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For other uses of this word, see Freakshow (disambiguation).
Coney Island and its popular on-going freak show.
Coney Island and its popular on-going freak show. Coney Island is a Peninsula, formerly an island in southernmost Brooklyn, New York City, USA with a Beach on the Atlantic Ocean

A freak show is an exhibition of rarities, "freaks of nature" — such as unusually tall or short humans, and people with both male and female secondary sexual characteristics — and performances that are expected to be shocking to the viewers. Intersexuality is the state of a living thing of a gonochoristic species whose Sex chromosomes, Genitalia, and/or Secondary sex characteristics Heavily tattooed or pierced people have sometimes been seen in freak shows, as have fire-eating and sword-swallowing acts. A tattoo is a permanent marking made by inserting ink into the layers of Skin to change the pigment for decorative or other reasons Body piercing is the practice of puncturing or cutting a part of the Human body, creating an opening in which jewelry may be worn A fire eater is an Entertainer, often a Street artist or part of a Sideshow. Sword swallowing is a Performance art, in which the performer inserts a Sword into his or her Mouth and down the Esophagus towards the Stomach

Contents

History

Freak shows were popular in the United States from around 1840 to 1940,and were often, but not always, associated with circuses and carnivals. A circus is most commonly a traveling company of performers that may include acrobats, Clowns trained animals trapeze acts Hoopers, tightrope walkers Carnival is a festival season which occurs immediately before Lent; the main events are usually during February and March Some shows also exhibited deformed animals (such as two-headed cows, one-eyed pigs, and four-horned goats and famous hoaxes, or simply "science gone wrong" exhibits (such as deformed babies).

A freak show in Rutland, Vermont in 1941.
A freak show in Rutland, Vermont in 1941.

Advances in medicine and political changes all but sounded the death knell for the freak show. Medicine is the art and science of healing It encompasses a range of Health care practices evolved to maintain and restore Human Health by the As previously mysterious anomalies were scientifically explained as genetic mutations or diseases, freaks became the objects of pity rather than fear or disdain. In biology mutations are changes to the Nucleotide sequence of the Genetic material of an organism A disease is an abnormal condition of an organism that impairs bodily functions and can be deadly The eugenics movement saw human anomalies as unfortunate mistakes of nature. Eugenics is a social Philosophy which advocates the improvement of Human Hereditary traits through various forms of intervention In 1937, Germany passed a law outlawing freak shows, decrying them as exploitation (this however made it legal for the [pro-eugenics] Nazis to arrest freak show acts and experiment on them). Year 1937 ( MCMXXXVII) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. Nazism, which was a short name for National Socialism (Nationalsozialismus refers primarily to the Ideology and practices of the National Socialist German

Thus the term "freak show" has become archaic and widely seen as pejorative; shows such as Jim Rose Circus sideshow, and those at Coney Island are more accurately termed sideshows. Words and phrases are pejorative if they imply disapproval or contempt The original Jim Rose Circus is a modern-day version of a circus Sideshow. Coney Island is a Peninsula, formerly an island in southernmost Brooklyn, New York City, USA with a Beach on the Atlantic Ocean In America a sideshow is an extra secondary production associated with a circus, carnival fair or other such attraction However, Cut Throat Freak Show still uses the term, as do many other self proclaimed freak and sideshow performers. Cut Throat Freak Show is a Side show performance group founded in the late 1990s by Jeremy Kinison and Anna Kinison In America a sideshow is an extra secondary production associated with a circus, carnival fair or other such attraction The only show that still uses the term "freak" to mean real living human oddities is the 999 Eyes.

