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The Internet's most comprehensive list of sword swallowers past and present
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= sword swallowing injury 
= known grave site
| NAME | PERIOD | LOCATION | BACKGROUND |
| Indian Fakirs | circa 2000 BC | (India) | Some of the earliest known references to sword swallowing were documented over four thousand years ago in India by fakirs and shaman priests who practiced the art around 2000 BC, along with fire-eating, fire-walking on hot coals, laying on cactus or a bed of nails, snake handling, and other ascetic religious practices, as demonstration of their invulnerability, power, and connection with their gods. Sword swallowing is still performed in a few parts of India today. Sword swallowers in India are known by the term "golewala" or "jolewale" or "jholewale" or "jholawalla" or "jollahwallah" or "jadoowallah" (meaning "juggler", "busker" or "street performer") or "jagudar" (meaning "magician" or "miracle worker"). Legend has it that there was said to have been a tribe of sword swallowers known as the Konda-Dora tribe in the state of Andhra Pradesh, now Telangana who would pass on the art of sword swallowing from father to son. Konda-Dora is a Dravidian language spoken in the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Assam and Orissa by about 28,000 people. The Konda-Dora are distributed in the Visakhapatnam, Vizianagaram, Srikakulam and East Godavari districts. According to the 1981 Census, their population was 141,374. They call themselves Pandava Doras or Pandava Rajas. They believe that they are the descendants of the Pandavas of the Mahabharata. Etymologically "konda" means "hill", and "dora" means "headman" or "chieftain", hence "Konda-Dora" means "hill chieftain". The Konda-Dora language, which is also known as Kubi, is closely related to the Kui language of the Khond, and has borrowed vocabulary from Oriya and Telugu. Many Konda-Dora speak Telugu as well as or instead of their native Khond.
One of the most famous of the Indian sword swallowers was Ramo Samee "The East Indian Juggler" who performed in the UK and US from 1813 to 1850. Seeking photos and more information. Indian Sword Swallowers Indian Sword Swallowers (1810 article) Indian Sword Swallowers (1822 illust) Indian Sword Swallower (1863-73) Indian Sword Swallower engraving (1878) Indian Sword Swallower (1904) Indian Sword Swallower (1910 card) South Indian Sword Swallower (1940s?) Indian Sword Swallower (1950s?) Indian Sword Swallower (1980s) Indian Sword Swallower (1980s) Sword Swallower in Jaipur, India Sword Swallower in Jaipur, India |
| Greeks and Romans | 1st centuries AD | (Greece/Italy) | From India, sword swallowing spread to China, Greece, Rome, Europe, and the rest of the world. Sword swallowing was often seen at festivals throughout the ancient Roman empire. |
| Mayan Indians | 1st centuries AD |
Yucatan Peninsula (Mexico) |
In the Popul Vuh, the Maya myths, there is mention of the two main Mayan heroes doing stilt-walking and sword-swallowing. This suggests that the time of its transmission from oral to written history would have been about 2000 years ago. |
| Papua New Guineans | ? | (Papua New Guinea) | According to a June, 1939 article in Tops Magazine, an Independent Magazine of Magic entitled "Primitive Sword Swallowing", a primitive tribe in Papua New Guinea uses a form of "vine-swallowing" in the initiation rites of teens being initiated into adulthood. "In an address on anthropology, Mr. G.W. Chinnery told of a new native tribe found in New Guinea. In an initiation ceremony, added Mr. Chinnery, the men pushed lengths of flexible cane into their throats until the cane reached their stomachs." The Matausa tribe cleanse their boys of impurity and help them gain the vitality a warrior needs by sticking two wooden canes down their throats until they vomit. Then, reeds are forced up their nostrils and their tongues are stabbed until their blood has been sufficiently purified. There was a video documentary filmed in the 1970s or 80s on this initiation rite of passage, showing many of the canes or vines being removed from the young men's throats covered in blood. It was reported that several of the initiates die each year from the perforations. Seeking photos and more information. Matausa cane swallowing |
| Germans | 410 AD |
Rome (Roman Empire) |
Swordswallowers are mentioned in 410 AD during the Teutonic fight for Rome. |
| Chinese | 750 AD | (China) |
The art and practice of sword swallowing traveled north from India into China around 750 AD. Chinese Ling Troupe 1915 Chinese Sword swallower 1915 Chinese Sword swallower Shanghai 1920s Chinese Sword swallower Shanghai 1920s Sword swallower in Shanghai Chinese Sword swallower 1927 |
| Japanese | 750 AD | (Japan) |
Sword swallowing was popular in Japan in the 8th century and was often seen as part of an acrobatic form of entertainment known as Sangaku, which also featured juggling, tightrope walking, contortion, and other related skills. This type of performance art was "street theater" and the performers traveled throughout Japan. Sangaku, like other forms of drama popular in Japan prior to the 11th century, traced its origins to southern China and India. Japanese Sword Swallower |
| Dervish Rifai Sufis | 1182 AD | (Middle East) | The Dervish Orders of the Sufis reflect the meeting of Islam and Hindu thought in the 8th century. Dervish is Persian for "beggar." Some Dervish orders wander, others beg alms, and others live in Sufi monasteries. Some are religious entertainers hired to chant the zikr dirge, and some only perform Dervish ceremonies on special occasions. Dervishes are known for working themselves into frenzies and committing great feats of strength (this is where we get the term "Whirling Dervishes"). One of the Dervish orders founded in 1182 was the order of Rifais who eat glass, walk on hot coals, and swallow swords. |
| Europe | 1200-1893 | (Europe) |
Sword swallowing spread north from Greece and Rome into Europe at the hands of medieval jongleurs and other street performers who performed in public areas. In the Middle Ages, sword swallowers, like magicians, jugglers and other entertainers, were often condemed and persecuted by the Catholic Church. Still, in most places they were popular by the common folk, and the tradition of the wandering entertainer remained strong. By the mid-17th century, performers wandered more freely and became common sights on street corners and at festivals across Europe. Sword swallowing began to die out in Europe and Scandinavia in the late 1800s, when variety shows were formally outlawed in Sweden in 1893. |
| Dr. Edward W. Stevens |
Born St. Croix, Virgin Islands ca 1755 Studied sword swallower 1777 MD at Univ of Edinburgh 1777 Died St. Croix, Sept 26 1834 |
(St. Croix, US Virgin Islands) |
It was through the good offices of a sword-swallower that the Scotch physician, Dr. Edward Stevens, was enabled to make his experiments on digestion in 1777. On September 12. 1777 Stevens graduated with his MD at the University of Edinburgh with his thesis paper in Latin "Dissertatio inauguralis de alimentorum concoctione" (1777). As part of his research, Dr. Stevens had a sword swallower swallow small metallic tubes pierced with holes. They were filled, according to Reaumer's method, with pieces of meat. After a certain length of time, he would have the sword swallower disgorge the tubes, and in this way he observed to what degree the process of digestion had taken place. It was also probably the sword-swallower who showed the physicians to what extent the pharynx could be habituated to contract, and from this resulted the invention of the tube of Faucher, the esophageal sound, lavage of the stomach, and illumination of this organ by electric light.
Stevens' father, Thomas, a prosperous merchant, was reputedly also the father of Alexander Hamilton. Nothing is known of his mother. In his youth, Stevens moved with his family to New York. He graduated A.B. from King's College (now Columbia University) in 1774; and the following year he began studies at the University of Edinburgh, enrolling in the medical school in 1776 and again in 1777. He graduated M.D. on 12 September 1777. Stevens' inaugural dissertation, "De alimentorum concoctione," (1777) presented with ingenuity and insight his experiments and observations on gastric digestion, and clearly confirmed him as the first investigator to isolate human gastric juice. It removed the confusion and contradictions presented in the doctrines of fermentation and trituration, the latter championed by Leeuwenhoek, Borelli, Pitcairn, and Pecquet, and decried by Astruc and Stephen Hales. It also repudiated such views as those of John Pringle and David Macbride. Stevens' work formed a vital bridge linking the experiments of Réaumur before him and Spallanzani and later workers after him. Réaumur had shown, in 1752, that digestion was due to the solvent power of gastric juice. Stevens confirmed this, isolated human gastric juice, and performed experiments both in vitro and in vivo in man and animals. Stevens was admitted to the Royal Medical Society (Edinburgh) on 20 January 1776, and served as its president in 1779 and 1780. In 1778 Stevens read a paper to the Royal Medical Society of Edinburgh entitled 'What Is the Cause of the Increase of Weight Which Metals Acquire During Their Calcination." A MS copy is in the library of Edinburgh University. At Edinburgh he was awarded the Harveian prize for an experimental inquiry on the red color of the blood. He returned to St. Croix about 1783 and practiced medicine there for ten years. In 1793 Stevens moved to Philadelphia. where he received public support from Alexander Hamilton and became embroiled in a controversy with Benjamin Rush over methods of treating yellow fever in the great epidemic of that year. On 18 April 1794 he was admitted to the American Philosophical Society, and the following year he was appointed professor of the practice of medicine in King's College (later Columbia University). It is probable that Stevens' presence and reputation in Philadelphia, as well as his contributions in gastric physiology, contributed to the marked interest in gastric studies that took place round the turn of the century in that city. Of these studies, that of John R. Young is best-known. He undoubtedly was familiar with Stevens' work; indeed, his experiments with bullfrogs and small frogs are reminiscent of Stevens' observations of partially digested small fish inside larger ones. Stevens was United States consul-general in Santo Domingo from 1799 to 1800. His consular dispatches to Timothy Pickering, Adams, Jefferson, and other leaders, revealing a critical, observant mind, outlined the geopolitical problems facing the United States in the Caribbean at that time. Controversy marred his political life, however, and he returned to the United States in 1801. He made appearances at the American Philosophical Society meetings in 1803 and 1804, probably returning to St. Croix shortly thereafter. Little is known of Stevens' last years. David Hosack wrote to him in St. Croix on yellow fever in 1809, and in 1823 he wrote Hosack a letter introducing his son, who had also graduated at Edinburgh.
Stevens' fundamental and sound gastric studies were confirmed by Spallanzani, who augmented and added to them in masterly fashion, assuring that from then on, gastric physiology would be a well-founded science.
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Sena Sama Senaa Samma First Sword Swallower in America |
Performed 1817-1843 |
St. John's Hall Pepin's Circus Pepin and and Breschard's Circus New York, NY (USA) |
Sena Sama (also spelled Senaa Samma) from Madras. Tamil Nadu, India was reported to be the first known sword swallower in America. An article explains, "Senaa Samma, an Indian juggler from Madras and London put on the first sword swallowing act in America in New York in November 1817". An article dated November 11, 1817 reports, "Senaa Samma appeared at St. John's Hall in New York City in a lovely exhibition of juggling and sword swallowing. Admission to see the performance was $1 for adults." Another report states that Sena Sama put on America's first sword swallowing exhibition in New York City on November 25, 1817. The newspaper account said that he swallowed "a sword manufactured by Mr. William Pye of New York as a substitute for the one lately stolen from him by some villain." Sama worked a short time with Pepin's Circus in 1818, but reports say he was already working previously in America doing theatre cabaret work. Sama is mentioned in both "Annals of the American Circus, Vol.1. 1793-1829" by Stuart Thayer and "Freak Show: Presenting Human Oddities for Amusement and Profit" by Robert Bogdan. In 1833, Sena Sama and Hamed Ben-Alla published a 71 page booklet on magic entitled "The Whole Art of Legerdemain or Hocus Pocus" published by N.C. Hafis in NY. In 1843, the book "Proceedings of the American Antiquarian Society" mentions that sword swallower Sena Sama came to New York and swallowed a sword that measured 22 inches long. Could this have been Ramo Samee or one of his troupe from Madras and London? Seeking pictures and more information. |
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Ramo Sami Ramo Same Ramo Samee Ramo Samme Ramosamee Ramaswamy Chief of the Indian Jugglers |
Born 1791 Performed 1813-49 Died August 21, 1850 Buried Sept 1, 1850
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Pall Mall Street Salem MA USA Olympic Theatre Royalty Theatre Royal Coburg Theatre Vauxhall Gardens Royal Victoria Theatre Adelphi Theatre New Strand Subscription Theatre New England Museum Boston Theatre Royal Garrick Theatre Robert Merry's Museum London England (UK) |
Ramo Samee (probably "Ramaswamy") was a 19th century East Indian juggler and magician who starred with his own juggling troupe. In fact, he is considered to be the first "modern" professional juggler, and was by far the most famous juggler of his time.
Samee was born around 1791 in East India, possibly in Madras in Tamil Nadu, and was brought to England in 1814 at around the age of 23. A certain Captain Campbell, returning to England from the Indian colony in 1814, brought a troupe of Indian magicians and performers with him and installed them in Pall Mall Street London, where they demonstrated native juggling, acrobatics, yogic postures, conjuring, and sleight of hand for an audience that was curious about the quaint customs and strange manners of India. "Coming forward and seating himself on the ground in his white dress and tightened turban," the essayist William Hazlitt commented upon seeing one such performance, "the Chief of the Indian Jugglers begins by tossing up two brass balls, which is what any of us could do, and concludes with keeping up four at the same time, which is what none of us could do to save our lives, nor if we were to take our whole lives to do it. Is it then a trifling power we see at work, or is it something next to miraculous?" ("Indian Jugglers" Table Talk). The inspiration for one of the Western world's fundamental puzzlers, the Needle Swallowing Trick, can probably be traced back to the genius of Ramo Samee. Samee was known for performing a trick he called "Stringing Beads With the Mouth", in which he "swallowed" a handful of beads and a string, then pulled the beads out of his mouth, one by one, tied to the string. Samee's troupe included Kia Khan Khruse, another Indian juggler-magician who first introduced the "Needle Swallowing Trick" to European audiences in 1818. Obviously, this was a more dangerous version of Samee's bead swallowing trick. Samee first presented the Indian needle trick to Western audiences in the 1820's, where he would swallow a hundred needles. Samee performed in England from 1814 to 1844, with successful tours of the eastern United States in 1817-1819, and again in 1834. An advertisement in the Salem Gazette of October 5, 1819, describes the "East Indian" magician and juggler Ramo Samee as having performed "for some time past in the metropolis of England, and before all the crowned heads of Europe, who have unanimously pronounced him to be the first master of the art in their dominions." Samee closed his act with a demonstration of sword swallowing. Ramo Samee had a successful run for 35 years, earning £25-£30 per week in England, while according to reports, one of his contemporary sword swallowers earned a mere £3-£4 per week. According to articles in The Times of London dated January 12th, 18th, and 29th, 1821, Ramo Samee "Chief of the Indian Jugglers" was booked at the Olympic Theatre. According to The Times of London dated January 3, 1822, Ramo Samee was booked at the Royalty Theatre in London. Samee also performed on January 15, 1822 at the Royal Coburg Theatre. In 1822, Frederick Gye employed sword swallower Ramo Samee as the "chief attraction" at the Royal Gardens Vauxhall Theatre in Kensington, one of the leading venues for public entertainment in London from the mid-17th century to the mid-19th century. Samee also performed at a benefit on February 28, 1825 at the Adelphi Theatre, in 1834-35 at the Royal Victoria Theatre in Borough, and in August 1842 at the Theatre Royal. In the 1840's Samee created a sensation at the Garrick Theatre in London by performing his feat of swallowing beads and horse hair separately and then regurgitating the former threaded upon the latter. According to an article published in Robert Merry's Museum on January 1, 1849: "The trick of swallowing a sword too (sic) feet long, or rather of thrusting it down his throat into the stomach up to the hilt, has become familiar to us by the public exhibitions of Ramo Samee and his companions, natives of India. Before the arrival in Europe of these jugglers, whose speculation, it is said, was most profitable, attempts had been made, but unsuccessfully, to induce other professors of the art to go to England for the purpose of exhibition." Ramo Samee also gets several mentions posthumously in Henry Mayhew's "London Labour and the London Poor", published from 1851 to 1862. According to London press clippings, Ramo Samee died a pauper at the age of 59 on August 21, 1850. According to an obituary in the 1850 The Gentlemen's Magazine, Volume 34: "Aug. 21. At Sidney-st. City-road, in extreme poverty, Ramo Samee, a celebrated Indian juggler. His health had received a severe shock at the death of his only son, who, in attempting to swallow a sword, did himself such injury that he died shortly afterwards. His body was interred in old St. Pancras churchyard." According to London press clippings, a plea for donations was taken up for his widow, as there was not enough money to bury or creamate him at the time of his death. "THE LATE RAMO SAMEE AND HIS WIDOW -- Sir: Your early insertion of the widow's appeal, under the above head, in last week's paper, reflects the highest credit on you, and in remembrance of the plesure I experienced in the early days at his performance, I beg to hand you 10s from ten friends, collected in the neighbourhood of High Holborn, towards alleviating the sufferings of the poor widow and family... [Surely the managers of theatres and other establishments who have derived so much advantage from the talents of the deceased, ought to contribute to lift his widow, a most respectable woman, from the severe grip of absolute poverty. Poor Ramo is to be buried today, and his funeral expenses have to be defrayed by instalments. The trifle obtained has been handed to Mrs. Samee." Ramoo Samee was buried on September 1, 1850 in St. Pancras, Middlesex, London, England. Seeking pictures and more information.
Ramo Samee Timeline
Ramo Samee Vauxhall Gardens (1822) Article on Ramo Samee Ramo Samee bio Ramo Samee New England Museum Boston (8-25-1834) Coberg Theatre with Looking Glass (9-14-1834) Victoria Theatre London (12-13-1835) Ramo Samee Article (1-1-1849) Ramo Samee Obituary (8-1850) Ramo Samee Obituary (8-21-1850) |
| Saib Khan Ing | Performed 1822 |
Preston (UK) |
According to broadside scrapbooks kept by William Hay in England, one broadside announces the arrival of 'Saib Khan Ing' in Preston in 1822 to 'exhibit his astonishing performances' at juggling, sword swallowing, and, 'chang[ing] himself from an Indian juggler to a British Minister of State' (Hay 11.222). |
| Signor Tomaso | Performed Feb 5, 1833 |
Richmond Hill Theatre New York (USA) |
Sword swallower and fire eater Signor Tomaso performed at Richmond Hill Theatre New York on Tuesday, February 5, 1833, Seeking pictures and more information.
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P.T. Barnum's American Dime Museum |
Founded 1841 Burned 1865 |
Boston, MA (USA) |
In 1841, P.T. Barnum founded the American Dime Museum in Boston, which included oddities and freaks of nature, including working acts such as sword swallowers. The "American Museum" burned down in 1865, at which time Barnum retired from show business. |
| East Indian Sword Swallowers | Performed Nov 27, 1845 |
Philadelphia, PA (USA) |
According to an article in the Philadeplphia "Pennsylvanian" newspaper dated November 27, 1845: "The rope-dancers, serpent tamers, and sword swallowers of Madras are celebrated throughout India. They will leap over elephants, and even five camels side by side; their bodies are so pliant that they will twine themselves like snakes up and down between the steps of a ladder; they walk over sharp swords; raise heavy burdens with their eyelids; and like Ramo Samee of old, are said to be able to float in the air without any visible support. Even the children exercise themselves in swallowing small sticks of bamboo, in order that they may eventually do the like with swords and daggers." |
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Miss Martha Mitchell Champion Lady Sword Swallower Martha Mitchell Mrs. Henry Wallis |
Born June 12, 1858 Married 1873 Performed mid 1800s? Died c 1887 |
England (UK) |
Martha Mitchell was a female sword swallower in England in the mid 1800s, known as Miss Martha Mitchell, England's Champion Lady Sword Swallower. Mitchell was born in her father's traveling van in Coventry on June 12, 1858. In 1873. At the age of 16, around 1873, she married showman Henry James Wallis who was a fairground proprietor and showman of the old school. Wallis was born in Liverpool on May 11, 1854. At first Wallis worked as a photographer on the fairgrounds, but he later became a riding master of some note, and was also the founder of Seaforth Fair and one of the founders of the Van Dweller's Association, which later became the Showmen's Guild of Great Britain. Martha Mitchell's brother was Charlie Mitchell, the famous bare knuckle boxer who fought J.L. Sullivan and Gentleman Jim Corbett. Martha Mitchell died by the age of 30, circa 1887. Seeking pictures and more information.
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| Lawson Peck | Performed 1857 |
Peoria, IL New York (USA) |
Sword swallower Lawson Peck was known to have performed at the Peoria Museum in 1857. According to the announcement in the Peoria Transcript, dated Oct. 27, 1857, "Shoaf has made engagement with Mr. Lawson Peck from New York, the greatest sword swallower living, to give two performances Friday and Saturday nights at the museum. The sword, 23 inches long, may be inspected by the audience. He will also bare his neck and swallow the sword up to the hilt, a feat never attempted by a living man before. No additional charge to the museum." (page 4, col. 1) In the 1950s, Thurman F. (Jack) Naylor collected a number of interesting photographs, including this rare photo of a sword swallower from the 1860s. Could this have been sword swallower Lawson Peck? Seeking pictures and more information.
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Forestel Forestell Sig. Forrestall Prof. Forestell Signor Forestell Signor Forestelle Signor Forrestelle Professor Forestell Sydney Foerestell Sydney Forestell |
Performed Feb 14-26, 1859 Performed Jan 10, 1876 Performed April 11, 1881 Performed Aug-Oct, 1888 |
Vannuchi's Museum 107 St, Charles street New Orleans, LA John Robinson's Circus King's Novelty Show California Dime Museum & Theatre Los Angeles, CA (USA) |
Sword swallower, knife-swallower and fire eater Signor Forestelle or simply Forestel was featured at Vannuchi's Museum 107 St, Charles street, New Orleans, LA on February 14, 1859 and February 24-26, 1859.
According to an article in the Pittsburgh Daily Postdated January 10, 1876: "The Providence Press describes a rather interesting lawsuit that was on trial in that city yesterday. It seems that a traveling company of players gave a show there some time ago, and shortly after all the goods and chattels were seized on a writ against one Poguee for failure to pay his board... All this was interesting of course, but the agony was reached when "Signor Forrestelle" the great sword-swallower was put upon the stand. Signor carried his sword with him and the lawyers wanted to see him swallow it, and so asked if he had any objections to showing his performance. He had none, and down went twenty-seven inches of steel, to the gratification of the lawyers. Signor handed his sword to the admiring legal gentlemen, asking them to examine and see that there was no fraud. He had a very business-like air, and when asked what other branches his business took in, he remarked that it was his habit to eat marbles. Everybody wanted to see him eat marbles, and down went four good-sized "allies." He remarked that the great trick was putting the sword down also and hearing it chink against the marbles, and down went the sword, and the chink was heard. Signor's performance was "immense," and had a jury witnessed this novel exposition of a legal point, his fortune would have been made."
According to a San Francisco Police and Peace Officer's Journal of 1929 reminiscing back 50 years to San Francisco in the 1870s: "And who does not remember the Wild Man From Borneo, a simple soul who allowed himself to be plastered with hair, and stood in a cage, while the visitors propped him with canes? And Signor Forestell, the sword swallower, who performed outside of a museum in the old St. Ignatius building on Market Street where the Emporium now stands. This individual actually slid canes, bayonets and swords down his throat to the amazement of the gathered throng. But this class of fakir was only doing his bit as an entertainer, and harmed no one but himself, while the real simon pure medical fakir was the individual who did untold injury to all those who sought relief from him." According to the Cincinnati Enquirer dated April 12, 1881, over 4000 people attended John Robinson's Circus inaugural show the night before at Lincoln Park, which included a performance by Signor Forestell. According to the San Bernardino CA Daily Courier dated September 24, 1887, "King's Novelty Show, now holding forth in a large tent on the court house lot... There is a sword-swallower, Prof. Forestell, whose feats are marvelous. He actually swallows solid steel swords and bayonets, also ordinary walking canes with equal facility." According to the August 27 and September 24 1888 Los Angeles Herald, Professor Sydney Foerestell, champion sword swallower, had a long run at the California Dime Museum & Theatre at North Main Street, near First in Los Angeles, CA from August to October 1888, and on October 1, 1888, he was presented a gold and silver badge inscribed "Professor Forestell, Champion Sword Swallower of the World". Signor Forestelle performed for over 31 years. Seeking pictures and more information.
Signor Forestelle Timeline
Forestel at Vannuchi's Museum New Orleans (2-24-1859) Signor Forrestelle Providence (1-10-1876) Los Angeles Herald (8-27-1888) Los Angeles Herald (9-22-1888) |
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Sallementro The Snake Swallower |
Born c 1843 Performed 1861 |
London (UK) |
According to the 1861 "London Labour and the London Poor", Sallementro learned sword and snake swallowing at the age of 17 or 18 from his friend Clarke who was also a sword and snake swallower: "I swallow snakes, swords, and knives... It was a mate of mine that I was with that first put me up to sword and snake swallowing. I copied off him, and it took me about three months to learn it. I began with a sword first - of course not a sharp sword, but a blunt-pointed - and I didn't exactly know how to do it, for there's a trick to it. At first it turned me, putting it down my throat past my swallow, right down, about 18 inches. It made my swallow sore, very sore, and I used lemon and sugar to cure it. It was tight at first, and I kept pushing it down further and further. There's one thing - you mustn't cough, and until you're used to it, you want to very bad, and then you must pull it up again. My sword was about three-quarters of an inch wide. At first I didn't know the trick of doing it, but I found it out this way. You see, the trick is you must oil the sword - the best sweet oil, worth 14 pence a pint - and you put it on with a sponge. Then, you understand, if the sword scratches the swallow, it don't make it sore, 'cos the oil heals it up again. When first I put the sword down, before I oiled it, it used to come up quite slimy, but after the oil it slips down quite easy, and is as clean when it comes up as before it went down. The knives are easier to do than the sword because they are shorter. We puts them right down till the handle rests on the mouth. The sword is about 18 inches long, and the knives about 8 inches in the blade. People run away with the idea that you slip the blades down your breast, but I always hold mine right up with the neck bare, and they see it go into the mouth 'atween the teeth. They also fancy it hurts you, but it don't, or what a fool I should be to do it. I don't mean to say it don't hurt you at first, 'cos it do, for my swallow was very bad, and I couldn't eat anything but liquids for two months whilst I was learning. I cured my swallow whilst I was stretching it with lemon and sugar. I was the second one that ever swallowed a snake. I was about 17 or 18 years old when I learnt it. The first was Clarke as did it. He done very well with it, but he wasn't out no more than two years before me, so he wasn't known much. In the country there is some places where, when you do it, they swear you are the devil, and won't have it nohow. The snakes I use are about 18 inches long, and you must first cut the stingers out, 'cos it might hurt you. I always keep two or three by me for my performances. I keep them warm, and I give them nothing to eat but worms and gentles. I generally keep them in flannel or hay in a box. I've three at home now. When first I began swallowing snakes, they tasted queer like. They draw'd the roof of the mouth a bit. It's a roughish taste. The scales rough you a bit when you draw them up. You see, a snake will go into ever such a little hole, and they are smooth one way. The head of the snake goes about an inch and a half down the throat, and the rest of it continues in the mouth, curled 'round like. I hold him by the tail, and when I pinch it, he goes right in. You must cut the stinger out or he'll injure you. The tail is slipppery, but you nip it with the nails like pinchers. If you was to let go, he'd go right down, but most snakes will stop at two inches down the swallow, and then they bind like a ball in the mouth. I generally get my snakes by giving little boys ha'pence to go and catch 'em in the woods. I get them when I'm pitching in the country. I'll get as many as I can get, and bring 'em up to London for my engagements. When first caught, the snake is slimy, and I have to clean him by scraping him with a cloth, and then with another, until he's nice and clean. I have put 'em down slimy, on purpose to taste what it was like. It had a nasty taste, very nasty. When I exhibit, I first holds the snake up in the air and pinches the tail, to make it curl about and twist 'round my arm, to show that he is alive. Then I holds it above my mouth, and as soon as he sees the hole, in he goes. He goes wavy-like, as a ship goes, that's the comparison. I always hold my breath whilst his head is in my swallow. When he moves in the swallow, it tickles a little, but it don't make you want to retch. In my opinion, he is more glad to come up than to go down, for it seems to be too hot for him. I keep him down about two minutes. If I breathe or cough, he draws out and curls back again. I think there's artfulness in some of them big snakes, for they seem to know which is the master. I was at Wombwell's Menagerie of Wild Beasts for 3 months, and I had the care of a big snake, as thick 'round as my arm. I wouldn't attempt to put that one down my throat, for I think I might easier have done down his'n. It was a f'urren snake, all over spots, called a boa-constrictor." Seeking pictures and more information. |
| James S. Donnell |
Performed 1862 Died 1886
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Pittsburgh, PA (USA) |
James S. Donnell was sword swallower with a side show in the Pittsburgh area in 1862 and was sought by his mother, Eliza Donnell. He died in 1886 and was buried in the Homewood Cemetery in Allegheny County Pittsburgh PA. Seeking pictures and more information.
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| John Sheppard |
Performed 1863-1866? |
Gardner & Hemmings Thompson, Smith and Hawes (USA) |
John Sheppard was sword swallower with Gardner & Hemmings in 1863, and general performer with Thompson, Smith and Hawes in 1866. Seeking pictures and more information. |
| William George Drummond Stewart |
Born February, 1831 Injured October 19, 1868 Died October 26, 1868
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(Scotland) | William George Drummond Stewart was born in Grandtully, Perthshire, Scotland in February 1831. Stewart was a Scottish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. Stewart was 26 years old, and a Captain in the 93rd (Sutherland) Highlanders when he was awarded the Victoria Cross for his actions at Lucknow. On October 19, 1868, while at Hythe, Hampshire, Stewart was giving a demonstration of sword swallowing. His demonstration went fatally wrong and he died from internal injuries a week later, on October 26, 1868 at the age of 37. Stewart is buried in a vault at St. Mary's Church, Grandtully, Scotland. Seeking pictures and more information. |
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Benedetti Benny-Dizzy Carlo Benedetti Signor Benedetti Signor Carlo Benedetti The Man Ostrich The Swedish Phenomenon The Great Sword-Swallower |
Born 1849 Performed 1863-98 Died July 26, 1899
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Schumann Company Paterson, Morris Plains, NJ (USA)
Westminster Royal Aquarium |
Carlo Benedetti was born in Norköping Sweden of Italian immigrant parents in 1849, and in 1862 at the age of 13, he joined a circus as a horseback rider. Benedetti became so skilled as a rider that he toured Europe with the circus. Benedetti began learning sword swallowing at the age of 14 in 1863, and eventually became proficient at it by the age of 20 in 1869. After moving to the US, he performed with the Schumann Company in the eastern United States and Cuba as "Signor Benedetti".
According to an article dated May 30, 1874 in the Daily Phoenix: "At the Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia, on Monday, Prof. Maury introduced to the faculty and students Signor Carlo Benedetti, a professional sword swallower, on whom he proposed to make a surgical examination. Benedetti first swallowed a sword blade twenty-three inches in length, and bending over, completely bent the steel. Next he placed a sabre, measuring twenty-nine inches in length down his throat to the hilt. The medical examiners discovered that the blade of the weapon stretches the oesophagus and distends the lower wall of the stomach. Benedetti then swallowed six thin, light swords at once, then extricated them with such ease as to excite the wonder of all the beholders. He next took an ordinary musket, weighing eleven pounds, with a common bayonet afixed. This bayonet he thrust into his throat by raising the musket butt into the air. When it was in he bowed all around to the company. He then drew the weapon out gracefully and easily, and explained that the point of leverage fell upon his lower jaw and teeth, which are very strong." An article in the NY Times dated Dec 5, 1874 quotes a Havana, Cuban article dated Nov 29, 1874 stating, "A performance was given at the Tacon Theatre last Thursday evening, by the Schumann Troupe, to a packed house, for the benefit of the sufferers by the recent inundations at Mavari, Bayamo, and other towns of the Eastern District, particulars of which have already been forwarded to you. The Captain General was present, and the novelty of the evening was the feat of the sword swallower, Benedetti, who attempted to cram an umbrella down his throat. He swallowed His Excellency the Captain General's sword, a cane, and other articles, but could not stomach the umbrella." In 1877-78, Bendetti performed in England. A caricature cartoon of "Benny Dizzy, the Great Sword-Swallower" in the March 16, 1878 issue of the London Punch magazine also mentions "Mr. Benedetti's marvellous performance at the Royal Aquarium". On July 3, 1878, Benedetti also performed at the Crystal Palace in London, according to an ad in the London Times dated July 3, 1878. On August 12 1878, Benedetti was featured at The Canterbury in London. In 1882 this photo was taken of Carlo Benedetti by photographer J. Wood in New York. It shows Benedetti posing with two swords and a bayonette attached to a rifle. From October 30 to November 11, 1882, Carlo Benedetti was booked at Bunnell's Brooklyn Museum as the Swedish Phenomenon and the Man Ostrich. In 1883, Benedetti was described swallowing a cane in the September 30, 1883 Atlanta Constitution. In 1895, the editor of a London magazine described Signor Benedetti who had just performed at the Westminster Royal Aquarium and Canterbury Hall at the age of 46. According to the description, Benedetti stood 5 ft 8 inches tall, and swallowed a blade that was 30.25 inches long, and he had swallowed swords for at least 32 years. On November 7, 1898, Benedetti was committed to the State Asylum for the Insane at Morris Plains NJ. According to an article in the Trenton Evening Times dated November 7, 1898, "Carlo Benedetti, of Paterson, will be removed this morning to the State Asylum for the Insane at Morris Plains. About one year ago Benedetti began to give evidence that his mind was affected. He imagined he was a millionaire and threw his money away. Fifteen years ago he was famous all over the world as a sword swallower." Carlo Benedetti died July 26, 1899 at the age of 49 in Morris Plains, NJ, and is buried in Laurel Grove Memorial Park, Totowa, New Jersey. Seeking pictures and more information.
Signor Carlos Benedetti Timeline
Benedetti article (5-30-1874) Benedetti article Brooklyn NY (6-4-1874) Benedetti Boston Post history (6-26-1874) Benedetti article (12-1874) Royal Aquarium London (12-27-1877) Bendetti London (6-27-1878) Benedetti Crystal Palace London (7-3-1878) Bendetti Crystal Palace London (8-5-1878) Benedetti Canterbury London (8-12-1878) Benedetti caricature (1878) Benedetti with 2 swords and bayonet on rifle in NYC (1882) Benedetti Bunnell's Brooklyn Museum (10-31 to 11-11-1882) Benedetti at Koster & Bial's Concert Hall New Orleans (5-1-1883) Atlanta Constitution (9-29-1883) Benedetti committed to NJ Mental Asylum (11-7-1898) |
| Senor Franco |
Performed 1863-1867 |
The Great Circus Manly Beach (Australia) San Francisco, California (USA) |
Senor Franco the "sword swallower and stone eater" performed at Manly Beach, Australia on April 4, 1863. Four years later he was performing in San Francisco California on March 12, 1867. He swallowed a 23 inch long sword. Seeking pictures and more information.
