In this cartoon we can see that the subject is an obvious parody of a stage play where Stalin is nervously peaking behind the Iron Curtain. Churchill and Truman sit in the balcony while the other Western Democracies are seated behind the orchestra. The sign on the placard reads Item 1, the 3 Blockade Lifters. This cartoon was quite obviously made at the time of the Berlin blockade. The orchestra is ready and waiting for Stalin to begin the show and to enter his own demands for lifting the Berlin blockade. One of the things that this cartoon does well is to highlight the drama of the blockade and Stalin’s own performance. The blockade was a political, diplomatic stunt more than a legitimate plan of action and Stalin had no specific plan for
