coca-Cola recalled its soda fountain origins in this ad that promoted its 6.5-ounce bottled product…

…on the inside back cover Goodyear continued its series of perilous ads illustrating the dangers of tire blowouts (but not the obvious hazard of children riding untethered in a rumble seat, where they doubtless inhaled all manner of noxious fumes)…

…the majority of back covers in 1935 featured tobacco companies…here we learn that Lucky Strikes were more than cigarette; they were your “best friend”…

…on to our cartoonists, we start with this “Profile” illustration by William Steig…the profile was a two-parter featuring a clever summons server…

…Adolph Dehn adorned the “Goings On” section with this illustration…

…unsigned, but I’m pretty sure this is H.O. Hofman…

…here we get a lift from Robert Day…

…Al Frueh conjured up a nightmare of leaping sheep…

…Helen Hokinson gave us some famous footwear…

…Hokinson again, with Romulus and Remus providing a convenient metaphor…

…Kemp Starrett was bogged down in the rules of a game…

…George Price discovered a budding talent…

…Richard Decker took to the back roads…(reminds me of a scene from The Long, Long Trailer with Lucy and Desi)…

…James Thurber raised a glass to a dry do-gooder…

…Alan Dunn brought an unexpected windfall to Westchester…

…and to close we Dunn again, and a bit of flattery…

Next Time: A Summer Night…

The Din and Bustle

City life is a noisy life, especially in places like Manhattan, one of the most densely populated places in the world.

In his “Notes and Comment” column, E.B. White described the occasional “intestinal stoppage” of traffic outside The New Yorker’s offices at West 45th Street, an entire block “laden with undischarged vehicles, the pangs of congestion increasing till every horn is going—a united, delirious scream of hate, every decibel charged with a tiny drop of poison.”

ABOVE THE FRAY…**E.B. White** with his pet dachshund **Minnie** at the West 45th Street offices of *The New Yorker.* (New York Times)

AND DON’T CALL ME SHIRLEY…New York City’s Commissioner of Health, **Shirley Wynne** (right), created a Noise Abatement Commission in 1929. After eight months of research the Commission published *City Noise*, which included recommendations for a quieter city. (Wikipedia/trevianbooks.com)

The city began addressing the problem in 1929, when New York City’s Commissioner of Health, Shirley Wynne (1882-1942), created a Noise Abatement Commission, likely the first such commission in the U.S. The Commission cited the “mounting roar and crash of traffic, building, manufacture and sundry other noises which have accompanied the growth of the city.” After eight months of research the Commission published City Noise, which included recommendations for a quieter city.

URBAN CHORUS…A chart featured in City Noise depicted some of sources of noise in New York City.

PIPE DOWN!…Clockwise, from top left: The Noise Abatement Commission took to the streets with a municipal acoustics-measuring truck in 1930; cartoon in the *New York Herald Tribune* illustrated the challenge ahead; Commission officials conducting noise tests in Times Square, circa 1930; poster circa 1936 promoted Mayor Fiorello La Guardia’s anti-noise drives. A 1936 noise code put sound restrictions on everything from radios to the “prolonged and unreasonable blowing of a horn.” A first offense cost $1; the second, if committed within the next year, $2. (hii-mag.com/Bloomberg.com/NYTimes.com)

Not one to leave a stone unturned, White also added this note about the noisy doors on Pullman train car toilets…

Here are the Otto Soglow spot drawings that accompanied the “Talk” piece:

Final note: A colorful exploration of sound can be found on the One Thousand Birds site, Hii Magazine. Check it out!

* * *

Puff Pushers

Tobacco companies like Philip Morris have long been savvy in finding ways to expand their market, including taking their product directly to the consumer, as “The Talk of the Town” explained in this entry:

SMOKE FREE…Sample pack of Philip Morris cigarettes, circa 1930s. (Ebay)

* * *

A Rare Glimpse

Before Roger Angell started writing about baseball in 1962, there wasn’t a whole lot written about the sport in the pages of The New Yorker. In the magazine’s early years, the game was probably perceived as too low-brow, while other athletic pursuits such as golf, tennis, and polo were more in line with the desired or perceived readership. Early contributors such as Ring Lardner had also soured on the sport, thanks to the Black Sox Scandal of 1919 and the greed of team owners. So here is a rare look at baseball, and Yankee coach Joe McCarthy (1887-1978), in “The Talk of the Town.” Excerpts:

BRONX BOMBERS…**Coach Joe McCarthy** (center) with sluggers **Lou Gehrig**, left, and **Babe Ruth** during the 1932 World Series. The first manager to win pennants in both the National and American leagues, McCarthy’s teams would win a total nine league pennants and seven World Series championships. (CARLI Digital Collections)

