His Master's Voice

Walter J. Enright's cartoon depicts a large elephant wearing a green blanket labeled "10" being led by a small figure in red—a visual gag playing on size disproportion and obedience. An American flag waves overhead while a phonograph sits nearby, the title referencing the famous recording company slogan. By 1912, the Sunday newspaper comic page had become America's primary visual storytelling medium. Artists like Enright developed the visual language that defined comics: outlined figures, speech balloons, sequential composition, and exaggerated character types. This single-panel cartoon exemplifies the era's style—bold linework, limited color palette, and reliance on recognizable symbols and visual humor rather than dialogue.