(Cover page, Resimli Gazete or “The Illustrated Gazette,” 11 August 1928, no. 258, page 1.)
Türkçe
(Üstte)
Sıcaklarda dans etmeyiniz… belki siz de hararetten fenalaşarak bayılırsınız.
(Altta)
Sıcak havada dans etmek sıhhata muzırdır. Onun için dans daima kış modasıdır. Böyle olmasına rağmen bazı heveskarlar vakitli vakitsiz dans etmekten çekinmiyorlar ve herkesin terlediği bu zamanlarda tepinmekten bir zevk duyuyorlar. Geçenlerde Bükreş dans[?]larından birinde dans eden çiftlerden birisi evvela bayılmış ve vaktinde yetişilemediği için diyar-ı ademi boylamıştır. Cesedi muayene eden doktorlar genç kadının sıcaktan bayıldığını ve tepinmenin de mevti intaç ettiğini bildirmiştirlerdir.
English
(Above)
Do not dance in the heat… you, too, may feel faint and pass out.
(Below)
Dancing in hot weather is harmful for one’s health. That is why dancing is always a winter trend. Despite this fact some enthusiasts are not hesitating to dance regardless of time and they take pleasure in kicking and stamping around during this time when everybody is sweating. The other day in one of Bucharest’s dance [?] one of the dancing couples first fainted and then died because help did not arrive in time. The doctors who performed the autopsy say that the young woman died from overheating and that kicking and stomping around leads to death.
Comments:
Much like today’s magazines, the cover pages Turkish journals in the 1920s was its main channel for advertising to the reader. As such, covers often include captivating images that relate to the current events that affect or concern their target audience. In the case of Resimli Gazete’s 11 August 1928 issue, we are confronted with a woman in a red dress falling out of the arms of a visibly surprised man. The couple is located in a dance hall, surrounded by other dance-enthusiasts and a live orchestra in the upper right corner. Pairs on either side of the collapsing woman have momentarily stopped dancing to watch as the woman in red bites the dust. Upon witnessing the whole scene at its climax, the reader becomes compelled to seek out information about the scene: who is this woman, what has overcome her, and is she alright?
The text above and below the image provide information about the eye-catching illustration. As expected, it reflects two very current concerns for August 1928—a time of great heat as well as exhausting dances. Indeed, according to the magazine, this is a dangerous combination of forces with deadly consequences. The text warns readers who may be considering dancing in such sweltering heat to control their urge to dance. The magazine is not against dancing, it is simply against hazardous or reckless dancing. And as with most news, it only takes one unfortunate young lady in Romania to suffer a heat stroke while dancing for news of this cautionary tale to traverse international borders…
(Cover page, Resimli Gazete or “The Illustrated Gazette,” 11 August 1928, no. 258, page 1. Hakkı Tarık Us Collection, Beyazit Library, Istanbul.)
This article has been updated and modified from its first iteration published right here on Steemit on 11 August 2017. For the original version see:
103. Today in 1920s Turkey: 11 August 1928 (Summer Dancing Can Lead to Death)