* * *

Music Under the Stars

The monumental Lewisohn Stadium was a popular classical music venue on the City College of New York campus until its unfortunate demolition in 1973. According to BBC Music Magazine, “for nearly half a century, Lewisohn Stadium gave people from all walks of life the chance to hear performances by the likes of violinist Fritz Kreisler, soprano Leontyne Price and clarinettist Benny Goodman for as little as 25 cents admission. The New Yorker paid a visit during eighteenth season of the Stadium Concerts. Excerpts:

CLASSICAL MASSES…At left, cover of the 1935 Stadium Concerts Review; at right, **Andre Kostelanetz** conducts before a crowd of thousands at Lewisohn Stadium in 1939. The stadium was demolished in 1973 to make way for City College of New York’s North Academic Center. See The New York Philharmonic Archive for the complete digital version of the 1935 *Stadium Concerts Review*. (NY Philharmonic Archive/PressReader.com)

* * *

At the Movies

Film critic John Mosher continued to search in vain for a film he could endorse, but he came away empty-handed after screening a star-studded screen adaptation of Jack London’s novel The Call of the Wild. Star power also fell short for Mosher in the screen version of Booth Tarkington’s Alice Adams.

SMALL TALK…The film adaption of **Booth Tarkington’s** *Alice Adams* seemed to have all of the right elements in place, including director **George Stevens** and stars **Katharine Hepburn** and Fred MacMurray (left), but critic John Mosher found it somewhat average. In a 1991 retrospective review, however, *The New Yorker’s* **Pauline Kael** deemed the romantic comedy “a classic” and stated that “Hepburn gives one of her two or three finest performances.” At right, the character of Alice Adams was first portrayed on the silver screen by **Florence Vidor** in a 1923 silent film. (Toronto Film Society/Wikipedia)

THE BIG CHILL…Clockwise, from top left, **Clark Gable** and **Loretta Young** brave the Yukon wilds (actually Washington State) in *The Call of the Wild*; **Jack Oakie** provided comic relief as Gable’s sidekick Shorty Hoolihan; Young watches the filming of a scene on location at Mt. Baker National Forest; Gable shoots a scene with the St. Bernard Buck. (IMDB/Wikimedia)

CLARK’S BEST FRIEND…Dog lover **Clark Gable** became very close with **Buck** during the filming of *The Call of the Wild*. Buck appeared in seven more films from 1935 to 1940, even receiving star billing as “Buck the Wonder Dog.” (Facebook/Pinterest)

* * *

From Our Advertisers

Colorful ads returned to the August 24 issue, featuring familiar sponsors who could afford full-page, full-color spots, namely tobacco and liquor producers…Camel was back with their athletic theme, however they might have chosen someone other than Bill Tilden, who looked perfectly ancient…

…Old Gold returned with another George Petty-illustrated ad…

…Courvoisier cognac took the back page spot…

…Powers Reproduction showed off their color printing expertise…I wonder if that is a Lucky she is smoking…

…because I believe she is the same woman who appeared in this ad from the July 27 issue:

…back to August 24, where we were encouraged to enjoy a Johnny Walker highball to stave off the late summer heat…

…the distinctive crown of Hotel Windemere on the Upper West Side was an eye-catcher even in this one-column ad from the back of the book…photo at right from around the time it was completed, 1927…

…on to our cartoonists, an unexpected profile caricature by William Steig (this two-part profile featured process-server Harry Grossman)…

…interesting spot drawings by George Shellhase (top) and Leonard Dove (bottom right), and at left, two by Christina Malman…

…Malman (1912-1959) produced at least two-dozen covers for The New Yorker between 1937 and 1956, including this gem from 1941:

…some baby names have real meaning, according to Alan Dunn…

…Peter Arno offered caution about dancing with a prickly Colonel…

…Fritz Wilkinson answered one cat call high above the city…

…Franz Shubert met Busby Berkeley, via Carl Rose…

…George Price persisted in threading a needle…

…Robert Day gave us a pacifist of sorts in a game of tug-of-war…

…Burma Shave jingles seemed to be everywhere in the 1930s, per Alain…

…An example of replica Burma Shave signs along Route 66:

…some parenting tips came our way via Helen Hokinson…

…and Leonard Dove took us back to school…finally…

Next Time: Down to Earth…

Hays Hokum

Above: Will Hays (center, top) was the enforcer and Fr. Daniel A. Lord was the author of the Production Code that was rigidly enforced beginning in 1934. They and others were responding to the sex, violence and other forms of "immorality" in such films as 1932's "Scarface" (with Paul Muni, pictured at left) and 1931's "Blonde Crazy" with James Cagney and Joan Blondell. (Wikipedia/cinemasojourns.com)

With the Production Code fully enforced, New Yorker film critic John Mosher found even less to get excited about during his visits to Manhattan’s cinemas.

