136. Today in 1920s Turkey: 18 January 1923 (An Enthusiast of Antiquities)
(Cartoon by Ramiz, Akbaba or *Vulture/White-Bearded Old Man,” 18 January 1923, no. 13, page 2.)
Türkçe:
(Üstte)
Gönül bu ya...
(Altta)
Kadın: O kadar dikkatli ne bakıyorsun?..
Erkek: Eser-i atika meraklısıyım...
English:
(Above)
This is the heart...
(Below)
Woman: What are you staring at?
Man: I am an enthusiast of antiquities...
Comments:
Female-male courtship and relationship woes figure so prominently in the cartoons of the 1920s press in Turkey that this kind of content could be considered a stand-alone genre within the medium. Although many cartoons feature fashionably dressed, attractive young men and women occasionally the cartoonist will explore unorthodox types for their humorous potential. In the case of the present cartoon we are exposed to the playfully off-putting pick-up line directed from a man to a woman. While comparing the woman to an “antique” may seem to be cruel at first glance, in reality both parties appear to be somewhat advanced in age… certainly, perhaps too old to be flirting or looking for new love… But who is to say romance has an age?
Thematically, age connects this cartoon to a second cartoon featured on the same page. As fate would have it, last year’s Today in 1920s Turkey considered the other cartoon from this same page in post #53: Old Folks and Old Photos. Sometimes the journals or their cartoonists will stick to a certain theme for an issue or a single page and that is certainly the case with these two cartoons (see the full-page image below).
(Entire page, Akbaba or *Vulture/White-Bearded Old Man,” 18 January 1923, no. 13, page 2. Atatürk Library, Istanbul.)
(Comments continued)
For another example of multiple cartoons sharing a single theme in a single issue of a magazine see post #112: Heart-Break Seamstress in Three Takes. Examples of other cartoons about love and advanced age in particular can be viewed in posts #71: Spring Flowers or Autumn Blossoms? and #129: Youth Serum+Love= Warm Winters. And of course, examples of the romance and relationship-related cartoons abound in the archives of Today in 1920s Turkey. The following is a list of representatives from this funny and frisky genre:
#46: Santa: Deliverer of Gifts AND Love Letters?
#69: The Young and the Restless
#79: Frisky Fact: Double Entendres Are Funnier Over the Phone
This post has been modified, updated, and re-posted on 18 January 2019. Access the new edition here.