Senor Franco, San Francisco CA (3-12-1867) |
| James Erwin |
Born May 15, 1848 Performed 1864-66 Died January 3, 1885 |
Indianapolis, IN (USA) |
James Erwin was born in Dublin, Ireland on May 15, 1848, but came to America as an infant. He entered the circus business as a sword swallower for a few years around 1865 at about the age of 17. He then became an operator and manager of his own sideshow. During the Civil War, he was twice sentenced to be shot for dissertion; the first time, as a mere boy, he was pardoned by President Lincoln; the second time, succeeded in escaping. In later years, he was considered one of the best shots in Indiana. Erwin was married once, but the union was not a happy one. He died of pneumonia in Indianapolis, IN on January 3, 1885 at the age of 37. Seeking pictures and more information. |
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Schwertschlucker Schwertfresser Der Eiserne Heinrich The Iron Henry Adolf Kußmaul Dr. Adolf Kussmaul Dr. Adolph Kussmaul Dr. Julius Müller Developer of Rigid Endoscope |
Born 1822 1st Esophagoscopy and Develpment of Rigid Endoscope Using Sword Swallower 1868 Died 1902 |
Wolfshöhle Brauerie Gasthof Freiburg (Germany) |
The first known mention of sword swallowing in medical literature is of a previously unidentified professional sword swallower, known simply as "Der eiserne Heinrich", ("The Iron Henry"), who while visiting the Wolfshöhle Gasthof und Brauerie in Freiburg, Germany in 1868, gave a demonstration of sword swallowing which was witnessed by a local Freiburg doctor. Dr. Keller was fascinated by the feat and persuaded the sword swallower to visit his clinic and have his throat examined with a laryngeal mirror. His colleague, Dr. Julius Müller, examined the sword swallower and suggested to his professor that the sword swallower would make a suitable subject for esophagoscopy. His professor Dr. Adolf Kussmaul (1822-1902) carefully observed the sword swallower, being especially interested in the way he positioned his head for the passage of the long straight sword, and decided to examine him himself. For this purpose, Dr. Kussmaul had a local musical instrument maker named Fischer fashion tubes 47 cm long and 13 mm in diameter, one being round and the other elliptical in design, the tubes fitted with conical wooden mandarins to facilitate insertion. Using the straight tube, mirrors and a gasoline lamp, Kussmaul inspected the esophagus and the fundus of the stomach, thereby performing the first successful esophagoscopy esophagogastrostomy on a sword swallower in 1868. The sword swallower tolerated the long tubes well, but the examination was disappointing because the light was too weak to illuminate the field so far from its source. Also, despite washing out the stomach, fluid constantly collected around the tube and hindered the view. After considerable experimentation, Kussmaul and Müller managed to improve the light of their endoscope, and subsequently examined a number of patients. However Kussmaul was so pleased with his success that he took the sword swallower with him to perform demonstrations in various clinics, and later enlisted other sword swallowers due to their ability to voluntarily relax the cricopharyngeal muscle and form a straight line from the pharynx to the stomach, allowing passage of the rigid endoscope. Kussmail was Professor of Medicine at Heidelberg (1857), Erlangen (1859), Freiburg (1859) and Strassburg (1876). Today Kussmaul is recognized as the developer of the first rigid endoscope. Kussmaul died in Heidelberg, and his grave is located in a cemetary in Heidelberg, Germany. Seeking more information. Kussmaul/Müller examine sword swallower (1868) Kussmaul examining sword swallower (1868) Dr. Adolph Kussmaul (1822-1902) Dr. Adolf Kussmaul (later) Dr. Adolf Kussmaul (late in life) Wolfshöhle Gasthof/Brauerie (1890s) (link) Dr. Adolf Kussmaul Heidelburg (1900) Dr. Adolf Kussmaul grave Heidelberg |
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Dr. Fournle Examines Sword Swallower |
Examined in 1868 |
Boston, MA (USA) |
According to an article in "The Youth's Companion" dated October 29, 1868: "When in our youth we were taken to see a juggler who performed the feat of swallowing a sword, we were taught to believe that the weapon, instead of being a rigid rod of metal, was telescopic, and doubled into itself when it was introduced into the man's mouth. A famous French physician lately experimented upon a Chinese conjuror, who swallowed a sword nearly three feet long, and permitted an examination of his body while the blade was in its living sheath. Dr. Fourle (such was the anatomists's name) was thoroughly satisfied with the honesty of the operation. They traced the point along its downward course, and felt it thirty inches from the swallower's mouth. So we may set down sword and poker swallowing as genuine feats of gymnastics." The Youth's Companion was printed from 1827-1927 by Perry Mason & Company in Boston, MA.Seeking more information. |
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First Known Photograph of Indian Sword Swallower |
1863-1873 | Madras Tamil Nadu (India) |
The first known photograph of an Indian Sword Swallower was displayed in England at the South Kensington Exhibition of 1873 in an album of photographs entitled "Trades and Occupations of India" in response to English curiousity about the British Empire in India. Among the many photographers were Nicholas & Curths of Madras, Tamil Nadu, South India, who took a photo of an Indian sword swallower performing the feat sometime between 1863 and 1872. Seeking photos and more information. Indian Sword Swallower (1863-72) |
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Ling Look David Güter David Guter David Guder David Geder David Gether Frederick Guder Ferdinand Guder Frederick David Guder Ferdinand David Guder Yamadeva Louis Guder |
Born 1842 Performed 1868-1878 Died April 11, 1878
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Olympic Theatre Royal Illusionists New York (USA) (Hong Kong) |
David Güter performed as a sword swallower in the 1870s under the stage name "Ling Look". According to an article in the New York Herald dated July 15, 1872, and another article in the New York Times dated July 16, 1872, a novel performance was offered at the Olympic Theatre on July 15, 1872 by Ling Look, "who disposes mysteriously but satisfactorily of a blade ninety centimetres in length." For his premier number, he was known to swallow a red glowing sword.
A quote from 1872 describes Ling Look's performace: "He gorged his blade, last night, with such an appetite as might have smitten the African ostrich with envy, and with such ensuing satisfaction as quite shook our faith in the scriptural announcement that whoso taketh the sword shall perish by the sword. How much sword he took we are not prepared to state; but he did not perish." According to the November 2. 1874 Brooklyn Daily Eagle, "Ling Look and Ya Ma Di Va the Japenese Man Serpent were again booked at the Olympic Theatre in New York". In 1875 a showman named Heinrich Kellar, who went by the name Harry Kellar (1849-1922), put together a show troupe that included Link Look. Kellar was born in Erie PA on July 11, 1849, and graduated from Painesville High School in 1866. In 1866-67 Kellar worked as assistant to the magician Fakir of Ava, and later worked with magician John Henry Anderson Jr. During this time, Kellar learned some secrets of the business, and began his solo work until the opportunity came to join the spectacle of the Davenports Brothers in 1867. From 1871 to 1873, Kellar and Fay toured South America. In the spring of 1873, Kellar, 24, along with William Marion Fay, both junior pseudo-spiritualists, left the Davenports show in the spring of 1873 and became independent performers, forming a partnership and putting together their own tour throughout America and Europe under the name Fay and Keller. Bad luck struck Kellar in Valparaiso, and he returned to Panama, where he met Ling Look and Yamadeva, two famous "Chinese" brothers. They were specialists of exceptional merit. Ling Look was known as the "Fire-King", while Yamadeva was a contortionist of such rare powers that he was known as the "Man-Serpent", and his movements were as graceful as a cat. Kellar formed a troupe with the brothers under the name of "The Royal Illusionists". The party went to New York by the steamer Andes, narrowly escaping shipwreck off Hatteras in the March Equinoctial of 1876. After a short stay in New York, the trio crossed overland to California, and began an engagement at Baldwin's Academy of Music in San Francisco on the evening of May 15, 1876. In actuality, Ling Look's real name was David Güter, David Guter, David Guder, David Geder, or David Gether, although he also went by Ferdinand Guder or Frederick Guder. His brother Louis Guder performed under the stage name Ya Ma Di Va or Yamadeva. Ling Look and Yamadeva posed as Chinese and Japanese performers, but in fact, according to various sources, were Hungarian (from Budapest) or Austrian (from Vienna). Ling Look performed as a fire-eater and sword swallower, and went by the title "King of Fire". With his head half-shaved, and the remaining hair in a long braid, he almost looked Chinese. Some of his feats included swallowing hot coals and red hot swords, then blowing fire from his mouth. "One of his most spectacular and shocking numbers was swallowing a sword or bayonette halfway down his throat, which was attached to a rifle, which, when fired, propelled the sword down his throat. Meanwhile, Yamadeva was an accomplished contortionist who performed incredible escapes. He was also known as the Snake Man, due to his serpentine or feline movements."
According to local press, "The Chinese" performed in Rosario Argentina on August 19th and 20th 1875, with the program consisting of the following: After meeting the brothers Ling Look and Yamadeva and the magician Cunard, Kellar formed the performing troup The Royal Illusionists in May 1876. Their show consisted of a spiritualist cabin with Kellar and Cunard performing cage disappearance and escapes from ropes and handcuffs, and contortion by Yamadeva, and for the finale, the fire and sword acts by Ling Look. The group put together a tour that began in the USA, moved on to Australia, New Zealand, India, Singapore, Java, Shanghai, China and Hong Kong. In May 1876, The Royal Illusionists traveled overland to California and opened at Baldwins Academy of Music San Francisco, on May 15, 1876, under the management of Al Hayman, after which they made a short tour of California. They closed their American engagement in Salt Lake City on July 6, 1876, and sailed for Australia. In Sydney, they played a successful engagement at the Victoria Theater. During their ten weeks' engagement in Australia they performed to capacity houses everywhere. Gov. Sir Hercules Robinson, Lady Robinson and suite were frequent attendants at the entertainments of The Illusionists. From Australia they sailed to Java, and from there on to Shanghai, China In early October 1877 Yamadeva suffered heart pains while playing a 10-pin bowling game in Shanghai China. Just before they were to sail from Shanghai on the P&O Steamer Khiva for Hong Kong, Yamadeva and Kellar visited the bowling alley of The Hermitage, a pleasure resort on the Bubbling Well Road. They were watching a husky sea captain who was using a huge ball and making a double spare at every roll, when Yamadeva suddenly remarked, "I can handle one as heavy as that big loafer can." He grabbed one of the largest bowling balls and rolled it down the alley with all his might. But he misjudged his own strength, for he had no sooner delivered the ball than he grasped his side moaning in pain. He barely had enough strength to get back to the ship, where he immediately went to bed. Four days later, he died while onboard the ship heading to Hong Kong. An examination showed that he had ruptured an artery. When the ship landed in Hong Kong, 25-year-old Louis Guder was buried in the Hong Kong Cemetery. Six months later, Ling Look, elder brother Frederick David Guder underwent an operation for liver trouble, and died under the knife at the Govt Civ. Hospital in Hong Kong on April 11 (or 14?), 1878 at the age of 35-36. The Guder brothers were buried in adjacent graves at the Hong Kong Cemetery in Happy Valley in Hong Kong. Gravesite of Louis Guder who died in 1877 and was buried in the Hong Kong Cemetery, and brother Frederick Guder who died 11 April, 1878 and is buried next to his brother Louis Guder. In 1879, a fakir with the same name, the same routine, Chinese look, hair and costume style appeared in England and claimed to be the original Ling Look. He wore his make-up both on and off stage, and performed Ling Look's show perfectly. This performer claimed that the news of his death in 1878 was not true, and that he was still alive. His fame reached the US and the New York Clipper published in its Letter Columns an article stating that Ling Look was not dead, but was alive and working in England. In 1882, an ad in the December 20 1882 Belfast Morning News advertized Ling Look performing at the AlhambraTheatre of Varieties in Belfast Ireland. In 1883, a commentary in the newspaper La Capital de Rosario, dated August 9, 1883, gave news of an artist with an exotic name who was performing in town. It was Ling Look, who it was claimed, had worked as director of a great illusionist and acrobatic troupe, in their inimitable work with the infernal dinner, and swallowing swords. The same name and the same routines, the one who so successfully passed through Rosario with his brother Yamadeva in 1875? But this was not possible, unless the advertised Look Ling had risen, or was a phony. The litmus test was when this Ling Look clashed with Kellar, who had buried the original Ling Look in 1878. The imitator had the nerve to stick to his story even when confronted by Kellar. When Keller assured him that he had personally attended the burial of Ling Look in Hong Kong, the imposter broke down and confessed that he was a younger brother of the original Ling Look. Kellar later said that the resemblance was so strong that had he not seen the original Ling Look consigned to the grave, he himself would have been duped into believing that this was the man who had been with him in Hong Kong. Kellar later confessed to Harry Houdini, that the resemblance between the two was such that if he had not been present when Ling Look died in Hong Kong in 1878, he would almost be unable to refute or verify that this was another person in 1879. This story was referenced by Harry Houdin in his book Miracle Mongers and Their Methods, written in 1920. Seeking photos and more information on Ling Look.
Ling Look and Yamadeva Timeline
Yamadeva Olympic NY Herald (7-15-1872) Olympic NY Times (7-16-1872) Olympic Theatre (11-2-1874) Yamadeva (1876) The Royal Illusionists Louis Guder grave Hong Kong Cemetery (died 1877) Frederick Guder grave Hong Kong Cemetery (died 4-11-1878) Ling Look imposter in Belfast Ireland (12-20-1882) Ling Look imposter in Sydney Australia (8-27-1887) |
| Professor Costello |
Performed 1871 |
Sheldenburger & Co. (USA) |
Professor Costello was sword swallower with Sheldenburger & Co. in 1871. Seeking photos and more information. |
| August Zorner | Performed 1874 |
New York, NY (USA) |
August Zorner was a professional juggler and sword swallower in New York City in 1874. He and Charles Zorner were arrested as witnesses to a murder on New Years night 1874. Seeking photos and more information.
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Signor Wandana Signor Wandanna Signor Wandonna Signor Wandanus Signor Waudanus Signor Waudanna Signor Wandanone Signor Wanhanna "The Wonderful Sabre, Bayonet, and Sword-Swallower" |
Performed 1870s Died May 9, 1875
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Indianapolis, IN Gibb's Zoological Exhibition Calais, ME (USA) |
Signor Wandana (Signor Wandonna or Signor Wandanone) was known as "The Wonderful Sabre, Bayonet, and Sword-Swallower" in the 1870s. Signor Wandana died on May 9, 1875 of internal injuries sustained after a sword swallowing feat went wrong. His obituary was published in the May 10, 1875 Philadelphia Times and the May 11, 1875 Chicago Tribune entitled "Death of a Sword Swallower": "Calais, Me, May 10---Signor Waudanus, the sword-swallower, while performing at Calais last week cut himself internally; Inflammation ensued, and he died last evening." According to the May 10. 1875 Boston Post "Signor Wandonna, a sword swallower, with Gibb's Zoological Exhibition, while performing at Calais, Me., last week, accidentally cut himself internally. Inflamation resulted and he died last evening." According to an article in the Pittsburgh Weekly Gazette dated May 11, 1875, "SIGNOR WANHANNA, a sword swallower, while performing at Calais, Me., last week, cut himself internally. Inflammation ensued and he died last Sunday evening." This photograph was taken by Hugraham & Claflin's New Photographic Rooms, 32 1/2 East Washington St. Indianapolis, Ind, and is now part of the collection of sideshow historian and author Richard Flint of Baltimore MD. Could Wandana be buried in the Calais Cemetery in Calais, Maine under a different name? Seeking photos and more information. Death of Signor Wandanone (5-9-1875) Death of Signor Wandonna (5-9-1875) Signor Wanhanna death (5-11-1875) |
| Piotr Nikitin |
Born 1846 Performed 1873-80s Retired 1890s Died August 20, 1921 |
Russian Circus of the Nikitin Brothers Nikitin Brothers's Russian Circus Circus Nikitin Moscow (Russia) Tbilisi (Georgia) |
In nineteenth-century Russia, circus was extremely popular among the aristocracy and the people alike, but the Russian circus was developed mostly by foreigners whose names -- Ciniselli, Truzzi, Salamonsky -- became synonymous with Russian circus. There was one notable exception, however: The Nikitin brothers, Dmitri (1835-1918), Akim (1843-1917), and Piotr Nikitin (1846-1921), who became the first true Russian circus entrepreneurs of note, and would remain so until the Bolshevik revolution. The Nikitin brothers were born to Aleksandr and Alina Ivanovna Nikitin, who were serfs bound to one of the vast lands belonging to the Crown. Tsar Nicholas I began to ease the condition of the serfs of his Imperial estates in 1842, when he established the "quit-rent" system, which allowed them to leave the land to which they were attached in exchange for a rent paid to their landowner, the Tsar. Aleksandr Nikitin immediately took advantage of this new, if limited, freedom and became an itinerant organ grinder. His first son Dmitri, who had learned to play the balalaika, followed him on the road. Akim and Piotr were born shortly thereafter, and almost as soon as they were able to walk and do a rollover, they joined forces with their father and elder brother, entertaining passersby from village squares to street corners.
In time, the Nikitin brothers developed specific performing talents: Dmitri became a strongman; Akim, a front bender, a juggler, and an auguste (playing the Russian folk character of Ivan the Fool, always popular among the provincial audiences); and Piotr, a sword swallower, tumbler, and a foot-juggler. They also formed an acrobatic trio together, and created a puppet show. The Nikitin brothers were versatile and hard working. When Tsar Alexander II finally freed the serfs by his ukase of February 19, 1861, they began to find work on the country's fairgrounds in the balagans fairground itinerant theaters. In time, they would create their own fairground show. However, the Nikitins were also ambitious; they intended to escape the stigma of their former serfdom, and move upward. But work on the fairgrounds, even in the best balagans, had no glory. The circus was something else altogether: It was attended and enjoyed by the upper classes, and great circus artists received respect and, sometimes, even riches. Nicolas I had, in his time, created an Imperial Circus, and more recently, Carl Magnus Hinné and Gaetano Ciniselli had established themselves with great success in Moscow and St. Petersburg. Although they were illiterate, the Nikitins were shrewd and had honed on the road a remarkable talent for scheming and survival. The foreign directors who ran the Russian circuses might have appeared well introduced in aristocratic circles, but the Nikitin brothers knew that, in actuality, they didn't have much more formal education than themselves. Thus the former serfs and balagan entertainers didn't see any reason why they wouldn't grab their own part of the circus pie.
Dmitri, Akim, and Piotr Nikitin had saved money during their years of performing on the road; with it, they acquired the equipment of the Austrian circus of Emanuel Beránek (Beránek was Czech, but Czechoslovakia was then part of Austria), which had been touring the Volga region in the early 1870s. The purchase had come replete with tent, carriages, costumes, and horses, and on December 23, 1873, the Russian Circus of the Nikitin Brothers ( The Nikitins' Russian Circus toured the provinces with good success. Money was coming in, and three years later, in 1876, they were able to build their first permanent circus in Saratov, in southern Russia. Located in the center of the city, it was an elaborate wooden structure that stood until 1928. (It was demolished, and a stone circus was built in its place in 1931; in 1963, RosGosTsirk, the central Soviet circus agency, replaced it with a brand new, state-of-the-art building, erected in a different part of the city. This latter circus, which still bears the name of Nikitin Brothers' Circus, remains active.) Owners of a permanent circus building and managing a touring company, the Nikitin brothers had finally entered the circus world's big league. While Dmitri and Akim increasingly took care of the business, Piotr developed into a remarkable bareback rider (he is said to have achieved the somersault on horseback), a flying trapeze and horizontal bars gymnast, a gifted mime, and even a quick-change artist. Then the Nikitins struck gold: On the occasion of the coronation of Tsar Alexandre III in May 1883, they were invited to erect a temporary hippodrome at Khodinskoye Pole, an old parade ground in Moscow. Their hippodrome was a large open-air arena, inspired by the famous Hippodrome Franconi at the Barrière de l'Etoile in Paris, but whose actual configuration, with its two rings separated by a central stage, owed more to P.T. Barnum's version of it. There, the Nikitins produced equestrian extravaganzas themed after old Russian legends, as well as chariot races and other traditional hippodrome fare. At the end of their run, which had been successful, they were awarded the Andreev Order's Silver Medal by the City of Moscow. Then, they hit the road again. But now that they had experienced the great Russian metropolis—and its business potential—they longed to return. Meanwhile, the brothers were trying to expand their circus empire. In 1884, they built their second permanent circus in Minsk. It passed under city ownership the following year (it was destroyed during WWII, a replaced later by another building), but others would come. Then, the wily brothers saw another golden opportunity in Moscow: The old Panorama (today, the Mir Theatre), adjacent to the circus Albert Salamonsky had built on Tsvetnoy Boulevard in 1880, was available. The circular building, which had once housed a panoramic painting depicting The Storming of Plevna, was an ideal fit for a circus, and its location on Moscow's most popular promenade, in the midst of other places of amusement (including an already popular circus!) seemed perfect—at least to Dmitri, Akim, and Piotr Nikitin. Thus the Nikitin Brothers's Russian Circus opened in its new Moscow building in 1866. Their show certainly didn't have the splendor of Salamonsky's productions, nor his superb equestrian presentations, but the Nikitins knew how to attract a popular audience, and they met with increasing success. Salamonsky was not amused and he finally bought out the Nikitins in 1887 for 30,000 rubles, a considerable sum for the time. He also had the Nikitins sign an agreement stating that they wouldn't compete with Salamonsky in Moscow. To protect himself from another unwanted neighbor, Salamonsky used the old Panorama for horse training and equestrian exhibitions. Salamonsky's precautions proved useless: The following year (1888), the brothers returned to Moscow, where they rented the old Circus Hinné on Vozdzvizhenka Street (which belonged to Andrea Ciniselli). Furious, Salamonsky reminded the Nikitins of their agreement; but Akim and Piotr were quick to point out that it was Dmitri who had signed the agreement… Dmitri, as it happened, had just left his brothers and gone his own way. (He had created the Panoptikon, a traveling "museum" and menagerie.) Therefore, the Russian Circus of the Nikitin Brothers was not bound anymore by Dmitri's agreements. Luckily for Salamonsky, the Nikitins didn't do great business on Vozdzvizhenka Street and, before the end of the year, they left Moscow for Tiflis (today Tbilisi, in Georgia), where they built a wooden circus on Golovinsky Prospect (today Rustaveli Prospect). Tbilisi became their homebase, and from there, they created a touring circuit for which they used circuses of bricks or wood that they built over the years in several Russian cities. By the turn of the twentieth century, the Nikitins' circus empire—and their well-oiled annual tour—included circus buildings in Tiflis (today Tbilisi in Georgia, which was the Nikitins' home base), Baku and Astrakhan (where Circus Nikitin spent the winter season), Tsaritsyn (today Volgograd), Saratov, Samara, Kazan, Nizhniy-Novgorod, Ivanovo-Voznesensk, and Kharkov.
Piotr Nikitin, the great artist of the family, retired from the circus in the 1890s. (He died on August 20, 1921, having outlived his brothers.) Akim was left alone at the helm of the Nikitin Brothers's Russian Circus. When his flagship circus in Tbilisi burned down, Akim finally decided to build a permanent circus in Moscow, where he found a vacant lot on Triumfalnaya Plaza and Bolshoya Sadovaya Street.
Designed by the architect Bogdan Mikhailovich Nilus, Circus Nikitin was a large stone building in the Art-Nouveau style with an imposing façade; it was equipped with a revolving ring that could sink to reveal a swimming pool—in the manner of Paris's famous Nouveau Cirque—and which allowed the presentation of water pantomimes. Inaugurated in 1911, it has survived to this day as the Variety Theatre (formerly Theatre of Satire), but only its old circus cupola, still visible behind its new façade, betrays its circus origins.
Seeking photos and more information.
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P.T. Barnum's Greatest Show On Earth Barnum & Bailey Circus |
Started 1871 Merged with Ringling Bros 1918 |
Brooklyn, NY (USA) |
In 1871, P.T. Barnum established "P.T. Barnum's Grand Traveling Museum, Menagerie, Caravan, and Circus", a travelling combination of circus, menagerie and museum of "freaks". In 1872, P.T. Barnum and W.C. Coup's Circus travels on a special circus train, and by 1872 was billing itself as "The Greatest Show on Earth". It went through a number of variants on these names: "P.T. Barnum's Traveling World's Fair, Great Roman Hippodrome and Greatest Show On Earth", and after an 1881 merger with James Bailey and James Hutchinson, "P.T. Barnum's Greatest Show On Earth, And The Great London Circus, Sanger's Royal British Menagerie and The Grand International Allied Shows United", was soon shortened to "Barnum & London Circus". In 1881 Barnum & Bailey's first three-ring circus was staged in New York City. Barnum and Bailey split up in 1885, but came back together again in 1888 with the "Barnum & Bailey Greatest Show On Earth", later "Barnum & Bailey Circus", which toured around the world. P. T. Barnum died on April 7, 1891. Delno Fritz was the sword swallower with Barnum and Bailey Circus from 1896 to 1899.
From December 27, 1897 to April 2, 1898, Barnum & Bailey's Greatest Show on Earth wintered at the Olympia in England, and the following year again wintered at the Olympia in London from December 26, 1898 to April 8, 1899. In May 4-5, 1899, the Barnum and Bailey Circus played Nottingham, England and travelled between cities on 4 huge trains, each with 17 carriages. Delno Fritz was the featured sword swallower in 1899. In 1900, Mlle Amy was the sword swallower with Barnum and Bailey Circus in Germany. In 1901, Edith Clifford joined Barnum and Bailey in Vienna, and performed with Barnum and Bailey Circus through 1906. On April 11, 1906, owner James Bailey died. In 1907, Ringling Brothers bought Barnum & Bailey Circus, but the two shows continued to tour separately. In 1907, Marie DeVere was the new female sword swallower with Barnum and Bailey Circus. Capt. Fritz Lecardo performed with Ringling Brothers on a European tour, and was possibly along with Edward Smith part-time sword swallowers with Barnum and Bailey Circus possibly during the years 1908 to 1918. In 1915, Slivers Bowden, sword swallower, joined the Barnum & Bailey Show at Omaha, Nebraska. In 1918, Ringling Brothers combined with Barnum, & Bailey Circus to become one combined show, the Ringling Brothers, Barnum, & Bailey Circus. The Ringling Brothers, Barnum & Bailey Circus performed their first combined show in New York on March 29, 1919, with their new sword swallower, Edith Clifford. In the Spring of 1919, Harry Houdini came specifically to watch sword swallower Edith Clifford with the combined Ringling Brothers, Barnum & Bailey Circus, and he wrote a raving review in his book "Miracle Mongers" published in 1920.
Barnum and Bailey Circus Timeline, Routes, and Sword Swallowers: Seeking more information on sword swallowers with Barnum & Bailey Circus |
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Alfred Hayden |
Born 1862 Performed 1890s? Died after 1938 |
Castle Hill Richmond Yorkshire (England) |
According to a 1938 article in the Yorkshire Evening Post, tattooist Alfred Hayden was ...in his young days, on the music-hall stage as a sword swallower. "We used to give entertainment in the recreation rooms of barracks," said Mr. Hayden to the Yorkshire Evening Post, "and one day at the depot of the 7th Fusiliers, at Hounslow, I fell in with Professor Beaumont, who was an expert tattooist and used to work the barracks in and around London. He took a fancy to my sword swallowing turn, and we got to know each other well. He suggested that I might take up tattooing in my spare time, and to fill in the intervals between theatrical engagements, I did, and for some 40 years now I have been in business for myself in various parts of the country, including London and Aldershot. During the War I was at Felixstowe." At the time of this article in 1938, Alfred Hayden was 75 years old and living in Castle Hill, Richmond Yorkshire England.
Seeking photos and more information.
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Harry Lester Harry M. Lester Harry Maryan Lester The Great Lester Maryan Czajkowski Maryan Tschaikovsky |
Born 8 Sep 1879 Performed 1895-1898? Died 14 July 1956 |
Majestic Theater Rhinelander, WI Los Angeles, CA (USA) |
Harry Lester (8 September 1879-14 July 1956), was born Maryan Czajkowski on September 9, 1879 in Poland, but was best known as a vaudeville ventriloquist under the stage name The Great Lester.
Harry Lester was born in Poland on September 8, 1879 under his birth name of Maryan Czajkowski (often spelled Maryan Tschaikovsky). He was a cousin to the great Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, although the two most likely never met. While still very young, Maryan Tchaikovsky immigrated with his family to the United States. Tschaikovsky was bright, but he was not inclined to sit still in school. By the time he turned 16, Tchaikovsky had dropped out of school to run away from home and join the circus. In the circus, young Maryan took on every job that he could get. His enthusiasm quickly got him promoted to entertainer. He worked in the circus as a balloon jumper, clown and magician, and in the sideshow as a mind-reader, fire-eater and sword swallower. While working with the sideshow sometime between 1895 to 1898, he became fascinated in the art of ventriloquism. He read every book on ventriloquism he could get his hands on and mastered the craft well enough that around 1898, around the age of 20, he started performing strictly as a ventriloquist and changed his name to Harry Lester. During his first few years as a vent, Lester worked with several makeshift dummies. He acquired his most famous dummy, Frank Byron, Jr. around 1903. In numerous instances, he claimed to have carved Frank Byron, Jr. himself when he was young. Coronet cited Frank Marshall of Chicago as his carver. The most likely provenance of Frank Byron Jr. indicates that he probably came from the workshop of Theo Mack & Son of the Chicago Theodore Mack Company, a few years before Frank Marshall was employed there. With Frank Byron, Jr. at his side, Harry Lester assumed the moniker The Great Lester. He became a sensation, toured Europe, and became one of the highest-paid in-demand performers of the vaudeville circuit. Called the "Grandfather of Modern Day Ventriloquism", Lester claimed to be the first to drink while his dummy spoke; however, Joe Laurie notes that this trick was first performed in 1821. One of Lester's most noted acts was a bit where he called up Heaven and Hell in search of his sister. He was also the first ventriloquist to walk among the audience while his dummy whistled. In 1913, Lester's vaudeville tour took him to Rhinelander WI to perform in the new Majestic Theater. He fell in love with the area, and with a local girl named Charlotte. Harry Lester married his beloved Lottie and moved into a house on North Stevens Street. Lester loved children, and he and Lottie adopted two, a boy named Arnold and a girl named Jessie. Although Lester continued performing the vaudeville circuit, Rhinelander became his permanent home. He was in town full-time during the summers and came back during lapses in performance dates during the colder months. Lester was a vaudeville headliner throughout the 1920s, but by the end of the decade he suffered three setbacks from which he never fully recovered. He took heavy losses in the stock market crash of 1929, and was forced to file a libel suit against the scandalous Hollywood film, The Great Gabbo, for its false claims of being based on his life. But worst of all was the death of his beloved wife Lottie. After Lottie's death, Lester and his children moved to a lake house in the Newbold area and made the Northwoods their home through the 1930s. Lester continued traveling and performing, but his vaudeville ventriloquist act seemed increasingly old-fashioned compared to the newfangled talking films. When on breaks from touring, Lester remained active in his local community. He was a member of the local Elks and Masonic Lodges and he always found time to perform benefits for local audiences across the Northwoods. After World War II, Lester moved to Los Angeles CA, and offered ventriloquism lessons in a studio on Hollywood Boulevard. He was a well-known teacher of the art of ventriloquism, and he developed a rigorous program of breathing and speech articulation exercises. Students of Lester were encouraged to make tape recordings of their sessions, and as a result, there are many examples of his courses to be heard and a number of student recordings have been made available commercially. Edgar Bergen, one of the most famous ventriloquists of all time, was one of the Great Lester's pupils. In 1956, Lester needed an appendicitis operation. There were complications, and he did not recover. Harry Lester died in Los Angeles CA on July 14, 1956 at the age of 76 from complications of an appendicitis operation. He was buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Los Angeles, CA. Today Frank Byron, Jr. and Lester's other ventriloquist dummies are on display at Vent Haven Museum in Fort Mitchell, Kentucky where they reside.
Seeking photos and more information.
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Demetrius Longo Russian Fakir and Sword Swallower |
Born 1872 Performed 1890-1970s Died after 1972? |
Russian Circus Nizhegorodsk District, Moscow (Russia) |
According to a Brownsville Herald article dated January 25, 1972: "Demetrius Longo spent most of his life swallowing swords, walking on nails, drinking molten tin, and pulling out his eyeballs. It did him no harm. Longo will turn 100 next week. The Soviet magazine Yunost (Youth) said Longo, a "famous fakir and dervish," is writing memoirs of his long career as a sideshow artist in Russian circuses. The magazine publishes excerpts from the memoirs in connection with Longo's 100th birthday. In his heyday, the magazine said, Longo "walked barefoot on burning coals and on points of Persian spears or Turkish sabres. He lay down on beds of nails, drank molten tin and conjured spirits. "For him, swallowing a sword was a mere trifle... he could even remove his own eyeball and put it back." In his memoirs, Longo revealed the secret of sword swallowing - it involves feathers and goose fat - and he described some of his more spectacular stage tricks. He also offered a reason for his long life. "He says he reached such an incredible age because he never feared death," the magazine said. "He quoted his favorite poet, Omar Khayyam: You will die but once so it is not worth worrying about it."
Longo said he began his career at the age of 11 in the town of Nizhegorodsk where he joined a carnival as a roustabout, ticket taker and part-time magician. Later he said, he teamed up with a 9-foot giant, and a 20-inch lady. This was in the 1890s, he said, and it was about then that he acquired a French-speaking parrot named Ara. "Ara was five years older than me at the time," he said. "He still lives so that makes him 105 years old now." Longo, Ara, the giant, and the midget toured Russian cities with their act, he said and it gradually expanded. He once had a family of acrobatic cockroaches that performed tricks in a miniature playground."
Seeking photos and more information.
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Lady Marguerite Lady Margurite Lady Margaret Mlle. Margaret Davis Mlle. Marguerite Davis Marguerite Davis Margaurite Davis Margaret Davis Margaret Fiedler Marguerite Davis Fiedler Mrs. Jesse R. Fiedler |
Born 1896 Performed 1914-1920 Married 1920 Died Nov 19, 1921
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Mighty Haag Show Howe's Great London Show John Robinson Circus Side Show Davenport, IA (USA) |
Lady Margurite was a female circus sword swallower who performed in the early 1900s to 1920. This photo was taken of her in Davenport, Iowa. According to the October 17, 1914 Billboard: "Annie Christ, professionally known as Trixie Christie, is a new addition to the Oriental department of the Mighty Haag Shows. Margaret Davis is doing the sword swallowing in the Haag Auxiliary. Slivers Bowden, side-showman is the power of this department."
In 1915, "Marguerite Davis, sword swallower, who was in the last season with the Mighty Haag Show, has signed with Howe's Great London Show". However, according to the Howe's Great London Shows: Souvenir and Season's Route Book for 1915, her name was listed as "Margaurite Davis, sword swallower." According to Billboard Volume 29 dated May 9, 1917: With John Robinson's Circus in Cincinnati Ohio, "Marguerite Davis, sword swallower and slights." According to the January 3, 1920 Billboard: "Jesse R. Fiedler and Marguerite Davis, both members of the John Robinson Circus, were married in Pensacola, Fla., November 15, 1919. Mr. Fiedler has seen considerable service "Over There." According to the Billboard dated May 8, 1920, Mlle. Margaret (Davis), was featured as sword swallower John Robinson Circus Side Show of 1920. According to the Billboard dated September 18, 1920: John Robinson Circus. Margaret and Jess Fiedler rejoined the show at Pueblo. They opened with the show in the spring, but were compelled to leave on account of Mrs. Fiedler's health. Jess is selling tickets for the big show, while Margaret is working in the kid show.
Marguerite Davis died on November 19, 1921 at the age of 24-25, and is buried in Plot Section 7, Lot 33, Grave 2 in Overlook Cemetery, Parkman, Geauga County, OH. Seeking photos and more information.
Lady Marguerite Margaret Davis Fiedler Timeline:
Lady Margurite (different scan) Lady Margurite (c 1919-20) |
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Cliquot Chevalier Cliquot "Watch Swallower" "The World's Greatest Sword Phenomenon" Fred Cliquot Fred McLand Fred McLone Francis McLone Frederick McLoan Frederick McLone |
Born 1862 Performed 1878-1902+ Buried March 10, 1939
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Globe Dime Museum Kohl & Middleton's Dime Museum Palace Museum Harry Davis Eden Musee Huber's Museum Boston Lyceum Westminster Royal Aquarium Forepaugh Circus Chicago, IL (USA) Oldham, England (UK) |
First well-known North American sword swallower, Chevalier Cliquot was one of the most prominent sword-swallowers of his time and was known by the description "The World's Greatest Sword Phenomenon". In actuality, Cliquot was an American who went by the names Fred McLand, Frederick McLone or Francis McLone who was born in Chicago, IL, although the story was perpetuated that he was a "French-Canadian" born in Quebec, Canada in 1862 who ran away from home in Quebec at an early age to join a travelling circus bound for South America. On seeing an old man swallow a small machete in Buenos Aires, he allegedly took up learning sword swallowing around 1878-80 at about the age of 16 (Photo reportedly of Cliquot holding two swords taken in Montevideo Uruguay on July 18, 1880).
