Freaks!?!
Exploited or the Exploiters?
Francisco "Frank" Lentini
This is a term paper I wrote for the class detailing the lives of some "human oddities" and those
involved with them, and asks the question, "Were the "Freaks" exploited, or did they exploit
others' fascination with their physical attributes?"
Here's a subject heading guide, in case you don't want to read the whole thing all at once:
- The opening, of course.
- More definition of the term "Freak".
- P. T. Barnum's involvement with the evolution of the "Freak Show".
- Mentally retarded children who were celebrated as the missing link.
- Siamese twin beauties who grew up virtual slaves, blossomed into stardom, then faded into obscurity.
- One of the most popular and successful dwarves of the Barnum era.
- Handicapped people who weren't.
- Conclusion; 'nuff said.
Prodigies. Abnormalities. Human oddities. Freaks.
For centuries, there have been those few humans who, through some flaw in a gene or other birth
defect, are born outside of the undefined, yet recognizable boundaries of "normal". Mentally
and/or physically, they are different from those around them. Some are taller than normal; some are
smaller than normal. Some are physically joined to a twin sibling. Some have missing or
disproportionate body parts. Others are merely mentally slow. Sadly, those of our species who are
found to be outside the borders of normality in appearance and action are frequently stared at,
studied, exhibited, exploited, and most often, feared.
There is little doubt that they have been often exploited throughout history. In the middle ages, they
were seen as "prodigies", signs of God's displeasure and/or dominion over the earth, and were
thus exploited by religious zealots. Later, they were scientific curiosities, probed, prodded, and
dissected for further study. However, during the period of 1840-1920 they dominated the stage
and were seen as entertainers. Many modern advocates of humanity will say that they were
displayed and exploited solely for monetary gain. It is true that they were exploited for monetary
gain, but who was doing the exploiting; the men who managed these "freaks'" careers on the
stage, or the freaks themselves? From the stages of P. T. Barnum's American Museum to the
venues of vaudeville, who exactly controlled not only the careers, but the very lives of the freaks in
question? Did they exert their own free will with their occupation, or did fate place them onto the
sideshow stage with no alternative. Those that willfully played the sideshow, were they exploiting
the average person's desire to view the abnormal, or were they exploiting themselves on the stage
to earn wealth and fame?
To view them was considered perverse, and in an era of undulating values and revolution
(primarily the industrial), their presence was most appreciated. Men such as the renowned Phineas
Taylor Barnum searched (or rather "hunted") through the entire world (and often the west side of
New Jersey) to find these incredible human oddities. They were pinheads, such as "Zip, the What
Is IT?" and the "Ancient Aztec Children"; they were the Hilton Sisters, Violet and Daisy,
siamese-twin vaudeville performers and movie stars; they were "General" Tom Thumb, the
midget, and his equally proportioned wife; they were Carl Unthan, the German "Armless Fiddler"
who played the violin with his toes. Some were virtual slaves, working the sideshow for years and
making money only for others, never seeing a dime; some managed their own careers on the stage
quite well, becoming very wealthy and distinguished (yet still isolated) among society. They
exhibited their bodies and talents for the masses in traveling circuses, vaudeville shows, and
special museums, and the masses paid to stare in disbelief, horror, and awe. Doctors authenticated
their condition, mayors and governors endorsed their presence, and queens presented them with
honors and gifts.
However, there are those who would argue that the sideshow freaks were little more than
prostitutes or predecessors to the exotic dancer. And under nearly all considerations, this is true.
Both sideshow freaks and prostitutes use their bodies and the fascination of others with said bodies
for monetary gain. The freaks would often parade or dance across a stage, much like an exotic
dancer. The difference is that the moral biblical law of chastity is not broken in the freak's
performance, thus it was not held in as much contempt during this time period.
P. T. Barnum, considered to be America's greatest showman, is also regarded to be the man
responsible for the freak show movement in the United States. In 1841, Barnum, with the help of
his charisma and investor Francis Olmstead, purchased the American Museum from John Scudder
(P. T. Barnum 1995, 34). After receiving the museum, Barnum advertised massively throughout
New York City , promoting the world's strangest and most exotic curiosities. Barnum had to have
the world's largest elephants, the most talented musicians, and of course, the strangest freaks.