August 17, 1935 cover by **Julian de Miskey.** He contributed 62 covers to the magazine, as well as 82 cartoons from 1925 to 1962.

The Motion Picture Production Code—a set of industry guidelines for the self-censorship of content—had been around for awhile, but it was mostly ignored until June 13, 1934, when an amendment to the Code required all films released to obtain a certificate of approval. Hoping to avoid government censorship and preferring self-regulation, studios adopted the Code.

The Code’s effects were felt in such films as The Farmer Takes a Wife, a romantic comedy about a Erie Canal boatman, portrayed by Henry Fonda, who dreams of becoming a farmer (a role reprised by Fonda from the Broadway production of the same name; it was Fonda’s first break in films). Mosher was pleased by Fonda’s performance, but found the film adaptation to be corny and phony, filled with “bastard” dialect and schmaltzy musical numbers. “It is the sort of thing which is okayed by Purity Leagues…” Mosher concluded.

SILVER SCREEN DEBUT…Boatman Dan Harrow (**Henry Fonda**) woos barge cook Molly Larkins (**Janet Gaynor**) in a scene from *A Farmer Takes a Wife.* While it was Fonda’s film debut, Gaynor was an established star known for playing sweet, wholesome characters. One of the few actresses who made a successful transition to sound movies in the late 1920s, Gaynor was the number-one draw at the box office in 1935. (IMDB)

STILL KEEPING IT CLEAN…The Code was still in force when *The Farmer Takes a Wife* was remade in 1953; however, nineteen years after the Code took effect there was a notable easing of restrictions, as can be seen in the generous display of Betty Grable’s famous gams (seen here with **Thelma Ritter**). (IMDB/Wikipedia)

To get a clearer idea of what the Code did to the pictures, compare the scene from 1934’s Tarzan and His Mate (left), which was released two months before the Code went into effect, and Tarzan Escapes (right), from 1936.

CLOTHED IN THE CODE…**Johnny Weissmuller** and Maureen O’Sullivan appeared together in six Tarzan films. In their second outing, 1934’s *Tarzan and His Mate,* O’Sullivan wore a skimpy halter-top and loincloth (left) and was shown sleeping and swimming in the nude. In their next film, 1936’s *Tarzan Escapes* (right); Jane is more chastely clad. (mikestakeonthemovies.com/rottentomatoes.com)

* * *

Noted and Notorious

In his weekly column “Of All Things,” Howard Brubaker offered wry observations on the passing scene, including this latest brief that described the rise and fall of a very unlikely quartet of celebrities.

DEMOGOGUES, DUTCH & DIMPLES…(Left to right) Support appeared to be on the wane for radio priest and demagogue Father Charles Coughlin and fellow-fascist Louisiana Sen. **Huey Long,** while stock was on the rise for mobster **Dutch Schultz,** who successfully swayed public opinion (while under indictment for tax evasion) by generously donating to various charities. **Shirley Temple** continued to charm audiences, her films ranking number-one at the box office in 1935 (as well as in 1936, 1937, and 1938). The year 1935 would also be the last for Long and Schultz–both would be assassinated. (Wikipedia)

* * *

Titlemania

Lacking the strictures of Old World caste systems, Americans have had an anxious relationship with class signifiers. In a land where trade schools become universities overnight and their faculty members refer to one another as “doctor,” there is much confusion and hand-wringing in the honorifics trade. H.L. Mencken examined the proliferation of titles in his country, freely handed out without regard to merit. Excerpts:

* * *

From Our Advertisers

The back of the book was where one could find advertisements for upscale urban living, including these two touting the advantages of the Hotel Pierre and The Barbizon…

…In a joint venture with a group of Wall Street financiers, the former busboy-turned restauranteur Charles Pierre opened the Hotel Pierre in 1930—not the most auspicious time to open a luxury hotel as markets continued to collapse…the Pierre went into bankruptcy in 1932 and was later purchased by oilman J. Paul Getty…the legendary Barbizon Hotel for Women, completed in 1927, was designed as a safe and respectable haven for women seeking to pursue careers in New York, especially in the arts, and would host numerous famous women through the 1970s…

At left, the Barbizon in 1927; right, the Hotel Pierre circa 1930. (loc.gov)

…like the tobacco companies, brewers targeted women as a growth market for a product mostly associated with men…

…the makers of juices, meanwhile, created comic strips to promote their products…College Inn still went negative with their ads—recall the violent outbursts of the Duchess…

…here a spiteful husband blames his wife’s choice of tomato juice for his lack of success with the boss…Libby’s, on the other hand, promoted their pineapple juice as a surefire cure for a young woman’s ennui…

…notable in these somewhat thin, late summer issues is the lack of full-color ads…this was on the back inside cover…

…Flit and Dr. Seuss continued to be a weekly presence…

…which brings us to our cartoonists, and a spot drawing by Constantin Alajalov…

…also a modest spot by Robert Day, keeping us cool with this polar bear…

…Alain offered a short course in art appreciation…

…George Price ran afoul of the fire code…

…Carl Rose ran his tracks across this two-page spread…

…William Steig gave us the small fry’s perspective on the world’s wonders…

…a rare appearance of baseball in the magazine, thanks to Robert Day...

