1922 – Page 8 – Old Magazine Articles

Japan’s Rebellion Against Western Fashions
(Current Opinion Magazine, 1922)

Contrary to the headline written above, this interesting article does not simply discuss the (temporary) Japanese rejection of European and American clothing in the Twenties but also touches upon earlier days when Western styles were fully embraced by the nobility of that country.

There is in Japan a growing revolt against European clothing…The Japanese have endured agonies in their efforts to get our hats, our trousers, our corsets…

Japan’s Rebellion Against Western Fashions
(Current Opinion Magazine, 1922)

There is in Japan a growing revolt against European clothing…The Japanese have endured agonies in their efforts to get our hats, our trousers, our corsets…

Mark Twain’s Unkind Portrait of Bret Harte
(Current Opinion, 1922)

Nasty adjectives fly in this nifty essay concerning the friendship that soured between American writers Mark Twain (1835 – 1910) and Bret Harte (1836 – 1902). The two men were quite close during their younger days as journalists in San Francisco; in 1877 the bond between them was so strong that the two agreed to collaborate on a play, which they titled, Ah, Sin. However, Twain insisted that it was notoriety that killed his friend and it might have been better …if Harte had died in the first flush of his fame:

There was a happy Bret Harte, a contented Bret Harte, an ambitious Bret Harte, a bright, cheerful, easy-laughing Bret Harte to whom it was a bubbling effervescent joy to be alive. That Bret Harte died in San Francisco. It was the corpse of that Bret Harte that swept in splendor across the continent…

Social Jottings from Newport
(Vanity Fair, 1922)

Here is a mock society page that sought to belittle all the goings on among the sweet young things at Newport during the season of 1922. The article was illustrated by Clara Tice (Art Director of The Masses).

A large and fashionably dressed group of Newport’s ‘creme de la creme’ were observed on burning sands. Mixed bathing was indulged in…Many succulent bits of gossip and spicey rumor have been overheard in the ladies annex during the noon dressing hour and right merry time was had by all.

Social Jottings from Newport
(Vanity Fair, 1922)

Is There an American Art?
(Current Opinion, 1922)

Prior to the establishment of the New York School in the 1940s, there has always been a popular belief among Europeans (and a few Americans) that the art produced in the U.S. was purely derivative and lacked true originality in conception and style. In the attached article from the early Twenties, some of these Europeans and Americans step forward and identify themselves while continuing to crack wise on the topic; however, the editors of ART NEWS will not suffer this abuse and they return fire offering plenty of evidence to the contrary.

Reviewed: ‘The Garden Party and Other Stories’
(Life Magazine, 1922)

The Life Magazine review of The Garden Party and Other Stories
by the New Zealand writer Katherine Mansfield (1888 – 1923) is attached here for your enjoyment. Mansfield lived a short but productive life before tuberculosis got the best of her in 1923. This was one of any number of favorable reviews that she enjoyed in her lifetime and she is today often considered one of the best short story writers of her period.

Reviewed: ‘The Garden Party and Other Stories’
(Life Magazine, 1922)

A Review of ”Beautiful and the Damned”
(The Independent, 1922)

One of the first reviews of F. Scott Fitzgerald‘s second novel, The Beautiful and Damned
(1922). The reviewer was impressed:

The Beautiful and the Damned is a real story, but a story greatly damaged by wit.

British Palestine Thrives
(Current Opinion, 1922)

As early as 1922, the British Foreign Office could recognize the economic promise of Israel. This article sums up a report on British Palestine submitted to the British Government by High Commissioner Sir Herbert Samuel concerning the Jewish population growth to the region, as well as the establishment of schools and businesses.

It is especially interesting as reflecting the development of Palestine as the future home of the Jewish race. The High Commissioner points out that the country, if properly developed, ought to experience a future far more prosperous than it enjoyed before the war.