According to Census records, in 1891, Fred and Edith Cliquot lived in Cardiff Wales in 1891. According to ship passenger records, on February 15, 1892 Fred and Edith Cliquot arrived by ship in Philadelphia, PA. According to the Chicago Inter Ocean dated May 8, 1892, "At the Chicago Globe Dime Museum there will be seen during the week (May 8th, 1892) Mme. Carver, the fat woman, and her midget son, Major Heard and son, diminuitive dwarfs; Cliquot, the sword swallower, and Clios Adams, the armless man." According to the May 15 1892 Cincinatti Enquirer, Cliquot was booked at Kohl & Middleton's Dime Museum in Cincinatti OH the week of May 15, 1892. Cliquot told Harry Houdini that Delno Fritz was his sword swallowing pupil in the early 1890s. According to an ad dated May 23, 1892 in the Scranton Republican, Cliquot was booked at the Palace Museum in Scranton PA the week of May 23, 1892. On Sept 18, 1892, Cliquot performed at the World's Museum Theater in Pittsburgh according to the Sept 18, 1892 Pittsburgh Dispatch. According to a December 31, 1892 article in the Harrisburg Daily Independent, Cliquot was booked at the Harry Davis Eden Musee in Harrisburg, PA the week of December 26-30, 1892, and was assisted by Mlle. Cliquot. It was about this same time that Delno Fritz also claimed he studied sword swallowing from Cliquot while Fritz was also working at the Harry Davis Eden Musee in Harrisburg. According to an article in the Dec 12, 1893 New York Evening World, Cliquot also performed at Huber's Museum in New York in Dec 1893 (Delno Fritz perfomed at Huber's Museum a year later in December 1894 and 1895). On January 19, 1894, while swallowing 14 nine-inch swords at once in New York, Cliquot had the misfortune to have a skeptical audience, one of whom, a doctor who should have known better, rushed forward and impulsively pulled out the swords, inflicting injuries on Cliquot which incapacitated him for months. According to a January 20, 1894 article in the Ottawa Journal, "A French Canadian sword swallower named Cliquot was severely cut internally in a private exhibition at New York yesterday by a doctor who undertook to draw out fourteen swords that he had swallowed all at once, instead of singly. The sufferer is lying unconscious at an hospital." A New York Times article dated January 21, 1894 states, "'The Chevalier Cliquot' astonished doctors at the Metropolitan Throat Hospital. When he seemed in pain with fourteen swords down his throat, Dr. Hope yanked them out in a bunch. McLone in bed under morphine's influence. 'Oh, I'm all right,' groaned Frederick McLone, "the Chevalier Cliquot" sword swallower, as he tossed uneasily on a bed in Room 66 of the Union Square Hotel last evening, when his manager, William Howell asked him how he was getting along. McLone was under the influence of morphine administered by Dr. William Shannon, who believes his exhibition of sword swallowing at the Metropolitan Throat Hospital at 351 West Thirty-fourth Street on Friday brought about slight inflammation of the stomach and oesophagus, and that there are slight lacerations of the throat. McLone is a handsome little man, with a physique that is like that of Rowell, the walker. He was born in Quebec in 1862, and when a schoolboy became fascinated with a circus show and ran away from home to become an acrobat. A family of saltimbancos attached to a circus took an interest in him, and taught him to tumble and do feats of strength. He had just become expert enough to be worth a salary when he saw Battin the sword swallower perform some of his feats, and detected him in trickery. McLone experimented with himself, first with a wire with a knob at the end, until he had overcome the muscular and nervous resistance of his throat. Then he practiced with a sword until he was able to swallow a blade of about twenty inches up to its hilt. Constant practice made his throat callous to or familiar with intrusion, and fourteen years ago, when the United States man-of-war Lancaster was at Algiers, and a minstrel show was given on board, he appeared as the "American Acrobat" and gave an exhibition of sword swallowing without using a "sheath" or any device to lessen the severity of the ordeal to which his throat was put. His pseudonym was given him two years later in a Paris cafe, after a bottle of "The Widow's" had been splashed over him. He last appeared in public in Pittsburg three weeks ago and was to appear in Montreal to-morrow, but the date has been canceled. To kill time, he and his manager had gone to Boston, and his ability to swallow almost anything, except an insult, was demonstrated before Dr. Bowditch, Professor of Physiology at Harvard College, and others in B.F. Keith's office in the Gaiety Theatre. Dr. Bowditch, at the end of the exhibition asked: "Can you swallow anything?" "Yes," replied McLone. "Then swallow my cane." "I will if you'll wipe the ferrule." This was done, and the cane was pushed 22 inches down the Chevalier's throat, and the spectators marveled. The staff at the Metropolitan Throat Hospital deny that McLone was invited to appear before them. They say that he was brought there by his manager. They are familiar with the feats that a throat accustomed to distension will endure, and say that, physically considered, what McLone did on Friday was startling, but not especially wonderful. He first caused the 22 inch blade of a Chassepot sabre to disappear up to the hilt, and then swallowed four sword blades twenty inches long. The swords were made for the purpose, and the hilts were in the same plane as the blades, which fitted into each other like a nest of spoons. Then, taking the sabre, Cliquot fastened at right angles to the hilt a hollow rod of iron, four feet long, and to each end of the rod attached a dumbbell maker "14 pounds." Then, raising the rod until the point of the sabre was in his mouth, he swallowed it again, as he had done when nothing was attached to it. While the sabre was in his oesophagus McLone gave the bar a half twist, something he had never before attempted, according to Manager Howell. The doctors were asked if they wished to see a fowling piece attached to the bar and discharged while four inches of the sabre were out of the juggler's mouth, so that the sabre would force the blade down to the hilt, but they declined, and McLone prepared to do the next feat, that of swallowing fourteen swords, the blades of which were like those used in the second feat. Howell admits that when the sabre with the bar and the dumbbells was drawn from its living sheath, McLone appeared to suffer and retched, and that he should have then desisted, or have been made to do so. The fourteen swords were swallowed like the bunch of four, and the ordeal was little more severe, except that the distention of the throat was greater. Before swallowing the swords, McLone said that if any one wanted to draw them, it should be done one by one and not in a bunch. The swords were not half their length in McLone's economy when he appeared to be suffering and turned pale. Howell had turned his back when they were beginning to disappear, and he heard one of the doctors say, "My God, this is going too far." He turned to see Dr. G. B. Hope grasp the swords by the butts, and sharply withdraw them, instead of pulling them out quickly, one by one, as a card player deals cards, and as McLone does on stage. McLone gave a groan and leaned forward. He appeared to be in great agony, and could not speak for several moments. He then complained of severe pain in the stomach and throat. After a hypodermic injection of morphine had been given to him he was taken to his hotel in a cab. It was at first feared that either his throat had been lacerated or that there was a puncture of the stomach, and that an operation would be necessary, but there was no hemmorhage, and his condition had so far improved yesterday afternoon that he was able to drink some kumyss. Manager Howell was convinced that the new trick of turning the sabre with the bar and dumbbells attached was too great a strain for organs that had been strained and stretched to fit them for abnormal uses. He expected, however that McLone would be able to go to Toronto to fill an engagement at the end of this week. His wife, who aids him in his performances, was so satisfied with his condition that she went out for a walk with a friend. The staff of the hospital say they were not responsible for McLone's collapse. Before he gave his exhibition, his throat was examined, and while it was found to have become distended, it appeared to be healthy. McLone admitted that frequently after he had been idle for some time, he swallowed food with difficulty, and had several times been almost choked by food. He also suffered from dyspepsia when not "in practice", but found relief when he swallowed a sword. He was advised not to attempt any feat that would tax his throat more than it had been, and to keep it exercised." A follow-up story in the NY Times dated Jan 22, 1894 stated, "Frederick McLone, the sword swallower known on the stage as Chevalier Cliquot, who is suffering from inflammation of the stomach through the twisting of a sabre he had pushed down his throat at an exhibition, had greatly improved yesterday. Dr. William Shannon, his physician, says McLone may sit up in bed today." In February 1895, Cliquot was in Mexico City, Mexico. According to the March 9, 1895 article in the Chicago InterOcean, Cliquot did a demonstration for the senior class anatomy students at Rush Medical College in Chicago, IL on March 8, 1895. March 9, 1895 Chicago Daily Tribune account of Cliquot demonstration at Rush Medical College Chicago. According to an article in the Chicago InterOcean dated March 20, 1895: "Manager Hall of the McVicker's Theatre Casino has enlarged and strengthened the programme at that house since Sunday, the new people being Chevalier Cliquot, a sword swallower, and Gigmac and Pavese, the swordsmen. The sword swallower act is a remarkable one, the Chevalier passing blades twenty-one inches long down his throat and then bending his neck in all directions." From October 7-11, 1895, Chevalier Cliquot and his wife Mlle Cliquot were featured at the Boston Lyceum in Boston swallowing 14 swords (coincidentally only a few weeks after his competition "Chevalier Fritz" performed in Boston swallowing 11 swords in September, 1895) according to an ad in the October 6, 1895 Boston Post and followed by an article in the Boston Post. On November 10, 1895, an unnamed 35-year old European sword swallower who had performed for over 20 years was featured in an in-depth article on the art of sword swallowing in the Pittsburgh Daily Post. Based on the description of the sword swallower and details of the feats described, this must have been Cliquot. On January 17, 1896, Cliquot debuted at the Westminster Royal Aquarium in London England, according to the Westminster Budget dated January 17, 1896. On February 21, 1896, Cliquot was still pulling in the crowds at the Westminster Royal Aquarium by swallowing 14 swords and a watch according to an article in the Westminster Budget dated February 21, 1896. By 1902, Cliquot had swallowed up to 22 inch blades nearly every day for over 23 years at least and possibly beyond that. Cliquot could swallow a 22-inch cavalry sword without difficulty, and his act included swallowing an electric light bulb connected to an 8-volt battery, up to fourteen 19-inch bayonet swords at one time, and his major trick was to swallow a bayonet sword, weighted with a cross-bar and two 18-pound dumbbells. In another feat, he would partially swallow a bayonet weighted with a crossbar, and allow the rest of the blade to be "kicked" by the recoil of a rifle which was fixed to a spike in the center of the bar and then fired by his sister. Cliquot was known to have performed with the Forepaugh Circus, did lectures and demonstrations before physicians and students at the University of of Liverpool in England, and finally "reformed" and ended up as a music hall agent in England. Edith McLone died in March 1917 at the age of 47, and was interred in the county of Staffordshire England. According to an article in the July 7, 1939 New Castle News, "Francis McLone who in pre-war days was well known as Chevalier Cliquot, sword swallower, has died at the Royal Infirmary in Oldham, England. After a demonstration many years ago before the Chicago College of Surgeons, he was offered a life pension if he would agree to leave his body for research purposes. He refused, but a few days before his last operation, he bequeathed his body to the Oldham Infirmary." McLone died in 1939 at the age of 72, and was buried March 10, 1939 in the Southern Cemetery, Chorlton-Cum-Hardy, Metropolitan Borough of Greater Manchester, England, Plot: TConsecrated 1075. Seeking photos and more information.
Chevalier Cliquot Fred McLone Timeline
Cliquot in Uruguay back (1880) Cliquot at Globe Dime Museum Chicago (5-8-1892) Cliquot at Kohl & Middleton's Dime Museum Cincinatti (5-15-1892) Palace Museum Scranton (5-23-28-1892) Cliquot Watch Swallower (6-19-1892) Cliquot moves to Scranton PA (8-17-1892) Cliquot at Harry Davis Eden Musee Harrisburg (9-15-1892) Cliquot at Harry Davis Eden Musee Harrisburg (12-31-1892) Cliquot injury article 1 (1-21-1894) Cliquot injury article 2 (1--22-1894) Cliquot injury article pdf (1-1894) The Wigwam San Francisco (10-14-1894) Witness against The Wigwam San Fran (10-30-1894) Cliquot demonstration at Rush Medical College Chicago (3-8-1895) Cliquot demonstration at Rush Medical College Chicago (3-8-1895) Cliquot Chicago InterOcean (3-20-1895) Cliquot ad Boston Lyceum (10-6-1895) Cliquot article Boston Lyceum (10-6-1895) Pittsburgh Daily Post article (11-10-1895) Cliquot article (1-1-1896) Cliquot debuts at London Aquarium (1-17-1896) Cliquot swallowing 22 inch cavalry sabre (1896) Cliquot swallowing weighted sword (1896) Chevalier Cliquot (1896) Chevalier Cliquot (1896) Chevalier Cliquot postcard (1890s) Cliquot with Forepaugh Circus Cliquot Poster (1899) Cliquot Poster (1902) Francis McLone dies in Oldham England (1939) |
| Harry Parsons |
Performed 1880 Died December 20, 1880
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Cleveland, OH (USA) |
A Cincinnati Enquirer articles dated January 17, 1880 reports on a Cincinnati sword swallower who was injured in January 1880. Could this have been sword swallower Harry Parsons? According to obituaries in the NY Times and the Leavenworth Times, both dated Dec 24, 1880, "Harry Parsons, a professional sword-swallower, fatally injured himself while performing the feat in Cleveland, Ohio, on Monday." Harry Parsons died on December 20, 1880, and is buried in Woodland Cemetery in Cleveland, Ohio. Seeking photos and more information.
Harry Parsons obituary (12-24-1880) Harry Parsons obituary (12-24-1880) |
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Gustaf Westerlund Gustaf Gustafinpoika Westerlund Brothers Westerlund |
Born Sept 26, 1854 Performed 1880 Died 1917 |
Brothers Westerlund (Finland) |
Gustaf Westerlund (born Sept 26, 1854 in Oulu Northern Ostrobothnia, Finland) and his brother Alexander Westerlund (born Sept 6, 1859) were born to Gustaf Westerlund and Maria Kaisa, and performed together as circus performers in Finland under the name "Veljekset Westerlund" (Brothers Westerlund) doing an acrobatic act which also included sword swallowing. An advertisement from August 5, 1880 states that Westerlund "...swallows in wonderful accuracy 24 inch long iron swords". Westerlund died in 1917, and is buried in plot #11in Oulu Cemetery in Oulu, Northern Ostrobothnia, Finland.Seeking photos and more information. |
| Barnum & Bailey's Circus | 1881 |
New York, NY (USA) |
Barnum and Bailey's first three ring circus is staged in New York City in 1881. Barnum and Bailey split up in 1885, but came back together again in 1888 with the "Barnum & Bailey Greatest Show On Earth", later "Barnum & Bailey Circus", which toured around the world. P.T. Barnum died in 1891. |
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Prof. Bauman Professor Bauman |
Performed March 12-14, 1881 | Turnverein Hall Los Angeles, CA (USA) |
According to a March 9, 1881 article in the Los Angeles Herald, "Prof Willio, a world renowned Prestidigitateur and Necromancer will give three entertainments in this city, Saturday, Sunday, and Monday eve'gs, March 12, 13, and 14. The Professor outrivals the Davenport tricks, swallows molten sealing wax, and performs many new and astonishing feats. He is accompanied by PROF. BAUMAN, the great sword-swallower, gymnast, and contortionist." Seeking photos and more information. |
| Frederick Smith |
Born c. 1864 Performed 1883 Injured August 1883
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St, Thomas Hospital London, England (UK) |
The book "The World of Wonders: A Record of Things Wonderful in Nature, Science, and Art" (1891) gives an account of sword swallower Frederick Smith who sustained a serious injury in the spring of 1883: "A still more recent performer, named Frederick Smith, met with a serious accident in the spring of 1883. While swallowing a sword, it became embedded in the gullet, and he by motions requested one of the audience to withdraw the weapon. The man thus appealed to place his hand on the hilt, causing the blade to penetrate the intestines, and the juggler was removed to St. Thomas' Hospital, where he was for a considerable time in a very dangerous condition."
According to an article in the August 21, 1883 issue of The Royal Gazette, Bermuda Commercial and General Advertiser and Recorder: "A singular case, which may terminate fatally, has come under the notice of Mr. Mason, surgeon at St. Thomas's Hospital, London. A young man named Frederick Smith, aged 19 years, residing at No. 6 White Hart Street, Drury Lane, has of late been giving exhibitions as a sword swallower. While performing his extraordinary feat before a large audience, the blade of the sword, which is blunt on either side, becoming embedded in the thorax, the performer, by gesture, requested one of the audience to withdraw the weapon for the purpose of testing his bona fide performance, instead of which the party so requested placed his hand on the hilt, causing the blade to penetrate the intestines. The juggler suddenly collapsed, and it was with difficulty that the sword was extracted. He was immediately attended by the local surgeon, who deemed it expedient to have the sufferer removed to the above institution, where he now lies." Seeking more information.
Frederick Smith injury (August 1883) |
| Unknown Sword Swallower |
Performed Dec 20, 1883 Injured Dec 20, 1883 Died Dec 28, 1883
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(USA) | According to the book "Bizarre Medical Abnormalities", in 1883 Gussenbauer gives an account of a juggler who had an accident on December 20, 1883. When the juggler turned his head to bow an acknowledgment of applause while swallowing a sword, he thus brought his upper incisors against the sword, which broke off and slipped into his stomach. To relieve suffocation, the sword was pushed further down. Gastrotomy was performed, and the piece of sword 11 inches long was extracted; as there was perforation of the stomach before the operation, the patient died of peritonitis on December 28, 1883. |
| Prof. Rohelhorn |
Performed June 21-23, 1884 |
Great National Circus Oakland, CA (USA) |
According to an article dated June 18, 1884 in the Oakland Tribune, "Everybody will be there next Saturday afternoon and evening (6-21-1884), and also on Monday evening (6-23-1884) to witness the unparalleled exhibition known as the "Great National Circus and Equine Paradox of Educated Horses". It is the most thoroughly trained circus that has visited Oakland for years, containing, as it does, the world famous Morosco Brothers, the Marvels of Peru, Signior Hudson, the daring and graceful bareback rider, Frank Ashford, the amusing Irish comedian, Prof. Rohelhorn, the sword-swallower, Harry Lamott, the Indian rubber man, the clever Irwin brothers late of John Robinson's Circus, and Mons. Milo, the Iron-jawed man." Seeking photos and more information.
Prof. Rohelhorn National Circus (6-21-1884) |
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Moses Berg Joseph Berg Prof. Berg Prof. Moses Berg Professor Moses Berg The Great Professor Berg Professor DeHoune Professor Daniel De Houne Rope Walker |
Born 6 Feb 1829 Born 19 Sept 1841 Lost leg in Civil War 1862 Performed 1863-1884 Died 1884 (or) Died 28 Jul 1898
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Smolensk, Russia or Weiler, Germany Corsicana, TX (USA) |
According to some reports, Moses Berg was born on 19 September 1841, the son of the merchant Mendel (or Wendel) Berg and his wife Margaretha nee Koch in 111 Dorfstraße in Weiler, Germany. He had four sisters: Elisabetha, Johannette, Wilhelmina and Maria.
According to other reports, he was born on 6 February, 1829 in Smolensk, Smolensk Oblast, Russia and sometimes performed under the name "De Houne". At some point Moses Berg emigrated to America, where according to researcher Jim Yarin, Berg earned a living as a tightrope walker, acrobat and sword swallower. In 1862, he lost his right leg in the Civil War while fighting with the Kansas 7th Cavalry at the Battle of Middleburg, but later went back to working as a tightrope walker with a wooden prosthesis. In 1869, Berg suffered a serious fall while performing in Indiana, though no specific details were reported. Two years later, according to an 1871 article, Professor De Houne fell from a tightrope when the rope broke. An 1873 article in the New York Evening Telegram stated that, just before the Civil War, De Houne immigrated to Texas from Berlin, where he had performed for 13 years with a circus. Fighting for the Kansas 7th Cavalry in the Civil War, he lost his leg at the Battle of Middleburg in 1862. To support his wife and six children back in Texas, he took his showbiz stunts on the road, swallowing swords, swinging on a trapeze and dancing with a table balanced on his teeth. In 1878, "The Great Professor Berg" was mentioned in the Mesilla NM newspaper, just north of El Paso TX. According to the Mesilla newspaper, Professor Berg walked a tight rope, actually a lariat rope, stretched between Hogan's Saloon and the roof of a barber shop. He did this despite several handicaps: One being the fact he only had one leg, and wore a peg-leg. And another being the fact that some of the uncouth onlookers had been expressing applause by firing their six-shooters in the air. In 1884 (or some reports 1898), Berg attempted to cross a tightrope stretched over the main street of Corsicana TX. To make the stunt even more incredible, he added a heavy kitchen stove strapped to his back. A rope was stretched across Beaton Street and Fifth Avenue from the roof of an old frame building which later was the site of the First State bank to a similarly constructed building housing the Louis Hashop Confectionery. In the first building was Bernard Simon's grocery store, while the Hashop location was known as the "Blue Front" drug store. Tied from roof-top to roof-top, the rope was about 20 feet from the ground, and ranged "catty-cornered' across Beaton Street and Fifth Avenue. At that time in Corsicana, the opportunity of seeing a daredevil walk a tight rope was a rare occasion, and practically everybody in town had come from near and far over the dusty, unpaved streets and board sidewalks to see the event. As all eyes were focused on the Simon building, a medium-sized man in his early 40s climbed to the roof, fastened a wood-stove on his back, to begin his perilous trip across the rope. To the amazement of the townspeople, the man had but one leg, the other being a wooden limb. The bottom end of the false leg was notched to fit the rope. "He had a long bar in his hand to help balance himself," according to an account preserved in The Perpetual Record Book of the Jewish Cemetery, Corsicana. As the rope-walker reached the middle of the street intersection, sliding his notched wooden leg along the rope and cautiously pulling the other after, he became overbalanced, lost his balance and fell to the ground landing on his chest, with the stove crushing on top of his body. "When about halfway across, he lost his balance and fell to the street from a 2-story height. He was badly crushed by the weight of the stove on his back." Women and children screamed and fainted. Some of the older men surged forward in a body to where the man had fallen. Some fathers and brothers took their daughters and sisters inside nearby stores for protection and then joined the other men to give what assistance they could. Berg was taken to the Molloy hotel, around the corner, where Dr. J.W. Gulick was summoned and performed what first aid treatment was available at that time.
The broken man told some of the bedside attendants that he was a member of a Methodist church, and asked for a minister of that denomination. Rev. Abe Mulkey came and talked for some time to the man. Later in the evening, Dr. Gulick reported the man was dying, and wanted to talk to "a Jew man." Mr. Simon, a Jewish businessman and owner of one of the stores, was summoned, and with the dying man, repeated the Jewish prayers in Hebrew. The rope-walker told Mr. Simon that he had been "joking" when he said he was a Methodist, but really was an Orthodox Jew, which was proven to Mr. Simon's satisfaction when the tightrope walker repeated his prayers in excellent Hebrew. During several conversations he refused to divulge his name or residence, or any information concerning his identy. No one could persuade the dying man to state his name or whether he had any family. He remained an enigma even as he was lowered into his place of final rest. The local Jewish community then took over the funeral of the nameless wirewalker. The broken body was laid to rest in the Jewish Hebrew Cemetery through the benevolence of the local Corsicana Hebrews. Not a word was ever learned of the man's identity, and it was some time later before the little marble tombstone was put at the head of the grave, which now may be seen near the Third avenue entrance to the cemetery. Since his identity was unknown at the time, a nameless gravestone with only "Rope Walker" marks the spot where he was buried. A 1936 article in the Corsicana Daily Sun repeated these details, as related by Rachel Mae London, daughter of the late Max London, keeper of The Perpetual Record Book. Rachel Mae had witnessed the tragedy as a girl. As reported in the Tuesday, February 25, 1936 Corsicana Daily Sun, most of the details of this story were related by Rachel Mae London, 316 West Sixth avenue, daughter of the late Max London, the record keeper, who as a girl, was an eye-witness to the tragedy. Moses Berg was about 43 years old at the time of his death (other reports claim he was 69). He is buried in the Hebrew Cemetery in Coriscana TX. Moses Berg kam am 19. September 1841 als Sohn des Handelsmanns Mendel (oder Wendel) Berg und seiner Frau Margaretha geborene Koch in Weiler in der Dorfstraße im Haus Nr. 111 zur Welt. Er hatte vier Schwestern: Elisabetha, Johannette, Wilhelmina und Maria. In Amerika verdiente er sein Geld als Seiltänzer, Akrobat und Schwertschlucker, wie Jim Yarin berichtete. 1862 verlor er im Sezessionskrieg sein rechtes Bein, arbeitete aber mit einer Holzprothese weiter als Seiltänzer. 1884 stürzte er in den Tod, als er, einen Küchenherd auf den Rücken geschnallt, in Corsicana, Texas, ein Seil überqueren wollte, das über eine Straße gespannt war. Da zu diesem Zeitpunkt seine Identität nicht bekannt war, markiert ein namenloser Grabstein, auf dem nur "Rope Walker" (Seiltänzer) steht, die Stelle, an der er bestattet wurde. Wie Jim Yarin herausfand, soll der Sterbende um einen Rabbiner gebeten haben, da er Jude sei. Einen Rabbiner konnte man ihm nicht besorgen, aber ein jüdischer Kaufmann habe mit ihm gebetet. Die dortige jüdische Gemeinde habe dann die Beerdigung des Namenlosen übernommen. Seeking photos and more information.
Professor Berg (1878) (link) (link) (link) |
| Ringling Brothers Circus | Founded in 1884 |
Baraboo, WI (USA) |
John Nicholas Ringling starts Ringling Brothers Circus in Baraboo Wisconsin in 1884. |
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LeTort Le Tort Joseph LeTort Joseph Le Tort Joseph H. LeTort Professor LeTort Professort Joseph LeTort Joseph H. Bartlay |
Born 1825 Died November 22 1880 |
(Denmark/Sweden) | Joseph H. LeTort was born in 1825 as Joseph H. Bartlay. He died in poverty on November 22, 1880 in Svendborg, Denmark.
There was also a magician named Niels Edvard Jacobsen who was born in 1856 and in 1891 took the stage name "LeTort". There is speculation that the two magicians met in 1880 and Niels Edvard Jacobsen bought some of Joseph H. Le Tort's props and even his name, which was not an uncommon practice at the time. In 1891 Niels Edvard Jacobsen requested from the king that he be allowed to take the stage name "LeTort", and at first he was known as Niels Edvard Jacobsen Letort. Professor Joseph H. Le Tort vara född år 1825. Hans rätta namn var Joseph H. Bartlay. Han dog den 22 november 1880 i fattigdom i Svendborg, Danmark, där han tänkt ge föreställningar. Han var i sina yngre dagar en av de flitigaste trollkarlarna här i Norden och gjorde överallt mycken lycka men tog inte vara på sina inkomster. Joseph H. Le Tort var en liten, livlig, mörklagd man med mörkt, lockigt hår, välvårdade mustascher och pipskägg, och han uppträdde klädd i frack. Han hade en rikhaltig, effektfullt anordnad apparatuppsättning och bjöd på en omväxlande repertoar. Le Tort kallade sig engelsman i reklamen ("från London", "från Dublin", "från England"), men han kunde göra sig förstådd på de skandinaviska språken. "Beklagligen började den skicklige trollkarlen låta sig för mycket frestas av glasets njutningar, varför det kunde hända att han vid utförandet av ett bland sina praktnummer, den omtalade schalkonsten, osäkert fubblade så att publiken fick alltför stora inblickar i dess hemligheter och därvid upptäckte att han t.ex. inför västen gömde vattenskålarna, hvilka voro övertäckta med s.k. guldslagarehinna, hvarigenom vattnet kvarhölls." (S:t Eriks årsbok 1909) Ett häfte på 24 sidor med titeln "Trettioen utmärkta konststycken utförda av Professorerna Döbler och Bils samt flera andra Konstnärer, och hvilka Konststycken hvar och en fullkomligt kan lära sig, tydligt och lättfattligt framställda av J. Le Tort.", utdelades till publiken vid föreställningen i Stockholm den 18 januari 1852. Häftet är prytt med ett träsnitt av Le Tort. 1869 utgavs i Köpenhamn häftet "Fireogtyve Taskenspiller kunster udförte af Professor Le Tort, utgivne i Trykken af hans medhjaelper". Le Tort uppges vara författaren men vem hans "medhjaelper" var är okänt. 1904 utgavs i Köpenhamn häftet "Professor Le Tort´s berömte tryllekunster", som har samma text och innehåll – endast konststyckenas antal skiljer. Nedan följer en förteckning över föreställningar, som Joseph H. Le Tort enligt tidningsannonser, affischer och omnämnanden har gjort. 1851 i Sverige: 2 maj i Nyköping tillsammans med Professor Carl Bils. Norra Tivoli, Norrtullsgatan, Stockholm (med Bils). Manegen på Djurgården och på Djurgårdstivoli (med Bils). Mosebacke (troligen ensam) under sommaren (13 maj är känt). Under vintern på Hornungs figurteater, Jakobsbergsgatan, Stockholm (4, 14, 18, 21 oktober är känt). Upsala 30 december. 1852 sejouren i Stockholm avslutades 1 februari. Till Danmark: mitten av juli – 8 september Tivoli, Köpenhamn. Aalborg, Randers, Fredericia. 1853 i Sverige (bl.a. Stockholm 27 december). 1854 i Sverige – med avstickare till Norge. 1855 i Sverige. 1856 i Sverige. Borås, Gillets salong, 3 januari. Stockholm 31 maj. Till Finland – minst 6 föreställningar i september (bl.a. den 12 september "å härvarande Teater" i Helsingfors). Till St. Petersburg. Le Tort åtföljs nu av hustrun Clara och dottern Maria. 1857 i Sverige. 10 augusti "föreställning inför det unga hofvet på Ulriksdal". I september Ladugårdslands-theatern, Stockholm. 1858 i Danmark. Premiär i Tivoli, Köpenhamn 3 maj, därefter landsorten. 1859 i Danmark och Sverige. Premiär den 4 juni i Göteborg. 16 oktober (för sista gången) K. Humlegårds-Teatern, Stockholm (tillsammans med Mr. Philippe). 1860-1862 ? 1863 i Danmark. 29 mars, Theatret i Aalborg (på sin genomresa till Randers). 1864-1865 ? 1866 i Danmark. 1867 i Sverige och Finland. Wexiö, Stockholm. 27 september premiär i Helsingfors, därefter 2, 4, 5, 6 oktober. 11, 13 oktober Fredrikshamn ("på genomresa till Ryssland"). Le Tort har nu sällskap av nya hustrun Henriette och dottern Emma Jane samt en dansk assistent (?) Carli. 1868-1876 i Amerika. Den 12 augusti 1876 ges avskedsrepresentation i Amerika ("varit i de flesta amerikanska städer") – åter till Sverige. 1877 i Sverige. Premiär på Ladugårdslands Teatern, Stockholm den 4 mars – till april. 12 augusti Kalmar. Sejour i Kristianstad och här blev Le Tort den 22 oktober överfallen i förstugan i det hus han tillfälligt bodde i. 1878 i Sverige. Göteborg i början på mars. 14, 17, 19 maj föreställningar på Teatern i Arvika. 10 och 31 maj samt 2 juni Cirkus Eqestres lokal i Karlstad. 3, 5, 7, 12, 14, 16, 20 juli (tre förest.) och 21 juli (tre förest.) i Westerås. 1879 i Sverige. 1880 i Danmark, bland annat tillsammans med danske trollkonstnären F. Bland. Seeking photos and more information.
Joseph H. Bartlay Letort Timeline
Prof. LeTort (11-9-1871) |
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Niels Le Tort Professor LeTort Niels Edvard Jacobsen Niels Edvard Jacobsen LeTort |
Born April 29, 1856 Performed 1871 Married 1881 Divorced 1896 Died Feb 7, 1929 |
(Denmark/Sweden) | Niels Edvard Jacobsen was born April 29, 1856 in Tröröd, Sölleröd Sogn, north of Copenhagen, Denmark. He started poor, and after military service, began studying hatmaking with a hatmaker in Copenhagen. In 1880, he may have met up with magician Professor Joseph H. Le Tort and bought some of his props. In 1881, Niels Edvard Jacobsen got married, and upon his first child's birth in 1883, he gave up his hatmaking occupation for the life of an artist.
By 1887 Jacobsen was working as a sword swallower (his seven swords are preserved in a collection). In 1891 Jacobsen requested from the king that he be allowed to take the name "LeTort". At first he was known as Niels Edvard Jacobsen Letort. There was also a magician named Professor Joseph H. Le Tort who was born in 1825 and performed in 1880 before dieing in Swedborg Denmark on November 22 1880. There is speculation that the two magicians met in 1880, and Niels Jacobsen got to buy some of Joseph H. Le Tort's props and even his name, which was not an uncommon practice at the time. In 1893, Niels Jacobsen LeTort showed a banner at a fair, and at this point became a sideshow tent owner. In 1895 he displayed a giant woman, and in 1896 he traveled around with a "hairy woman", but he also continued to work as a magician. In 1896, he and his wife were divorced. Niels Jacobsen Letort travelled around Denmark, and in 1899 he toured further into Malmö and other areas of Sweden, where he became very popular. In October, 1900 he returned to Denmark, but didn't receive as much publicity there as he did in Sweden. He returned to Sweden, and toured as far as Finland, where he didn't receive quite the success that he did in Sweden. He even performed at the Follies-Bergère in Paris (he was well-known even in France and could speak some French). Letort was very elegant - tall, with pointed mustache, white tie with diamond pin, and rings on his fingers. At a performance in Gävle, Sweden in 1901, Letort met a French engineer, showman, fellow magician and mechanic, Joseph Couprant, who was showing "living picture" films. They decided to join up, so Couprant could strengthen Letort's program by showing films. They opened a business for photographic articles in Stockholm, where they started the "American Theater", Stockholm's first "standing theater". Letort thrived here also, together with his second wife and assistant, Miss Hetty Dené Moore, who was English, 22 years younger than Letort, whom he had met during a tour to England, fell in love with, and married. In May 1902, Letort and Couprant moved to Göteborg, Sweden, where they opened the first cinemagraphic theater in the city and combined variety acts with film. Letort and Couprant returned to Stockholm where they continued their photo business. 1904 Letort moved to Malmö and became the city's movie pioneer. After a while, be moved back to Copenhagen, where he also became a movie pioneer. Letort had made good money as a magician, but had even better success with the new film industry. Around 1910, Letort and his wife moved to her homeland of England. In 1924 the couple moved back to Odense, Denmark, where Niels died on February 7, 1929 at the age of 73. His wife lived until May 12, 1962. Seeking photos and more information.
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9th & Arch Museum Ninth and Arch Museum Ninth and Arch Dime Museum |
Opened 1869 Reopened 1883 Reopened 1885 Sold 1910 |
Ninth and Arch Dime Museum Ninth and Arch Streets Philadelphia, PA (USA) |
Ninth and Arch Dime Museum For more than half a century, the corner of 9th and Arch streets sustained Philadelphians with opportunities for diversion, education and voyeurism. The public came and went - and so did the owners. First was Colonel Joseph Wood in 1869, fresh in town having been burnt out of his Chicago emporium. The Colonel opened the doors on a relatively simple affair: menagerie plus performance space, and called it Colonel
Joseph H. Wood's Museum.
By 1883, the venue re-launched under the new ownership. Hagar, Campbell & Co. New Dime Museum advertised "Entertainment Designed Expressly for Ladies and Children," and claimed they had the "only great show in town." It featured everything from "Barnum's Original Aztecs," the "Che-Mah Chinese Dwarf," the "Cannibal Fan Child," the "Living Skeleton" and the "White Moor." Hagar and Campbell piled on the attractions, adding "Dens of Serpents," "the Merry Monkeys", Punch and Judy, Johnson's Original Tennessee Jubilee Singers, and "a multitude of other attractions." (.pdf) Even so, audience demands and museum costs, proved too high. The Dime Museum soon changed hands again. This time, Charles A. Bradenbaugh re-invented the destination as the 9th and Arch Museum. And this time, place and the public connected. Bradenbaugh kept the audiences coming from 1885 to 1910. What would a visitor see behind Bradenbaugh's colorful facade? "On the first floor," Joseph Jackson says, "there were numerous forms of apparatus for testing grips, lungs, lifting power, etc. On the second floor were cages of monkeys, a prairie dog village, and a few other menagerie specimens. The third floor provided a lecture hall packed with a series of platforms, with living "human freaks." Regulars came to know "The Skeleton Man," "The Fat Woman," the "Real Zulus," "The Human Bat," "The Bearded Lady," "The Elastic-Skin Man," "The Glass Eater," "The Sword Swallower," and "The Dog-Faced Boy." Every hour, the gawking public would be invited back down to the main auditorium where they'd sit for a popular play that, no matter the length of the original, was condensed into forty minutes, give or take. In the 1890s, Bradenbaugh dabbled in movies, allowing his visitors to enjoy that emerging medium. But the Dime Museum's array of 19th-century offerings remained a complicated and layered activity for the public. The simpler experience of the 20th century movie house required, and got, a venue all its own. A decade into the new century, Bradenbaugh saw the writing on the wall and sold out. Soon enough, the new owners of the 9th and Arch Museum recognized the same reality and did their best to turn it into an opportunity. In 1911, the museum's new manager, T.F. Hopkins, and his press agent, Norman Jeffries, engineered (literally) a favorite local legend: the Jersey Devil. After giving birth to her 12th child, the story goes, "Mother Leeds" declared that the 13th, if she had it, would be the Devil. Lo and behold, one dark and stormy night in 1735, Mrs. Leeds gave birth to her 13th. As promised, it immediately transformed into "a creature with hooves, a horse's head, bat wings and a forked tail." The newborn "growled and screamed, then killed the midwife before flying up the chimney. It circled the villages and headed toward the Pines." According to Andrea Stulman Dennett in Weird & Wonderful: the Dime Museum in America, the headlines screamed: "The Fabulous Leeds Devil Reappears after an Absence of Fifty Years." A "monster with long hind legs, short forelegs, a tail, horns on its head and short wings" had reportedly been captured by a farmer in New Jersey - after a terrific struggle - and would soon be "placed on exhibition at the Ninth and Arch Museum." "Caught!!! And Here!!!! Alive!!! THE LEEDS DEVIL, read Hopkins and Jeffries posters. Swims! Flys! Gallops! Exhibited securely chained in a Massive Steel Cage. A LIVING DRAGON more famous than the Fabled Monsters of Mythology. Don't Miss the Sight of a Lifetime." In fact, the museum's short-lived center of attention was a kangaroo with wings attached. And the audiences this mutant marsupial drew to 9th and Arch kept the doors open for only a few more weeks. The day of the Dime Museum had passed. Frank Dumont soon bought the building for his thriving troupe of minstrels. Seeking photos and more information on sword swallowers at Ninth and Arch Dime Museum.
Sword Swallowers at 9th and Arch Dime Museum
Delno Fritz (12-15-1895) Ninth & Arch Museum History |
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Austin & Stone's Museum Austin & Stone's Dime Museum |
Performances 1895-1902 |
Austin & Stone's Dime Museum Boston, MA (USA) |
Austin & Stone's Dime Museum, Boston, MA
Seeking photos and more information on sword swallowers at Austin & Stone's Dime Museum.