…Richard Decker brought a modern world challenge to one filling station…

…A sailor’s return to bachelorhood required a new paint job, per Alan Dunn…

…and who else but Charles Addams would circle vultures over an amusement park?…

…and we close with Al Frueh, and a Union Club member not concerned with a dress code…

Next Time: The Din and Bustle…

A Double-Header

Heading into the dog days of summer we take a look at the last two issues of July 1935, both somewhat scant in editorial content but still offering up fascinating glimpses of Manhattan life ninety years ago.

July 20, 1935 cover by William Crawford Galbraith. He contributed seven covers and 151 cartoons to the magazine.

That includes the observations of theatre critic Wolcott Gibbs and film critic John Mosher, both escaping the summer heat to take in some very different forms of entertainment.

Gibbs found himself “fifty dizzy stories above Forty-second Street” in the Chanin Building’s auditorium, where he experienced New York’s take on Le Théâtre du Grand-Guignol. Founded in Paris by Oscar Méténier in 1897, Grand Guignol featured realistic shows that enacted, in gory detail, the horrific existence of the disadvantaged and working classes. It seems audiences were drawn to the shows more out of prurient interest (or sadistic pleasure) than for any desire to help the underclasses.

NOT FOR THE FAINT OF HEART…**Wolcott Gibbs** recommended the Grand-Guignol only for those who “admire a frank, uncomplicated approach to the slaughterhouse and the operating table.” (Image: Wikipedia)

PRETTY HORRORS…Clockwise from top left, the original Théâtre du Grand-Guignol, in the Pigalle district of Paris–it operated from 1897 until 1962, specializing in horror theatre; a poster from one of its productions; New York’s Chanin building, circa 1930s; the Chanin’s auditorium “fifty dizzy stories above 42nd Street”; fake blood applied to an actress’ neck before a scene from *The Hussy*; **Wolcott Gibbs** described a madhouse scene from **André de Lorde’s** *The Old Women,* which depicted the fury of ancient inmates performing “optical surgery” on a young woman. (*thegrandguignol.com/Wikipedia/NYPL/props.eric-hart.com)*

* * *

Popeye to the Rescue

With the Hays Code in effect you wouldn’t see anything like the Grand-Guignol on the silver screen. Indeed, with the exception of a Popeye cartoon, critic John Mosher found little to get excited about at the movies. He did, however, enjoy the air conditioning that offered a break from the hot city streets.

THEY ALL COULD HAVE USED SOME SPINACH…Clockwise, from top left, **Popeye** and **Bluto** strike an unlikely partnership in *Dizzy Divers;* **Bette Davis** and George Brent in *Front Page Woman;* **Will Rogers** and Billie Burke in *Doubting Thomas;* **James Blakeley** and **Ida Lupino** in *Paris in Spring.* (brothersink.com / rottentomatoes.com / cometoverhollywood.com / classiccartooncorner.substack.com)

* * *

From Our Advertisers

Just a few ads from this issue, first, a jolly appeal from one of the magazine’s newer advertisers, the makers of the French apertif Dubonnet…

…by contrast, this quaint slice of Americana from Nash…

…and a shot of pesticide from Dr. Seuss…

…our cartoonists include Constantin Alajalov, contributing this bit of spot art to the opening pages…

…Barbara Shermund explored the world of hypnotic suggestion…

…Peter Arno prepared to address the nation…

…William Steig checked the weather forecast…

…Helen Hokinson’s girls questioned the burden of a lei…

…Carl Rose found himself on opposite sides of the page in this unusual layout…

…Richard Decker joined the crowd in a lighthouse rendering…

…Ned Hilton reminds us that it was unusual for women to wear trousers ninety years ago…

…Mary Petty examined the complications of marital discord…

…and Charles Addams shone a blue light on a YMCA lecture…

…on to July 27, 1935, with a terrific summertime cover by William Steig…

July 27, 1935 cover by **William Steig,** one of his 117 covers for the magazine.

E.B. White (in “Notes and Comment”) was ahead of his time in suggesting that the city needed to build “bicycle paths paralleling motor highways” and invest in more pedestrian pathways.