To be a freak for Barnum's museum was to reach the top. That was not to say, however, that the
American Museum was the grandest venue to perform at. Unless a freak was the star attraction for
the week, the performances were held in small booths wherein the freaks would demonstrate their
specialty for whomever wished to watch. However, the money was good. Millions of people
patronized the museums each year, and each one paid their quarter (thus both the rich and poor
were generally able to afford admission). Barnum became wealthy nearly overnight, and so did
those he employed. Many showmen attempted to clone Barnum's enterprise, but none had
Barnum's sense of showmanship or advertising, so none were ever truly successful. However, it
is through these copies of Barnum's show that the freak show spread, and hundreds of freaks
were drafted or signed up for their share of the audience's money.
Of course, Barnum would have never been so successful in selling his oddities if there was no
audience for them. During this time period, there was a revolution occurring. The industrial
revolution was pulling the agrarian citizens into the cities to work in factories. The roles of family
and community were replaced by the factory, business, and government. Organizations held power
during this time. The larger the organization, the greater the power, and the more attention was
received by the public. When Barnum pulled freaks into his American Museum, he pulled them
into an organization. The freaks began to get more attention from the public because now they were
organized and sold in bulk. The smaller shows which could only pitch one or two freaks were
doomed, whereas a large show, such as Barnum's, would succeed (Freak Show 1988, 10).
Also contributing to the success of the freak was their oddity. In the modern world people were
entering through this revolution, everything was earning a classification. Animals were receiving
scientific names, through which they were grouped by characteristic. Business was grouped in
orders, from the factory to the wholesaler to the retailer. People were recog nized as Polish,
Indian, Chinese, Japanese, German, and many more dependant on their country of origin.
However, people were still unable to classify the freaks, except for using the phrase "Freak".
Through the efforts of Barnum, there did come a set of general classifications: fat people (ladies
especially), dwarves and giants, bearded ladies, siamese-twins, armless- and legless wonders, and
pinheads. The creation of these general classifications for freaks mainstreamed the freak-show just
enough to get the public attention, and then display for the public an entirely new order of human,
one which was not to be seen in everyday life.
As stated earlier, many freaks signed their contracts and displayed themselves willfully, while
others were sold or drafted by their parents or guardians into the freak show. Those who had no
choice in the matter were generally mentally retarded or very young; in either case, they were
unable to completely comprehend what would happen to them. However, those who chose to
flaunt their oddity used it solely for monetary gain, exploiting the public fascination for the
unusual, and generally would attempt to retire quietly after they had received enough money.
The most exploited of the freaks were actually the least freakish in appearance. They usually were
well formed in body, and the only disfigurement was usually in the shape of their heads, common
for the types of disorders they had. "Pinheads", as they were nick-named, were individuals who
suffered from microcephaly or some other mental retardation. Microcephalics were especially
popular with showmen because their heads were generally cone-shaped, thus giving them a
non-human appearance. They were promoted as "Darwin's missing link" or the surviving children
of a lost civilization (i.e. The Ancient Aztec Children, the Wild Men of Borneo).
The first and most popular of the pinheads was Zip, the "What Is It?" (fig. 2). Born William Henry
Johnson in a small town in New Jersey in the 1840's, he was drafted by Barnum into the
American Museum in 1860. There, Barnum asked people, "What is it?", mentioning that "it" could
be a lower form of man or a higher form of ape. The promotion of Johnson came three months
following the publishing of Darwin's Origin of the Species, another brilliant showmanship
campaign, since in that three-months time many people would have been able to read the book and
tell their friends about it. Barnum only had to advertise that his museum held "the missing link",
and the masses again paid their money (Barnum, 149). Later known as "Zip", Johnson was one of
Barnum's most popular attractions, remaining with the museum, and later circus, until his death in
1926. His performances were rather plain. He stood erect in a cage, much like what an ape would
be kept in, and wore a fur suit, heightening the appearance of a missing-link. Sometimes he would
use tools, and through his mental deficiency this appeared awkward for him, promoting his
sub-humanism. Other times he would dance, and thus the audience assumed he had been tamed
and trained.
Other popular attractions were the pinhead children. Barnum's first set were the "Ancient Aztec
Children" (Barnum, 151; Freak Show, 129). Not much is known about the boy and girl, except
that Barnum procured them in about 1849. In a pamphlet "recording" their lives, the story goes that
the two were found in an ancient Aztec temple, and were being worshiped as Gods by the local
peoples. The story, of course, was absolutely false, but it fascinated victorian Americans who
were just now learning about the cultures of other lands and were especially intrigued with their
southern neighbors. The Aztec children performed dressed in tunics decorated with sun rays and
sun faces, and would dance around and speak "the lost Aztec tongue", or gibberish.
