Isn't It Always The Way? is one of the countless precursors to Hatlo's They'll Do It Every Time, in which each episode shows a hapless boob's plans going awry. This particular one appeared as a weekday strip in the New York Evening World from August 4 to November 2 1908*. It represents the only continuing title ever created, as far as I know, by a fellow who was bylined as H.A. Sohl. Sohl created a few one-shot cartoons for the World, but that's as far as I can track him down. It's too bad because although his work is a little rough around the edges, he definitely had the prized "drawing funny" gene.
It's probably just my base imagination, but in the top sample are we seeing a steno gal in the universal cartoon pose of getting dressed after, well, you know? And in the last panel it seems wifie is also out philandering in a most frank way? Either I have a dirty mind, or an editor was really asleep at the wheel letting this one into the paper.
* Source: New York Evening World
There's a clock showing 5, so she's getting ready to leave. The odd identifying label of "stenographer" suggests an editor had an imagination similar to yours.
ReplyDeleteThe cartoonist does seem to find huge hats amusing. The last strip has a little side gag of a guy leaning away from an outsized chapeau. And the final panel again offers a young lady putting on a hat of scale. Reminded of the "School Days" panels where the pretty teacher not only affected huge hats, but a hairstyle that incorporated walking sticks.