NEW YORK’S FINEST…**Doris Kopsky,** who trained in Central Park, won the first Amateur Bicycle League of America Women’s Championship in 1937. Bicycle races were a big draw in the 1930s. (crca.net)

* * *

Breaking News

“The Talk of the Town” checked in on the New York Times’ “electric bulletin,” commonly known as “The Zipper.” Excerpt:

* * *

Dog Knots

“Talk” also took a look backstage at the Winter Garden, where burlesque performers shared the stage with a contortionist dog called “Red Dust.” Excerpt:

WOOF…Famed animal trainer **Robert “Bob” Williams** with one of his pupils. The dog in the photo is misidentified as Red Dust (he was actually a Malemute/chow mix).

* * *

Suddenly Famous

Charles Butterworth (1896-1946) earned a law degree from Notre Dame before becoming a newspaper reporter. But his life would take on a new twist in 1926 when he delivered his comical “Rotary Club Talk” at J.P. McEvoy’s Americana revue in 1926. Hollywood would come calling in the 1930s, and his doleful-looking, deadpan characters would become familiar to movie audiences through a string of films in the thirties and forties. Alva Johnston profiled Butterworth in the July 27 issue. Here are brief excerpts:

**Charles Butterworth** (left) and Jimmy Durante in *Student Tour* (1934). A bit of trivia: Butterworth’s distinctive voice was the inspiration for the Cap’n Crunch commercials voiced by **Daws Butler** beginning in the early 1960s. Butterworth’s life was cut short in 1946 when he crashed his imported roadster into a lamppost on Sunset Boulevard. (Detail from film still via IMDB)

* * *

Noisy Neighborhood

The “Vienna Letter” (written by “F.S.”–possibly Frank Sullivan) noted the rumblings of fascism in a grand old European city known for its many cultural delights as well as its many factions that included Nazis, Socialists and Communists (and no doubt a few Royalists). An excerpt:

CALM BEFORE THE STORM…Vienna in 1935, less than three years before the Anschluss, when Nazi Germany annexed Austria. (meisterdrucke.us)

* * *

Ex Machina

The Pulitzer Prize-winning poet and author Stephen Vincent Benét (1898-1943) penned this poem for The New Yorker that is somewhat appropriate to our own age and our fears of the rise of A.I. In “Nightmare Number Three,” Benét described a dystopian world where machines have revolted against humans.

BOTH CLASSY AND FOLKSY is how some today describe **Stephen Vincent Benét**, who in 1928 wrote a book-length narrative poem of the American Civil War, *John Brown’s Body,* for which he received the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry. He was also know for such short stories as *The Devil and Daniel Webster,* published in 1936. (mypoeticside.com)

* * *

From Our Advertisers

We begin with more extraordinary claims from R.J. Reynolds, who convinced a lot of folks that drawing smoke into your lungs actually improved your athletic stamina…

…the makers of Lucky Strike, on the other hand, stuck with images of nature and romance to suggest the joys of inhaling tar and nicotine…

…General Tire took a cue from Goodyear, suggesting that an investment in their “Blowout-Proof Tires” was an investment in the very lives of a person’s loved ones (even though they apparently drove to the beach without seatbelts or even a windshield)…

…another colorful advertisement from the makers of White Rock, who wisely tied their product to ardent spirits as liquor consumption continued to rebound from Prohibition…

…I toss this in for the lovely rendering on behalf of Saks…it looks like the work of illustrator Carl “Eric” Erickson, but he had many imitators…

…we do, however, know the identity of this artist, and his drawings on behalf of the pesticide Flit, which apparently in those days of innocence was thought appropriate for use around infants…

…great spot drawing in the opening pages…I should know the signature but it escapes me at the moment…

…James Thurber quoted Blaise Pascal for this tender moment ( “The heart has its reasons, of which reason knows nothing”)…

…Peter Arno illustrated the horrors of finding one’s grandmother out of context…

…Helen Hokinson’s girls employed a malaprop to besmirch the good name of an innocent mountain…

…Richard Decker discovered the missing link(s) with two archeologists…

…Alan Dunn narrowly averted a surprise greeting…

…George Price added a new twist to a billiards match…

…Price again, at the corner newstand…

…Al Frueh bit off more than he could chew…

…and we close with Barbara Shermund, and a prattling mooch…

Next Time: La Marseillaise…

A Return to Coney

Above: Coney Island "freak" show, summer of 1935. (seeoldnyc.com)

It has been about a year since we’ve visited Coney Island, and with summer upon us (and upon 1935 New York) let’s have a look at “The Talk of the Town” and see the latest attractions.

June 15, 1935 cover by Garrett Price. Price (1897–1979) illustrated 100 covers for the magazine.