Another popular pair of pinheads were the "Wild Men of Borneo" (Freak Show, 121-7). They
were a pair of twin midgets who suffered from mental retardation. Discovered by Lyman Warner
in 1852 and purchased from their mother at age 26, they performed for whichever show would
present them. Often they performed in Barnum's show, and it was Barnum who taught them their
base routine for a show. Their strength was incredible, and often during performanc es they would
each hold a member of the audience in the air, using only their arms. They would speak "in their
native tongue", also gibberish, but would also recite poems in English which they had been taught.
They would perform acrobatics and dances. When Lyman Warner died, he willed the pair to his
son, Hanford; when Hanford died, the pair were willed, again, to his son Henry. Thus, the "Wild
Men" remained in show business for nearly 50 years until their deaths.
It can be said that it is fortunate that these examples were all mentally retarded, and it must be
wondered if they ever realized the indignity they suffered on the stage. Often, their managers
would keep the lion's share of their wages, and would give them enough to make them happy. So,
the nature of their lives, led on stage and in the world as sub-human, had little-or-no impact on
them, because they were unable to discern what was happening. Perhaps it was cruel, but most
sources agree that the pinheads enjoyed performing, and their managers protected their investments
from harsh and abusive people. Thus, through their ignorant bliss, the pinheads enjoyed their lives
while others profited from them.
Violet and Daisy Hilton were conjoined twins joined at the buttocks born to a barmaid, Kate
Skinner, out of wedlock in the English town of Brighton on February 5, 1908. The bones of their
lower spine were joined and they shared a common blood and nervous system. Thus, it was
impossible to separate them at the time and nearly as difficult to separate them mentally. Daisy was
able to feel the sensations that Violet would feel. In time, they were able to block the sensations of
each other and became separate individuals.
Their poor mother could not afford to keep the children, so she sold them to Mary Hilton, a
midwife, when they were two weeks old. Hilton had the girls call her "Auntie", and had but one
interest in them-- the potential to make money. They learned to read, write, and sing when they
were very young, and at the age of three were traveling with circuses, and later learned to play
music. They learned to dance from a fellow amateur, American Bob Hope, and were (unknown to
Auntie) friends with Harry Houdini, who would cheer the girls up with simple magic tricks and
pep talks. Auntie hoarded all of the girls earnings and kept any and all money away from the girls,
and never allowed them to associate with others, all in order to prevent her investments from
running away. Upon Auntie's death, the girls were willed to Edith, Auntie's daughter, and their
slavery continued.
At age 17, the girls were headlining large vaudeville productions. Their performances would
consist of musical performances and dancing. The audience was rarely interested in the twins
musical talent, but rather by the fact that it was a pair of siamese twins performing. The girls were,
of course, also beginning to grow up. They began to notice that men would look at them and seem
interested in them despite their condition. However, their guardians would never allow them to
speak to anyone. They were kept as girls, performed without make-up, made to dress alike, and
wear their hair in the styles of young girls. Finally, a critic complained that the sisters appeared too
childish on stage, and Edith allowed them to appear more grown up.
At age 23, the girls were named as correspondents in a divorce suit. Mrs. William Oliver had stated
in her divorce suit that the girls had been involved in an adulterous relationship with her husband,
an advertiser who had promoted the twins. Never for a moment left alone by their guardians, it
would have been impossible for the girls to have had a relationship with Mr. Oliver. When Edith's
husband took the girls to see a lawyer, Martin J. Arnold, Arnold could tell that the girls were
holding back something in front of their guardian, and he asked the gentleman to leave. Finally the
girls were able to speak of their slavery. Shortly after, they were taken to a hotel signed for by the
lawyer while arrangements were made for them to sue their former guardians for their money and
freedom.
They went on to become movie stars in Tod Browning's film, Freaks , and starred in another film
named Chained for Life . At the peak of their career, they were said to be earning $5000 a week.
Unfortunately, their lives began to fall apart shortly after their second film. They retired from show
business, and little is known about their later lives. It is believed they opened a fruit stand in
Florida in 1960. In January, 1969, the girls were employed at a North Carolina supermarket.
When they failed to report for work for three days, the police were called and the sisters were
found in their apartment, dead from complications of the flu. They were unmarried and had no
known children. (Freak Show, 166-73; Very Special People, 99-109)
Charles Sherwood Stratton was discovered by Barnum in November of 1842. While staying in
Bridgeport, Connecticut, a hotel owned by his half-brother, Barnum recalled having heard of a
rather small child who lived in the area. After inquiring into the matter, young Stratton and his
parents were brought to the hotel, and within the hour, a hasty contract was drawn up hiring the
25-inch, 15-pound four-year-old. (Barnum, 48).