Sword Swallowers at Austin & Stone's Dime Museum
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Frank A. Robbins Shows Frank A. Robbins Circus |
Tours 1890s-1915 |
Frank A. Robbins Shows Jersey City, NJ (USA) |
Frank A. Robbins Show
Frank A. Robbins was only 15 when he joined his first circus in 1870. During his youth he worked for a year for PT Barnum's occasional partner, George F. Bailey, and for Barnum himself from 1876 to 1878. Robbins started his own circus in 1881, and achieved immediate success. Six years later, when he toured southern Ontario, he had 100 performers in the show, some of whom doubled as stage hands and workmen. There were perhaps another 50 employees and animal handlers, and a few advance men who would place advertisements, tack up posters, and rent suitable grounds for the show. An interesting aspect of the Robbins troupe was that it was racially mixed, with several blacks working as performers, stage hands, and labourers. This may have caused some difficulties in some locales in both the United States and Canada. The Robbins show toured using 36 railway cars, which often meant two trains on the lightly-constructed Canadian Pacific line through Mount Forest. By comparison, the Barnum & Bailey Circus, at its largest, required more than 100 cars, and usually moved in three or four trains. Robbins advertised a two-ring show, not quite in the league of Barnum's three-ring extravaganza, but sufficient to keep the attention of even the most jaded of spectators. Taking a cue from Barnum, Robbins' promotion material promised more than he delivered. His advertisement for the Mount Forest show claimed 13 elephants would perform, and the illustration showed eight of the pachyderms waltzing in the ring. According to circus historians, the Robbins Circus had only six, but a Mount Forest reporter swore that he counted nine of them. Likewise, the posters claimed the circus carried three bands of musicians, but reporters present at Mount Forest counted only two. During the latter decades of the 19th century a number of circus performers built up great reputations. They would sign with one of the touring circuses for a season. The next year they might sign again. Just as often, they would accept an offer from a rival operator. Robbins had several first-rank performers when he visited Mount Forest. Most famous was Charles W. Fish, who had an international reputation as a trick bareback rider. His act included various jumps on and off his horse, and impressive acrobatics on the horse that seemed to defy gravity. After a couple of years with Robbins he joined the Ringling Brothers circus, remaining with that show until his death in 1895. Two other famed equestrians with the Robbins show were the Jeal sisters, Linda and Eleanor (who billed herself as "Elena Jeal"). The show included the obligatory snake charmer, several gymnasts, and a trick marksman. Staging shows day after day in different towns required an impressive amount of planning, co-ordination, and precise timing. For the performances on the Canadian Pacific branch through Mount Forest, the train or trains arrived in town no later than 6am. The members of the circus crew and the performers, at least 150 in number, had to be provided with breakfast. The cooks not only had kitchen duties, but they had to keep the larder in their dining car stocked and replenished. While some of the crew unloaded the tents and the equipment needed for the performance, the animal handlers dealt with the animals. Elephants and horses had to be fed before helping to put up the tents, and the other animals had to be fed and groomed as well. The animals and equipment would be assembled for a parade that commenced at 10am. The grounds opened at 1pm, and crowds were welcome to look at sideshow attractions until the first performance at 2pm. It lasted about two hours. Some of the performers and labourers tried to catch an afternoon nap, and then readied themselves for a second show. The gates opened at 6pm, with the performance an hour later. By 10pm, the dismantling operations were underway. Some of the crew had slept during the day: taking down and setting up was largely a night job. Everything would be packed and aboard the train by 2am if everything ran properly. Sometimes there were problems. The men worked by torch light and had to watch their steps and movements. Sometimes the weather didn't co-operate. Wind and rain could make the dismantling of tents a difficult chore, and could delay the departure. A couple of hours later it all began again. The Robbins circus of 1887 had a smaller tent that displayed various exotic animals in their cages. It rivalled some zoos, with various mammals, reptiles, and birds. Some of the animals would perform at the shows. The main tent had two rings and a central platform, almost entirely surrounded by seats. Robbins took special care to provide comfortable seating, something not done by most rival circuses. The show opened with Alna Danjanet, a snake charmer. Andrew Gaffney, a strongman, followed her, impressing the audience by juggling cannon balls. One of the elephants performed comic stunts between the other acts, which greatly amused the audience. The other elephants performed several routines and drills, including dancing in pairs. Charles Fish, the star of the show, followed the elephants, riding around both rings as he performed tricks on his horse. Then came Chevalier Paine with his pistol and rifle, giving an impressive demonstration of trick shooting. Some observers thought that Fish and Paine could have offered a good show all by themselves. Mount Forest's editors were impressed with the show, and regretted that it had not attracted a full house. The Mount Forest Representative's man thought it was the best show ever offered in that town. There was only one unfortunate incident at the Mount Forest performances. A lout named Tom Hill, from Normanby Township, attended the circus amply filled with whiskey. He objected to black performers and stage hands, and began following them around, hurling insults and ridicule, and challenging them. Several took him up on the offer. Bruised and bleeding, he was barely able to stumble off the grounds after receiving a severe pounding. Hill was further enraged when the local constable refused to lay charges against the circus men. Seeking photos and more information on sword swallowers at Frank A. Robbins Show.
Sword Swallowers with Frank A. Robbins Show:
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| Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show |
1883 Tours US 1903-06 Tours Europe 1907-1911 Tours US 1913 Bankrupt 1914-15 Joins Sell-Floto |
North Platte, NE Cody, WY (USA) |
Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show captivated audiences for a total of 30 years from 1883 to 1913. After opening on May 19, 1883 in Omaha, Nebraska, the show traveled on a nearly perpetual tour all over the east of America. In 1887, "Buffalo Bill" Cody took the show to London as part of the American Exhibition in celebration and the Jubilee year of Queen Victoria. The entire troop of 200 passengers, including 97 Natives, 181 horses, 10 mules, 4 donkeys, 18 buffalo, 10 elk, 5 longhorn Texas steers, 2 deer, and the Deadwood Concord stagecoach crossed the Atlantic on several ships. In 1887, Queen Victoria requested and attended a command performance of the show at Windsor Castle. In October 1887, Buffalo Bill's Wild West show closed its successful London run after more than 300 performances with more than 2.5 million tickets sold. The show continued on to Birmingham and Salford near Manchester, where it stayed for five months before returning to the US in May 1888 for a short summer tour.
Buffalo Bill's Wild West returned to Europe in May 1889 as part of the Exposition Universelle in Paris, France. When the show opened in Paris on May 14, 1889 as part of the Universal Exhibition, ten thousand spectators gave it an enthusiastic reception. The tour moved to the South of France and Barcelona, Spain, then on to Italy. While in Rome, a Wild West delegation was received by Pope Leo XIII. Buffalo Bill was disappointed that the condition of the Colosseum did not allow it to be a venue; however, at Verona, the Wild West did perform in the ancient Roman amphitheater. The tour finished with stops in Austria-Hungary and Germany. In 1891 the show toured cities in Belgium and the Netherlands before returning to Great Britain to close the season. The show's 1892 tour was confined to Great Britain; it featured another command performance for Queen Victoria. The tour finished with a six-month run in London before leaving Europe for nearly a decade. In 1893, Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show, draws a crowd of 18,000, the largest ever, at the Chicago World's Fair of 1893. James Bailey becomes involved in 1898, and begins employing sword swallowers starting in 1898-1899. Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show tours Europe again from 1903 to 1906, beginning with a return to England in December 1902 with a fourteen-week run in London, capped by a visit from King Edward VII and the future King George V. The Wild West Show traveled throughout Great Britain during the 1902-03 tour as well as the 1904 tour, performing in nearly every city large enough to support it. The 1905 tour began in April with a two-month run in Paris before moving into the rest of France, where it performed mostly one-night stands, concluding in December. The final tour of 1906 began in France on March 4, and quickly moved on to Italy for two months. The Wild West Show traveled east: performing in Austria, the Balkans, Hungary, Romania, the Ukraine and Russia, before returning west to tour in Poland, Bohemia (later Czech Republic), Germany, and Belgium. The sword swallower during the 1906 European tour of Germany, Poland and Russia was probably Polish or Russian sword swallower Julian Putzkewitsch. Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show toured the US from 1907 to 1911. The show was declared bankrupt in 1913. In 1914 and 1915, Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show joined the Sells-Floto Circus to become the combined Sells-Floto Circus and Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show. In 1916, an elderly Buffalo Bill toured with Miller Brothers 101 Wild West Show. On January 10, 1917, Buffalo Bill Cody died in Denver, CO. Seeking photos and more information on sword swallowers with Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show.
Sword Swallowers with Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show:
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| Unknown Sword Swallower |
Born c 1855 Died 1885
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(England) | According to the book "Bizarre Medical Abnormalities", Gross speaks of a 30 year old sword swallower in 1885 who was in the habit of giving exhibitions of sword-swallowing in public houses, and who injured his esophagus to such an extent as to cause abscess and death.
According to a March 3, 1885 article in the New York Sun, "The professional sword swallower does not pursue his business, as it is supposed, with impunity. A sword swallower lately died of hemorrhage in an English hospital, and the medical opinion seems to be that all of these men trifle with and shorten their lives." Seeking photos and more information on 1885 sword swallower death.
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| Signor Bartino |
Performed 1885 |
Johnson, Simpson & Co.'s Consolidated Circus and Museum Wa-Keeney, KS (USA) |
According to an August 15, 1885 article in the Western Kansas World, "Johnson, Simpson & Co.'s Consolidated Circus and Museum will exhibit at Wa-Keeney, Saturday, August 22nd, afternoon and evening. This combined organization contains twenty-five of the most prominent artists in the arenic profession. ...In the museum department will be found Madame Devere, the Kentucky Bearded Woman, (her first name was either Janice or Jane Devere, born in 1842 from Brooksville KY, and her career may have lasted into the 1900's - Could this be a relative of Marie Devere?); Sylvia Zobriskie, the Circassian Lady, the wild men of Borneo, Signor Bartino, the Fire Eater, sword swallower and magician, Col. Johnson, manager." Seeking photos and more information.
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William Griffin Bill Griffin |
Performed 1871-1889 Injured July 1, 1889 Arrested Feb 1, 1890 Died July 20, 1903?
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Santa Cruz, CA San Francisco, CA Bridgewater, ME (USA) |
William Griffin apparently began sword swallowing around 1871. According to a July 1, 1889 article in the San Francisco Chronicle, "William Griffin, who for the past eighteen years has been eking out a precarious existence as a sword swallower, very nearly came to grief yesterday afternoon out on the beach near the Cliff House. He had been amusing people all morning, and at about 2:30 o'clock had three swords down his throat, the largest measuring twenty-eight inches, when he commenced to cough, and when he withdrew them, they were covered with blood. The exhibition stopped immediately, and Griffin started to crawl back to his room on Howard, near Sixth. There he became very sick, and about 9 o'clock last night he was brought to the receiving hospital for treatment. Dr. Enright examined the man and found that his throat was ulcerated, and that the sword had lacerated it. He was given medicine and sent back home."
According to an article in the July 2, 1889 Santa Cruz Sentinel, sword swallower William Griffin suffered a serious injury with severe bleeding when he punctured his stomach while swallowing a three foot long sword. Griffin was from Santa Cruz, CA. According to a San Bernardino CA Daily Courier article dated February 1, 1890, "A man named Griffin, belonging to a traveling circus combination, was arrested yesterday, at Colton, on a message from the Chief of Police of Los Angeles, being wanted in that city on a charge of petit larceny. Griffin is a sword-swallower and is accompanied by a small boy who, he claims, is his son. An officer will arrive from Los Angeles this morning to return him to that city." According to an article dated July 20, 1903 in the Janesville Daily Gazette: "Bridgewater, Me: Bill Griffin, a sword swallower died here from injuries received while doing his turn in the side show of a circus which showed here. Griffin was using a long knife when his foot slipped and the knife pierced his windpipe. He died after intense suffering." Could William Griffin of Santa Cruz CA have been the same sword swallower as Bill Griffin who died in Bridgewater, Maine? Seeking photos and more information on sword swallower Bill Griffin.
William Griffin injury (7-2-1889) Griffin arrested in Colton CA (2-1-1890) Bill Griffin obituary (7-20-1903) |
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Chas. E. Griffin Charles E. Griffin Mons. F. Le Costro Monsieur F. Le Costro Yankee Yogi Professor Griffin Prof Chas. E. Griffin Prof Charles E. Griffin Professor Chas. E. Griffin Professor Charles E. Griffin Charles Eldridge Griffin |
Born June 16, 1859 Married c 1897-1898 Performed 1889-1907 Died Jan 3, 1914
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Hilliard & DeMott's Circus Paris Pavilion Shows Pullman & Mack's Circus Sells Brothers Circus Hurlburt & Hunting Circus Bob Hunting Circus Frank A Robbin's Circus Ringling Brothers Circus Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show Albia, IA Baraboo, WI (United States) (Europe) |
Charles Eldridge Griffin was born on June 16, 1859 in St. Joseph, MO, the oldest of ten children born to John W. H. Griffin and Fannie H. Griffin (Some inaccurate accounts erroneously claim he was born in New York City on December 17, 1862). Throughout his lifetime, Griffin performed as a lecturer, magician, illusionist, conjurer, yogi, ventriloquist, contortionist, fire-eater, sword swallower, hypnotist, and manager with a variety of shows, including Bob Hunting Circus, Ringling Brothers Circus Sideshow and Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show.
By 1862, his family had moved to Albia, Iowa, while Griffin was a child. His father John W. H. Griffin (1833-1916) was Monroe County Superintendent of schools and county clerk of courts. His mother Fannie Hall Morse (1836-1913) was a musician, and Charles and his 3 siblings were outgoing extroverts with a penchant for performing (his brothers Frank S. Griffin (1869-1927) and Fred I. Griffin (1873-1928) later worked in the circus business, and his sister became a popular platform speaker). At the age of 16, Charles Griffin toured school houses, town halls, and county fairs with his own "one man valise troupe" where he probably began to perfect his talents as a magician and ventriloquist. In 1881, Griffin joined Hilliard & DeMott's Circus as a magician and lecturer. After it folded in 1881, he traveled to France at the age of 22 to become general manager of the Paris Pavilion Shows. Little is known about Griffin's time in France, but he resurfaces in the United States two years later with Pullman and Mack's Circus as "The Comic Yankee Conjurer" throughout its short-lived existence in the 1884-1885 season. In 1885 Griffin joined the Sells Brothers Circus as a "lecturer in side show and featured in concert (Fire Act)." In 1886, he left Sells Brothers to become a member of of the newly formed Hurlburt & Hunting Circus in New York City (later known as the Bob Hunting's New York Circus). 1886 marked a crucial turning point for Griffin, as he left Sells Brothers to join the newly formed Hurlburt and Hunting Circus in New York City, which would later be known as Bob Hunting's New York Circus. During the twelve years that he spent with Hunting, Griffin set up his own New York Conjuring College and added writing and publishing to his growing list of accomplishments. The first of many instruction manuals that he was to produce for aspiring circus performers was his self-published (1887) Griffin's Book of Wonders. A year later, the first of his two memoires (1888) Traveling with a Circus: A History of Hunting's N.Y. Cirque Curriculum for Season 1888, came off the Van Fleet presses in New York. These were followed by booklets on snake charming (1890), using dumb bells (1890), conjuring (1896 & 1897), How to be a Contortionist (1896), fire eating (1896) and The Showman's Book of Wonders (1897), a compendium on "magic, ventriloquism, fire eating, sword swallowing and hypnotism". The entrepreneurial Griffin was publisher for all but one of these which were sold on site at the circus for 10 cents a copy. In 1889, at the age of 26, Griffin began performing as "Professor Griffin, the Yankee Yogi, Magician and Sword Swallower" on the Bob Hunting Circus according to the 1889 Hunting route book, and he was also listed on the Bob Hunting Circus program as "Manager All Privileges". The front of the program offers for sale a "Large book, 10 cents" that Griffin wrote that teaches "Magic, Ventrioloquism, Fire Eating, Sword Swallowing, and Hypnotism". In the 1892 Hunting route book, Griffin is listed as the "Illusionist and Ventriloquist", and he was also known to have performed as a fire-eater. In the 1890s, Griffin published the "Showman's Guide", the "Showman's Book of Wonders", and he was the founder of Griffin's Conjuring College in New York City. In 1896, Griffin published a booklet entitled "How To Be A Contortionist! Bending Made Easy: A Practical Self-Instructor by a Well-Known Professional". On October 28, 1889, Charles E. Griffin and Mlle. Olivia the Snake Charmer were both working on "Prof. Charles E. Griffin's & Co's Bohemian Glass Blowers and Wizard Novelty Artists" in New Castle PA, according to the New Castle PA Daily City News dated October 29, 1889. Griffin worked with the Bob Hunting Circus for 12 years from 1886 to 1898 where he eventually owned and operated the sideshow. In 1898, he held a similar position with the Frank A Robbin's Circus. It was during this time around 1897-98, that he met a young snake charmer named Olivia who worked with the show as "Octavia, The Serpent Enchantress". The couple married in 1897-98, with Charles Griffin at about the age of 39, and Olivia about the age of 16-17 (born c 1882). In 1899, Griffin became stage manager with the Ringling Brothers Circus Side Show based in Baraboo, WI, where he worked for 4 years from 1899 to 1902 as magician, ventriloquist, as well as "Lecturer and Sword Swallower". Griffin's wife Olivia also worked with the show as Octavia, "The White Witch" or as a snake charmers as "Octavia The Serpent Enchantress" (1901), while his brothers, Frank Griffin and Fred Griffin worked with the show, with Fred's wife Julia performing as a mind reader. In the Ringling Brothers Route book of 1901, Chas. E. Griffin is listed as sword swallower, and his wife Octavia is listed as the "Snake Enchantress". At the end of Ringling Brothers 1902 season, James A. Bailey, who was a major owner of the Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show, visited the show in Canton Ohio in June of 1902 and invited Griffin and his wife and family to tour with Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show in Europe. In December 1902, the Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show sailed for England. On March 16, 1903, Griffin's family left Albia, Iowa for New York to join the show in England (Ottumwa Daily Courier dated March 16, 1903). On March 28, 1903, Griffin, his wife Olivia and son set sail for Liverpool England on the Cunard steamer Etruria to join Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show in Manchester England. After landing in Liverpool England, Griffin and his family joined Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show in Manchester, where Griffin began performing his "Yankee Magic" in the sideshow as the "Yankee Yogi and Conjuror" with his son, while his wife Olivia performed as Mademoiselle Octavia the Yankee Snake Charmer (photo taken c 1903 by W. Davey, in Islington, a borough of London England). In 1904, when manager Lew Parker decided not to rejoin the show for the 1904 British tour, Griffin was a ready-made replacement as manager for Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show. In 1904, Griffin took over as manager of the show. In April 1905, the show opened in Paris where it ran through June 4, 1905. From November 1905 through March 1906, the show wintered in Marseilles France. 1905 pitchcard shows Prof. Griffin swallowing three swords with Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show in France in 1905, and his wife Olivia's pitchcard featuring Mademoiselle Octavia the Yankee Snake Charmer. The final season for Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show in Europe opened on March 4, 1906. During the 1906 season, the show toured Italy, Hungary, Russia, Germany, and Belgium. In 1906, Chas. Eldridge Griffin is listed as "Supt. of side shows" with Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show in the New York Clipper Directory of Show People published on July 7, 1906. The sword swallower during the 1906 European tour of Germany and Russia was probably Polish or Russian sword swallower Julian Putzkewitsch. The Griffins returned to the United States on October 20, 1906 aboard the steamer Lucania at New York, when the age of Charles Griffin was listed as 47 and his wife Octavia as 24. After returning to the US, Griffin began writing the book "Four Years in Europe With Buffalo Bill" in late October 1906. Shortly after arriving back in the US, Griffin suffered a mild stroke. However, he rejoined Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show for the 1907 season. Griffin's wife Octavia worked with the Jones show late in 1906 or possibly 1907, and possibly with the Miller Brothers 101 Wild West Ranch Show. In the fall of 1907, Charles Griffin returned to Albia, Iowa, where he focused on writing and publishing, occasionally entertaining local residents with performances at Albia's Opera House. In 1908, he finished writing the book "Four Years in Europe With Buffalo Bill", of which 500 copies were published in Albia, Iowa in 1908. According to the February 22 1908 Billboard, "Charles Eldridge Griffin, side show manager, does not return to the Buffalo Bill Show this season. Charlie is at present at Sulphur Springs, Ark. Mr. Griffin is writing a book, which will describe the experiendes encountered during his four years' tour with the "Bill" Show. Mrs. Griffin, known as "Octavia," and in France as "la Charmeuse de Serpents graceuse de Buffalo Bill," is with her husband and will not be on the road the coming season. Mr. Griffin will probably be interested in the privileges at Edson Park, Ark., having an option on Moving Pictures, Gypsy Camp and Snakes." In 1909, Griffin suffered a stroke, and in 1912, he suffered a third stroke only a few days before Christmas, 1912. In 1914, Griffin suffered a more serious stroke, and died in Albia, IA on January 3, 1914 at the age of 54. He was survived by two daughters, Mrs. Maizie Finch, of Sloatsburg, New York and Miss Albia Morse Griffin, of Norfolk, Va.; three grandchildren; his father, John W. H. Griffin, of Albia, Iowa; five brothers, W. B. Griffin, of Albia, Frank S. Griffin, of Kansas City, Mo., Harry A. Griffin, of Denver, Colo., Fred I. Griffin, of Albia, Iowa, and Dr. John M. Griffin, of Des Moines, Iowa; three sisters, Mrs. Lina M. Low, of Bells, Texas, Miss Lucia B. Griffin, of Des Moines, Iowa, and Mrs. Anna L. Jones, of Albia, Iowa. Charles Eldridge Griffin is buried at Oakview Cemetery in Albia, Monroe County, Iowa. Griffin's name also appears in the list of persons associated with Buffalo Bill Cody, referencing Sarah J. Blackstone's book "Buckskins, Bullets, and Business: A History of Buffalo Bill's Wild West" (Greenwood Press, 1986), though he and his autobiography are only briefy mentioned there. More substantial information was found in the William F. Cody Collection in an article from Palimpsest by H. Roger Grant, based on interviews with Charles Griffin's nephew, John W. Griffin. It is titled "An Iowan, with Buffalo Bill: Charles Eldridge Griffin in Europe, 1903-1906., is 13 pages long, and references Griffin's stage and pen name of Mons. F. Le Costro. In the booklet, Griffin gives instructions for both fire eating, and nine books listed that he authored for vaudeville acts. Seeking photos and more information.
Charles E. Griffin Timeline
With Mlle Olivia in New Castle PA (10-28-1889) With Mlle Olivia Snake Charmer Salem OH (3-1-1890) Olivia Griffin as Octavia, Serpent Enchantress (c 1898) Olivia Griffin as Octavia, Serpent Enchantress (c 1898) Professor Griffin with Ringling Bros (c 1900-1901) Olivia Griffin, Mademoiselle Octavia with Ringling Bros (1901) Griffin and family leave Iowa for UK with Buffalo Bill (3-16-1903) Mlle Octavia Olivia Griffin, Buffalo Bill's Yankee Snake Charmer (1903-05) Mlle Octavia Olivia Griffin, Buffalo Bill's Yankee Snake Charmer UK (1903-04) Mlle Octavia Olivia Griffin, Buffalo Bill's Yankee Snake Charmer UK (1903-04) Mlle Octavia Olivia Griffin, Buffalo Bill's Yankee Snake Charmer (1903-05) Prof. Griffin with Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show France (1905) Charles E. Griffin (1908) Charles E. Griffin (1908) Charles E. Griffin gravesite, Albia Iowa |
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Dan and Greta Champion Sword Swallowers of the World |
1880s-90s? | (USA) | An undated pitchcard by Burrell circa 1880s-1890s shows what appears to be a sword swallowing husband and wife team that billed themselves as "Dan & Greta, Champion Sword Swallowers of the World"
Greta also did a double turn not only as a sword swallower, but also as a Circassian beauty.
Seeking photos and more information. Sword Swallowers Greta and Dan (photo back) (18??) |
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A.E. Welsh Circassian Sword Swallower |
Performed 1880s-90s? |
New York, NY (USA) |
The "Circassian Beauty", "Circassian Woman" or "Circassian Girl" was a "made" human oddity from the 19th century, also known as a "Moss-Haired Girl".
In actuality, true Circassians are a Caucasian people, a North Caucasian ethnic group native to Circassia, who were living in the Caucasus region before being displaced in the course of the Russian conquest of the Caucasus region in the 19th century, especially after the Russian-Circassian War in 1864. The term "Circassian" includes the Adyghe and Kabardian people. Today there are about 700,000 Circassians remaining in historical Circassia (the republics of Adygea, Kabardino-Balkaria, Karachay-Cherkessia, and the southern half of Krasnodar Krai), as well as a number in the Russian Federation outside these republics. The Circassians mainly speak the Circassian language, a Northwest Caucasian language with numerous dialects. The Circassians also speak Turkish and Arabic in large numbers and various other languages of the Middle East, having been exiled by Russia to lands of the Ottoman Empire, where the majority of them live today, and to a lesser extent neighboring Persia, where most of them came either deported en masse by the Safavids and Qajars, or to a lesser extent as muhajirs in the 19th century like in Ottoman Turkey. The predominant religion among Circassians is Sunni Islam. P.T. Barnum exhibited his first "Circassian Girl" in 1864, and after that many other Dime Museums and sideshows followed suit. The pitch that usually accompanied the act involved kidnapping by "Arabs" and being forced into harem life, followed by a harrowing escape resulting in refuge in the sideshow. In order to create a "Circassian Girl" for sideshow exhibition, a white woman would stiffen and bush her hair in the style of the 'Afro' hairdo, which was held in place by the use of beer. (In reality, the sideshow fantasy "Circassian" hairstyle bore no resemblance whatsoever to actual true Circassian hairstyles.)
"Circassian" Sword Swallower A.E. Welsh was photographed by Charles Eisenmann in New York, probably in the 1880s-1890s. While it was somewhat common to see "Circassian" women who worked as snake charmers in the late 1800s, it was extremely rare to find a "Circassian" who worked as a sword swallower. It is unknown if any "Circassian Sword Swallowers" could actually swallow a sword, and this article from 1874 implies that the sword swallowing might have been more of an attention-grabbing tease than an actual performance part of the show. Could this an unknown Circassian sword swallower be a later photo of A.E. Welsh? Seeking photos and more information. A.E. Welsh (enlarged) A.E. Welsh (face close-up) A.E. Welsh signature Unknown Circassian Sword Swallower with sword Unknown Circassian Sword Swallower with sword Unknown Circassian Sword Swallower with sword Unknown Circassian Sword Swallower, later A.E. Welsh? Unknown Circassian Sword Swallower, later A.E. Welsh? Unknown Circassian Sword Swallower with sword (Eisenmann) Unknown Circassian Sword Swallower with sword (Eisenmann) Mlle Zenobia, "Circassian Sword Swallower" McGinley Show (1874) Description of Circassian Sword Swallower Clark St. Chicago (6-9-1874) Circassian sword swallower Greta with husband Dan (18??) |
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Patrick Mulraney Patrick Mulroney |
Died June 29, 1891
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Columbus, OH (USA) |
According to an obituary in the NY Times dated June 29, 1891, "COLUMBUS, Ohio, June 29, 1891 -- Patrick Mulraney, a juggler and sword swallower, injured himself fatally yesterday during his performance at Olentangy Villa. Instead of using the slender sword he was accustomed to, Mulraney took for use in his sword swallowing act a violin bow. Twice he essayed to swallow this, but failed each time, desisting on account of the intense pain caused by inserting the bow in his throat. He immediately commensed vomitting blood, and continued to have these paroxysms until this morning, when he died." According to an article in the June 30, 1891 Indianapolis News, "At Columbus, O., Patrick Mulroney, a sword-swallower, died from the effects of putting a violing bow down his throat." Seeking photos and more information. Patrick Mulroney obituary (6-30-1891) Patrick Mulraney obituary (6-30-1891) Sword swallower dies by violin bow |
| Cavaradassi | Performed Jan 17, 1892 |
Doris Museum in Eighth Avenue New York, NY (USA) |
According to the January 17, 1892 New York Sun: "In the curio halls this week (of the Doris Museum in Eighth Avenue) are the Patagonian giant with two heads; Cavaradassi, contortionist and sword swallower; Cavalier and Brunhilda, albino twins, Seeking photos and more information.. |
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Kohl & Middleton's Dime Museums |
Opened 1880 Opened Clark Street Opened State Street 1893 Opened others |
Kohl & Middleton's Dime Museums Globe Dime Museum Clark Street State Street Chicago, IL Milwaukee, WI Cincinnati, OH Louisville, KY St. Paul/Minneapolis, MN Cleveland, OH (USA) |
Kohl & Middleton's State Street Globe Museum, located on State Street in Chicago, included a curio hall, and was opened to the public by George Middleton and C.E. Kohl.
In 1880 George Middleton went out with Adam Forepaugh's circus, and just before the season closed, headed to New York and started a dime museum. Having an acquaintance with curiosities, and managed a circus as well as the side shows, Middleton was familiar with how to run a side show, Middleton rented a room and opened up a dime museum, one of the first in the United States. It proved a success from the start. Middleton continued for about two years, then gave away his dime museum to go back on the road with a circus. Middleton went out the following season with John O'Brien's circus, which was not very successful. The circus left a trail of plunder behind to pay off debts or as security for debts incurred, that reached from St. Louis to Winnipeg, where Middleton met C.E. Kohl and formed a partnership. Kohl and Middleton decided there was an opening in Chicago for a dime museum, so they formed a co-partnership and Middleton went on to Chicago to find a location, which he found at 150 West Madison Street, just east of Halstead. It was an instantaneous success, and operated there many years. The next year they opened a Dime Museum at 150 Clark Street, which was also very successful. During the Chicago World's Fair of 1893, they opened the State Street Dime Museum at 300 State Street, which was also a success. They also established Dime Museums in Milwaukee, Cincinnati, Louisville, St. Paul, Minneapolis, and Cleveland. All except Cleveland paid handsomely, which was their only failure in the dime museum business. For three weeks in the late summer of 1895, Kohl & Middleton's Clark Street Dime Museum in Chicago was among the first entertainment venues to show projected moving pictures, featuring the Latham's Eidoloscope. According to the Augist 12, 1908 Chicago Tribune, Milse the sword swallower performed at the Chicago Dime Museums with Mrs. Clifford. Seeking photos and more information on sword swallowers at Kohl & Middleton's Dime Museums.
Timeline of Kohl & Middleton's Dime Museums
Cliquot at Kohl & Middleton's Dime Museum Cincinatti (5-15-1892) Dick Adams at Kohl & Middleton's State Street (4-8-1894) Victorina with Houdin at Kohl Chicago (10-22-1894) Delno Fritz at State Street Globe Museum Chicago (4-21-1895) Delno Fritz at Clark Street Museum (5-8-1895) |
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Harry Davis Eden Musee and Family Theatre |
Opened Sept 5, 1892 Fire 1897 |
Harry Davis Eden Musee & Family Theatre Locust Street near Third Street Harrisburg, PA (USA) |
Harry Davis Eden Musee and Family Theatre, located at Green Avenue and Eleventh Street in Pittsburgh, included a menagerie, a curio hall, and Theatorium, and was opened to the public on September 5, 1892 by Harry Davis, Manager of the 5th Avenue Museum in Pittsburgh.
Born in Black Friar's row in London in 1861, Harry Davis came to Pittsburgh as a boy in 1870. His father, a millwright, came to Pittsburgh to help create the first tin-plate mill in America. Davis grew up in the Strip District and attended O'Hara public school until the age of 11 when he took a job in a florist shop. He worked as a traveling carnival barker before he became a promoter in Pittsburgh. In the 1880s his first profitable enterprise was promoting sporting events called "walking matches" at the old Grand Central rink on Penn Avenue. Using his $900 in profits he leased the O'Brien Dime Museum on Fifth Avenue renaming it the Eden Musee. The Musee offered a freak show museum and a Theatorium where lecturers and musicians performed. Earning $20,000 a year in ticket sales, Davis continued to invest in Pittsburgh entertainment, and Pittsburgh became one of the most important theatre centers in the country when 25,000 to 30,000 people attended his downtown theatres daily. Seeking photos and more information on sword swallowers at Harry Davis Eden Musee Harrisburg.
Timeline of Harry Davis Eden Musee and Family Theatre
Delno Fritz at Harry Davis Eden Musee (1-8-1894) Delno Fritz & Maud Churchill at Harry Davis Eden Musee (10-29-1894) Delno Fritz & Maud Churchill at Harry Davis Eden Musee (10-30-1894) Delno Fritz & Maud Churchill at Harry Davis Eden Musee (10-31-1894) Delno Fritz at Eden Musee (12-22-1894) |
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Annie Roy Anna Roy Anna E. Roy Mrs. Rob Roy Annie Wiser Anna Elizabeth Wiser Anna Elizabeth Wright "Albino Sword Swallower" "White Madagascar Moor" |
Born March 15, 1863 Married 1891 Performed c 1893-1897 Died Nov 8, 1941
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Barnum & Bailey Circus Ringling Brothers Circus (USA) |
Annie Roy was one of the first female sword swallowers with Ringling Brothers Circus and Barnum and Bailey circuses in the mid 1890s.
Born an albino as Annie Elizabeth Wiser on March 15, 1863 (probably in Cochrans Mills, PA) of John Wiser (1829-1909) and Martha Frick Wiser (1827-1909), Annie was the sister of albino entertainer Lewis Wiser (born Aug 25 1865 in Cochrans Mills, PA photo at 30, died 1951), who may have later reinvented himself to become known as "Unzie The Albino". In 1891 at about the age of 28, Annie Wiser was married to an albino gentleman of Scotch-Irish descent named Rob Roy or Robert Roy. In actuality, this albino was said to be born as John Campbell in Glasgow, Scotland around 1861, and when he started in show business, he took the name of the famous Scottish folk hero, Rob Roy. However, Rob Roy himself later states in a 1916 letter that he was born in New York City. In 1893, Annie was listed in the Barnum and Bailey Circus route book as the "White Madagascar Moor", a "silent stander", an albino who could pose as statuary without the white makeup. Annie appeared for Ringling Brothers Circus as the "White Madagascar Princess", her description in the 1893 Official Program tying her skin tone to classical themes and beauty. "In appearance, Annie resembles very much the sculptured female godliness of Grecian art. Her snow white hair and alabaster complexion, together with her graceful form, if clad in flowing robes of white, such as Grecian maidens wore in ancient times, would make an excellent imitation of marble." Other photos show Anna and Rob Roy together in 1893 and 1894. In 1894, Rob Roy was listed with Ringling Brothers Circus, and a photo of Annie and Rob was featured in the Ringling Brothers World's Greatest Shows route book. On March 26, 1894, the albino couple gave birth to their first and only son in Pennsylvania, also albino, who they named King Charles Roy, possibly in honor of Charles I the king of Scotland. King Charles Roy was promoted as "The First Albino Born in the US" of albino parents because at the time it was thought that albino parents always had normal-pigmented children. (Rob Roy letter) Between 1894-1897 Rob Roy performed as "The Albino Dislocationist" with Barnum and Bailey Circus, and then from 1897-1901 he performed with Barnum and Bailey in Europe. (Delno Fritz was featured as the sword swallower with Barnum & Bailey during this period in Europe, and there is no mention of Annie Roy during this period). In a May 21, 1903 article in "The Realm Magazine of Marvels", Rob Roy and sword swallower Mlle Edith Clifford were featured together with Barnum and Bailey Circus, and in 1904, Rob Roy and Mlle Edith Clifford were featured together on a Barnum and Bailey poster in Madison Square Garden, NY. In 1911, Rob Roy, the Albino Wonder was featured on the Coney Island Dreamland Circus Side Show. In a letter dated March 15, 1916, albino Robert Roy writes to Dr. C. B. Davenport in New York: "Dear Sir: I received your kind letter and cheque. I give you permission to use the manes[sic] of myself and family along with the photographs. Mr. Robert Roy - Mrs. Annie L. Roy - and son, King Charles Roy. But do not forget to mention in your book that King Charles Roy is the first and only Albino child born in the United States of Albino Parents, as we have no record of any other. Both his mother and himself were born in the state of Pennsylvania. I was born in New York City. If there are any other particulars you would like to know, I shall be glad to inform you. Yours respectfully, Robert Roy." (No further information on Rob Roy found after 1916). In 1912, Anna Roy bought a farm in Crawford County, PA which she later gave to her son King Charles Roy. King Charles Roy was known as "The First Albino Child Born of Albino Parents in the US.". He performed with various circuses as an "Albino Contortionist", and was good friends with Frank Lentini, the "Three Legged Man". There is a story that one of King Charles Roy's children was born on the Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus train that later had a wreck at 4am on June 22, 1918 in Ivanhoe near Hammond IN, and King Charles was presumed dead, although he later turned up alive. In fact, King Charles' oldest son was born in a hospital, and the rest were born at home, and King Charles Roy's bags made it on the train, but he somehow missed the train which led to the speculation of his demise in the accident. On December 8, 1926 King Charles Roy was married to his first cousin Minnie Belle Wiser (born 1904 in Apollo, Indiana County, PA, died 1991), daughter of his uncle George Wiser. The firstborn child of King Charles and Minnie Roy was Prince Everett Roy who was born on August 28, 1927 at Dreamland Circus Side Show, Coney Island, New York. (This information came from Minnie Roy's own journal written in her own hand-writing that she kept from 1927 until 1932). The couple had nine children, six of whom had the albino trait. In 1928, King Charles and Minnie bought a house in Jamestown, PA, and retired from the circus in 1932. In 1938-39, Annie Roy moved in with her son King Charles Roy. According to her obituary, on November 8, 1941 at 10:30 am Annie Roy died at the age of 78 in Jamestown, PA. Her obituary and the deed to the Jamestown house list her name as "Anna Elizabeth Wright". Anna E. Roy is buried in Park Lawn Cemetery in Jamestown, PA. Annie Roy had two sets of swords and bayonets, one with a pearl handle, and another etched with a lion's head. Annie's swords were sold by Glenn Roberts around 2002 or 2003 in Sharon PA in a time of hardship to pay bills, and they are now owned by Lyle Tuttle. Annie's son King Charles Roy owned several businesses including a barbershop and the Jamestown Bait Hatchery which he owned and operated for 35 years before retiring in 1960. King Charles and Minnie had 9 children, 6 of whom were albinos, and 3 who were not. King Charles Roy died on February 26, 1980 at the age of 86 in Jamestown, Pennsylvania. Surviving are his wife, the former Minnie B. Wiser, whom he married Dec. 8, 1926; five sons, Prince E., Raymond J., Russell E., and Larry L., all of Jamestown, and Richard C., Beaver, Pa.; four daughters, Mrs. Harold (Alice) Hoover, Mercer; Mrs. Ed (Helen G) Salisbury, Harker Heights, Texas; Mrs. Ray (Evelyn R.) Smith, Erie; and Miss Juana J. Roy at home; nine grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren. Seeking photos and more information on Anna Elizabeth Wiser Wright, Annie Roy.