**Garrett Price’s** first *New Yorker* cover, “Heat Wave,” Aug. 1, 1925.

This lengthy “Talk” entry (excerpted), attributed to Clifford Orr, noted that much was unchanged, including the “mustard-laden breezes.” The place was noisier, however, with carnival barkers increasing their range through loudspeakers.

THE HIGH AND LOWS of society were on display in various attractions at Coney Island. Clockwise from top left, gawkers gather at Coney Island freak show, which included the “Armadillo Boy,” August 5, 1935; strollers near the Virginia Reel and Wonder Wheel, circa 1935; Borden’s frozen custard stand, 1930s; couple have a nap on the beach, circa 1935. (seeoldnyc.com)

LINEUP…Beauty contests near the Steeplechase, like this one in 1935, were a common sight at Coney Island. (seeoldnyc.com)

LIKE MOTHS TO THE FLAME, the dazzling lights drew thousands to Coney Island’s Luna Park in the 1930s. (seeoldnyc.com)

THEY LOOK LIKE…ANTS…Aerial view of the beach in 1935. The Steeplechase ride is at the top left. (seeoldnyc.com)

* * *

Ship Ahoy

E.B. White (in “Notes and Comment”) mentioned that he danced aboard the newly arrived S.S. Normandie (presumably with Katharine White) while it was docked at Pier 88.

GROOVY…**E.B. White** noted the “luminous grooves” of the S.S. *Normandie’s* theatre. (drivingfordeco.com)

JUGGERNAUT…The S.S. *Normandie* docked at New York’s Pier 88 after completing her maiden voyage on June 3, 1935. Note the paint chipped from the hull, the result of the ship’s record-breaking speed. (yesterdaystrails.wordpress.com)

* * *

Another Freak Show

Theatre critic Wolcott Gibbs found Earl Carroll’s latest stage production to be nothing more than a “vulgar assortment of comedians, jugglers, and performing dogs,” accompanied by “very lovely and disarming” young ladies who chanted their lines “in high childish voices.” One skit apparently featured Abe Lincoln with “fifty-six young ladies in cellophane hoopskirts.” Too bad no one filmed that performance.

HOLDING IT TOGETHER…Gibbs noted that comedian **Ken Murray** carried most of the show’s comedy (Murray had found success on the New York stage after appearing in Carroll’s *Vanities* on Broadway in 1935); **Sibyl Bowen** was known for her impersonations of famous women. In *Sketchbook* she portrayed Martha Washington, among others. (eBay/entertainment.ie)

* * *

Weathering the Field

Like the recent 2025 U.S. Open at Oakmont (won by J.J. Spaun), ninety years ago Oakmont was also plagued by bad weather, and it also featured a tournament winner who outplayed the top golfers in the field. Excerpt:

WHY NOT ME?…**Sam Parks Jr.** (left) was considered an unlikely winner of the 1935 U.S. Open after competing with Hall of Famers at Oakmont. A 25-year-old club pro from Pittsburgh who played on the winter tour without ever winning, he bested a field that included **Walter Hagen, Gene Sarazen, Denny Shute** and **Horton Smith**. His secret? For months leading up to the U.S. Open, Parks played nine holes at Oakmont every morning before going to work at nearby South Hills Country Club. He knew the course like the back of his hand. (progolfweekly.com)

* * *

Straight From the Headlines

Film critic John Mosher noted how the storylines in latest “G-men” pictures seemed to be taken directly from the daily papers. Public Hero Number 1 was no exception.

THE GOOD GUYS…from left, **Chester Morris, Lionel Barrymore** and Jean Arthur in *Public Hero Number 1.* One effect of the Hays Code was to replace gangster films—which some believed glorified criminals—with films that depicted the dedication and courage of law enforcement officers. (Rotten Tomatoes)

Mosher suggested moviegoers would get more pleasure out of Public Hero Number 1 than from Our Little Girl, which seems an unfair comparison since gunplay was rare in a Shirley Temple flick.

NO GUNS, JUST SOME SCARY CLOWNS…**Joel McCrea** and Shirley Temple in *Our Little Girl.* (csfd.sk/film)

* * *

Speaking Brooklynese

The June 15 issue featured Thomas Wolfe’s classic short story, “Only the Dead Know Brooklyn.” Written entirely in “Brooklynese” dialect, the simple plot features four men standing on a subway platform arguing about how to get to “Bensonhoist.” The story (seemingly told to the author himself) recalls the existential themes of Wolfe’s contemporary, the Irish writer Samuel Beckett. Here is an excerpt, the second paragraph of the story:

So like I say, I’m waitin’ for my train t’ come when I sees dis big guy standin’ deh—dis is duh foist I eveh see of him. Well, he’s lookin’ wild, y’know, an’ I can see dat he’s had plenty, but still he’s holdin’ it; he talks good an’ is walkin’ straight enough. So den, dis big guy steps up to a little guy dat’s standin’ deh, an’ says, “How d’yuh get t’ Eighteent’ Avenoo an’ Sixty-sevent’ Street?” he says.