The Strattons traveled with Barnum to New York and were provided with rooms at the American
Museum. Charles name was changed, permanently, to General Tom Thumb. Barnum himself
educated the child, first in reading, writing, and arithmetic, and then showmanship, dancing, and
acting. Many of Thumb's performances consisted of him dressing in historical costumes and
performing a role for the audience's amusement. Sometimes, he would be the French Emperor
Napoleon; other times he would dress in a white, skin-tight suit and with a club become the
Biblical Cane. These various characters of Thumb were often photographed and were highly
successful sales. In January 1844, Barnum decided to try his luck in Europe, and brought Tom as
the main attraction. He appeared numerous times for English audiences, who always erupted with
whimsical applause when he would done the guise of Napoleon. Thumb made two command
appearances before Queen Victoria, and Barnum often would subtly brag about his charge and in a
letter challenged any "American to appear who has visited the queen at her palace twice within eight
days." (Barnum, 56) The pair went on to tour France, Italy, Greece, and the rest of Europe. When
Barnum returned, he presented a more sophisticated and educated Gen. Tom Thumb for the
fascinated American audiences. However, Thumb's fame soon began to fail, and while he was
always employed with Barnum, he began to lose his sparkle to the audience.
Then, in 1863, on February 10, Tom Thumb married fellow midget Livinia Warren. Warren had
been previously romanced by Commodore Nutt, another Barnum midget, but when Barnum
noticed Thumb's growing interest in Livinia, he ordered Nutt to stay out of the way. Nutt was not
to be refused, and disobeyed Barnum's order. This, however, heightened the media frenzy about
the romance, because Nutt would often criticize Thumb on stage, and Thumb would do likewise.
Eventually, Thumb proposed, and Lavinia accepted. Barnum advertised the wedding throughout
the country, and the pair were always presented together on stage. Livinia's tiny wedding dress
was on display for all to see form the street, and Barnum hyped the wedding as a "NOW OR
NEVER" event. Few were personally invited to the ceremony, but the reception was open to the
public (for a small price, of course). Although President Lincoln was invited, he was unable to
attend, being busy with the Civil War, but invited Tom to the White House, and the Thumbs added
Washington to their honeymoon tour (Barnum, 165-71).
Thumb retired on his earnings and led a peaceful, quite life. He was well aware of how Barnum
had used him to become rich; however, Barnum had shared the wealth with Thumb, and when he
retired he was quite wealthy. He returned to Barnum every so often, and made a couple of world
tours, but for the most part he lived out his days happily with his wife.
German born Carl Unthang led a quite normal life. He dressed and undressed himself, ate with
utensils, he could swim, and he played the violin. He did all of these actions, incidentally, without
the use of any upper appendages. Born without arms, he was raised by a stern, yet loving father
who was determined to have a normal son. To promote Carl's normalcy, Herr Unthan made three
family rules regarding Carl. First, no one was to ever show pity for the boy. His father wanted a
proud, noble son; not a boy who cried for himself all day. Second, no one was to put shoes or
socks on his feet. This was to endorse Carl's use of his feet as hands. Third, the boy was to be
given absolute freedom; the family was to allow him to do whatever he wanted, so long as it was
not mischievous or hazardous.
Under the protection of his father's words, Carl explored his world and learned to do those things
which other children did. He learned the violin and toured as a musician with Johann Strauss.
Discovering that people were coming to observe his feet rather than his musical talent, he first left
Strauss's orchestra for a solo career, and then began to add aspects of his daily life into his
performances. He would pour a drink for himself, shuffle cards and do card tricks, and other
normally mundane tasks, and finish with playing the violin. His popularity flourished and he
earned millions of marks for his performances. He starred in the German film, The Armless Man,
and his swimming ability was exploited in a scene in which he saved a woman from drowning.
During World War I, he joined the German army and gave lectures to amputees in hospitals, often
criticizing those who would complain about the loss of a limb.
In his later years, Unthan wrote his autobiography, Das Pediskript--The Pediscript. He then retired
into wealthy obscurity (Very Special People, 119).
The dilemma of whether freaks were being exploited or were rather exploiting the public interest is
an extremely complex one. Of course showmen such as P. T. Barnum used the freaks in shows to
draw the large crowds and take their money. However, many freaks led happy lives on the stage,
and often became wealthy from their careers in the sideshow. When looking at these biographies
and seeing how the majority of managers provided a better life for the freak than could have been
obtained otherwise, it can be seen that actually the team of showmen and freaks exploited the
public fascination for the unique and monstrous, and used this uniqueness and monstrosity to
attract massive audiences with lots of money. Thus, it was the freaks, with the aid of their
managers, who exploited the side-show going public.
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