Anna Wiser Annie Roy Timeline
Annie Roy Annie Roy Louis Wiser at 30 Lewis Wiser "Unzie The Albino" Rob Roy Rob Roy Rob & Annie Roy, Ringling Routebook (1893) King Charles Roy Rob Roy letter (3-15-1916) |
| Chicago World's Fair | 1893 |
World's Columbian Exposition Chicago World's Fair Chicago, IL (USA) |
Between May 1, 1893 and October 31, 1893, an estimated 27 million people attended Chicago's World's Columbian Exposition -- officially planned to celebrate the European discovery of the New World -- and marvelled at the Exposition's neo-classical vision of ordered community, cultural displays, and artistic exhibits.
The World's Columbian Exposition, situated on a 1.3 mile long strip in Jackson Park, Chicago, and introduced a wealth of inventions to America and the world. It was at the 1893 Chicago World's Fair that sword swallowing was first introduced to America at large, and it was here that sword swallowing first became accepted as popular in America by being one of the hit features of the fair. Groups that featured sword swallowers at the Chicago World's Fair of 1893 may have included Carl Hagenbeck's Circus, and Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show that gathered crowds up to 18,000. The Chicago World's Fair became so popular in 1893, that it was later replicated again with the Chicago World's Fair of 1933-1934 where sword swallowing was again one of the most popular highlights. |
| Dick Adams | Performed April 8, 1894 |
Kohl & Middleton's State Street Globe Museum Chicago, IL (USA) |
According to an article in the Chicago Daily Tribune dated April 8, 1894: "Chauncey Moreland and his wife, known in museum circles as the "married mastodons," will make their first appearance at Kohl & Middleton's State Street Globe Museum this week. Other attractions will be the black Sampson, Charlie Adams, the armless painter, and Dick Adams, a sword swallower." Seeking photos and more information.
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Lieutenant J. J. Hooper The Champion Sword Swallower |
Performed May 20, 1894 |
The Midway Plaisance Picayune, LA (USA) |
According to an article in the Times-Picayune dated May20, 1894: "As the entr' act Lieutenant J.J. Hooper, "the champion sword swallower" performed some wonderful feats" at The Midway Plaisance in Picayune, Louisiana. Seeking photos and more information.
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| August Reicke |
Born 1844 Attempted suicide Oct 31, 1894 |
New York, NY (USA) |
According to an article in the Alexandria Gazette dated October 31, 1894: "A Sword Swallower Out of Work - August Reicke, a professional sword swallower, 50 years old, has not had work in his line for some time. He had a family to support at 16 Willet Street, and he became despondent. Monday night he took an old cavalry sabre blade twenty-three inches long and started to plunge it down his throat. His hand was not steady and the sword cut his throat. The pain made him cry out, and, whirling it around his head, lunged about the room. The screams of his wife and children startled one of the tenants in the house, who peeped in the door. Seeing Reicke with the sword in his hands and the wife and children in fear, he slammed the door and ran yelling to the street for a policeman. Officer Fallon opended the door of Reicke's room and saw him swing the sword. "What are you trying to do?" asked Fallon. "I've killed seven people and have buried their bodies, and I'm ready for more," Reicke replied. He was sent to Bellevue. -New York Herald" Seeking photos and more information.
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Albert Heiling Albert Heling |
Born Aug 24, 1873 Injured Jan 26, 1895 Died Jan 27, 1895
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Lee's Circus Muskegon, MI (USA) |
According to an article in the NY Times dated Jan 27, 1895: "MUSKEGON, Mich., Jan. 26 - Albert Heiling aged twenty-one, while practicing a sword-swallowing act, drove the sword into his stomach beyond his reach. Physicians were called and cut him open as the only means of recovering the sword. Heiling may die." According to an article in the Abilene Daily Reflector dated January 28, 1895: "Albert Heiling, a professional fire eater and sword swallower, in practice in his room inserted an 18-inch sword in his throat and started to put in a seond. The latter struck the end of the first, driving it below the palate into the stomach. Then he climbed a ladder and called for help over the transom and afterward walked nine blocks to a doctor's office and then home. His recovery is doubtful."
According to the January 28 1895 St. Paul Globe: "Albert Heiling, a professional fire eater and sword swallower, recently with Lee's circus, swollowed an eighteen-inch sword at the opera house last night while practicing for the Elks minstrels, and will probably die. In order to do the work better, Heiling locked himself in a room by himself and proceeded to put three swords down his throat. He had inserted one safely, but the second sword struck the end of the first, driving it below the palate into the stomach. Then he climbed a ladder and called for help over the transom. Heiling afterward walked nine blocks to a doctor's office and then home. An operation was performed by Drs. Denslow, Garber, and Vanderlaan. Believing the point to be at the base of the stomach, they made an incision there, but Heiling had walked so far the sword had sunk into the lower abdomen, necessitating another incision. Heiling is twenty-one years old, and though he is strong, his recovery is doubtful." According to an article in the Edenton NC Fisherman and Farmer dated Feb 8, 1895, "At Muskegon Michigan, Albert Heiling, who swallowed an eighteen-inch sword while practicing for an amateur entertainment, died in terrible agony. His intense suffering turned his hair from a dark brown to a light grey."
Albert Heiling died on January 27, 1895 in Muskegon Michigan at the age of 21, and is buried in the Oakwood Cemetery in Muskegon, Michigan, USA, Plot: 4-18-1. His parents, August and Katrina Heling were both born in Germany. Seeking photos and more information. Albert Heiling injury article (1-28-1895) Albert Heiling injury article (1-28-1895) Albert Heiling death article (2-8-1895) Albert Heling grave site |
| James Reilly | Attempted suicide Feb 27, 1896 |
Clark and Polk Streets Chicago, IL (USA) |
According to an article in the Chicago Daily Tribune dated February 29, 1896: "Detective arrests James Reilly because his act resembles suicide. James Reilly is a professional sword swallower. On Thursday evening (February 27, 1896), he was entertaining a crowd at Clark and Polk streets when Detective John McMahon thought the man was about to commit suicide and arrested him. Justice Richardson discharged him."
According to an article in the March 4, 1896 Bangor Daily Whig and Courier: "A Chicago dispatch says James Reilly, a sword swallower, had the laugh on Detective John McMahon in Justice Richardson's court at the armory. Reilly was arrested last night with his outfit of swords in a satchel. He visited Clark street as soon as he emerged from the train and was soon in a happy frame of mind. At Polk street he undertook to entertain a crowd of several hundred persons by his mystifying feats. Detective McMahon came along just in time to see Reilly place a huge sword in his mouth to swallow it. McMahon rushed through the crowd and grasping the surprised Reilly, said: "Come along now, my man; you can't commit suicide while I'm around, and in the presence of so many people." In vain, Reilly protested that he could swallow a dozen swords at once, but he carried off to the Harrison street police station. To-day McMahon explained to Justice Richardson that he saved Reilly from committing suicide. Reilly explained to His Honor his profession, and loud was the jeering and laughter the officer was forced to submit to from his brother officers." Seeking photos and more information.
James Reilly article (3-4-1896) |
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King Salvo King Sabro King Sabbro King Sarbro Prof. Sarbro Senor Sarbro Signor Sarbro Professor Sarbro |
Born c. 1854 Performed July 1896-1897 |
Huber's 14th Street Museum Austin & Stone's Museum Clark's Combined Shows Atlanta Exposition 9th & Arch Museum Barcelona (Spain) |
King Salvo the sword swallower was featured at Huber's Fourteenth Street Museum in New York on July 5, 1896. On July 27 and 30, King Sarbro, champion sword swallower performed at Austin & Stone's Museum in Boston. On July 31, 1896, King Sabbro the sword swallower was featured as appearing soon with Clark's Combined Shows in St. Genevieve, Missouri. On August 1-2, 1896, King Sarbro was featured at Austin & Stone's in Boston.
According to an article dated December 17, 1896 in the Charlotte Observer: "Prof. Sarbro, of Barcelona Spain, arrived here yesterday, and last night, at Dr. Hawley's office, gave an exhibition of sword swallowing. Dr. E. C. Register was an interested spectator. The professor is a great one. Given an army sabre 34 inches long, he swallowed 29 inches of the blade. He swallowed a strip of iron three feet long and bent it in his throat. He swallowed swords of various lengths, allowing different ones in the audience to draw them out. There is no trick about the business, Sarbro being a real sword swallower. Dr. Register said he had heard and read of these artists, but this is the first one he has had personal knowledge of. Sarbro is 42 years old. He was at the Atlanta Exposition."
On November 7, 1897, King Sabro was advertized at 9th & Arch Museum in Philadelphia PA. Seeking photos and more information. King Sarbro Austin & Stone's Museum (7-27-1896) King Sarbro Austin & Stone's Museum (7-30-1896) King Sarbro Austin & Stone's Museum (8-1-1896) King Sarbro Austin & Stone's Museum (8-2-1896) King Sabbro at St. Genevieve MO (7-31-1896) King Sarbro in Charlotte NC description (12-17-1896) King Sabro at 9th & Arch Museum (11-7-1897) |
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W.H. Turner William H. Turner William Henry Turner One-Armed Sword Swallower |
Born 20 Feb 1845 Performed 1890s-1930s Photo July 1, 1938 Died 8 June 1941
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Lebanon, MO (USA) |
William Henry Turner was born on February 20, 1845 in New York state. After voting for Abraham Lincoln, serving in the Union Army, and working with the circus, one-armed Union Army veteran sword swallower W.H. Turner was still amusing audiences by swallowing swords at the age of 93 on July 1, 1938 at the 75th Anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg. Originally from Lebanon, MO, Turner was a a former circus performer and member of the George G. Meade Post of the Grand Army of the Republic. He was a Justice of the Peace, a Police Judge and Recorder for Leclede County MO, and Republican, and was proud of the fact that he had voted for Abraham Lincoln. On Sunday morning, June 8, 1941, Turner sat on the porch of his Lebanon, MO home listening to the choir of the Christian Church across the street. He died quietly and peacefully at the age of 96 on June 8, 1941. He is buried in the Lebanon City Cemetery in Lebanon, MO. Seeking photos and more information. WH Turner (info) Obituary article (6-1941) |
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Hope F. Roland J.B. Roland A. Tyers |
Performed 1897 Died July 18, 1897
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Prince Albert, Sask Winnipeg, Manitoba (Canada) |
"Hope F. Roland, of Prince Albert, an amateur sword swallower, who came to the city last Thursday to obtain an engagement at the fair, died Sunday morning (July 18, 1897) at the General hospital. On Friday afternoon he was giving a private exhibition of his powers, and he successfully performed a number of his acts; he then attempted to swallow a long sharp edged sword; unfortunately he allowed it to go too far, with the result that he injured himself internally. Upon withdrawing the weapon, he immediately commenced to vomit blood. He was removed to the General hospital, where little hope was entertained of his recovery, owing to the doctors being unable to get at the seat of his injuries. He suffered uncomfortably and continued to vomit blood until the end came. The deceased came to Canada only a short time ago, and was engaged in farming, and he intended to give up this work, and follow sword swallowing profession. He has a brother at Ellisboro, who has been communicated with in regard to the funeral arrangements. The dead man was registered at the Clifton house, where his effects are at the present time." This information from an article in the Winnipeg Tribune dated July 19, 1897.
Another article in the July 20, 1897 Ottawa Journal stated: "Winnipeg, Man: J.B. Roland, of Prince Albert, who has gained some repute as an amateur sword swallower, arrived in this city a few days ago, and to keep in training practised swallowing swords quite frequently. On Friday, he made some slip which caused a rupture of some of his internal organs. He was taken to the general hospital, where he suffered intense agony. Owing to the strange manner in which the injury was inflicted, the doctors could do nothing for the man, and he died Sunday." "The remains of the late A. Tyers, the unfortunate sword swallower, were forwarded to Portage la Prairie to-day for interment" according to the July 28, 1897 Winnipeg Tribune. Seeking photos, dates, and more information. |
| Bizarre Medical Abnormalities |
Published 1897
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(USA) | According to the book "Bizarre Medical Abnormalities" published in 1897: "There are many cases on record in which injury to the stomach has been due to some mistake or accident in the juggling process of knife-swallowing or sword-swallowing. The records of injuries of this nature extend back many hundred years, and even in the earlier days the delicate operation of gastrotomy sometimes with a successful issue, was performed upon persons who had swallowed knives. The physiologic explanation of sword-swallowing is quite interesting. We know that when we introduce the finger, a spoon, brush, etc. into the throat of a patient, we cause extremely disagreeable symptoms. There is nausea, gagging, and considerable hindrance with the function of respiration. It therefore seems remarkable that there are people whose physiologic construction is such that, without apparent difficulty, they are enabled to swallow a sword many inches long. Many of the exhibitionists allow the visitors to touch the stomach and outline the point of the sabre through the skin. The sabre used is usually very blunt and of rounded edges, or if sharp, a guiding tube of thin metal is previously swallowed. The explanation of these exhibitions is as follows: The instrument enters the mouth and pharynx, then the esophagus, traverses the cardiac end of the stomach, and enters the latter as far as the antrum of the pylorus, the small culdesac of the stomach. In their normal state in the adult these organs are not in a straight line, but are so placed by the passage of the sword. In the first place the head is thrown back, so that the mouth is in the direction of the esophagus, the curves of which disappear or become less as the sword proceeds; the angle that the esophagus makes with the stomach is obliterated, and finally the stomach is distended in the vertical diameter and its internal curve disappers, thus permitting the blade to traverse the greater diameter of the stomach. According to Guyot-Daubès, these organs, in a straight line, extend a distance of from 55 to 62 cm., and consequently the performer is enabled to swallow an instrument of this length. The length is divided as follows:
Mouth and pharynx.....10 to 12 cm.
These acrobats with the sword have rendered important service to medicine. It was through the good offices of a sword-swallower that
the Scotch physician, Dr. Stevens, was enabled to make his experiments on digestion in 1777. He caused this assistant to swallow small metallic tubes pierced with holes. They were filled, according to Reaumer's method, with pieces of meat. After a certain length of time, he would have the acrobat disgorge the tubes, and in this way he observed to what degree the process of digestion had taken place. It was also probably the sword-swallower who showed the physicians to what extent the pharynx could be habituated to contract, and from this resulted the invention of the tube of Faucher, the esophageal sound, lavage of the stomach, and illumination of this organ by electric light." Diagram of Sword Swallower (1897) |
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Frank Skerbeck Frank Sherback |
Born June 15, 1847 Learned 1859 Married 1869 Performed 1859-1898 Died June 15, 1921
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Skerbeck Family & Co. One Ring Circus Dorchester, Wisconsin (USA) |
Frank Skerbeck (or sometimes Frank Sherback) was proprietor and manager, and performed sword walking and sword swallowing on the Skerbeck Family and Co. One Ring Circus. Frank Skerbeck was born in Austic, Austria, on June 15, 1847, and learned sword swallowing at the age of twelve in 1859 and entered the circus ring. Skerbeck always laid claim to the fact that he was the first man to perform this feat, which was never disputed. On Feb. 22, 1869 he was united in marriage to Miss Mary Tillie and 16 children were born to them, eight of who are dead and eight living; three sons, Joe, Gust and Frank, and five daughters, Antonette, Annie, Clara, Amanda and Pearl. The Skerbeck family resided in the village of Dorchester, Wisconsin during the winter and were on the road with their amusement company in the summer. Notes from the Skerbeck Family and Co. One Ring Circus: "We are in our third week since our opening at Dorchester, Wisconsin, playing the northern part of Wisconsin for four weeks longer, then on boat runs in Lake Superior and Lake Michigan. We have the Dwyer Bros.' balloon ascension and parachute jumping. . . . Frank Skerbeck is proprietor and manager; Joe Skerbeck, equestrian director; Gus Skerbeck, bareback rider; Anton Skerbeck, principal clown; Miss Mandy Skerbeck, contortion; the Skerbeck children, Frankey and Perine, acrobatic and ground and lofty tumbling; Prof. Williams and his trained horse; Billy Morrow and his troupe of dogs... Johnny Fox, equilibrist; Dwyer Bros., balloon ascension. Sideshow under the management of Prof. W. R. Jones: W. R. Jones, magician, ventriloquist and orator; Mrs. Vida Jones, mind reading and second sight; Miss Clarrie Skerbeck, snake enchantress; Frank Skerbeck, sword walking and sword swallowing. Concert, under the direction of Johnny Fox: Johnny Fox, jig dancing on his hands; the Nelsons, John and Ella, musical turn; Fred Given, black face comedian; W. R. Jones and Nida, in afterpiece. Band: Prof. Joe Nerda, leader, with six people; Slim Davis, boss canvasman with fourteen assistants; Joe Berey, boss cook with four flunkeys. We eat on lot, sleep at hotels." New York Clipper, May 28, 1898, p. 213. During wedding festivities of his granddaughter, Tillie Sebold, on his 74th birthday, Frank Skerbeck in his genial way, suggested a ride to add to their joy riding on his merry-go-round at Oshkosh. During the ride, he quietly slipped away into the land where trouble never follows, and died on his 74th birthday on June 15, 1921. He is buried in Dorchester Memorial Cemetery, Dorchester, Clark County, Wisconsin. Seeking photos and more information.
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| Deodata | Performed 1900 | (Italy) | Deodota, an Italian magician, was also a sword-swallower of more than average ability who performed around the turn of the century. He finally succumbed to the lure of commercialism, and ended up in the jewelry business in the "downtown district" of New York City. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Pierre Deunsch Max Rinaldini |
Performed 1890-1910s? | Great Britain, UK | An undated pitchcard features sword swallower Pierre Deunsch / Max Rinaldini
as "l'Artist Celebre et incomparable" who performed in Great Britain in the late 1800s or early 1900s.
Seeking photos and more information.
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Maxini Hettwery Schwert- und Degenschlucker |
Performed 1902 | Leipzig, Riesa (Germany) | An undated pitchcard features Schwert- und Degenschlucker Maxini Hettwery who performed in Germany in 1902.
Seeking photos and more information. Maxini Hettwery pitchcard back (1902) |
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Sells Floto Circus Floto Dog and Pony Show Sells-Floto Circus & Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show Sells-Floto Circus |
1902 Founded 1906 Added Sells 1914-1915 Added Buffalo Bill 1929 sold |
Denver, CO (USA) |
The Sells-Floto Circus was started in 1902, and was originally named the Floto Dog and Pony Show.
Harry Heye Tammen (1856-1924) and Frederick Gilmer Bonfils (1860-1933) became the owners of the "Denver Post" newspaper in 1895. Besides owning the Denver Post, Tammen and Bonfils decided to start a circus in 1902. The circus was called the "Floto Dog and Pony Show". The name Floto was selected because Tammen liked the name of the Denver Post's sports editor "Otto Floto". Unlike most other circuses of the day that had to start small and work their way up, this circus had the financial support of the Denver Post from the beginning. It was not until four years later in 1906 that the word "Sells" became part of the name. This is the year when Willie Sells was added to the show. In 1906 Tammen and Bonfils hired William Sells to manage the show. The "Sells Bros Circus" (no relation to William Sells), had toured from 1871 to 1895, and had developed a well known named in the US, and Tammen, wanting to take advantage of the "Sells Bros." name and reputation, renamed his show the "Sells Floto Circus". In 1909, the Ringling Brothers, who now owned the "Sells Bros Circus" title sued Tammen and Bonfils in an effort to stop them from using the Sells name. The circus was ordered not to use images of the original Sells Brothers Circus in their advertizing. In July 1913, after a successful run since 1883, William F. "Buffalo Bill" Cody's "Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show" went bankrupt. After the bankruptcy, Tammen hired Cody to perform, featuring Buffalo Bill Cody in the 1914 and 1915 seasons, so the circus was renamed to the "Sells Floto and Buffalo Bill Circus" for the 1914 and 1915 seasons. When the Sells Floto Circus absorbed Buffalo Bill's Wild West Shows, it became a true "combined" show. In 1918, circus entrepreneurs Jeremiah Jerry Mugivan and Albert C. "Bert" Bowers bought the Sells-Floto Circus and "Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show", adding them to a long list of circuses they owned, including Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus, and John Robinson Shows, as well as the Yankee Robinson Circus in 1919. In 1919, Mugivan and Bowers asked Ballard to join them, and the trio formed the American Circus Company. In 1929, the successor company of the American Circus Corporation was sold by Jeremiah Mugivan, Bert Bowers and Ed Ballard to John Nicholas Ringling of Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey, along with Sells-Floto Circus, Al G. Barnes Circus, Hagenback Wallace Circus, John Robinson Shows, and Sparks Circus for $1.7 million, creating a monopoly of traveling circuses in America. Sells-Floto later became the concessions department of Ringling Brothers Circus, along with Hagenback Wallace Circus, who made the floats and other equipment. Ringling Bros continued to operate the Sells-Floto Circus until1938. Seeking photos and more information on sword swallowers with the Sells or Sells-Floto Circus.
Timeline/Sword Swallowers with Sells-Floto Circus: |
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Veno The Electric Sword Swallower Nelson C. Barned |
Born 1884 Performed 1904 Married 1905 Daughter in 1913 Lived in NJ in 1930 |
Barnum & Bailey Circus Essex, NJ (USA) |
Nelson C. Barned performed as "Veno" the Electric Sword Swallower with Barnum and Bailey Circus in 1904. Nelson C. Barned was born in 1884, was married at 21 (in 1905?), had a daughter named Isabelle Dora Barned Vogler (1913-2005), and lived in Essex, NJ in 1930. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Enno Strauss-Hassan Enno Strauss-Hanson "The World's Youngest Sword Swallower" |
Performed c. 1905 |
England (UK) |
Enno Strauss-Hassan (or Hanson) was one of England's greatest sword swallowers, and at one time, was known as the "World's Youngest Sword Swallower". He was even x-rayed early in the 1900s, possibly as early as 1905. He was also one of the first to experiment with swallowing glass neon tubes, which eventually killed him. Seeking photos, dates, and more information.
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Julian Putzkewitsch Julian Putzjewitsch Der Russische Schwertschlucker |
Performed 1904-1906? |
Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show Lübeck (Germany) |
According to a German postcard from Lübeck Germany, Julian Putzkewitsch or Julian Putzjewitsch performed as "Der russische Schwertschlucker Konkurrenzolos auf dem ganzen Kontinent im Wild West Zirkus Bill Daberkow", ("The Russian Sword Swallower concurrently running the entire continent with Buffalo Bill's Wild West Circus"). The postcard shows a sword swallower in Russian costume. Julian Putzkewitsch was billed as coming from Russia and probably toured on the 1906 European tour of Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show. Post card printed in Lübeck Germany. Seeking photos and more information on sword swallower Julian Putzkewitsch with BBWWS.
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Miss La Rue Miss LaRue |
Performed 1906 |
Thos. L. Finn & Co New United Shows Hoosick, NY (USA) |
Miss La Rue was the sword swallower in the 1906 Thos. L. Finn & Co's New United Shows. The New United Shows (later "Thomas L. Finn's Great Eastern Shows") were based in Hoosick NY and managed by Thomas L. Finn. Seeking photos and more information on sword swallower Miss La Rue with Thos. L. Finn & Co's New United Shows. |
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Abdullah Hatschi Equilibristischer Schwertschlucker-Akt |
Performed 1909 | (Germany) | Abdullah Hatschi was a sword swallower in Germany apparently in the late 1800s. He would balance chairs upon the swallowed sword down his throat. His pitchcard read "Abdullah Hatschi - Equilibristischer Schwertschlucker-Akt in höchster Vollendung" ("Abdullah Hatschi - Balancing sword swallower act at it's finest") Seeking photos and more information.
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Paul Manelli Avaleur de Sabre |
Performed 1890s-? |
(France?) | Paul Manelli was a French speaking sword swallower who swallowed a bayonet attached to the barrel of a gun that was fired, shooting the bayonet down his throat. Seeking photos, dates, and more information. |
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Unknown French Sword Swallower Avaleur de Sabre |
Performed 1910 |
(France) | An unknown French sword swallower was photographed sword swallowing in 1910. Seeking photos, dates, and more information. |
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John DeLisle John H. DeLisle John Hyacinth DeLisle Blind Sword Swallower |
Born Jan 11, 1869 Married 1907 Performed 1912 Died June 24, 1937
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St. Louis, MO (USA) |
John DeLisle was born John Hyacinth DeLisle to Lizzie Pidgeon on January 11, 1869 in Illinois. DeLisle was blind most, if not all of his life. DeLisle spent much of his life in and around St. Louis MO as early as 1904, was married to Nettie Lieberman in 1907, and lived in St. Louis until his death there on June 24, 1937.
An article in the September 18, 1912 St. Louis Star and Times reports, "He now is with a traveling show. He swallows swords and walks on swords." By the time of this article in 1912, DeLisle was 43 years old and had two sons, Lloyd DeLisle (born 29 Dec 1906; died 31 Aug 1987) and William Francis DeLisle Sr. (born 14 May 1910 in St. Louis, MO; died 29 Nov 1979 in Lutesville, MO). John DeLisle's wife Nettie Lieberman DeLisle (born in Iowa 5 Jan 1880; died in St. Louis 11 Dec 1955) was also blind and would read a Braille bible on St. Louis street corners to raise money to help supplement their income. John DeLisle died at the age of 68 in St. Louis, MO on June 24, 1937 (some reports claim June 20, 1937), and is buried in the St. Matthew Cemetery at 4360 Bates Street in St. Louis, MO 63116. DeLisle's great grand-daughter said, "There was always talk of Carnival people in our family, but we didn't know many details." Seeking photos, dates, and more information.
John DeLisle Timeline: |
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Kitty & Antonio Reggiardo "Les Reggiardos" Kitty Reggiardo Eugenie Kate Reggiardo Eldica Evelyne Kitty Reggiardo Kitty Reggiardo Mclean Kitty Mclean Antonio Reggiardo Antonio Reggiardo Jr. Antonio Aldophus James Reggiardo "Australian Cinquevalli" |
Antonio Reggiardo b 1844 Antonio Adolphus James b 1875 Kitty Eldica b 1885- Performed 1890s-1914 Antonio Adolphus d 1922 Kitty Mclean d 1929 Antonio Reggiardo d 1934 Matilda Kate Reggiardo d 1936 |
Brennan's Gaiety Theater The Theatre Royal The Tivoli Theatre Antonio's Suprise Circus British/Australian Music Halls (UK) (Australia) |
Kitty and Antonio Reggiardo were a brother and sister sword swallowing duo who performed in British and Australian music halls in the late 1890s to the start of World War I in 1914 under the name "Les Reggiardos".
Their father, Antonio Reggiardo (1844-1934), was an Italian animal trainer born in 1844 in Genoa, Italy, who owned a small circus, "Antonio's Temple of Wonders". Antonio married Kate, an English sword swallower. Their son, Antonio Aldophus James Reggiardo Jr was born in Sydney Australia in 1875. His sister, Eugenie Kate Reggiardo (or Kitty Eldica Evelyne Reggiardo) was born in Victoria Australia in 1885. The family lived for a time in England when the children were young, and it may have been in England that Kate taught her children their sword swallowing skills. There is mention that mother Kate took the children to perform in "All Sparrows Halls" when they were young, and other music halls in Britain and Vaudeville in the US. The younger Antonio Reggiardo developed remarkable skills as a juggler, performing tricks such as the "Human Billiard Table", and was often billed as the "Australian Cinquevalli". For her sword swallowing act, Kitty swallowed swords and electric lights. For his sword swallowing act, Antonio would swallow a bayonet attached to a rifle, then pull the trigger, driving the blade home. Together the siblings performed as a duo as jugglers and sword swallowers with Antonio's Surprise Circus, performing in Brennan's Gaiety Theater (Dublin? or London?), Theater Royal, and other theaters and music halls around Britain, Ireland, Australia, Tasmania and New Zealand. The family lived in New Zealand for a time where they met Lex Mclean the Scottish Hercules, who married Kitty. Kitty gave birth to their son Antonio Lex Mclean in 1905 (1905-1977), and stopped performing soon thereafter, while her brother Antonio Reggiardo continued performing as a solo act. The family eventually settled in Melbourne Australia. There were two big theatrical companies in the area at that time, The Theatre Royal and The Tivoli, and they would perform for the theatres and music halls in the winter and with the circus in the summer. Their busiest periods of work seemed to be during the1890s, with Kitty retiring about 1910, and Antonio retiring around 1918-19.
The Reggiardo siblings both contracted tuberculosis and eventually died in Melbourne in the 1920s, Antonio Adolphus in 1922 (09/06/1922), and Kitty in 1929. Their father, Antonio Reggiardo Sr. died in 1934 at the age of 90, and was interred at the Coburg Cemetery on March 3, 1934, and Matilda Kate Reggiardo died in Melbourne in 1936. The Reggiardos are buried in the Coburg Pine Ridge Cemetery in Melbourne, Victoria Australia. Seeking photos, dates, and more information.
Kitty Reggiardo with sword (c. 1900-1905) |
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Karmi Kar-mi Prince Karmi Prince Kar-Mi Kar-mi Victorina Joe Van Victorina Joseph B. Hallworth Joseph Bryant Hallworth Miss Victorina Kitty Fisher Kitty Fischer Katie B. Fischer Kitty Fisher Hallworth Kitty Fischer Hallworth Katie Fisher Hallworth Katie Fischer Hallworth Kitty Katie B. Fischer Hallworth Katherine Bertha Fischer Katherine Bertha Fischer Hallworth The Victorinas The Victorina Show The Victorina Troupe The Great Kar-mi Troupe |
Born April 29, 1872 Born Feb 27, 1880 Married Oct 15, 1891 Performed 1890-1914 Katie died April 8 1953 Joe died June 25 1958
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Pawnee Bill's Wild West Show Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show Berlin (Germany) Lowell, Massachusetts (USA) |
The Victorinas were a performing husband and wife team in the 1890s, where husband Joe Van Victorina (better known as "Kar-mi") and wife Miss Victorina (Katherine, Katie Fischer or Kitty B. Fischer) both swallowed swords in their acts. In the highlight of his act, Kar-mi would swallow a loaded gun barrel, and while it was down his throat, would shoot a cracker off a man's head, while Miss Victorina was said to have swallowed a record 16 swords at once around the turn of the century. In one of Miss Victorina's early photos from the 1890s (possibly while she was still working in Berlin?), the caption says in German: "Victorina - Die berühmteste Schwert-Verschlingerin in der Welt" ("Victorina - The Most Famous Sword Devourer in the World!") In 1899, the Victorinas put out a "Text Book On The Art of Sword Swallowing - Explaining How To Do It Sixteen Different Ways" with some mythical tips on how to swallow swords, some written in an untranslatable ancient script. The Boston Herald of December 28th, 1902, described Victorina's performance: "By long practice she has accustomed herself to swallow swords, daggers, bayonets, walking sticks, rods, and other dangerous articles. Her throat and food passages have become so expansive that she can swallow three long swords almost up to the hilts, and can accommodate a dozen shorter blades." On one occasion, while Miss Victorina was sword-swallowing in Boston, a sword pierced a vein in her throat. The blade was half-way down, but instead of immediately pulling it out, she pushed it further in. She was laid up in a hospital for 3 months after this performance.
But who were KAR-MI and Miss Victorina? KAR-MI was the stage name of performer Joe Van Victorina, born Joseph Bryant Hallworth (1872-1958), an itinerant entertainer who worked in Wild West shows, circuses, dime museums, riverboats, vaudeville, movie houses, and other venues from the 1890s up until World War I. In actuality, the more accurate answer is more complicated and less than precise. Magic historians and enthusiasts know KAR-MI from the many vintage posters, theater cards, and ephemera that often appear on the antiques market. The posters present KAR-MI as the prince of India and high priest of conjurers and spirit workers. They advertise a number of KAR-MI's sword-swallowing, knife-throwing, mind-reading, and conjuring feats, proclaiming "Swallows a loaded gun barrel and shoots a cracker from a man's head," "KAR-MI was buried alive for 32 days," and "Swallows a table leg two feet long." Other posters refer to KAR-MI, his wife, and two sons as the Victorina Show or Victorina Troupe, in which Miss Victorina swallows swords and razors. Still other posters advertise motion picture shows featuring spectacular train wrecks and automobile accidents of cars "traveling at 1,000 mph!" Aside from the exaggerated posters and Hallworth's reminiscences that appeared in the early 1950s, not much reality is actually known about KAR-MI. Joseph Bryant Hallworth was a native American born April 30, 1872 to Thomas Leigh and Anna Harriet Hallworth in Chelsea Massachusetts. The story that Joseph Hallworth told about himself and his showbiz family always began with his claim to have learned to read at the age of three, as his parents worked in the field of public education. At four years old, he claimed to have read the Bible, and at six years old, he claimed to have read the classics and had an "intimate knowledge of Shakespeare, Fielding, Byron, Swift, Balzac, and many others." (Remember, he was an entertainer, and nothing entertains as well as a good story.) In 1886, Hallworth ran away from home at the age of 14, and for a few years, worked out West in British Columbia as a fur trapper, prospector, and cowboy. Hallworth began his show business career in a "one-ring wagon circus in Kansas", and went on to perform as a "sharp-shootin', knife-throwin' cowboy in a medicine show," then with Pawnee Bill's Wild West Show, Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show, and eventually worked his way in to the Chatham Square Museum in New York. According to the Who's Who in America: HALLWORTH, Joseph Bryant, author; b. Chelsea, Mass., Apr. 30, 1872; s. Thomas Leigh and Harriet Anna H.; ed. pub. schs.; married New York, Oct. 15, 1891, Katie B. Fischer. Ran away from home at 14, traveled all over West as cowboy; became engraver 1892; now engaged in Vaudeville magic, travelling with his family known as "Victorina Troupe of Hindoo Wonder Workers." Author: Arline Valerie, P3. Address: Belle Av., Lowell, Mass." After marrying young Katie B. Fischer (Katherine Bertha Fischer, better known as Kitty Fisher), a German sword swallower from Berlin, on October 15, 1891 in Manhattan, New York, Hallworth became an engraver in 1892. Soon thereafter, Hallworth and his wife began performing together as "Kar-mi" and "Miss Victorina" in traveling shows as "The Victorinas" or "The Victorina Troupe", adding song-and-dance routines, snake charming, fire eating, and fortune telling, along with acts of magic, illusion, and mind-reading. Fischer was born in Germany where she claimed to have learned sword swallowing at the age of 12. Their sons joined the family business too - one dressed as a female assistant to assist in KAR-MI's illusions, the other as the young Hindu beauty that KAR-MI appeared to make float in midair. According to an article in the Chicago Daily Tribune dated October 21, 1894: "Lady Sword Swallower, and Houdin, Magician" at Kohl & Middleton's Clark Street Dime Museum in Chicago. In Chicago Miss Victorina had an even narrower escape. One day while performing at the Dime Museum on Clark Street with a very young Harry Houdini, Victorina passed a long thin dagger down her throat. In withdrawing it, the blade snapped in two, leaving the pointed portion some distance in her passage. Dropping the hilt on the floor, she leaned forward, and placing her finger and thumb down her throat, she succeeded in catching the end of the blade and pulled it out. In 1898, the Hallworths gave birth to their daughter Pearl. According to the Philadelphia Times dated April 2, 1899, "First Appearance in America of Victorina The Viennese Venus, the Only Woman Sword Swallower in the World" at Ninth and Arch Dime Museum in Philadelphia, PA.