Today, freak shows are outlawed in a number of U. S. states. For example, Michigan law forbids the "exhibition [of] any deformed human being or human monstrosity, except as used for scientific purposes". [1]

Today

Freak shows are extremely rare today, often reduced to museum displays containing newspaper clippings, photographs, statues, and other memorabilia of the freak shows of earlier times, such as the 1890s-1950s. A museum is a "permanent institution in the service of society and of its development open to the public which acquires conserves researches communicates and exhibits the

An authentic freak show began traveling the USA in 2005 with born living human oddities and medical anomalies is the 999 Eyes of Endless Dream Carnival Museum & Sideshow. This show features people born with medical anomalies such as the Black Scorpion aka Lobster Bro, Jackie the Half Girl, Peg Leg the Modern-Day Elephant Man, Lobster Girl, and the Dame Demure Madame Miniature along with a museum that includes pickled punks and many items from John Strong's collection, including Patches a stuffed two-headed calf. Pickled punks is the Carny term for human Fetuses preserved in jars of Formaldehyde and used as Sideshow attractions Polycephaly is a condition of having more than one head The term is derived from the stems poly- meaning 'many' and kephal- meaning "head" [2]

Ken Harck's Bros. Grim Sideshow also tours with a combination of human oddities and working acts.

Although widely referred to as freaks, a distinction must be made between self-made freaks and born freaks. Generally, the most extreme examples of self-made freaks are referred to as "Human Marvels". Katzen, The Enigma, The Lizardman and both the Scottish and Texan Leopard men are all human marvels. Katzen the Tiger Lady is the Stage name of a heavily modified female Performance artist and Tattoo artist, whose The Enigma, born Paul Lawrence, is a Sideshow performer actor and Musician, who has undergone extensive Body modification, including horn Erik Sprague (born June 12, 1972, Fort Campbell KY) better known as The Lizardman, is a Freak show and Sideshow performer best

With the rise of the Internet, the freak show mentality has been given a new lease on life as sites such as rotten.com arose, allowing people to gaze at "freakish" abnormalities that would not have been seen during the television era due to ideas about aesthetic taste. The Internet is a global system of interconnected Computer networks Rottencom is a United States -hosted Shock site with a slogan of "An archive of disturbing illustration" operated by Soylent Communications. Television ( TV) is a widely used Telecommunication medium for sending ( Broadcasting) and receiving moving Images, either monochromatic Taste in the general sense is the same as Preference. Taste is also a sociological concept in that it is not just personal but subject to Social pressures

A historical timeline of the freak show

The exhibition of human oddities can be seen as far back as recorded history.