GONE TOO SOON…Portrait of Thomas Wolfe taken by **Carl Van Vechten** in 1937. He died the next year, eighteen days before his 38th birthday. (Library of Congress)

* * *

From Our Advertisers

We begin with this two-page spread—what readers of the June 15 issue would have seen after turning the cover page…

…the inside cover ad was part of an ongoing series of spots for Old Gold cigarettes illustrated by pin-up artist George Petty…almost all of the ads featured a fat, homely man (possibly a sugar daddy) mooning over a leggy blonde who relieves the tedium by reaching for an oversized cigarette…

…the ad on the facing page couldn’t be more different, except for the fact the woman is smoking, suggesting, of course, sophistication when paired with the latest fashions from Bergdorf Goodman…

…on the back cover we find these swells enjoying a belt at the horse races…

…while on the back cover, Camel gathered together all of its recent society endorsers for another round of shilling for R. J. Reynolds…

…swells and society women were the only persons (along with celebrities) who could afford to take this early version of a “red eye” to L.A. or San Francisco…it was not all that cushy, however…airliners were loud, cold, and not pressurized, so they flew at low altitudes and were often bounced about by the weather. The Boeing 247 also required several stops for refueling…

‘OL SPEEDY…This Boeing 247 was featured in the above ad. One of the first all-metal airliners, the 247 was considered revolutionary when introduced in 1933—United Airlines boasted that it cruised at speeds of three miles per minute and carried ten passengers across the country in twenty hours, cutting eight hours from previous travel times. Seven refueling stops included Cleveland, Chicago, Omaha, Cheyenne and Salt Lake City. (Wikipedia)

WATCH YOUR STEP…Interior of the Boeing 247. Note that the main wing ran through the cabin, so persons moving down the aisle had to step over it. (Library of Congress)

…we learn a lot about a 1930s New Yorker reader by looking at the advertisements…it doubtful the magazine had many truly upper-class readers—the barbarians were content to flip through a copy of Town & Country or similar undemanding fare…what we do have are striving “smart set” readers, some with the means to buy a luxury automobile, fly cross-country, or cruise on the Normandie, all things one would desire as a member of upper-middle class or even the educated bourgeoisie in the middle…this Campbell’s soup ad is for the latter…the upper-middles would sniff at canned soup, while the barbarians would probably eat whatever was set in front of them, since talking about food would be considered vulgar…

…Pabst Blue Ribbon beer has been around since 1844…in the 20th century it was increasingly associated with the working class and rednecks until the brand caught on with urban hipsters in the early 2000s…

…in the May 25, 1935 issue we saw an ad promoting Walter Hagen’s “Honey Boy” golf balls, which contained real honey in their cores…the folks at MacGregor’s had a different idea—they inserted a pellet of dry ice into the center of their golf balls…what will they think of next?…

…we move on to our cartoonists, beginning with a James Thurber spot…

…and continuing with another Thurber classic…

…Robert Day took a lunch break in the opening pages…

…Alan Dunn felt charitable while relaxing in Westchester…

…Mary Petty gave us a wedding guest that would not be out of place today…the caption reads, “Home, Prince!”…

…Helen Hokinson went hog-wild in the garden…

…Barbara Shermund looked in on the idle thoughts of the idle rich…

…and we close where we began, with Daniel Brustlein aka Alain at Coney Island…

Next Time: Thackeray, In Color…

Not a Square Deal

Above: Postcard image of Washington Square Park, circa 1930. (citybeautifulblog.com)

New Yorkers know all about change, and especially during the 1920s and 30s when the city razed everything from Dutch settler houses to the Gilded Age mansions of Fifth Avenue. Landmarks such as the old Waldorf-Astoria were leveled to make way for the Empire State Building, while several blocks—22 acres of residential and commercial buildings—were scraped clean for Rockefeller Center.

June 8, 1935 cover by **Harry Brown.** This June bride-themed cover was Brown’s fourteenth of the eighteen covers he would create for *The New Yorker.*

Some things, like Washington Square, were still held dear by city residents. But very little was sacred to the city’s new park commissioner, Robert Moses, who had no problem leveling whole neighborhoods if they stood in way of a road or some other ambitious project.

It all seemed well at first when Moses called for the repair of neglected parks, including Washington Square. However, when changes to the park were revealed by the Villager, residents were outraged. Moses’ plan, designed by landscape architect Gilmore Clarke, was a complete reversal of the park’s existing design. In “Notes and Comment,” E.B. White explained:

Village residents organized a “Save Washington Square” committee and successfully blocked Moses from implementing his plan; in true Moses style, he responded by allowing the park to deteriorate.