In 1899, the Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show Route book lists Sword Swallower: Victorina as their sword swallower On May 27, 1901 and February 2, 1902, the Victorinas were booked at Austin & Stone's Museum in Boston. On October 17, 1901, Victorina was featured at the 9th and Arch Museum. In 1910, "Mr. and Mrs. Joseph B. Hallworth and son performed together in Vaudeville". In 1914, Joseph B. Hallworth was recorded as being buried alive for 32 days in Chicago. Joseph Hallworth ended his performance career when his two sons were drafted to serve in World War I. The Hallworth family retired to the small town of Lowell, Massachusetts where Hallworth returned to printing and engraving. On April 8, 1953, Katie Bertha Fisher Hallworth died at the age of 73, and was buried in Forest Dale Cemetery Malden, MA. On June 25, 1958, Joseph B. Hallworth died at the age of 86, and was buried next to Katie in Forest Dale Cemetery Malden, MA A collection of KAR-MI props and posters are housed in the Strong National Museum of Play in Rochester New York. All the information about KAR-MI - including his own account - is fascinating because it gives context to the collection of Kar-mi props and posters, and a better understanding of sensationalist marketing, showmanship, and public entertainment in the early 20th century. On the other hand, KAR-MI's life story may be as much an illusion as KAR-MI's act itself. Seeking photos and more information. Joe Hallworth (1872-1958) and Katie Bertha Hallworth (1880-1953) are buried in Forest Dale Cemetery in Malden, MA
Joseph and Katie Hallworth Timelines
Miss Victorina (1890s) Miss Victorina (1890s) Miss Victorina holding sword (1890s) Miss Victorina (1890s) Miss Victorina swallowing 10 (1890s) The Victorinas? (1890s) Victorina's Booklet (1899) Kar-Mi Poster (1899) Kar-Mi Poster (1899) Victorina at Austin & Stone's Boston (5-27-1901) Victorinas at Austin & Stone's Boston (2-2-1902) Kar-Mi Poster (1914) Kar-Mi Poster (1914) Kar-Mi Poster (1914) Kar-Mi Poster (1914) Kar-Mi face Prince Kar-Mi Joe Victorina (Joseph Hallworth) Joseph B. Hallworth Who's Who bio Kar-Mi props |
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Joe Riley "Sensational Sword Swallower" Joseph Riley Fleming |
Born c. 1866 Performed 1898-1914 Lived to 1929 Died ? |
Andrew Downie Circus Hillburn, NY Ramapo, NY Rockland County, NY (USA) |
Joe Riley was born as Joseph R. Fleming around 1866 in Hillburn, NY where he lived most of his life with the exception of when he was on the road performing with his own show or on vaudeville. Joe started out as a pencil artist and did some of his best artwork around 1892. His first stage performance took place around the time of the Spanish-American War in 1898 when he was 32 years old. According to his pitch card, he was known as the "Sensational Sword Swallower", and his act was described as "presenting a realistic and thrilling scientific exhibition in the art of "Swallowing of the Swords", also carving-knives, daggers, shears, saws, cimeters (sic), curved swords, bayonets and other allied props and various other articles of steel without any deception at all." In 1905, the New York Clipper Directory of Show People published May 20, 1905 states that "Joe Riley is with the Andrew Downie Circus, doing his sword swallowing act in the side show, also his Irish specialty and rapid picture drawing act in the concert. He reports success, also that the show is doing a very nice business, despite the past recent cold and rainy weather." Riley's performing career ended in 1914 during World War I when his eyesight began to grow dim and he began to go blind. In 1929 when he was 63 years old and living in Ramapo, NY, an article was written about him that said that he was totally blind and had learned Braille, learned how to walk with a white cane, and was survived by only one brother. It is not known exactly when he died. Seeking photos and more information. Joe Fleming art (1892) Joe Fleming art (1892) Joe Riley pitchcard Joe Riley article (1929) Joe Riley article (1929) |
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Jose Rodrigue Gerra Basque Avaleur de Sabres |
Performed 1920s? |
(Spain? France?) | Jose Rodrigue Gerra was a Basque sword swallower, probably from near Castile Spain who may have performed in France in the 1920s. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Huber's Museum Huber's 14th Street Museum |
Opens 1888-1890 Closes 1910 |
Huber's 14th Street Museum 106 East 14th Street Greenwich Village New York, NY (USA) |
Huber's 14th Street Museum operated at 106 East 14th Street in Greenwich Village, New York under the management of owner George F. Huber. From 1888 to 1910, Huber's 14th Street Museum was home for variety and freak shows that included sword swallowers such as Cliquot (1893), Delno Fritz and Maud Churchill (1894-1896), King Salvo (1896), and Marie DeVere (1905), before Huber sold it in 1910 to Albert Lüchow to become Lüchow's Restaurant.
Later in the early 1920's, another museum with a similar name, Hubert's Dime Museum, opened in Manhattan on 42nd Street near Times Square which operated into the 1960s, also featuring freaks and well-known sword swallowers. See also Hubert's Dime Museum on 42nd Street. Seeking photos and more information.
Sword Swallowers at Huber's 14th Street Museum:
The Cliffords at Huber's (3-7-1909) Huber's Museum Sold (7-16-1910) |
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Delno Fritz Delmo Fritz Delma Fritz DeLno Fritz Delano Fritz Will Fritz Chevalier Fritz Prof. Delno Fritz William Delno Fritz Wm. Sherman Fritz William Delano Fritz William Sherman Fritz Delno William Sherman Fritz |
Born February 16, 1871 Learned 1882-92 Performed 1893-1925 Married 1894 Injured 1894-5 Divorced Mar 9, 1896 Married Sept 1899 Wife died 1920 Died July 14, 1925 Buried July 16, 1925
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Sultan's Retreat New York Harry Davis' Eden Musee Huber's 14th St. Museum Ninth and Arch Museum State Street Globe Museum Clark Street Dime Museum Austin & Stone's Museum Wonderland Musee & Theatre Miller Bros 101 Wild West Ranch The Hippodrome New York The Olympia London Barnum & Bailey Circus Greater Norris & Rowe Circus Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show Hagenbeck-Wallace Al G. Barnes Circus John Robinson Circus Side Show Dreamland Theatre Pittston E. K. Fernandez Shows Ringling Brothers, Barnum & Bailey Circus The World Museum Los Angeles Ashley, Wilkes-Barre, PA Los Angeles, CA London, England Wilkes-Barre, PA (USA) |
William "Delno" Sherman Fritz (1871-1925) was born on February 16, 1871 in Ashley, Luzerne County, Wilkes-Barre, PA, one of 17 children of the family of Martha Stevens Fritz (of Hallsetown, Cornwall, England 1846-1915), and Nathan Delong Fritz (1838-1919). (William Delno Fritz had a younger brother named Nathan D. Fritz Jr. who was born in Ashley PA (1886-1953), and a younger sister named Ada Fritz (1873-?) who married Robert Price in 1893 to become Mrs. Robert Price, mother of sword swallower Edna Price.
Delno Fritz claimed to have learned sword swallowing in 1882-83 at the age of 11 from his father Nathan Delong Fritz, who was reportedly also a sword swallower. But coincidentally around 1882-83, at the age of 11, Delno Fritz lost a leg while hopping a freight train in Wilkes-Barre, PA, so for the rest of his life, he wore a wooden leg and walked with a cane. Perhaps Fritz' fascination with sideshow skills became his focus during his recovering period after his train injury. The earliest known photo of Fritz in 1887 at the age of 15 shows Fritz holding a cane in his right hand and what may be another cane or simple fire-eating torch in his left hand, and is inscribed on the back side, "Delno Fritz, Wm. Sherman Fritz, Fire Eater, 1887", but makes no mention of Fritz as a sword swallower. Fritz also claimed to have studied sword swallowing later in the early 1890s (1892?) under Chevalier Cliquot when they both worked together at the Wonderland Museum in Scranton, PA. Fritz' first published performance as a fire eater and sword swallower was on Sept 6, 1892 at the age of 20, and at the Harry Davis Eden Musee in Harrisburg, PA (Cliquot performed there 9 days later on Sept 15, 1892). The two performers were constantly competing and performing within days or weeks of each other in performances, medical examinations and competing stage shows at theaters, medical centers and Dime Museums in Philadelphia, Chicago, Boston, and eventually throughout the rest of their lives as far away as England.
On January 29, 1893, sword swallower "Will Fritz" performs with Evaleen as a "curious constellation" in Wilkes-Barre, PA. Fritz must have been playing with variations of his name at this early time in his career. In August and September 1893, Delno Fritz was featured as the fire eater at Sultan's Retreat in New York. According to an article published on January 13, 1894 in the Harrisburg Telegraph (Harrisburg, PA): "In the curio hall of the Harry Davis' Eden Musee, Coffey, the dude skeleton, will hold receptions, as will Delno Fritz, a famous sword swallower." According to an article in the New York Evening World dated August 25, 1894, "Manager Huber, at the Fourteenth Street Museum, promises for the coming week, Prince Tinymite, "the smallest living man on earth;" the Cranks Convention, Delma Fritz and Maud Churchill, sword swallowers; Ida Smith with a den of alligators, and others..." According to an article in the NY Times dated Sept. 2, 1894: "Huber's 14th St. Museum - First apprearance here of LEONZO BROTHERS and their famous company of players in the grand local drama, The Dog Spy. A great production, curio halls, HINDOO GIANTS 8 feet tall, PRINCE TINYMITE, 19 years old and 21 inches high, MICHAEL Strong Man, Prof. HORN trained birds, DELMO FRITZ and MAUD CHURCHILL, sword swallowers, EMMA BROWN, spotted girl, ROSE CALLAHAN, bearded lady." Another article from the Sept 2, 1894 New York Sun reports performing at Huber's 14th St. Museum "Delmo Foutz and Maud Churchill, sword swallowers". While performing together sometime between September and November 12, 1894, sword swallower Delno Fritz married 16-year-old actress Maud Churchill at the New York City Hall. On November 12, 1894, the Wilkes-Barre Times Leader reported that Prof. Delno Fritz was heading to the Wonderland Musee and Theatre in Philadpelphia, PA with his new wife Maud Churchill to perform there the week of December 3-7, 1894. "Mr. Fritz intends to retire in the near future, as his feats are injuring his health." In late 1894 or early 1895, Fritz suffered a serious injury while performing in Boston, MA. According to the March 3, 1895 Philadelphia Times, "Delano Fritz, the sword swallower who nearly bled to death in Boston a few weeks ago, has recovered and will be seen for the first time since the accident" at the Ninth and Arch Museum in Philadelphia. On May 8, 1895, Delno Fritz was featured at Clark Street Dime Museum in Chicago. After working closely with or competing with Chevalier Cliquot in Pennsylvania and Chicago, it appears that in September of 1895, Fritz decided to begin to market himself as an exotic Frenchman from Paris and take on a title similar to that of "Chevalier Cliquot" by calling himself "Chevalier Fritz". From September 9th-12th, 1895, "Chevalier Fritz", the "Parisian Sword Swallower" was featured at Austin and Stone's Museum in Boston according to articles in the Boston Post. An article dated September 12, 1895 reports that "Chevalier Fritz" swallowed ticking watches and eleven swords at once at Austin and Stone's Museum in Boston. On September 28, 1895 a drawing of "Chevalier Fritz" was featured in the Cincinnati Enquirer dated Septmeber 28, 1895. (A few weeks later, Chevalier Cliquot was also featured in Boston swallowing fourteen swords at once). On October 13, 1895, Delno Fritz was again featured at Ninth and Arch Museum in Philadelphia according to an ad in the Philadelphia Times dated October 13, 1895. On November 22, 1895, Delno Fritz was featured at Park Street Opera House in Bordentown NJ. In December 1895, Delno Fritz was again featured in the curio hall of the Ninth and Arch Museum in Philadelphia, according to an article in the December 15, 1895 Philadelphia Times: "Delno Fritz, who is beyond question, the most daring and versatile of living sword-swallowers, will raise a big crop of goose flesh upon everybody with sufficient hardihood to gaze upon his blood-curdling performances. Some of the razor-edged weapons which Delno Fritz thrusts down his throat are long enough to penetrate several inches beyond the stomach. A startling climax to his act is the firing of a heavily loaded gun, balanced upon a sharp bayonet, which rests in Fritz' interior." According to an article in the February 4, 1896 Scranton Republican, "Maud Fritz, better known locally as Maud Churchill, through her counsel, Mr. Scragg, asked for a divorce from William Fritz. She is an actress and he also connected with the stage. They were married in City Hall, New York in 1894, and she now desires a separation because of alleged cruelty. The father and mother of the petitioner allege that on one occasion Fritz and his wife started to quarrel before them and then retreated to another room. They heard her scream, and rushing in, found Fritz choking her. When he was reprimanded, he said he could do as he pleased with her, kill her if he wanted to. The father swore that he heard Maud say in the presence of her husband that she was locked in a room in Boston without food for three days and three nights (Sept 9-12, 1895?) and had to pawn her watch and opera glasses to keep from starving. Fritz explained this by saying that he went out with the boys and got drunk, played poker and lost all his money." On March 9, 1896, their divorce was final according to an article in the April 16, 1896 Scranton Tribune. One month later, on April 14, 1896, Maud Churchill was remarried to Conductor Wm. C. Edwards by Rev. L.C. Floyd in Scranton, PA according to an article in the Scranton Republican dated April 17, 1896, and the April 16, 1896 Scranton Tribune: "William C. Edwards and Miss Maude Churchill were united in marriage Tuesday evening (April 14, 1896) by Rev. L.C. Floyd, D.D. presiding elder of the Binghamton district, at her home, 102 Adams avenue. The bride, though only 18 years old, was divorced on March 9, 1896 from William Fritz, an actor, who ill-treated and abandoned her, making her condition intolerable and life a burden. Mr. Edwards is a conductor in the employ of the Scranton Traction company, and lived at 520 North Bromley avenue." According to an article dated February 9, 1896 in the New York Times, "Delmo Fritz" performed at Huber's 14th St. Museum in New York with Eli Bowen the legless wonder. In 1896, Delno Fritz was featured as the sword swallower with Barnum and Bailey Circus. On February 7, 1897, the Boston Post reports about upcoming shows at Austin & Stone's Museum in Boston, "Chevalier Fritz will be an attraction. Chevalier is a sword-swallower, not one of the every-day sort, but a sword swallower who doesn't stop with one sword, but who actually swallows a dozen at one time. He has been a long-time attraction at the London Aquarium where he acquired the name of the human ostrich. Fritz also borrows watches from persons in the audience, and they slip into his stomach as easily as the swords. Patrons of Austin & Stone's Museum will have the chance to see a man swallow watches this week, for the management has secured for one of its attractions the famous Chevalier Fritz, whose feats at swallowing swords, watches, rapiers, razors, and stilettos have made him a world-wide reputation. Chevalier Fritz's watch swallowing got him into serious trouble at the London Aquarium, where he was for a long time one of the leading attractions. It is the chevalier's custom to borrow a watch and chain from someone in the audience when he does the act. On the occasion referred to, he was given a large gold watch, attached to a light chain. The chevalier promptly swallowed the watch, holding onto the end of the light chain until as many as desired had place their ears to his chest and heard the ticking of the watch within. Then the chevalier pulled gently on the chain to bring the watch to the surface, so to speak, when, to his horror, the chain broke. But Fritz was gritty. He told the audience that the watch was stuck in his stomach, and that he would have to cut his act short. He was in a delicate situation, and the audience realized it, but they were more excited than he. A physician was sent for, and with a long pair of forceps he extracted the watch from the man's stomach. Such an operation would have half-killed an ordinary man, but it did not disturb Chevalier Fritz, the sword swallower. He smiled as he passed the watch back to its owner, and said he hoped it would keep as good time as before. It did, and the owner afterward told the sword swallower that he was proud of showing his friends his watch, the only one that had ever been taken from a man's stomach by a physician. Chevalier Fritz does his remarkable work with the greatest nonchalance. He is the prince of sword swallowers, and he does not expect his swallowing will ever lead him to a "cure", as his wonderful throat does not suffer at all from the tax he puts upon it. The chevalier is attended at each performance by a very handsome woman, Mlle. de Aldine." On October 25, 1897, a farewell party was thrown in Ashley, PA for "Sword Swallower Smith" before Fritz left to join Barnum & Bailey Circus in Europe according to the October 26, 1897 Wilkes-Barre Evening News. The Wilkes-Barre Record dated October 26, 1897 reported, "Last night a surprise party was given by Mrs. Humphreys of Wilkes-Barre to her brother, Delano Fritz of Ashley, the noted sword swallower upon the eve of his departure for Europe with the Barnum & Bailey show. Humphreys's Wilkes-Barre Mandolin Club furnished the music and there were many of Delano's friends from all over the valley present." On March 10, 1898, the Boston Medical and Surgical Journal published a story called "Two Curious Freaks" which was taken from the Feb 2, 1896 article published in the Lancet magazine, which included an "account of two sword swallowing performers (Delno Fritz and Young Herrmann the Expansionist) with the Barnum & Bailey Circus at the Olympia" in London (December 27, 1897 to April 2, 1898?). According to an 1898 review in Gaillard's Medical Journal (Volumes 68-69, page 286): "One of the entertainers, whose name is Delno Fritz, is a sword swallower, and asserts that he can swallow longer swords than have ever been swallowed before... To those who know the surface markings of the abdomen and the situation of the stomach it is a little short of apalling to see this man pass a sword down his gullet until the hilt impinges upon his teeth and then withdraw the weapon and demonstrate by outside measurement that in the erect posture the point falls some inches below the usual line of the curvature of the stomach. What really happens, of course, is that Delno Fritz has learnt, consciously or unconsciously, to stretch the somewhat loose and elastic tissues between the lips and the cariac orifice of the stomach, so that these tissues will lie along his blunted sword in a condition of extension, while a protruded chin assists in the prolongation of the pharynx. It should be added that the solidity of the weapon with which the feat is performed is beyond question." During the winters from December of 1897 to April of 1898, and December of 1898 to April of 1899, Barnum and Bailey Circus wintered at Stoke-on-Trent England, and the show was booked at the Olympia in London. Then from April 1898 to November 1898, and again in 1899 Barnum and Bailey Circus toured throughout England and Wales (Scotland in September and November 1899). and then settled in for the winter at their winter quarters each winter at Stoke-on-Trent, England. In 1898-99, Fritz taught sword swallowing to 13 year old Edith Clifford who would go on to become a famous sword swallower with Barnum and Bailey Circus in her own right. On May 5-6, 1899, the Barnum and Bailey Circus performed in Nottingham, England and travelled between cities on 4 huge trains, each with 17 carriages, with Delno Fritz as the featured sword swallower. According to an article in The English Illustrated Magazine, Delno Fritz had "been swallowing swords, bayonets, and such delicacies for 14 years (since 1885?). His first appearance, at the age of 11, was made with his father, for Fritz inherits his peculiar appetite, his father having been a famous swallower of swords, walking-sticks, and umbrellas. Fritz is a devoted cyclist, and something of an amateur baseball player." During this time, Fritz was known for swallowing a bayonet attached to a rifle, which when fired, would drive the sword down his throat. While touring in Scotland in 1897, Delno Fritz met his future wife, Maude D. Auldin in her hometown of Paisley Scotland, where they were later married, probably while the show was in nearby Glasgow Scotland from September 25-29, 1899. Fritz was photographed on October 3, 1899 in Scotland. According to the 1901 British Census in England, Delno Fritz was listed as a 29 year old US citizen, married, with his occupation listed as "Music Hall Artist" in Lockwood, Yorkshire, England. According to a June 25 1907 Pittston Gazette article, "Mrs. Delno Fritz, wife of Prof. Delno Fritz, arrived in Ashley yesterday morning (June 24, 1907), from Paisley Scotland, where she was born and raised, having met the professor in her native land ten years ago when he was on a tour of the world with the Barnum & Bailey Circus. Prof Fritz settled in Scotland and stayed there managing a theater for nine years, coming home to Ashley about two months ago, and his parents prevailed upon him to stay there. Mrs. Fritz assisted her husband in his act, that of sword swallower and fire eater." According to the October 3, 1908 Billboard: "Delno Fritz, sword swallower, with the Miller Brothers' 101 Ranch, will return to Europe at the close of the present season. He has made arrangements to furnish an attraction for the Waverly Market Annual Winter Fair at Edinborough, Scotland." According to a Janurary 23, 1909 article: Performing at the Star Rink in Chanute Kansas on January 25, 1909: "Maud DeAulden and Delno Fritz in their sensational novelty acts." According to the November 29, 1909 Daily Times of New Philadelphia, OH, "Maud D'Aldin and DeLno Fritz, The Great European Novelty Act" were booked at the Bijou November 29, 30 and December 1, 1909. According to the April 25-26, 1910 US Census of the Norris & Rowe Circus during its 2 day stay in Louisville, KY, Delno Fritz was working in 1910 with the Greater Norris & Rowe Circus, he was 39 years old, and had been married for 11 years since 1899. (Greater Norris & Rowe Circus operated from 1902 until May 9, 1910, when, due to "Bad weather, poor business, salaries and debts unpaid, show attached, shipped to Peru, Indiana, where it was sold in lots by the Peru Trust Co" Col. Ben. E. Wallace, of the Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus had the Norris & Rowe train with all equipment taken to Peru, Ind., and the property was offered at auction sale in June, and another sale in August 1910). According to the May 20, 1911 New York Clipper, Delno Fritz and Maud D'Auldin, performed as sword swallowers with Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show in 1911. Also in this issue: "It is rumored about the show that Delmo Fritz has discovered the fountain of youth. He seems to be growing younger day by day. It may be caused by the recent purchase of a toupee that fits so well that it looks natural, which is rather unusual." On February 2, 1912, Delno Fritz and Maude D. Auldin performed in Wilkes-Barre, PA. Later in 1912, Delno Fritz and Maud D'Auldin or Mlle. D'Aulin were booked as sword swallowers on the Hagenbeck-Wallace Sideshow where they performed "Sword and Gun Manipulation" together in 1912. In 1915, Delano Fritz and Maud D'Auldin were featured as sword swallowers on the Al G. Barnes Circus. An article in the Los Angeles Times dated Feb 1, 1916 states, "Mrs. Francis Fritz (38 years of age) who makes her living by shoving swords down her throat at Brook's Museum, No. 116 South Main street, early last night swallowed one sword too many and landed in the Receiving Hospital. The sword swallower declared last night that for over twenty years she had been entertaining people by swallowing swords and knives and never before injured herself. But last night, after she had swallowed and then pulled a long sword from her throat, Mrs. Fritz discovered that she had been injured, and was taken to the Receiving Hospital and later to the County Hospital, and according to doctors, she is in a serious condition." In 1916, Delno Fritz and Maud D.Auldin were featured as sword swallowers on the John Robinson Circus Side Show, while their 17-year-old niece Edna Price was featured as "floating lady". According to the October 25, 1917 Pittston Gazette, "The World's Greatest Sword Swallowers Maude D'Auldin and Delno Fritz in the Most Wonderful Act Before the American Public Today!" at Dreamland Theatre, Pittston, PA. Delno Fritz was also a personal friend of Harry Houdini, who in his 1920 book "The Miracle Mongers", wrote about Fritz, "Delno Fritz was not only an excellent sword-swallower, but a good showman as well. The last time I saw him he was working the 'halls' in England. I hope he saved his money, for he was a clean man with a clean reputation, and, I can truly say, he was a master in his manner of indulging his appetite for the cold steel." Fritz had family in the UK, as his mother Martha Stevens Fritz was born in Cornwall, England. During his time in the UK, Delno Fritz bought and owned a few theatres in Scotland during the ten years he lived in the UK. In 1920, Delno Fritz and Maud D'Auldin were featured at World's Museum in Philadelphia, PA. In 1920, Fritz's wife Maude D'Auldin died from a sword swallowing accident caused by a nicked blade during a command performance onboard a ship before the King and Queen of England. Fritz then taught sword swallowing to his 21 year old niece Edna Price around 1920. According to family stories, in the 1920's, when his niece Edna wanted to go out on a date with someone that "Uncle Delno" did not approve of, Edna would hide his wooden leg in order to make her escape. According to circus route books, Fritz and Price performed together with the Al G. Barnes Circus during the 1920 and 1923 seasons, and with Ringling Brothers, Barnum and Bailey Circus in 1923 and 1924. According to ship's records, Delno Fritz departed on the ship "Manao" from San Francisco, California on December 7, 1921, and arrived in Honolulu Hawaii on December 14, 1921. According to an article on page 24 of the March 2, 1922 Wilkes-Barre Record in Wilkes-Barre, PA: SWORD SHIMMIES IN HIS ESOPHAGUS! "Delno Fritz, formerly of Ashley, PA now in Honolulu, Performing When Wave Hits Ship. Delno Fritz, who arrived this morning on the Manao with a troupe of entertainers, is billed as the 'world's greatest sword swallower.' But sword swallowing and the swells of the briny deep don't go well together, Fritz reports. He tried it out on the trip down. Monday night Fritz was displaying his ability before an admiring audience on the Manao. He had managed to stow away 18 or 20 inches of sharp steel sword. Then the Manao hit a big swell, and the sword did something it does not do when the performer is on terra firma. Fritz isn't sure what it did - but he is certain it did something. He will have an x-ray photograph taken today to determine whether he was injured when the sword and the swell jumped in unison.". According to the October 21, 1922 Billboard: "Delno Fritz, well known sword swallower, who recently completed an eight months' engagement in Honolulu and the Hawaiian Islands, under the management of E. K. Fernandez, has joined his niece, Edna Price, who is with the Ringling-Barnum Circus." A Los Angeles Times article dated Dec 7, 1924 stated, "Los Angeles is to have a school for sword swallowers. Delno Fritz, internationally known eater of steel, has come to Los Angeles to settle down after years with circuses and carnivals. He is preparing to open a class teaching how to swallow swords. His primary classes for beginners will start with table knives and desk shears, with advanced courses to be given later in actual consumption of full-length army sabres. At present he is enrolling his classes at the World Museum, opposite the Rosslyn Annex on Main street, where he is also giving demonstrations in the art to curious spectators." Apparently Fritz' time in Los Angeles California landed him some movie roles in Hollywood. In 1925, "Delmo" Fritz was featured as the sword swallower in the Tod Browning film "The Unholy Three" (released August 16, 1925) (photo) with Lon Chaney. (Actor Lon Chaney took a fascination to sword swallowing and learned sword swallowing from Delno Fritz in 1925, and performed it in the film "West of Zanzibar" (1928)). Delno Fritz was also featured in the film "The Man Who Laughs" (photo) that was released in 1928.
In May 1925, Delno Fritz returned home to Wilkes-Barre Pennsylvania to rest. From June 5 to July 14, 1925, Fritz was treated in his home on 311 South Street in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania by Dr. Fred Tongue. On July 14. 1925, Delno Fritz died in his Wilkes-Barre home on 311 South Street from a cerebral hemorrhage at the age of 54 according to information provided by his sister Mrs. Robert Price on his death certificate. Some reports indicate Fritz had developed a case of pneumonia that developed as a result of a screw that came loose and lodged in his lung while testing a bronchoscope for doctors in Philadelphia Pennsylvania that developed into pleurisy. According to Fritz' obituary in the July 15, 1925 Wilkes-Barre Record: "NOTED CIRCUS PERFORMER DIES. William Sherman Fritz Mystified People Throughout the World With Sword Swallowing Act. Operated Theatres Abroad. Ran Away from Ashley Home When Boy of Eleven Years to Follow Chosen Career. William Sherman Fritz, internationally known in the vaudeville and circus worlds as Delno Fritz, formerly of Ashley, died yesterday afternoon at 1:15 o'clock in Wyoming Valley Homeopathic Hospital after a ten weeks' illness. He was the son of the late Nathan and Martha Fritz, of 27 Green Street, Ashely. Delno Fritz was perhaps one of the greatest showmen that Luzerne County ever produced; a man who followed the trail of canvas and sawdust from coast to coast and into every civilized country on the globe. During his career as a circus performer, he gained the distinction of being the original and greatest sword swallower in the world. He appeared before many of the Europe's nobility and during his stay in Europe, operated several theatres. Fritz was the son of the late Nathan and Martha Fritz of Ashley, and at the age of eleven lost a leg on Ashley planes. A few months after the accident a traveling troupe appeared in which there was a Mexican, who claimed to be a sword swallower. Fritz, like many a boy, crawled under the canvas and watched the performance. He returned to his home and conceived the idea of swallowing swords. He first tried to force lead pencils down his throat, and finding it difficult, hoaxed his parents into believing he had a sore throat and had them use a spoon during the examination as mothers do when their children are afflicted. Finally he found that his throat responded and that he could swallow the handles of a spoon without suffering ill effects. In company with another boy who later became a physician, Fritz ran away to Philadelphia. Delno's father went to the museum where he was appearing and brought his son home. Three times the lad ran away and when he was sixteen years of age, he told his parents he intended to win fame in the career he had chosen. His parents gave their consent and he started on his travels which ended at his home town yesterday. One of his early triumphs was with the Robinson Circus in the west when in the days of the real "wild west", the cowboys dashed on the showgrounds threatening to "shoot the show up." Robinson, the owner, informed the cowboys that if they had a man in their midst who could do "as one of his men could, they could have the show." The test was on. Fritz was ordered to the ballyhoo and while the circus crowd looked on, he swallowed not only one but several swords. The feat won the day and peace for the circus." "From the Robinson shows he joined Barnum and Bailey and it was with that circus that he leaped into fame. In those days, the people believed sword swallowing a hoax, but such is not the case. Rather it is a bonafide act. The Hippodrome, goal of all performers, threw open its doors and Fritz appeared there for a long time, amazing the New Yorkers. He traveled with circus after circus and then accompanied Barnum & Bailey on a tour of Europe. While in Europe, the late Queen Victoria commanded the amazing American to appear before her and the royal family. His act, at that time one of the most mystifying won the favor of the queen and he was "made" in Europe. He leaped into favor, left the circus and appeared in all the principal theatres. Later he became owner of several theatres, but this did not stop him from journeying from country to country. He went so far as to swallow watches, rods with electric bulbs attached, sharp, long swords, and repeatedly appeared before scientists who heard the watches ticking, saw the gleam of light through his throat and recognized it as real. Following his return to America, he continued to follow the circus life until he was taken ill of pleurisy in Philadelphia ten weeks ago. Fritz was brought home. While ill here at the residence of his sister, Mrs. Robert Price, 311 East South street, Ringling Brothers circus appeared here and all the prominent performers and managers visited their companion. He recovered sufficiently to walk to Public Square, but suffered a relapse, a clot formed on his brain, and he was removed to Homeopathic Hospital where he passed away surrounded by all his close relatives. He has appeared in this city in theatres and with circuses and is well known by the older amusement seekers of the country. During recent years his partner has been his niece, Miss Edna Price, of this city. She was notified of his death yesterday and is hastening here from Detroit, where Ringling Brothers circus is appearing." According to an article in the Gettysburg PA Times dated August 1925, "Sword Swallower Buried Near Town Where He Was Born -- Wilkes-Barre, Pa. -- In a grave here overlooking the town where he was born and where he obtained the inspiration that made him a world figure, the body of William Sherman Fritz, sword swallower and premier circus performer, now rests. Fritz, whose feats thrilled thousands including such distinguished heads as Queen Victoria of England, died from complications developing from an attack of pleurisy."
Delno Fritz was buried on July 16, 1925 in the Fritz family plot in Ashley Cemetery (Maple Hill Cemetery?) in Luzerne County near Wilkes-Barre, PA. Seeking photos, dates, and more information.
Delno Fritz Timeline
Early Delno Fritz (c 1890-91) Fritz at Wonderland Scranton (9-6-1892) Delno Fritz at Sultan's Retreat, NY (9-2-1893) Fritz at Harry Davis Eden Musee Harrisburg (1-8-1894) Delmo Fritz & Maud Churchill at Huber's NY (9-2-1894) Delmo Foutz & Maud Churchill at Huber's NY (9-2-1894) Delno & Maud at Eden Musee Harrisburg (10-29-1894) Delno & Maud at Eden Musee Harrisburg (10-30-1894) Delno & Maud at Eden Musee Harrisburg (10-31-1894) Wonderland, Phila, PA with wife Maud Churchill (11-12-1894) Fritz at Eden Musee (12-22-1894) Delano Fritz at Ninth and Arch (3-3-1895) Delno Fritz at State Street Globe Museum Chicago (4-21-1895) Delno Fritz at Clark Street Museum Chicago (5-8-1895) Chevalier Fritz, Parisian Sword Swallower at Austin & Stone's Boston (9-9-1895) Chevalier Fritz at Austin & Stone's Boston (9-12-1895) Chevalier Fritz, Cincinnati Enquirer (9-28-1895) Delno Fritz at Ninth and Arch (10-13-1895) Delno Fritz at Bordentown NJ (11-22-1895) Delno Fritz at Ninth and Arch (12-15-1895) Separated from Maud Churchill (2-4-1896) Delmo Fritz at Huber's Museum New York (2-9-1896) Divorced from Maud Churchill (3-9-1896) Maud Churchill remarries (4-14-1896) Delno Fritz at 9th & Arch (12-13-1896) Delno Fritz and cane with Barnum/Bailey (1896) Chevalier Fritz with Mlle de Aldine at Austin & Stone's Boston (2-7-1897) Delno Fritz at 9th & Arch Museum (10-10-1897) Fritz Leaves Ashley PA for Barnum Bailey European Tour (10-26-1897) Gaillard's Medical Journal (1898) Delno Fritz (1898-99) Delno Fritz with Barnum/Bailey in England (1899?) Delno Fritz (1899?) Delno & Maud move to PA (6-25-1907) Delno & Maud in Mercado Calina Mexico (12-1908) Delno Fritz & DeAulden, Chanute KS (1-23-1909) DeLno Fritz & Maud D'Auldin, Bijou, New Phila, OH (11-29-1909) Delma Fritz & Maud D'Aldin, Reidsville, NC (3-3-1911) Delno Fritz & Maud DeAuldin Wilkes-Barre PA (2-2-1912) Mrs. Fritz injury (2-1-1916) John Robinson Shows program (1916) Delno Fritz & Maude D'Auldin, Dreamland Theatre, Pittston PA (10-25-1917) Delno Fritz in Lihue Hawaii (5-2-1922) Delno & Edna with Ringling Brothers (4-9-1924) Delno Fritz with Ringling Bros (1924) Delno Fritz article (12-7-1924) Delno Fritz in Man Who Laughs Delno Fritz in Unholy Three (1925) Delno Fritz face with toupee (1925) Delno Fritz death certificate (7-14-1925) Delno Fritz Obituary (7-15-1925) Delno Fritz Obituary (7-15-1925) Delno Fritz Obituary (7-15-1925) Delno Fritz Obituary (7-15-1925) Delno Fritz Burial (8-15-1925) Delno Fritz IMdb listing |
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Edith Clifford Mlle. Edith Clifford Mille Edith Clifford Nellie Clifford Edith Morris Edith Holmes Edith Bauer Edith W. Bauer Miss Edith Holmes Edith W. Clifford Bauer "Champion Sword Swallower of the World" |
Born Nov 22, 1886 Performs 1899-1922 Marries 1901 Thomas Holmes dies Feb 1910 Marries April 18, 1912 Retries 1922 Dies Sept 3, 1942 |
Barnum & Bailey Circus Walker's Museum Chicago Dime Museums Huber's Museum Great Wallace Shows Gollmar Bros Circus Hippodrome Boston Great Clifford Circus Ringling Bros Barnum & Bailey Circus Boston, MA Massillon, OH Canton, OH (USA) |
Edith W. Clifford was born in London England (some reports list Boston Massachusetts) on November 22, 1886 (some reports 1884) to Captain John Clifford and Emily Rivers-Clifford, who later emigrated from London England to Boston Massachusetts. According to Clifford, her father was Caption in the 2nd Life Guards, and she taught herself sword swallowing at the age of 12-13 in 1897 using her Captain father's military sword, with tips from sword swallower Delno Fritz who was the sword swallower with Barnum & Bailey Circus in London England in 1897-1899. (Clifford's history of her learning sword swallowing at 13 in London).
