It Takes Weeks to Make a Gage and a Split Second to Wreck It
A cartoon machinist in green overalls sits on a bench and sweeps his hand across it, knocking a precision gage onto the floor where it shatters. Large black and red lettering gives the weeks-versus-seconds contrast. The technique is faint here: the closest is a mild fear-appeal about loss of work and war materiel through carelessness.
Propaganda techniques used in this poster
- Date
- 1941
- Period
- Second World War
- Made by
- Artist Gene Mark; issuer not printed
- Region
- North America
- Country
- United States
- Medium
- Poster
- Issuer type
- Mixed
- Regime
- Roosevelt Administration
- Leader
- Franklin D. Roosevelt
- Audience
- Domestic public
- Purpose
- Mobilize or secure compliance
- Themes
- Labor, Home front
- Event
- World War II
- Regime
- Roosevelt administration
- Leader
- Franklin D. Roosevelt
- Source
- Identified Openly sourced: the speaker is who they say they are
- Source
- U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, Record Group 44, World War II Posters, retrieved October 4, 2026
- Rights
- Public domain (U.S. government work)
Artist Gene Mark; issuer not printed. National Archives and Records Administration, RG 44, 44-PA-1116 (NAID 514643).
Text on the object
It Takes Weeks To Make A Gage And A Split Second To Wreck It [signature:] Gene Mark [small print on the drawn gage:] [illegible]
