“WARNING—Do not risk federal arrest by looking glum!”: Ballyhoo Magazine and the Cultural Politics of Early 1930s Humor

Abstract

In August 1931, a surprising new humor magazine burst onto the American scene. Edited by veteran comic artist and writer Norman Anthony, the breezily irreverent Ballyhoo sold out its initial printing of 150,000 copies almost overnight. Purportedly produced by the fictional Zilch family (led by patriarch Elmer Zilch), Ballyhoo consisted of cartoons and of hilarious burlesques of the overblown claims of advertisements. Although the most important histories of American advertising mention Ballyhoo's existence, none offers any detailed analysis of the magazine's comic strategies or any explanation of its popular appeal (Marchand 312-14, Lears 240). In what follows, I will argue that Ballyhoo consistently emphasized three major themes that had considerable appeal audiences in the early years of the Great Depression and helped shape popular consciousness in very particular ways. First, by offering pointed critiques of the emerging consumer culture, these parodie ads relentlessly exposed the techniques used by advertisers, presenting them as invariably fraudulent and designed dupe unwary shoppers into purchasing useless, unnecessary, and even dangerous products. Second, the magazine parodied the mass circulation newspapers and periodicals in which these deceptive ads appeared, in ways that suggested that the press had sacrificed journalistic integrity and their important role in democracy in favor of a sensationalism and overt bias that produced quick profits. Finally, Ballyhoo combined these barbed assessments of mass culture with equally scathing attacks on the businessmen and politicians who had led the nation into the Depression, equating the deceptive claims of advertisers with the political pronouncements of Herbert Hoover and his wealthy allies. These satirical jibes at business and political leaders soon developed into a more general and class-conscious critique of the dominance of wealthy people and their values in American culture and political life. Like much other comic popular culture of the early 1930s, Ballyhoo thus helped organize popular common sense, discrediting the probusiness ideologies of the 1920s and affirming a less materialistic, more civic-minded and egalitarian vision of citizenship. The widespread appeal of this alternative view of American culture and politics is suggested in the fact that by its sixth issue, Ballyhoo's press run had risen nearly two million copies (Sloane 26). The new magazine was edited by Norman Anthony, who had begun his career as a freelance cartoonist, but who soon joined the staff oi Judge, a humor magazine aimed at a relatively highbrow audience. Anthony thought Judge's humor dull and old-fashioned, and in 1923 he persuaded the editor let him put out an issue burlesquing advertisements. This was such a success that he was appointed editor, and he changed the magazine dramatically, adding many more cartoons, new novelty humor sections, and features about various urban entertainments. He also created parodies of well-known magazines like the Saturday Evening Post, which would, along with the advertising issue, become the model for Ballyhoo. In less than a year, he had raised weekly circulation from 30,000 100,000 copies (Anthony 38-65). Anthony's success led his being offered the editorship of Life, Judge's main competition in the humor magazine field, in 1928. Again, Anthony shook up a stodgy highbrow journal, changing layouts, adding many more cartoons, and launching overtly political campaigns against Prohibition and on other current issues. Again, his innovations quickly increased circulationfrom 40,000 100,000 copies a week- but advertisers were unhappy with the changes. Anthony later recounted that he was instructed by the owner, Gibson Girl creator Charles Dana Gibson, to stop worrying about boosting the newsstand sales, and just concentrate on getting out a nice conservative magazine that would please the advertisers! (Anthony 93-100). …