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Chan and Eng
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The Morbidly Fascinating Page

The Morbidly Fascinating Page

THIS MONTH'S SUBJECT: THE CIRCUS SIDESHOWS OF THE LATE 1800s AND EARLY 1900s

Exhibit

No Arms 1 No Arms 2

Four Legs Bearded Lady

Turned backwards

Extra legs Short legs

Penguin girl Pinhead

Male skin problem female skin problem

Living Wonders bld

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

IN THE ARCHIVES:

The Real Amityville Horror
The Elephant Man
Permanent Halloween Costumes
Sleeping Beauty II
Shrunken Heads
Famous Deaths
Lizzie Borden
Black Dahlia
Autopsy

The Circus Sideshows of the late 1800s and early 1900s

Freak shows were popular in the United States from around 1840 to the 1970's, and were often associated with circuses and carnivals. Some shows also exhibited deformed animals (such as two-headed cows, one-eyed pigs, and four-horned goats) and famous hoaxes, or simply "nature gone wrong" exhibits (such as deformed babies).

Changes in popular culture and entertainment led to the decline of the freak show as a form entertainment. As previously mysterious anomalies were scientifically explained as genetic mutations or diseases, freaks became the objects of sympathy rather than fear or disdain.

Today, many retired circus human oddties live in Gibsonton Florida HERE

Gibtown

One of the better known movies showing human oddities was Tod Browning's Freaks, filmed in 1932. Director Browning took the exceptional step of casting real people with deformities as the eponymous sideshow "freaks," rather than using costumes and makeup.

Poster1

Poster 2

Lobster Boy

Siamese Twins

Dog Faced Boy

No Legs

Bone Man

No arms or legs