Edith Clifford was said to be "generously endowed" and "possessed of more than ordinary personal charms, a refined taste for dressing both herself and her stage, and an unswerving devotion to her art", and she "perfected an act that found favor in the Royal Courts of Europe". Clifford performed under the name "Mlle. Edith Clifford, Champion Sword Swallower of the World", and was said to have swallowed 18 to 20 inch blades without a problem, and longer blades up to 26 inches long, as well as 10, 16, and up to 24 swords at one time. From 1897 to 1901, Mlle Edith Clifford was featured as the sword swallower with Barnum & Bailey Circus in Europe. In 1900, Mlle Edith Clifford was featured with Barnum & Bailey Circus in Germany at the age of 14. Edith Clifford posed for a photo swallowing 3 swords at a studio in Stuttgart Germany, probably during their time there September 24-27, 1900. In 1901, at the age of 15, Clifford married 33-year old Thomas Holmes (born in Copenhagen NY in 1859, died Feb 22 1910) who worked for Barnum and Bailey Circus under the stage name "James Morris" or "James Maurice" as the "Elastic Skin Man". They adopted the stage name "The Cliffords", and the couple joined Barnum & Bailey Circus at their winter quarters in Vienna Austria sometime between November 25, 1900 to February 24, 1901, where Edith became famous for swallowing razor blades, scissors, saw blades and bayonets. The couple worked with Barnum & Bailey Circus for five years from 1901 through 1906. During this time, they had two daughters, Margaret Emily Holmes (1903-2003) and Edith Holmes (1906-?). In 1902, Edith Clifford performed with Barnum & Bailey Circus in France. In a May 21, 1903 article in "The Realm Magazine of Marvels", Clifford and albino sword swallower Rob Roy were featured together in the Barnum and Bailey Circus. On June 3, 1903, in Providence RI, 15-year-old Edith Clifford gave birth to the couple's first daughter, Margaret Emily Holmes (later Mitchell) (1903-2003). According to the December 6 1903 Boston Post, featured at Walker's Museum Boston, "In the curiou halls will be seen the Cliffords, L'Aveleuse de Sabres, in their highly sensational sword swallowing exhibition. Miss Clifford is the only lady who swallows a bayonet, having attached it to a loaded canon, and while the canon is supported by the bayonet that is down the throat the piece is discharged. James Morris, the famous elastic skin man is also featured." In 1904, Edith Clifford and Rob Roy were featured together on a Barnum and Bailey poster in Madison Square Garden, NY. Apparently Thomas Holmes also learned sword swallowing, as Thomas was also sometimes billed as "swaller of swords" and the couple was billed as "The Cliffords, sword swallowers". According to the February 24, 1906 New York Clipper, "The Cliffords, sword swallowers, and James Morris, Elastic skin man, have signed with the Great Wallace Shows for next season." Sometime around 1906, the couple apparently gave birth to their second daugther Edith W. Holmes in Pawtucket, RI. In the February 23, 1907 New York Clipper: "Notes of Gollmar Bros' side show for next season: The side show for next season will be much larger and grander than Gollmar Bros. have ever attempted in the past. As the side show is strictly in keeping with the big show, everything is gilt edged. Our top is 60 feet, with two 30s, twelve feet stage, fourteen paintings and three boxes. Roster includes: James Morris, elastic skin man, and Mille Clifford, sword swallower, who is a feature. Conceded by press and public of both hemispheres to be the greatest act in her line ever seen. Side show band will consist of 6 mouth pieces and 2 drums. Taking into consideration that Gollmar Bros.' Shows consists of 25 cars, this undoubtedly will make the strongest side show ever carried by a firm of this size." According to the November 9, 1907 Bilboard: "The Cliffords, sword swallowers, closed with the Gollmar Brothers' Show, and will open in vaudeville November 25 at the Palace Theatre, Memphis, Tenn." In 1908, The Cliffords worked with Gollmar Bros Circus again with James Morris as the elastic skinned man, and with "Mlle. Clifford, sword swallower, in gorgeous costume". According to an article from Billboard dated April 25, 1908, Edith Clifford mentored her pupil Marie DeVere in sword swallowing: "The Cliffords, sword swallowers, were presented with a beautiful bouquet of flowers during their engagement at the Hippodrome, Boston, Mass., while Mlle. Clifford was presented with a beautiful pearl ring by her pupil, Marie DeVere." According to the July 11, 1908 Bilboard: Working on the 1908 Gollmar Bros. Side Show was Mademoiselle Clifford, sword swallower, James Morris, elastic skin man. According to the Augist 12, 1908 Chicago Tribune, Milse the sword swallower performed at the Chicago Dime Museums with Mrs. Clifford.According to the December 26, 1908 Bilboard: "The Cliffords, sword swallowers, have been engaged with the Gollmar Brothers Circus for season of 1909, their third year with that show." On March 7, 1909, The Cliffords were engaged to perform at Huber's Museum in New York, according to an article in the March 7, 1909 New York Sun. In the 1909 season, "Nellie Clifford" was featured as sword swallower with Gollmar Bros Circus. According to the November 20, 1909 Billboard: "The Cliffords, sword swallowers, closed a successful season with Gollmar Bros. Show. They open in vaudeville at Huntington, Ind., week of November 22 (1909)." In 1910, the Gollmar Bros Circus featured the sword swallower as "Edith Morris" (since she was married to Thomas Holmes, also known as "James Morris"). Then according to the March 7, 1910 Indianapolis Star, Elastic Skin Man, known in professional life as James Maurice, known in real life as Thomas Holmes, died at Carney Hospital in Boston after being sick for six months. He and Miss Edith Clifford were married on a European tour (1901?), and he built a home in Pawtucket, RI, where his two little girls were brought. While Holmes/Morris had earned good money in his time with Barnum and Bailey, his popularity dwindled and due to a slight drinking and gambling problem, he took a second job as a barber opening a shop in New York City. According to an article in the Feb 26, 1910 Cambridge Sentinel: "David Corcoran, the undertaker of Boylston street, was called upon to take care of the body of Thomas Holmes, famous in former years as Barnum's "elastic skin" man, who died this week at the Carney Hospital. Mr. Holmes, who has won fame as "swaller of swords," directed that the body be sent to Pawtucket for burial." According to an article in the New York Clipper, dated March 19, 1910: "Thomas Clifford, husband of Edith Clifford, the sword swallower, whose death was noted in last week's Clipper, passed away Feb. 22, 1910 at the Carney Hospital, South Boston, Mass., from paralysis of the bladder and kidney trouble. He was born in New York State, forty-two years ago (1868?), and for twelve years he traveled with the Barnum & Bailey Circus, and for years with the Wallace Show. Under the name of James Maurice, the "Elastic Skin Man," he traveled for the past three years with Gollmar Bros.' Show, and was re-engaged with them for the coming season. In private life he was known as Thomas Holmes. Interment was in the family plot at Pawtucket, R.I. He is survived by his wife, two daughters, four brothers and three sisters." According to the April 8, 1911 Billboard: "While Mlle. Clifford, the celebrated sword swallower, was in Pawtucket, she purchased the Conway's Circus property, and had it shipped to her winter quarters in Canton, Ohio. She intends to put a one-ring circus show on the road about June 1. It will be known as the Greater Clifford Shows. Roster of the Great Clifford Circus: Mlle., Karl A., Walter J., Jno. F., Clifford and Stephen A. Clifford, owners; Karl A. Clifford, manager; Mlle. Clifford, treasurer; Jno. Clifford, advance agent and press representative; Walter Clifford, equestrian director; Stephen Clifford, boss hostler; Jno. Bauer, privileges; Ralph Tiese and R. Landes, candy butchers; Carl Bauer and Walter Miller, front door; Steve Cross, boss of properties; Bill Tetlow, ring maker; George Tetlow, reserved seats; S. Brodie, boss canvasman; Edith Holmes, wardrobe lady; Joe Cross, chandelier man. The performers include the Original Zanton Bros., ring gymnasts; Mlle. Clifford and Company, sword swallowers; LaJones, wire artists; Zanzar Bros., acrobats and hand balancers; Two Wirtzs, contortionists; House and House, double trapeze; Hart and Hiff(?), revolving ladder; Snipe, Hook, Bushey, Bowery and Sikes, clowns. K. A. Clifford, manager of the Great Clifford Circus, has purchased another baggage wagon. The show is in winter quarters at Canton, Ohio. Steve Cross, clown, late of the Gollmar Bros.' Circus, has signed for the coming season with the Great Clifford One Ring Circus. The Zanzar Bros., acrobats and equilibrists, will this season be with the Great Clifford Show." Billboard, April 8, 1911, p. 24. On April 18, 1912, Clifford was married in her second marriage to Karl Andrew Bauer (1887-1962), a German circus trapeze artist, who performed under the name Signor Zanton, and who served as Edith's assistant when the couple married, performing together under the stage name "The Cliffords". According to an article dated April 18, 1912 in the Salem OH News: "CANTON, April 18 --Mlle Clifford, the sword swallower, whose every day alias is Miss Edith Holmes, and Signor Zanton, the acrobatic hand balancer, known here as Karl Bauer, were married Thursday morning in St. Peter's Catholic Church here. Although the ceremony was commonplace, the romance which preceded it in the sawdust rings of Barnum & Bailey's Circus was thrilling enough to satisfy even a sword swallower. While mademoiselle was swallowing any number of jagged swords, some said to be 20 inches long, Signor Zanton, arrayed in red tights, was balancing a lighted lamp on the end of one finger in the main ring. They fell in love." Apparently the Great Clifford Circus never materialized as Edith had planned. In 1912 and 1913, The Cliffords worked for Gollmar Bros Circus again, and wintered in Canton, Ohio. According to a January 18, 1913 Billboard article: "Mlle. Clifford, sword swallower, wintering at Canton, Ohio, will again be with Gollmar Bros. Circus the coming season." During this time, Edith's two daughters Edith and Margaret grew up with an aunt in Pawtucket, RI. On September 27, 1917, Mlle Edith Clifford was again featured with Barnum & Bailey Circus in Atlanta, GA. According to the May 18, 1918, Billboard: "Barry Clifford, husband of Mlle. Clifford, sword swallower, has charge of the door with the Barnum & Bailey annex." In the spring of 1919, Barnum & Bailey Circus combined with Ringling Brothers Circus to form the combined Ringling Brothers, Barnum & Bailey Circus with their big debut in New York City featuring sword swallower Mlle Edith Clifford. Harry Houdini visited the Ringling Brothers, Barnum & Bailey Circus to see one of Clifford's performances on March 29, 1919, where Clifford swallowed a bayonet that was shot down her throat with a gun. By this time, she had been sword swallowing for over 20 years. Clifford's show so impressed Houdini that he wrote about it in 1920 in his book "Miracle Mongers and their Methods": "The sensation of her act was when the point of a bayonet 23 1/2 inches long and fastened to the breech of a cannon was placed in her mouth and the cannon discharged with the recoil driving the bayonet down her throat". Clifford worked with the new combined Ringling Brothers, Barnum & Bailey Circus in 1919, 1920, and 1921. It wasn't until she retired from performing in 1922 at the age of 36 after swallowing swords for 28 years that she and her husband Karl Bauer took her daughters home to live with them in Canton, OH. After moving to 3rd Street NE in Canton, OH, Clifford went by her married name Edith Bauer, and she and her husband Karl Bauer ran a corner grocery store under the name "Bauer Grocery". For the most part, Clifford remained anonymous and did not mention her circus history to most of her neighbors, but she received lots of visitors whenever Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus came to Canton in the 1930s and circus performers and sideshow acts would roam in and out of their home on Third Street NE. According to her death certificate, at the time of her death Clifford lived at 221 36th St. NW in Canton OH. She died at Aultman Hospital on September 3, 1942 at 7:48 am at the age of 55 of a "cancerous right ovary" that she had been treated for since May 1, 1942. She was buried on September 7, 1942 in West Lawn Cemetary in Canton OH. According to her obituary, Edith Clifford was active in the Women's Republican Club and other interest groups, but the obituary mentions nothing about her circus background. Her husband Karl Andrew Bauer was born in Germany December 23, 1887 and died in Canton, OH on January 2, 1962. In 1954, Karl Bauer served as Canton city councilman for 4 terms (1925-37) and as a Republican State Representative for Ohio (1942, 1946, 1950, 1952) (bio). The couple was survived by two daughters Margaret Emily Morris-Mitchell (born June 3, 1903 in RI, died at age 99 on Feb 4, 2003 in Leaburg OR) and Edith W. Holmes (b. 1906?) from Pawtucket, RI, and three grandchildren: Paul Spinden (deceased), Karl A. Spinden (born 1927, lived in Massillon OH), Grace Spinden (married name Underbrink, now living in California), Gloria Spinden (deceased, married name Lensman), and Delores Spinden (married name Belt). Clifford's grandson Karl Spinden, from Massillon, OH "doesn't remember his grandmother ever talking about her past in show business, and he never saw her swallow a sword. He worked in his grandparents' grocery store as a child, and knew her mostly as a typical nice, sweet grandma", but he keeps one of her swords in a closet at his home. Edith W. Clifford Bauer is buried at West Lawn Cemetary in Canton, OH, section M.
Edith Clifford-Bauer swallowed a variety of swords, bayonets, a serpentine blade, large straight razor, giant hand saw, and a sword sandwich of up to 24 swords at once. The full collection of Clifford's swords, bayonet, saw, photos, and death certificate are owned by sword swallower Dan Meyer and are preserved in the archival collection of the Sword Swallowers Association Int'l Museum and Hall of Fame. From September 25, 2010 to January 9, 2011, Clifford's swords and artifacts were featured on display in an exhibit entitled "Science and the Circus" at the Bruce Museum in Greenwich, CT, and in a lecture presented on Clifford's life, Dan Meyer swallowed many of Edith Clifford's swords, giant saw and straight razor. Meyer continues to swallow Clifford's giant hand saw and straight razor regularly in his act. Clifford was also immortalized in a documentary called Mysteries of Magic: The Impossible Made Possible, filmed in 1997 and put out in 1999 by the Discovery Channel featuring sword swallower Amy Saunders who played the part of Clifford. Seeking photos and more information.
Edith Clifford Timeline:
Edith Clifford Edith Clifford face Edith Clifford with teddy bear Edith Clifford bloomers Edith Clifford bloomers Edith Clifford postcard standing (1898-99?) Edith Clifford postcard standing (1898-99?) Edith Clifford postcard autographed from London (1898-99?) Edith Clifford risque pose in bloomers (1900s-1910?) Edith swallowing 3 swords Edith Clifford swallowing 10 Edith Clifford swallowing 10 swords Edith Clifford swallowing saw Edith Clifford with saw Edith Clifford with saw Edith Clifford poster swallowing saw Edith Clifford swallowing bayonet with cannon (1903) The Cliffords at Walker's Museum Boston MA (12-3-1903) The Cliffords at Walker's Museum Boston MA (12-3-1903) The Cliffords poster (c 1901-1906) Huber's Museum, NY (3-7-1909) Edith Clifford on Messer's Chewing Gum (1910) Edith Clifford handbill (1910) Edith Clifford autograph Edith Morris with Gollmar Bros (1910) Edith Clifford face (1910) Thomas Holmes death (2-26-1910) Mlle Clifford with Barnum & Bailey (9-25-1917) Edith Clifford gives her history of learning sword swallowing at 13 in London (5-4-1918) Edith Clifford in Hamilton Journal (1923) Edith Clifford-Bauer's death certificate (9-3-1942) Edith Clifford-Bauer's swords Grandson Karl Spinden with sword Dan Meyer swallowing Edith Clifford razor Dan Meyer swallowing Edith Clifford saw 100 years later (2010) Dan Meyer swallowing Edith Clifford hand saw Amy Saunders as Clifford swallowing razor blade (43 mpg) Edith Clifford-Bauer headstone Karl Bauer bio (10-30-1954) |
| Vsevolod Ivanov |
Born Feb 12, 1895 Performed 1909-1916? Died Aug 15, 1963
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Moscow (Russia) |
Vsevolod Ivanov was born February 12, 1895 in a remote village near the border of Siberia and Turkestan. Ivanov ran away from home at the age of 14 around 1909, and led a picaresque life as a clown in a circus, a sword-swallower in county fairs, an itinerant salesman, and a manual laborer. In 1917 he joined the Red Army and fought in southeastern Russia, where the Civil War was particularly brutal. Considered one of the leading Soviet authors of the 1920's, his best work deals with guerilla warfare in Asiatic Russia after the 1917 Revolution, written in a vivid, exciting, colorful style. The novella "Armored Train 14-69" (1922), about a band of Red partisans laying siege to a White Guard locomotive in Mongolia, is viewed as his greatest achievement. It was adapted into a hit play that remained in the repertory of the Moscow Art Theatre for 70 years. He later noted, "I have travelled the road of death and my only joy is that I am still alive". By 1921 he was in Petrograd (now St. Petersburg) and a member of Yevgeny Zamyatin's famous literary group, "The Serapion Brothers". Ivanov's early collections of short stories and novellas, "Partisans" (1921), "Colored Winds" (1922), "Skyblue Sands" (1923), "The Child" (1924), and "Exotic Tales" (1925), established him as a pioneer of Soviet prose. His descriptions of physical sensations are so intense that Zamyatin once joked, "Ivanov writes with his nostrils". With the rise of Stalinism in the 1930's, Ivanov was bullied into writing according to the demands of Socialist Realism, which made his work flat and pedestrian. Of his later books only the unfinished autobiographical chronicle "Adventures of a Fakir" (1935) has merit. (bio by: Bobb Edwards) Vsevolod Ivanov died August 15, 1963, and is buried in Novodevichy Cemetery in Moscow, Russia. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Mighty Haag Shows Mighty Haag Circus |
Started 1890s Closed 1938 |
Mighty Haag Shows Mighty Haag Circus Shreveport, LA (USA) |
Mighty Haag Shows - The Mighty Haag Circus was started by Ernest Haag (17 June 1866 - 1 Feb. 1935) in 1891 in Louisiana as a wagon show, and became one of the best known southern circuses, touring continuously for over 40 years from 1891 to 1935. At the time it was one of the largest traveling Circus in the United States. Ernest Haag Circus toured using a boat, carts, trains, horse pulled wagons and trucks. Early on, Haag bought a small tent and a few ropes for $20 from an old side-show man by the name of Squire Bowman and used it for a side show on fairgrounds while along the Red River at Shreveport, LA. He moved up to a floating flat barge, and eventually a two-wheel cane cart drawn by three mules under the name "The Big Show". In 1909, the show began using the name Mighty Haag Shows, and moved from wagons to rails. Hard times hit in 1914, forcing the show to return to wagons. In 1918, the circus began adding trucks for transportation. Mighty Haag Shows opened the 1920 season February 4 at Marianna, Florida, with more than one hundred horses and mules, eight trucks, four touring cars, and a menagerie consisting of eleven cages, three elephants, and two camels. By 1929 all wagons had been replaced by trucks. The 1921 show consisted of 28 wagons, 10 cages of animals, 9 trucks, and 6 passenger cars. Ernest Haag died February 1 1935 of heart failure at the age of 68, but his circus continued to show its southern route three more years until 1938. In January 1937, the name was changed to the Haag Brothers Circus. The brothers were actually cousins Roy Haag and Henry Haag; Henry Haag was Ernest's son and Roy Haag was Ernest's nephew. The Circus' last show was in 1939 in Climax, Georgia.
According to the August 5, 1911 Billboard: "Roster of the side show with the Mighty Haag Shows: E. J. Kelly, manager and announcer; Mlle. Amaza, lady sword swallower; Del Fuego, fire king; Mrs. E. J. Kelly and her cockatoos". According to the October 17, 1914 Billboard: "Annie Christ, professionally known as Trixie Christie, is a new addition to the Oriental department of the Mighty Haag Shows. She joined at Middleton, Delaware. Margaret Davis is doing the sword swallowing in the Haag Auxiliary. Slivers Bowden, side-showman is the power of this department." In 1915, "Marguerite Davis, sword swallower, who was in the last season with the Mighty Haag Show, has signed with Howe's Great London Show". Sword swallower Charles Anderson also performed with the Mighty Haag Show, season unknown.
Mighty Haag Circus Timeline: |
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Vivian Myrtle Mourer Mrs. Vivian Groat Mrs. John L. Groat |
Married Jan 6, 1911 Performed 1911 |
J. H. Eschman European Circus Eschman Shows Oelwein, Iowa (USA) |
According to the March 4, 1911 Billboard: "John Laverne Groat, of Jamestown, N.Y., and Miss Vivian Myrtle Mourer, of Oelwein, Ia., were quietly married at Minneapolis, Minn., on Jan. 6, 1911. After the ceremony they received a reception at the headquarters of the J. H. Eschman European Circus, Mr. Groat having been in the employ of that organization last season. Mrs. Groat is a musician and sword swallower. They will both be connected with the Eschman Shows, season 1911." Seeking photos and more information. |
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Mlle. Amy Amy McAvoy Mrs. Thomas McAvoy Amy Murphy Mlle. Amy Murphy Mrs. Amy Murphy Mrs. Frank Murphy |
Born c. 1885? Performed 1900-1914 Married 1913 |
Barnum & Bailey Circus Hagenbeck Circus Forepaugh-Sells Show J.T. McCaddon's Show Joe McCaddon's Great Int'l Circus Ninth and Arch Dime Museum Huber's Museum John Robinson Big Shows Hagenbeck-Wallace Show (USA) |
In the early 1900s, a beautiful young European woman known only as "Mlle. Amy" and "Amy the sword swallower" worked with a number of shows, including Barnum & Bailey's 1900 tour in Germany, Forepaugh-Sells, John Robinson Big Shows, and Hagenbeck-Wallace. Between circuses, she also performed at the Ninth and Arch Dime Museum in Philadelphia and Huber's 14th Street Museum in New York City. While at Huber's, she appeared with numerous curious acts, such as Miss Welch, Ireland's long-haired beauty, Ferrari's troupe of trained rats, and Mme. Schell's performing lions.
In 1900, the Barnum and Bailey Circus performed in Germany, and published the book "Das Buch der Wunder" ("The Book of Wonders"). Barnum and Bailey produced editions of the book in every country they visited, which sold for double the price of a program, and half the price of a medium-priced seat at the show. Mlle, Amy was featured as "the female sword swallower" in the German edition published in 1900 especially for Germany, and she was also featured on the Barnum & Bailey Circus posters in Germany in 1900. On February 9, 1904, "Amy the Sword Swallower" was the featured sword swallower at Huber's Museum in New York. In 1905, both the January 14, 1905 Billboard and the New York Clipper Directory of Show People published January 21, 1905 state that "Mlle. Amy, sword swallower, formerly of the Forepaugh-Sells Show, has signed with J.T. McCaddon's Show for the European tour." Joe McCaddon's Great International Circus left New York in April 1905 for a 5 year tour of Europe with a company of 427 performers, canvasmen, and other employees and landed in Dunkirk. However, in August 1905 the McCaddon show ran into a lack of interest from the French audience due to heavy competition from Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show and the Barnum and Bailey Circus that had saturated the European market over the previous year. The September 23, 1905 New York Clipper reported that starting August 17, 1905, the McCaddon Great International Circus was stranded for a few weeks in Grenoble, France, where the show was left in the hands of receivers, and many of the performers who saw ahead had already forsaken the show, including sword swallower Mlle Amy. Boss canvasman Thomas McAvoy was one of the 100 performers left stranded in Grenoble in 1905, while about 300 returned to New York in September 1905 on the ship Roma and a few others managed to land odd jobs on ships. According to the 1906 season Official Book of Tours of the Carl Hagenbeck Greater Shows, the sword swallower for the 1906 season of the Hagenbeck Shows is listed as M'lle Amy. In 1906, Mlle Amy is also listed as the sword swallower with the Hagenbeck Circus in the New York Clipper Directory of Show People published on February 10, 1906 and July 7, 1906. According to a December 1, 1906 Billboard article: "Mlle Amy, sword swallower, closed Nov. 7 with the Hagenbeck Show at New Orleans and is spending the winter in New York City, where she is entertaining her mother, who recently arrived from England." According to the February 23, 1907 Billboard: "With the John Robinson side show this season will be Cal Towers, manager; Prof. Harnmann, lecturer and magician; Pietro and Rasie Donatella, knife throwers; Miss Blaser, snake charmer; Mlle. Amy, sword swallower." According to a May 25, 1907, Billboard article: "Thomas McAvoy writes to state that Mlle. Amy is still his lawful wife, and that there has been no trouble whatever between them." According to a November 8, 1907 Billboard article: "Mlle. Amy, sword swallower, arrived in New York Oct. 27, after a season with the John Robinson Shows." In 1908 Mlle Amy sustained an injury. However, it wasn't from a steel blade, but rather from a steel pole. While performing with the John Robinson Big Show Side Show in Mt. Carmel, Illinois, heavy rains and winds blew the sideshow down into what was described as "a tangled mess." According to the June 27, 1908 Billboard, Mlle Amy was injured when a tent blew down during bad weather on June 13, 1908: "Mlle. Amy, sword swallower, was in the midst of the falling poles, and was badly bruised." Several performers were injured by the falling poles. A fortune teller, who didn't see the storm coming, suffered a bruised arm, the show's announcer was knocked unconscious, and Mlle. Amy was badly bruised and forced to walk with a cane for several weeks. According to the March 13, 1909 Billboard: "Roster of the John Robinson Side Show season 1909: Mlle. Amy, sword swallower." By 1913, Mlle. Amy appeared to have either added snake handling to her act or simply transitioned from swords to fangs after marrying Frank J. Murphy. In 1913, Mlle Amy performed with the Hagenbeck-Wallace Show again, and the 1914 Hagenbeck-Wallace Show route book lists "Amy Murphy". Seeking photos and more information.
Mlle. Amy Murphy Timeline:
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Maurice Eugene "Sword and Rifle Stylist" |
Performed 1929-1939 |
Al G. Barnes Circus Cole Bros Circus (USA) |
Maurice Eugene was known as the "Sword and Rifle Stylist". Eugene was best known for balancing swords and rifles and swallowing swords.
In 1929, Eugene was the sword swallower with the Al G. Barnes Circus. In 1939, Maurice Eugene was featured as sword swallower with Cole Bros Circus.
Seeking photos and more information. Eugene (1929) |
| Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show |
Started 1898 Toured Europe 1903-06 Toured US 1907-11 |
(Europe) | Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show first toured the US starting in 1883. In 1899, James A. Bailey of Barnum and Bailey Circus fame added his influence to the Wild West Show by hiring midgets, a giant, a snake charmer, a magician, and a sword swallower in the show for an additional admission charge. Professor Charles E. Griffin worked as the sword swallower and manager of the Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show sideshow when it toured Europe from 1903 to 1906, where he performed as the "Yankee Yogi and Conjuror", with his wife and son working with him. In 1904 the sword swallower with Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show in Europe was "The Mighty Ajax". At some point in the European tour (1906?), Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show employed Russian sword swallower Julian Putzkewitsch. After returning to the US in 1907, Charles Griffin authored the book "Four Years in Europe With Buffalo Bill" which was published in 1908. Seeking photos and more information on sword swallowers with BBWWS.
Sword Swallowers with Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show: |
| Mons. Karlo | Performed 1905 |
Campbell Bros Consolidated R.R. Show (USA) |
According to the New York Clipper dated June 17, 1905, Mons. Karlo was the sword swallower with the Campbell Bros Consolidated R.R. Show. Seeking photos and more information |
| "The Amazing Hernando" | Performed early 1900s? |
Entertainment Troupe and Traveling Show Lynchburg, TN (USA) |
According to a Jack Daniel's poster, the "Entertainment Troupe and Traveling Show" was scheduled to perform "starting Monday, June 16, for 6 days and nights in the square of Lynchburg, TN. (Courthouse chairs, 37 cents)" According to the poster, "The Amazing Hernando will shoot a gun while it is DOWN HIS THROAT! Hernando will load a gun with powder and ball, swallow the barrel two feet down his mouth, and then DISCHARGE THE GUN, breaking with a single bullet a small drinking glass placed upon the head of HIS OWN CHILD!" Note: This poster appears to be a fictional Jack Daniels promotional poster recreated to look like the traditional circus poster, but there is no proof the poster or "The Amazing Hernando" were in fact real. Seeking more information. |
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Paul Macini Paul Mancini |
Performed c 1890s-1910s | (Italy? Germany?) |
Sword swallower Paul Macini or Paul Mancini was featured on a German postcard circa late 1890s or early 1900s. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Feretta The Man with the Iron Throat Der Mann mit dem eisernen Schlund Charles Feretta Charles Fred |
Performed 1889-1910 | (Germany) | In the December 17, 1889 El Paso International Daily Times and the January 1890 East Hampton NY Star, there were articles about "Feretta, The Man with the Iron Throat". In the September 22, 1891 Harper's Young People magazine, The Man With the Iron Throat was mentioned: "Of late years, the Man-with-the-Iron-Throat has attracted to himself considerable attention, for there lurks in human nature a depraved taste for the horrible." According to an article in the October 3, 1891 Cincinatti Enquirer: "Lee Van Hance has been telling Harper's Young People about the wonderful feats done by the Man-With-The-Iron-Throat. He had seen him thrust a solid steel sword twelve inches long down his throat, but thought it a mere trick of the stage. He says: Some time ago I struck up an aquaintance, first with the manager of the show and then with the sword-swallower himself, who was induced to give a private exhibition for my benefit. There was -- there could be -- no trick. The act was done too openly, too slowly, to admit of deception. I felt the sword when it was down the man's throat. "So now are you satisfied that the feat is square?" queried the sword-swallower. "Yes, but the pain in your throat must be considerable." "Once in a while I feel a little pain, and if it becomes too great, I always give up sword swallowing for a few days. No matter how easy the operation seems I never forget to go very slowly and very carefully. For it is only with extreme care that injury to the throat or stomach can be avoided. The muscles of my throat are now so hardened that they allow almost anything to go down. See here," said the sword-swallower, growing confidential, "I will show you something else." Taking a stone about the size of a small hickory-nut, he placed it on his tongue, rolled it around, made a pretense of chewing it, closed his mouth tightly, and the stone was gone. In like manner, two more pebbles were swallowed. "Do you keep them down and digest them?" I inquired. "Oh no; that is one of the secrets of our trade. Do the stones ever give me any trouble? Not at all. I have never been bothered with dyspepsia."
Sword swallower Charles Fred was featured in a German postcard circa 1910 as "Der Mann mit dem eisernen Schlund" ("The Man with the Iron Throat"). Seeking photos and more information.
Feretta The Man With the Iron Throat (3-24-1890) Man With The Iron Throat in Cincinnati Enquirer (10-3-1891) Charles Fred postcard (c 1910) Charles Fred postcard (c 1910) |
| Slivers Bowden | Performed 1915 |
Mighty Haag Shows Barnum & Bailey Circus Omaha, Nebraska (USA) |
According to the October 17, 1914 Billboard: "Annie Christ, professionally known as Trixie Christie, is a new addition to the Oriental department of the Mighty Haag Shows. She joined at Middleton, Delaware. Margaret Davis is doing the sword swallowing in the Haag Auxiliary. Slivers Bowden, side-showman is the power of this department." In 1915 Slivers Bowden, sword swallower, joined the Barnum & Bailey Circus in Omaha, Nebraska. Seeking photos and more information.. |
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Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus Great Wallace Show Zirkus Hagenbeck Cirque Hagenbeck J&G Hagenbecks Malabaren Truppe Carl Hagenbeck Circus Carl Hagenbeck Trained Animal Show Carl Hagenbeck Trained Wild Animal Show Carl Hagenbeck's Greater Shows Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus Hagenbeck-Wallace Forepaugh-Sells Bros. Circus |
1884 Wallace Circus 1887 Zirkus Hagenbeck 1893 Chicago World's Fair 1903 Carl Hagenbeck Circus 1906 Carl Hagenbeck's Greater Shows 1907 Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus 1913 Wabash River Flood 1918 Great Train Wreck 1918 Sold 1919 Sold 1929 Sold to Ringling Bros 1935 Splits from Ringling 1936 closed 1938 closed |
Peru, IN (USA) |
At its peak, the Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus, based in Peru, Indiana, was the second-largest circus in America next to Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus.
Benjamin E. Wallace, a livery stable owner from Peru, Indiana, and his business partner, James Anderson, bought a circus in 1884 and created "The Great Wallace Show". Wallace bought out his partner in 1890 and the name was changed to the "B. E. Wallace Circus". In Germany, Gottfried Claes Carl Hagenbeck Sr (1810-1887) was a German fishmonger who had a side business of exhibiting exotic animals such as "Sea-Elephants". Carl Hagenbeck Sr had four sons who followed in his footsteps: Gustav, John, Wilhelm, and Carl Hagenbeck Jr. (1844-1913). Carl Hagenbeck Jr. became a world renowned wild animal trainer and merchant who sold animals to zoos worldwide and to showmen like P.T. Barnum. The Carl Hagenbeck Circus, "Zirkus Hagenbeck" or "Cirque Hagenbeck" was founded in Hamburg in 1887. In 1893, Carl Hagenbeck Jr. brought the Carl Hagenbeck Circus to perform at the Chicago World's Fair. From 1900 to 1906, J & G Hagenbeck's Malabaren Truppe (J & G Hagenbeck's Jugglers Troupe operated by John and Gustav Hagenbeck, half-brothers of Carl Hagenbeck) performed with a troupe of 65 South Indian jugglers, elephants, and at least two south Indian sword swallowers throughout northern Europe, in Germany, Netherlands, and with extended runs at Tivoli Gardens in Copenhagen Denmark. (photo "Last week of shows through Sunday September 6, 1903") An American version of the circus was created in 1902 when Carl Hagenbeck, John Havlin, Lee Williams and Frank Tate formed the Carl Hagenbeck Trained Animal Show that toured the US in 1902, 1903 and 1904. In 1905, the name was changed to Carl Hagenbeck Trained Wild Animal Show, and in 1906, it became Carl Hagenbeck's Greater Shows. According to the February 24, 1906 New York Clipper, "The Cliffords, sword swallowers, and James Morris, "Elastic Skin Man", have signed with the Great Wallace Shows for next season." In 1907, Tate and Havlin conspired with Benjamin Wallace and merged the Carl Hagenbeck Shows with the B.E. Wallace Circus to form the combiined Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus. Carl Hagenbeck was unaware of the sale/merger, did not agree to it, and sued to prohibit the use of his name, but lost his complaint in US court. On March 30, 1913, in the infamous Wabash River Flood of 1913 in Peru Indiana, the Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus lost 8 elephants, 8 performing horses, and 21 lions and tigers, inflicting losses totaling $150,000 upon Wallace's circus. Following the devastation of the 1913 flood, Wallace sold his interest in the Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus to Ed Ballard of French Lick, Indiana. Two weeks later, on April 14, 1913, Carl Hagenbeck Jr. died in Hamburg Germany. On June 22, 1918, another tragedy struck the Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus when a locomotive engineer fell asleep about 4am in Ivanhoe near Hammond, Indiana, and ran his empty troop train into the rear of the Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus train. A fire broke out from the kerosene lamps used for lighting the sleeping cars of the circus train. The fire quickly spread through the wood-constructed cars. As a result of the collision and subsequent fire, 86 people died and another 127 were injured. (photo) Many victims were burned beyond recognition. Most are buried in Woodlawn Cemetery in Forest Park, Illinois in a section set aside as Showmen's Rest. In the spirit of "the show must go on", several competing circuses, including Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey, lent equipment and performers to the Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus so that only two performances were canceled as a result of the tragedy, the one in Hammond and the next stop in Monroe, Wisconsin. In 1918, after being plagued by disasters, Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus was sold. After the tragedy, circus entrepreneurs Jeremiah Mugivan and Bert Bowers acquired the Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus in 1918, adding it to a long list of circuses they owned, including Sells-Floto Circus and John Robinson Shows. A year later, in 1919, Mugivan and Bowers asked Ballard to join them, and the trio formed the American Circus Company. In 1929, the successor company of the American Circus Corporation was sold by Jeremiah Mugivan, Bert Bowers and Ed Ballard to John Nicholas Ringling of Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey, along with Al G. Barnes Circus, Sells-Floto Circus, John Robinson Shows, and Sparks Circus for $1.7 million. In 1935, the circus split from Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey and became the Hagenbeck-Wallace and Forepaugh-Sells Bros. Circus, featuring sword swallower Prince Charles Prester in 1935. In 1936, the show did not tour, but resumed again in 1937 with sword swallower Prince Charles Prester. The Hagenbeck-Wallace and Forepaugh-Sells Bros. Circus finally ceased operations in 1938. The building that formerly housed the winter home of Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus now serves as the home of the International Circus Hall of Fame on the banks of the Wabash River in Peru Indiana.
Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus Timeline: |
| Gollmar Brothers Circus | 1891-1916 |
Baraboo, WI (USA) |
Gollmar Brothers Circus wintered out of Baraboo, Wisconsin from 1891-1916. Walter, Fred, Charles, Ben, and Jake Gollmar were the proprietors. They were also known at one point as Gollmar Bros. and Schumann's Circus. According to the February 23, 1907 New York Clipper: "Notes of Gollmar Bros' side show for next season: The side show for next season will be much larger and grander than Gollmar Bros. have ever attempted in the past. As the side show is strictly in keeping with the big show, everything is gilt edged. Our top is 60 feet, with two 30s, twelve feet stage, fourteen paintings and three boxes. Roster includes: James Morris, elastic skin man, and Mille Clifford, sword swallower, who is a feature. Conceded by press and public of both hemispheres to be the greatest act in her line ever seen. Side show band will consist of 6 mouth pieces and 2 drums. Taking into consideration that Gollmar Bros.' Shows consists of 25 cars, this undoubtedly will make the strongest side show ever carried by a firm of this size." In 1908, the Cliffords worked again with Gollmar Bros Circus with James Morris as the elastic skinned man, and with "Mlle Clifford, sword swallower, in gorgeous costume". In 1909, "Nellie Clifford" performed as sword swallower with Gollmar Bros Circus. In 1910, the Gollmar Bros Circus featured the sword swallower as "Edith Morris" (since she was married to Thomas Holmes, who was also known as James Morris). According to the March 19, 1910 New York Clipper: "Thomas Clifford, husband of Edith Clifford, the sword swallower, whose death was noted in last week's Clipper, passed away Feb. 22, 1910 at the ?? Hospital, South Boston, Mass., from paralysis of the bladder and kidney trouble. He was born in New York State, forty-two years ago, and for twelve years he traveled with the Barnum & Bailey Circus, and for years with the Wallace Show. Under the name of James Maurice, "the elastic skin man," he traveled for the past three years with Gollmar Bros.' Show, and was re-engaged with them for the coming season. In private life he was known as Thomas Holmes. Interment was in the family plot at Pawtucket, R.I. He is survived by his wife, two daughters, four brothers and three sisters." In 1912, Edith Clifford was married in her second marriage to a German circus trapeze artist named Karl Bauer, who served as Clifford's assistant when the couple married, performing together with the Gollmar Brothers Circus under the stage name "The Cliffords" in 1912 and 1913.
Sword Swallowers with Gollmar Brothers Circus: |
| John Robinson's Shows |
1842 begins touring 1929 bought by John Ringling |
(USA) | The John Robinson Circus toured from 1842 until 1911 (69 years) and again in 1916, and it was one of the longest running family owned circuses in the United States. The circus was owned and managed by four generations of "John Robinsons".
According to the The Annual Record of the John Robinson's 10 Big Shows for 1899 and 1900, the sword swallower was listed simply as "Iola". In 1929, the John Robinson Shows were purchased by the American Circus Corporation and later sold by Jeremiah Mugivan, Bert Bowers and Ed Ballard to John Nicholas Ringling of Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey in 1929 for $1.7 million, along with the Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus, Al G. Barnes Circus, Sells-Floto Circus, and Sparks Circus. The Ringlings continued to operate the circus until 1938.