1630s
Lazarus Colloredo, and his parasitic twin brother, John Baptista, who was attached at Lazarus' sternum, tour Europe. [3]
1704–1718
Peter the Great collects human oddities at the Kunstkammer in what in now St. The Kunstkammer or Kunstkamera was the first museum in Russia. Petersburg, Russia. [4]
1738
The exhibition of an exhibit who "was taken in a wook at Guinea; 'tis a female about four feet high in every part like a woman excepting her head which nearly resembles the ape. " [5]
Late 18th century
The science of teratology changed the belief that freaks were evil omens and the work of Satan or witches. Teratology stems from the Greek ( Genitive) meaning monster, or marvel and, meaning word, speech. Instead, people believed the theory that freaks were part of God's great order of creatures.
1829
Chang and Eng, “the original Siamese twins,” were exhibited in America. Conjoined twins are whose bodies are joined in utero A rare phenomenon the occurrence is estimated to range from 1 in 50000 births to 1 in 200000 births with a somewhat higher incidence
1839
J. G. Milligan writes “curiosities of medical experiments” in which freaks are described.
1844
P. T. Barnum arrives in London to exhibit Tom Thumb, the famous midget. Phineas Taylor Barnum (July 5 1810 &ndash April 7 1891 was an American Showman remembered for Hoaxes and for founding the Circus that became the For the similarly named governor of New Jersey see Charles C Stratton.
1860
Hiram and Barney Davis are presented as Wild Men of Borneo. Waino and Plutano, the Wild Men of Borneo, were a pair of exceptionally strong Midget brothers who were most famously associated with P The guide book for Barnum American museum list 13 human curiosities. Zip the Pinhead begins his six-decade career with Barnum. Zip the Pinhead, born William Henry Johnson (1842/1843 in Liberty Corner New Jersey – April 9, 1926 in New York City,
1863
Barnum uses his brilliant showman skills to get the civil war and emancipation proclamation pushed off the front pages and replaced by a midget wedding.
1870-1890
Dime museums are at the height of their popularity, with the freakshow as the main attraction. Dime Museums were institutions that were briefly popular at the end of the 19th century in the United States.
1876
Wild men of Borneo, wild Australian children, man-eating fiji mermaids, and the 602lb woman are exhibited at the first World’s Fair in Philadelphia. A Fiji mermaid (also Feejee mermaid) was a common feature of Sideshows During the Renaissance and the Baroque eras it was a staple of Expo (short for "exposition" and also known as World Fair and World's Fair) is the name given to various large public exhibitions held since the
1880
First freakshow at Coney Island. Coney Island is a Peninsula, formerly an island in southernmost Brooklyn, New York City, USA with a Beach on the Atlantic Ocean
1884
Freak recruiting becomes a career and full time occupation.
1889
British medical journal describes Myrtle Corbin, the "four-legged girl," and verifies that both sets of reproductive organs as workable and capable of birthing children. Josephene Myrtle Corbin (1868 in Cleburne Texas - May 6, 1928) was born a Dipygus, meaning that she had two separate Pelvises side
1890
The Jones twins, Siamese twins joined at buttocks and sharing a rectum die on carnival tour at fifteen months old.
Late 19th century
The theory that freaks are biological throwbacks to earlier races of humans and apes is introduced. The theory of maternal impression attributes traumatic or significant events experienced by the pregnant woman as an explanation for deformities. The conception of a maternal impression rests on the belief that a powerful mental influence working on the mother’s mind may produce an impression either general or definite on
Early 20th century
The resurgence of Mendel’s law of genetics coupled with Darwin's Origin of Species introduced the idea that freaks could "taint the gene pool". Gregor Johann Mendel ( July 20, 1822 &ndash January 6, 1884) was Charles Robert Darwin (February 12 1809 &ndash April 19 1882 was an English naturalist, who realised and demonstrated that all Species of life Charles Darwin 's On the Origin of Species (published 24 November 1859) is a seminal work in Scientific literature and arguably the
1904
Silbey devises the "Ten-In-One" show and creates jobs for talkers. In America a sideshow is an extra secondary production associated with a circus, carnival fair or other such attraction
1908
An article in Scientific American introduces concept of freak exhibitions being inhumane and barbaric. Scientific American is a Popular science magazine, published (first weekly and later monthly since August 28, 1845, making it
1915
San Francisco exposition includes a midget village and dime museum freakshow.
1922
Professor Sam Wagner starts the World's Circus freak show at Coney Island. General public can read articles in popular press explaining the diseases behind oddities.
1925
Freaks can be seen performing on the vaudeville stage. Vaudeville was a Genre of variety entertainment prevalent on the stage in the United States and Canada, from the early 1880s
1932