MAKE NO LITTLE PLANS…Clockwise, from top left, Parks Commissioner **Robert Moses**; proposal to add colonnades to either side of the arch; landscape architect **Gilmore Clarke;** Clarke’s plan for the redesign. (Wikipedia/washingtonsqpark.org)

Moses, however, didn’t give up on Washington Square. Around 1940 he began floating the idea of building a double highway through the park. Local residents again rallied, joining business owners and NYU officials in blocking the audacious scheme.

White continued on the theme of city planning, calling on Moses this time to figure out a better plan for sidewalk cafés.

AL FRESCO…Postcard images of sidewalk cafés at 24 Fifth Avenue (top) and 23rd and Lexington, circa 1935. (picryl.com)

Additional note: The magazine’s June 15, 1935 issue featured Lois Long’s criticisms of sidewalk cafés in Manhattan:

Long did offer, however, a couple of recommendations for sidewalk dining, including the Breevort in Greenwich Village…

If you really wanted to eat outside, **Lois Long** suggested the Breevort in Greenwich Village. (New York Public Library)

…and the St. Moritz’s Café de la Paix at 50 Central Park South…

The St. Moritz’s Café de la Paix in the 1940s. (blog.bondbrand.com)

* * *

Sexily Danced the Burlesques

New Yorker writers loved to take shots at Henry Luce, publisher of Time and Fortune. Wolcott Gibbs famously satirized Time’s writing style in a parody profile in 1936: “Backward ran sentences until reeled the mind.” When Fortune decided to take a look behind the curtain at a burlesque show (February 1935), “The Talk of the Town” was ready to pounce.

The Fortune piece featured oil paintings by Stuyvesant Van Veen, including this one depicting the Proscenium at the Irving Place…

…Van Veen got behind the curtain to create this painting (below) of “Burlesque Queens,” and the magazine chastely demonstrated the “cycle of the strip act” with the help of Miss Jean Lee, aka Miss Jess Mack…

The New Yorker also took a sideways glance at Fortune’s stuffy approach to the subject of striptease, suggesting that it was much ado about nothing.

IT’S ALL AN ACT, FELLAS…**Gypsy Rose Lee** in 1943. (nypl.org)

* * *

Futures and Fascists

Before the days of television and the Internet, a world’s fair was the place to go to see the latest technologies and other attractions from countries around the world. Paris correspondent Janet Flanner filed a special report on the Brussels International Exposition of 1935, which attracted 20 million visitors in a little over six months.

EURO SPECTACLE…Clockwise, from top left, the menacing facade of the Italian Pavilion—its interior walls featured frescoes of marching fascists; the *Palais des Expositions* (*Grand Palais*) still stands today as the Brussels Exhibition Centre; an early demonstration of television; the U.S. featured an “Indian Village” at the Expo. (fomo.be/Wikimedia/en.worldsfairs.info)

* * *

Matchbox Cars

The New Yorker regularly checked the automobile competition from overseas, and found a tiny German car to be “perfectly amazing,” even if it didn’t go over so well with consumers.

IT’S CUTE, BUT…Due to its extreme unbalance of the Mercedes-Benz 130 H (two-thirds of the mass, including the engine, was on the rear axle), the car apparently was awkward to handle. It was discontinued in 1936. (automobile-catalog.com)

* * *

From Our Advertisers

Anyway, most Americans preferred bigger cars, especially ones by luxury makers such as Lincoln, if they could afford them…

…Lincoln’s parent company, Ford, offered up a more affordable convertible with some flair of its own…automakers were fond of the marriage theme in advertisements, especially in the month of June…

…automakers and related industries were important advertisers during The New Yorker’s first years…

…indeed, the back cover of Issue #1 (Feb. 21, 1925) featured this ad from the United States Rubber Company, promoting its U.S. Royal Cord Balloon Tires…

…another faithful advertiser in the magazine’s first decade was the Bermuda Trade Development Board…

…this ad for Four Roses whiskey recalled “the glamorous days” (ahem) before the Civil War…

…and this colorful ad from World Peaceways reminded readers there was nothing to celebrate about wars…these ads pulled no punches (read the first few lines)…

…”most interesting country in the world today!” proclaimed this ad inviting tourists to the Soviet Union…during 1934-35 Joseph Stalin was ruthlessly purging the Party, and local leaders across the country were being annihilated…of the 2.3 million people who had been party members in 1935, just under half were executed or perished in labor camps…this fact probably wasn’t mentioned in the travel folder…

…the Webster Cigar Company hired Otto Soglow to create an ad doubtless based on the popularity of “The Little King,” but this isn’t the diminutive monarch…