Tod Browning's Pre-Code-era film Freaks tells the story of a traveling freakshow. Tod Browning ( July 12, 1880 &ndash October 6, 1962) was an American motion picture Actor, director Pre-Code films were created before the Motion Picture Production Code or Hays Code - censorship guidelines - took effect on 1 July 1934 in the United An era is a commonly used word for long period of time When used in science for example geology eras denote clearly defined periods of time of arbitrary but well defined Freaks is a 1932 Horror film about Sideshow performers directed and produced by Tod Browning with a cast mostly composed of The use of real freaks in the film provoked public outcries and was widely unsuccessful until its re-release at the 1962 Cannes Film Festival. The Cannes Film Festival (le Festival de Cannes founded in 1946 is one of the world's oldest most influential and prestigious Film festivals alongside Venice, [6]
1933
Chicago Expo features a pit show with a "live two-headed baby" in a jar of formaldehyde. A Century of Progress International Exposition was the name of a World's Fair held in Chicago, Illinois from 1933 to 1934 to celebrate
Late 1930s
The switch in social view of those with physical or mental anomalies from fabulous freaks and curiosities to diseased people with disorders was complete.
1940
Freakshow is on the ropes and the dime museum essentially dead. The three-legged man, Frank Lentini, opens a freakshow. Francesco Lentini ( 1889 - 22 September 1966) was born at Rosolini near Syracuse, Sicily into a family of twelve children
1950
Historical sideshow died as public demands freaks be given "dignity" and not exhibited, at this time many went into institutions or on the welfare system.
1952
The "Human Torso" is still on exhibit.
1960
Albert-Alberta Karas[7] (two siblings, each half man, half woman) exhibits with Bobby Reynolds on sideshow tour.
1969
John Strong purchases Patches the two headed cow for $150 begins his freak animal show. )
1972
At north fair Sealo and the dwarf Pete Terhune confront charges against them for exhibiting themselves. The charges equated freakshows with pornography
1980s
Bobby Reynolds is arrested for exhibiting pickled punks. Pickled punks is the Carny term for human Fetuses preserved in jars of Formaldehyde and used as Sideshow attractions
1983
Coney Island USA, founded by Dick D. Zigun, opens Sideshows by the Seashore, starting a sideshow revival in Coney Island.
1984
Freak show performer Otis Jordan (the frog boy) is barred from exhibiting himself at the New York State Fair on the basis that the exhibition of human oddities is exploitative. Barbara Baskin, a "disability rights activist," led this fight and Otis was out of a job for two years before he beat the case and could perform again.
1992
Grady Stiles (the lobster boy) is shot in his home in Gibsonton, Florida. Grady Franklin Stiles Jr ( June 26, 1937 - November 29, 1992) was a Freak show performer Gibsonton is an unincorporated Census-designated place in Hillsborough County, Florida, United States. [8]
1996
Chicago shock-jock Mancow Muller presented Mancow's Freak Show at the United Center in the Summer of 1996, to crowd of 30,000. The show included Kathy Stiles and her brother Grady III as the Lobster Twins. {Mancow Muller (with John Calkins) Dad, Dames, Demons & a Dwarf Regan Books 2004 pp. 121, 137-147}
1998
The Brazilian TV show "Ratinho Livre", whose main performer was Carlos "Ratinho" Massa became a kind of freak show, exhibiting mainly children with serious physical anomalies, such as hundreds of facial tumors (Eleandro, the Elephant Boy), tails, amputations, et cetera. Later, near 2000, the Brazilian justice prohibited such appearances on TV shows.
2000–2008
Ken Harck's Brothers Grim Sideshow debuted at the Great Circus Parade in Milwaukee, WI in the summer of 2000. The Milwaukee run included a fat lady and bearded lady Melinda Maxi, as well as self made freaks The Enigma and Katzen. In later years the show has included Half-boy Jesse Stitcher and Chuey the Mexican Werewolf Boy. Bros. Grim toured with the Ozz Fest music festival in 2006 and 2007. [9]
2005
Ward Hall begins his sideshow, exhibiting "born freaks. "
A "lobster boy".
A "lobster boy".
2005–2008
The 999 Eyes of Endless Dream Carnival Museum & Sideshow takes modern-day freaks on tours. [2]

In media

See also

References

  1. ^ Michigan Penal Code (Excerpt), Act 328 of 1931: Section 750.347, Deformed human beings; exhibition.
  2. ^ a b 999 Eyes of Endless Dream Carnival Museum & Sideshow
  3. ^ Armand Marie LeRoi, Mutants, Penguin Books, pp. 53.
  4. ^ The History of Kunstkammer
  5. ^ Bogdan, R. (1988). Freak Show. Chicago and London: The University of Chicago Press. pp. 25.
  6. ^ Missing Link reviews Tod Browning's Freaks (1932)
  7. ^ Albert-Alberta Karas, photographer unknown, Syracuse University Digital Library, retrieved May 6, 2006.
  8. ^ Grady Stiles, Jr. at the Internet Movie Database
  9. ^ Chicago Reader: Wanna See Something Really Weird?

External links

Dictionary

freak show

-noun

  1. An exhibition of people with unusual characteristics
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