John Robinson Side Shows Timeline:: |
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Al. G. Barnes Circus Al G. Barnes Circus |
1895 Al G. Barnes Circus starts 1929 Bought by American Circus Corporation 1929 Merges with Sells-Floto, John Robinson Shows and Sparks Circus 1929 John Ringling merges with Ringling Bros Barnum & Bailey Circus 1931 Al G. Barnes Stonehouse dies 1938 Al G. Barnes Circus closes |
Peru, IN (USA) |
Alpheus George Barnes Stonehouse started the Al. G. Barnes' Circus in 1895 with a pony, a phonograph, and a stereopticon. In 1929, the circus was purchased by the American Circus Corporation and later sold by Jeremiah Mugivan, Bert Bowers and Ed Ballard to John Nicholas Ringling of Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey in 1929 for $1.7 million, along with the Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus, Sells-Floto Circus, John Robinson Shows, and Sparks Circus. The circus finally ceased operations in 1938.
Sword Swallowers with Al G. Barnes Circus: |
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Professor A.J. Pierce A.J. Pearce Albert J. Pierce Allan J. Price Allen J. Price Chief Yellow Bear Prince Yellow Boy Pierce the Yellow Boy |
Born 1868 Performed 1904-1913 Injured April 15, 1908 Injured May 30, 1909 Died July 16, 1913
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Bangor, Maine Allman Carnival Hotel Trafalgar New York, NY Died Bismark, ND (USA) |
In 1905, a Professor A.J. Pierce was the star sword swallower of a show run for several days out of a vacant storefront on Harlow Street in Bangor Maine. "He runs swords and small saws and scissors and bayonets down his throat until it seems that it must slash his vitals; but he gets through all right and smiles at the frightened spectators. He chews and swallows glass, eats hot pitch and rosin and sealing wax, swallows tacks and does other stunts that cause the observer to wonder what his insides are composed of... He finished his stunt by swallowing about 16 inches of a snake," wrote a reporter for the Bangor Daily News on Nov. 11, 1905. Pierce performed with two other colleagues who performed similar feats of daring. LaCrosse, the Human Stone Crusher, let people break stones on his stomach with a sledgehammer, while Madame LaMonte, the Hindoo rope juggler, freed herself after being bound in 50 feet of hemp. The show took place in East Market Square (near where City Hall is today) in what the reporter referred to facetiously as "the tenderloin," a reference to urban neighborhoods known for vice and graft. The show was operated by Professor H.H. Perkins, a scholar of bizarre amusements like his partner Professor Pierce.
According to an article in the Mt. Carmel PA Daily News dated April 15, 1908, "Sword Swallower Ate One Too Many -- Waterbury, Conn., April 15 -- A.J. Pearce, a sword swallower, while swallowing a sword pierced his stomach, and the hospital doctors say he will die. Pearce is known as "Chief Yellow Bear" among circus men." An article in the NY Times dated May 30, 1909 states, "Albert J. Pierce of No. 2076 Lexington Avenue, a sword swallower, is in Harlem Hospital in serious condition. While doing his usual stunt in a Fourteenth-street show last night, the sword got too deep and cut the lining of his stomach. Dr. Cassini of the hospital says he is suffering from a gastric hemmorhage." According to an obituary for Allen J. Price in the Atlanta Constitution dated July 17, 1913: Sword Swallower Dead - Bismarck, ND, July 17, 1913 - Allen J. Price, 45 years old, sword swallower and snake charmer, died here yesterday from drug poisoning. It was learned some time ago that he sold his body to be delivered after death to a university at Baltimore. His widow lives in New York city. According to a July 16, 1913 article in The Bismarck ND Daily Tribune: Albert J. Pierce, sword swallower with the Allman Carnival show in the city, died in a tent Wednesday morning about 7:30 from the effects of morphine poisoning. Pierce had been with this carnival company for the past six weeks and gave some startling demonstrations and also gave an exhibition with live snakes, but outside of the extremely large doses of morphine he had taken externally with a needle and hyoscine, he had taken internally in tablet form, his body seemed to be in a perfectly normal condition. He had been ill on Tuesday and while at a local hospital before he could be prevented, he took a dose of morphine large enough, it was said, to have killed six men. He had on a daily average used about 10 grains of either morphine or hyoscine, and always took extremely large doses, and he had kept up this habit for the past 24 years, but he took an overdose of morphine Wednesday morning and death ensued shortly afterwards. The manager of the carnival was with Pierce at the time of his death, and Dr. Smythe, the county coroner, had the body removed to the undertaking parlors of Traux Brothers where an autopsy was held and death was pronounced to have been caused from morphine and hyoscine poisoning. From what could be learned of Pierce's past history, he was 45 years of age and was a Frenchman by birth. He has a wife, a Chinese woman, who lives in New York City, which place is Pierce's home. He also has three sons there. At one time he had studied medicine and was well posted as to the uses of strong opiates. It seems that some time ago he had contracted with a large hospital in New York to have his body delivered there after his death, as that institution desired to make an examination of what effects these strong drugs have had. The management of the carnival is attempting, by telegraph, to locate Pierce's family and his body which has been embalmed will either be shipped back to New York or buried in Bismarck." According to an article posted Thursday, July 17, 1913 in The Bismarck ND Daily Tribune: "SWORD SWALLOWER DIED FROM USE OF MORPHINE. Had Been Giving Exhibitions With Carnival in Bismarck This Week. Was a Constant Slave to Drug Habit and Died From an Overdose. Autopsy Held and Embalmed Body May be Shipped to New York City. Pierce had disposed of all papers that would have given any information regarding his affairs, but the management of the carnival company knowing that New York City was his home, learned yesterday that Hotel Trafalgar in that city was his headquarters, and a message from the clerk of that hotel last night read as follows: "Chief of Police, Bismarck, N. D.: "I understand that John Hopkins University at Baltimore, Md. owns the body of Pierce the Yellow Boy, but I know nothing more." RAYMOND T. CONDON, Clerk, Hotel Trafalgar". It was stated last night that Pierce had often told of having sold is body to that university, and that he had some time ago received the sum of $500, and that his body was to be delivered there after his death. It was not certain last night just what would be done with the remains." According to a July 18, 1913 article in the Bismarck Daily Tribune: Prince Yellow Boy, the carnival freak, who died Wednesday morning from morphine poisoning, was buried Thursday afternoon in the Fairview Cemetery at Bismarck. No word could be received from his relatives in New York City as to the disposition of his remains, neither was there any response to a message sent to the Johns Hopkins University at Baltimore, which institution was supposed to have paid the Yellow Boy $500 for his body to be delivered after death, and it was decided that it was useless to hold his remains here any longer. Prince Yellow Boy's name was Albert J. Pierce, and he was probably one of the greatest freaks that ever gave an exhibition in this section of the country. He had a great layout of swords of all shapes and sizes, and gave some wonderful demonstrations in swallowing them. He was also a sensational snake charmer, and the day before he died, he received a consignment of new snakes from Texas. These snakes, without their fangs being removed, he handled in a most thrilling manner. These exhibitions he gave at Fairley's museum here with the Allman Carnival company, and the doctors, as well as the general public who saw this man perform, were completely baffled. His outfit is still at the museum, and has been exhibited and explained every night by Mr. Fairley since Yellow Boy died. The expense of his funeral was provided for by Mr. Fairley personally."
A.J. Pierece was buried at Fairview Cemetery in Bismarck, ND. The grave is unmarked and it's location is unknown. Seeking photos and more information. Albert Pierce injury article (1909) Albert J. Pierce obituary (1913) Allan J. Price obituary (1913) Allen J. Price obituary (1913) |
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The Great Lorenzo Dr. Pardo Dr. Benevente Pardo Lon Young |
Performed 1908-22 |
Vaudette Vaudeville Theatre Lyric Theater Robinson's Famous Shows Family Sideshow Sells-Floto Circus> World's Fair Museum (USA) |
According to the Chicago Englewood Economist dated November 10, 1908, the Great Lorenzo performed at the Vaudette Vaudeville Theatre in Chicago in 1908 as the "human gas jet". According to the Mattoon Illinois Journal Gazette dated April 12, 1909, the Great Lorenzo was featured as a "Novelty Fire Act" at the Lyric Theater in 1909. According to the New York Clipper, dated May 13, 1911, The Great Lorenzo performed as fire eater and sword swallower with Robinson's Famous Shows Family Sideshow in 1911. In 1922, Lorenzo was featured as the sword swallower with the Sells-Floto Circus on May 27, 1922 in Pittsfield, Massachusetts.
For two weeks in December 1936, the Great Lorenzo was featured as a mental mind-reader with the World's Fair Museum in Ogden, Utah, along with Capt. Albert Peterson, King of all Sword Swallowers, and 17 other freaks. According to an article dated December 1936, "Dr. Benevente Pardo, the Man with the Sixth Sense, professionally known as the Great Lorenzo, hails from Amsterdam Holland, but was reared and educated in Sumatra, the Dutch East Indies, one of Holland's richest possessions. It was there that Dr. Pardo learned the art of telepathy and of foretelling the future from the Hindus. Dr. Pardo became so efficient in this line of occult mysticism, that he was asked to perform before the queen of Holland, who later decorated him for his remarkable and astounding performances. He now delights American audiences on stage and radio by his accurate predictions and goes even so far as to call perfect strangers by their surnames without a word being spoken by the spectator. This remarkable man is now being consulted at the World's Fair Museum, 2646 Washington, where he tells one's past, present, and future accurately." Their run at the World's Fair Museum was extended until at least January 16, 1937. Seeking photos and more information.. |
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Coney Island Steeplechase Park Luna Park Dreamland |
Luna Park opens 1903 Dreamland opens 1904 Dreamland burns 1911 Dreamland Sideshow opens 1911 World Sideshow opens 1922 World Sideshow closes 1941 Luna Park damaged by fires 1944 Luna Park closes 1945 |
Coney Island Dreamland Circus Sideshows Sam Wagner's World Circus Sideshow David Rosen's Wonderland Circus Side Show Coney Island Sideshows by the Seashore Coney Island Brooklyn, NY (USA) |
Between 1880 and World War II, Coney Island was the largest amusement area in the United States, attracting several million visitors per year. At its height it contained three competing major amusement parks, Luna Park, Dreamland, and Steeplechase Park, as well as many independent amusements.
Luna Park was an amusement park that opened in 1903 in Coney Island Brooklyn, NY. Built partly on the grounds of Sea Lion Park (1895), Luna Park was one of the three original iconic large parks built on Coney Island, the other two being Steeplechase Park (1897) and Dreamland (1904). Luna Park was located on the north side of Surf Avenue on a site between 8th street, 12th street and Neptune Avenue. A pair of fires in 1944 damaged Luna Park, destroying much of it. It was not rebuilt and did not open for the 1945 season. After a legal battle and a third fire in 1946, the land was used for other purposes. The original Luna Park now houses a five building cooperative apartment complex and is still called Luna Park to this day. Although the first "freak show" atConey Island opened in 1880, the golden age of the village's sideshows began in 1904 when Samuel W. Gumpertz opened Lilliputia, an entire miniature city scaled for its dwarf and midget inhabitants at Dreamland. Lilliputia became such a popular tourist attraction at Dreamland, that Gumpertz spend many years afterwards finding and promoting human oddities. Dreamland was the grandest and most ambitious amusement park at Coney Island, Brooklyn, New York City from 1904 to 1911. Opened on May 15, 1904, Dreamland was a park in which everything was reputed to be bigger and more expansive than in neighboring Luna Park. Dreamland was the last, and considered the grandest, of the three original iconic large parks built on Coney Island. The Dreamland Circus Sideshows were owned by the Dicker family, who also owned the hotel next to the park. There was also a display of baby incubators, where premature babies, triplets who were members of the Dicker family, were cared for and exhibited. The doctors advised the family of the new incubators, but because incubators were not approved for use in hospitals, the triplets were placed in the incubators in the side show, which was allowed. Two survived and lived on to have full lives until their death. In preparation for the 1911 season, Samuel W. Gumpertz (later director of the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus) was put in the park's top executive post. The buildings, once all painted white in a bid for elegance, were repainted in bright circus colors. On the night before opening day over Memorial Day weekend, a concession called Hell Gate, in which visitors took a boat ride on rushing waters through dim caverns, was undergoing last-minute repairs by a roofing company that caulked several leaks with tar. At about 1:30 am on May 27, 1911, the light bulbs that illuminated the operations began exploding, possibly due to an electrical short. In the darkness, a worker kicked over a bucket of hot tar pitch, and soon Hell Gate was in flames. The ensuing fire quickly spread throughout Dreamland Park. The buildings were made of frames of thin strips of wood covered with a moldable mixture of plaster of Paris and hemp fiber. Both materials were highly flammable, and as they were common in the Coney Island amusement parks, fires were a persistent problem there. Because of this, a new high-pressure water pumping station had been constructed at Twelfth Street and Neptune Avenue a few years earlier, but on that night it failed. Water was available, but there was not enough to contain the fire that enveloped Dreamland. The Dicker family's adjacent hotel also burned down in this fire. Chaos broke loose as the park burned. As the single-armed Captain Bonavita the big cat trainer strove to save his big cats with only the swiftly encroaching flames for illumination, some of the terrified big cats escaped. A lion named Black Prince rushed into the streets, among crowds of onlookers, and was shot by police. By morning, the fire was out, Dreamland was completely destroyed, and about 60 animals had died. Early editions of the New York Times claimed the incubator babies had perished in the flames, but the paper later corrected their story and reported that all incubator babies had been saved by Sgt. Frederick Klinck of the NYPD, who made several trips into the burning structure to rescue the incubator babies. The owners of Dreamland had suffered a $3,500,000 loss and decided not to rebuild. More than 2500 people (1600 at Dreamland alone) had lost their jobs. Samuel Gumpertz decided to put together a new Dreamland Circus Side-Show under a 40 x 80 foot tent along Surf Avenue while the park's embers were still smoldering. Gumpertz had no trouble convincing Coney's freaks to join his operation. It was a matter of economics; they needed a job. Most preferred the low but steady seasonal pay versus being constantly on the road in search of more lucrative one night stands. Besides most freaks liked the sense of community, of living at Coney Island among their abnormal peers. Best of all he stroked their egos by treating them as something special and displaying them as something unique. It didn't matter if they were dwarfs, giants, ugly, amazingly obese, had three legs, no arms or legs; the public would pay money to stare at them and gaze in awe. The 1911 Dreamland Circus Side-Show exhibited Ursa the bear girl; Bonita, the Irish fat midget; Fatima, the the Nubian woman; Rob Roy, albino wonder; Captain Copp, human tattooed art gallery; Baby Alpine 615 pounds; Schrief Afendl, human salamander. The new Dreamland Circus Side Show became an instant success. From 1917 to 1926 the featured sword swallower with the Dreamland Circus Side Show was Mighty Ajax, the Arabian Sword Swallower, and in 1927, the Dreamland Circus Side Show featured Marie DeVere as sword swallower (dressed just like Mighty Ajax, the Arabian Sword Swallower!). The popularity of the freaks at Dreamland Circus Sideshow led to many other side shows at Coney Island. In 1922 "Professor" Sam Wagner opened the rival Sam Wagner's World Circus Side Show and World Circus Freak Show. Sam Wagner's World Circus Side Show was a sideshow owned and operated by "Professor" Samuel Wagner from 1922 to 1941 on Surf Avenue, Coney Island, New York. Other sideshows soon opened, including the Steeplechase Circus Big Show, George Hamid's Playland Circus, Hubert's Museum, the Strand Museum, the Mammoth Wonder Show, and David Rosen's Wonderland Circus Side Show. In 1929, Gumpertz left Coney Island to run Ringling Brothers, Barnum and Bailey Circus. David Rosen's Wonderland Circus Side Show displayed an array of living human oddities in 1930. However, starting in 1930, business dropped considerably during the Great Depression. While it was possible to attract 20,000 customers per day back in 1915, by the beginning of the Depression, showman were lucky to attract 8,000 customers a day. Showmen dropped their prices, but then the quality of the freaks began to suffer. It became hard to compete for freaks with the circuses and traveling carnivals. In the late 1930's Robert Moses, who was the New York City Parks Commissioner, tried to ban ballyhoo and outside lecturers. In 1938 three major sideshow operators were brought to trial for violation of the ordinance: Sam Wagner (World Circus Side Show), Dave Rosen (Coney Side Show), and Fred Sindell (Palace of Wonders Freak Show). Known as "The Godfather" of the Coney Island Freak Show, Sam Wagner endured a legal fight against the famed Robert Moses, who believed the age of sideshow entertainment was over and banned "Ballyhoo and Outside Lecturers", which eventually put the sideshows out of business. In 1955, David Rosen was still operating Wonderland Circus Sideshow and Palace of Wonders. Although there was much less interest in freaks, Rosen persisted for a few more years. According to the October 10, 1960 Billboard, in 1960, Sir Thomas Thomas was sword swallower with Dave Rosen Side Show at the New Jersey State Fair, and in October, the show then went into winter quarters at Coney Island. Over the decades, additional sideshows have worked at Coney Island, including John Bradshaw's Sideshow, Bobby Reynolds' International Circus Museum, and Dick Zigun's Sideshows by the Seashore. Human oddities who worked in circuses and other traveling shows enjoyed the relative stability and permanence of Coney Island. Today Coney Island is home to Sideshows by the Seashore. Founded in 1986, Sideshows by the Seashore was the brainchild of Dick Zigun who, as founder and artistic director of Coney Island USA (CIUSA) in 1980, is largely responsible for Coney Island's recent renaissance. Since its creation in 1986, the Sideshow has grown into an international hub for the weird under the guidance of its parent organization Coney Island USA, which is run out of the same building. The operation also teaches sideshow skills under the name Coney Island Circus Sideshow School. For decades, the sideshows at Coney Island were legendary as seasonal homes for human oddities and sideshow freaks, including sword swallowers Milo Milse, Marie DeVere, the Mighty Ajax, Edna Price, Melvin Burkhart, Shumpert Eko, Slim Price, Bobby Reynolds, Lady Diane Falk, Baron Bill Unks, Todd Robbins, Fredini Kahl, Heather Holliday, and others.
Seeking photos and more information.
Sword Swallowers at Coney Island:
Ajax with Dreamland Circus Sideshow (1920s?) Marie DeVere with Dreamland Circus Sideshow (1927) Dreamland Circus Sideshow (1931) video
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Ajax Mighty Ajax Professor Ajax J.M. Ajax Joe Milana Joseph Milana Joseph P. Milana The Pirate Ajax the Great Arabian Sword Swallower Mexican Sword Swallower King of Sword Swallowers King of Swords |
Born 6 Dec 1884 Performed 1904-1959 Died 27 April 1959
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Miles Orton Big Southern Railroad Shows Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show Texas Bill Wild West Side Show Hubert's Museum Boyd & Wirth's Circus International Ringling Bros Barnum & Bailey Coney Island Dreamland Circus Sideshow Mammoth Wonder Show Luna Park Wonderland Ripley's Believe It or Not! Surf Hotel Brooklyn, NY (USA) |
The "Mighty Ajax" was born of Italian descent as Joseph Milana on December 6 1884 in Washington DC; According to 1900 US Census records, both his parents were born in Italy, and his mother, Maria Milana became a US citizen in 1884, the same year that Joseph was born. According to 1900 US Census records, Joseph only received a 4th grade education. In the 1900 US Census, there is no mention of his father, but at the age of 15, young Joseph Milana was working as a "jeweller" in Brooklyn to help support his mother as the oldest of four children: Joseph Milana: 15, Salvatore Milana: 13, Kate Milana: 10, and Frank Milana: 6. (1896-1961) Sometime between 1900 and 1904, young Joseph started his career in entertainment as a pigeon trainer in "Dime Museums", and ended his career in show business as a "Punch and Judy man". Ajax claimed to have taught himself sword swallowing, presumably around 1903-1904 at around age of 18. Joseph Milana is first listed as the sword swallower with the Miles Orton Big Southern Railroad Shows in the New York Clipper Directory of Show People published on March 5, 1904. (film c.1904-05) Later in 1904, the Mighty Ajax toured Europe with Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show at the age of 18-19. The earliest known photo of the Mighty Ajax, The Arabian Sword Swallower was taken around 1905, after he had just returned from touring Europe with Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show. According to the December 9, 1905 Billboard: "Notes from the side show of the Texas Bill Wild West Show. We have just closed our thirtieth week, during which time our roster has not changed. We have played twelve states and two territories. We expect to be out all winter. We have at present twenty-six people among whom are... Prof. Ajax, Mexican sword swallower". When he performed his sword swallowing act, Ajax would stand on the bally, swallow a sword, and put it back in its scabbard. When audience members would claim, "Fake, fake!", Ajax would offer them a challenge: "If anyone doubts that I'm really swallowing a sword, bring me your own sword, and I'll swallow it, with the provision that if I swallow it, I get to keep it!" When Ajax performed for King George V of England, King George did not believe Ajax really swallowed the sword. So Ajax offered him his challenge. King George produced a sword, which Ajax carefully swallowed. As a result, the King was convinced, and Ajax was allowed to keep the King's sword. Ajax's first wife Marie Milana also performed fire-eating and "double knife cutting" with him. Ajax's first son by his first wife Marie was named Bernie Milana, but he died of a head injury as a young man when he fell from a ladder and injured his head around 1917. Ajax performed in Vaudeville with Al Jolson and Eddy Cantor. Ajax was famous for his long run season after season at Coney Island's Dreamland Circus Side-Show. According to the June 2, 1917 Billboard: "Coney Island, N.Y. May 26 -- When one walks into the Dreamland Circus Side-Show, he is instantly struck with the idea that he is in a dream. In reality, and instinctively, he pinches himself to see if he is awake. The management of this famous side-show has certainly eclipsed all previous efforts, and the results have justified his efforts. Manager Salih walks around with a broad, good-natured smile these days, for altho the season is very backward and Coney Island has only had a day or two of decent weather, the Dreamland Circus Side-Show has been visited by everyone on the Island, and all visitors have to admit that it is the greatest ever. Here are the attractions: ...Ajax, sword swallower, Eli Bowen, legless man..." Ajax's Coney Island banner read, "Robert Ripley says, 'The only man in the world who can swallow a red hot sword!' " Ajax would heat up a sword in a charcoal fire until the sword was red hot, then put the sword in a scabbard and swallow both the sword and the scabbard at the same time. Ajax had to remove the sword quickly before it transferred the heat to the scabbard. According to reports, other sword swallowers later died while trying to imitate Ajax's feat. From 1917 to 1922, Ajax lived in Brooklyn and worked at Dreamland Circus Side-Show in Coney Island Brooklyn, NY. During this time, Ajax met 18-year-old Sarina Emmanuel, and on September 4, 1919, they were married. In 1921, Ajax's second son, Victor Milana was born. (Victor Milana lived until the 1970s, and is survived by his wife Vivian). In 1922, Mighty Ajax performed with Ringling Bros Barnum & Bailey Circus. On February 3, 1924, Ajax and Sarina gave birth to their third son, Richard Ernest Milana (1924-2012). In 1927, Mighty Ajax returned to perform with Ringling Bros Barnum & Bailey Circus (1927 line-up). In 1928, Ajax performed for Hubert's Museum in NY, and had an x-ray taken with a sword down his throat which was phtographed by legendary circus photographer Edward Kelty in New York City. In 1932, Ajax the Sword Swallower was featured with Boyd & Wirth's Circus International. In 1939, Ajax was also known as "The Pirate" due to his distinctive trademark pirate bandana that he was known for wearing. The February-March 1939 issue of "Your Body" magazine featured an x-ray of Ajax with sword down his throat. According to the 1940 US Census, 55 year old Joseph Milana was married to 38 year old Sarina, when Ajax reported that he made $600/year working 10 hours/week and only 26 weeks per year (Comparatively, others in the 1940 Census report made $500-$700 per year working 50-52 weeks per year). According to a Sep 19, 1942 Billboard article: "World Circus Side Show employees helped Ajax, "King of Swords," and Sarina Milana, electric girl, celebrate their 23d wedding anniversary September 4th. Their two sons, Victor and Richard Milana, the former a staff sergeant at the Naval Military School, Washington, and the latter with the Marines abroad, sent wires of congrats." According to the June 10, 1944 Billboard, the Mammoth Wonder Show at Coney Island included Ajax the sword swallower in its 1944 line-up. In the 1940s, Mighty Ajax was able to swallow up to 5 swords at one time. According to a Coney Island article in the August 5, 1944 Billboard: "Two attractions named Ajax are confusing to associates. One is Ajax, the "King of Sword Swallowers" at the Mammoth, who says he came by the title first, and the other is a strong man and an accordian maker and player at David Rosen's Wonderland Circus Side Show in Luna. Both unrelated to the lightning god of ancient history..." According to a July 15, 1944 Billboard article on Coney Island: "Ajax has left the Mammoth Freakery and shelved sword swallowing to move into Wonderland to become a Frankenstein impersonator in place of Art Dorner who departed last week." In 1948, Ajax taught Slim Price how to swallow swords in a doorway between shows. According to a June 24, 1950 Billboard article: Coney Island "Ticket sellers are Amine Abbott, Joe Milana, (formerly AJAX, Sword King)..." According to an article in the 1952 Leatherneck: "Joseph Milana, whose circus name was Ajax, swallows a sword for fellow MCFA members". According to the July 12, 1952 Billboard, "Joseph (Ajax) Milana recently became a grandfather for the second time (June 20, 1952)". According to the July 4, 1953 Billboard, "Edith Purdin, inside lecturer at the Palace of Wonders celebrated the first anniversary of her grandson, Van Allen Milana, June 20, at the home of the youngster's parents, Mr. and Mrs. Victor Milana, New York. Dad Victor is a TV engineer, and grandfather is Ajax, former sword swallower." In the mid-1950s, Ajax performed for Robert Ripley's Believe It or Not. According to a 1955 Ripley's article, "Mrs. Ajax also swallows hardware, but hers has jagged metal edges". According to the April 29, 1957 Billboard: "Roosevelt Field, huge shopping community on Long Island, started a six-day circus promotion Monday (April 22), with acts including several booked through Ray Beaudet. Included are ...Ajax, fire-eater and sword swallower. They put on 22 shows at five spots at the shopping center." According to Ajax's son, Richard Milana, the most swords Ajax ever swallowed simultaneously was 7 swords at once; he claimed Ajax never incurred any serious injuries from sword swallowing, as he was always very careful while sword swallowing.
Joseph Milana lived for many years in the Coney Island Surf Hotel (built in 1903, abandoned for decades, demolished in December 2010). The Mighty Ajax was filmed around 1958. On April 27, 1859, Joseph Milana, The Mighty Ajax died in Brooklyn NY at the age of 74 after performing over 54 years. His obituary in the April and May 1959 Billboard states: "MILANA, Joseph, 74, known in outdoor show business as Ajax the Sword Swallower, April 27, in New York. He had spent a lifetime as an act and pitchman, much of it in the New York area working for Dave Rosen, Hubert's Museum, and Ringling in Madison Square Garden. Survivors include his widow, two sons, two grandchildren, a brother and a sister. Services May 1 in Brooklyn, with burial in Pinelawn Cemetery, Amityville, NY." Ajax is buried next to his wife Sarina (1901-1979) in Pinelawn Memorial Park Farmingdale, NY. When he died, Ajax's swords were willed to Jimmy Lucky Ball II, and before his wife Sarina died in 1979, she said "He sold his swords to a young fellow sword swallower" when his son Richard was in the military service. Some info courtesy of Ajax' son Richard E. Milana (1924-2012) and his wife Natalie Milana; Richard Ernest Milana was born Feb 3, 1924, graduated in 1950 from Cornell University, retired in January 1996 at the age of 82, died Jan 1, 2012 in San Diego, CA. His son, Ajax' grandson, Joseph Milana, was a physical engineer who graduated from Cornell in 1982 with a PhD from SUNY, Stony Brook on Long Island, who worked in high-particle research for very low pay--and left academia for industry. Other info courtesy of Ajax' grandson Van Milana, Brooklyn NY. Seeking photos and more information.
Mighty Ajax Timeline:
Young Ajax (1905) Young Ajax (fim c 1904-5) Ajax and wife Marie (1910-18) Ajax (early) Young Ajax with sword shield Ajax Night at Coney Island (1927-28?) Ajax Night at Coney Island (1927-28?) Ajax Night at Coney Island (1927-28?) Ajax Night at Coney Island (1927-28?) Ajax with Dreamland Circus Sideshow (1920s?) Ajax with Ringling Bros (1927) Ajax at Hubert's (1928) Ajax X-ray (1928) Ajax X-ray (1928) Ajax x-ray (1939) Ajax swallowing 5 (1940s) Mighty Ajax with sword pin (1940s) Mighty Ajax with sword pin closeup (1940s) Son Victor marries Vivian (12-25-1942) Mighty Ajax at Ripley's (1955) Mighty Ajax (video c.1958) Joseph Milana gravesite Joseph Milana headstone |
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David Berlino (David Bäck) |
Born 1886 Performed 1905-20 Died 1972 |
(Sweden) | David Bäck was born in Brevik, Skaraborg, Sweden in 1886, and performed throughout southern Sweden under the names "David Beck" and "David Berlino" as sword swallower, fire-eater and juggler with a circus he half-owned between about 1905 to about 1920. David Berlino Bäck died in Stockholm Sweden in 1972 at the age of 86. Sök efter fotos och upplysningen. |
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Dr. Max Cremer 1st Esophageal Electrocardiogram |
1906 | (Wales) |
German doctor Dr. Max Cremer records the first oesophageal electrocardiogram performed in Wales which he achieved in 1906 after enlisting the help of an unnamed professional sword swallower. Seeking more information.. |
| Ringling Brothers Circus | 1907 | (USA) | Ringling Brothers buys Barnum & Bailey Circus in 1907, but tour separately until 1918. |
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Oesophagoscopy in a Sword Swallower |
1908 |
Philadelphia, PA (USA) |
According to an article in the American Journal of the Medical Sciences published in Philadelphia, PA in November 1908: Hald reports his observations in oesophagoscopy upon a sword swallower. The oesophagus had been very largely distended in consequence of the professional feats, and the cricoidean zone of the pharynx was patent and much larger than normal. There was an excoriation upon the posterior wall of the cricoid cartilage. Curiously, the patient could not support the examination any better than ordinary subjects, his oesophagus seeming to have become habituated to flat foreign bodies, but not to cylindrical ones. The mucous membrane was of a deep violaceous red, the result of chronic inflammatory condition, likewise the result of his sword swallowing. The tube could be introduced 45 cm. without reaching the cardia. Seeking more information.. |
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Edward Smith Edward Burnap Smith Edward Bernap Smith Edward Berner Smith Edward Bernard Smith |
Born 1890 Performed 1900s-1918 Died September 22, 1946
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Barnum & Bailey Circus Buffalo, NY Younkers, NY (USA) |
Edward Burnap (or Bernap or Berner) Smith was born around 1890 either in New Jersey, or Buffalo, NY. He was orphaned at a young age when his parents were both killed in a train crash en route to the New Jersey Shore around 1893. He was very young when his parents died and he never really knew if his name was his real name from birth, an adoptive name, or one his circus family gave him. As a small child, he ran away from his adoptive family and joined Barnum & Bailey Circus as a water boy, possibly in or around Buffalo, NY. As he grew up in the circus, he learned to perform various circus acts, including trapeze artist (catcher), tightrope walker, sword swallower, fire eater and juggler. At a later time (early 1900's) Smith worked as a cowboy roping cattle in the western US in the off-season (perhaps when Barnum & Bailey returned to the US in 1902 and headed west in 1905?). Smith spoke an American Indian dialect fluently, possibly learned from his friend, a Chief of the Lakota or Nakota Sioux. He was also self-taught on 6 different musical instruments. Upon leaving Barnum & Bailey Circus, Smith worked briefly with a partner in Vaudeville. By 1918 he was no longer in show business. On June 19, 1918, Smith married Sarah Alice Noble and they resided in Harlem, NY, then Yonkers, NY with their daughter Alice, who was born in 1924 and died in 1988. Smith used to juggle milk bottles in the kitchen, and he taught his daughter Alice to walk a tightrope when she was a child. His daughter Alice Elizabeth Smith McCullough said he was very strong with dark features. Although he had been a strong man, Smith died of tuberculosis on September 22, 1946 at the age of 56 in Yonkers NY. He is buried in Ferncliff Cemetery and Mausoleum in Hartsdale, New York, Plot: St. Peter section, grave 224. Seeking photos, dates, and more information. |
| Otto Stiefel |
Born Oct. 1886 Performed 1908 Died 1921
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Edon, OH (USA) |
Otto Stiefel was born in October 1886 in Edon, OH to Albert Stiefel and Emma Huber Stiefel. Otto Stiefel was featured as a sword swallower and blade walker in the Feb 29, 1908 New York Police Gazette. Otto Stiefel died in 1921 in Edon, Ohio, and is buried in Edon Florence Township Cemetery in Edon, Ohio. Seeking photos, dates, and more information. Otto Stiefel grave |
| Johan Nestor Laaksonen |
Born 1876 Performed pre-1906 Moved to USA in 1906 Died 1926
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Turka [Finland] Quincy, MA Virginia, MN Brimson, MN (USA) |
Johan Nestor Laaksonen was born in Turka Finland in 1876, and was a member of the Temperance Society there in his late youth. Johan's parents' had a farm in Rusko, Finland which provided only a low income. Johan had worked for awhile in the circus as a contortionist, sword swallower, tumbler, tight-rope artist, acrobat, and clown. Johan was also an actor, and he and his friend Rosa Lumme were typically cast in leading roles together, which led to them falling in love. Rosa was born in Finland about 1874. From her late youth, Rosa was also a member of the Temperance Society in Turka, Finland. Rosa was an actress, sang and eventually became director of the plays. Rosa also talked her father into joining the Temperance Society, which helped him overcome drinking alcohol. Rosa and Johan were married and Johan took over the director role once Rosa started having children. About 1906, Johan worked as a baker and borrowed money from fellow baker Gronlund to go to America. Gronlund came to America shortly after. Once in America in Fitchburg, Massachusetts, Johan worked as a baker and directed plays at the Finnish Saima Hall. He managed to save enough to bring his family over within a year. In December 1907, Rosa and children started out for America from Turka, Finland. The children were ages: Urho 9, Ilmari 7, Irja 4 1/2, and Ilma 2. They took a train to Hanko to board a ship to Hull, England. At Hull, England they took a train to Liverpool to board the ship White Star Liner, Arabic. They arrived in America January 1908 and spent several days at Ellis Island. Johan then developed health problems working as a baker and had to quit baking. So Johan worked away from his family at the Finnish Cooperative Store while also directing some plays at the Finn Hall in Quincy, MA. The Finn Hall in Quincy then offered Johan a full-time directing job, so the family moved there. Rosa's brother Mauno was living in Virginia Minnesota and felt Minnesota was so much like Finland. Mauno convinced Rosa and Johan to move there. In spring 1912, Mauno sent a letter to Johan letting him know about opportunities in Virginia: business for sale and Virginia's Finnish Group needing a play director. Johan and his family moved to Virginia, MN in spring 1912 where they lived for about one year. Then on May 12, 1913. Johan, Rosa and family moved to a farm they bought in Brimson, MN, closer to the North Shore of Lake Superior. Johan Nestor Laaksonen died in 1926, and is buried in Brimson Cemetery in St. Louis County, Minnesota, USA. (For more extensive information on Johan and Rosa's life, read the book "Echos From the Past" by Irja Beckman) Seeking photos, dates, and more information. |
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William Meltons "Schwertkünstler" |
Performed 1910 | (Germany) |
William Meltons performed in Germany as a "Schwertkünstler" ("Sword Artist") around 1910. Seeking photos and more information. |
| Lawrence Bowden | Performed December 1913 |
LaSalle, IL Kenosha, WI (USA) |
Sword Swallower Lawrence Bowden of LaSalle, IL made it on the front page of the Kenosha Evening News on Dec. 29, 1913. Accordint to the article, on Saturday evening, Dec. 27, 1913, Bowden dropped into a downtown saloon and began entertaining his fellow imbibers by swallowing pieces of metal found in the establishment. They were in awe, and Bowden decided to pass the hat so his new friends could show their proper appreciation. It was about this time that a police officer walked in and decided to haul Bowden in for vagrancy and for not having a license for his free show. Bowden was well dressed and had money in his pocket for the fine, but he declared that swallowing a sword was not a crime. The night sergeant at the desk convinced him to sleep it off in lockup, and, because Bowden was a little tired, he complied. On Sunday morning, Police Chief Owen O'Hare came to the station and saw there was an inmate booked on a charge of "sword swallowing." He immediately had Matt Zievers, the desk sergeant, send Bowden up from his cell. The newspaper reported what happened next: "Well, get busy and let's see you swallow some swords," the chief yelled, and without a sign of hesitation Bowden gulped down an old-fashioned broad sword and followed it with an army bayonet. The police were mystified, but Bowden declared that he had only begun. He continued to crowd away in his esophagus any number of things metallic, and finally he made the proposition to the chief that he would swallow eight swords at once, if liberty was guaranteed to him. "Get right to swallowing!" was the only reply of the chief, and Bowden picked up eight swords, and laying them blade for blade, he put them away in his gullet. "I guess there is no doubt but that you''re a real sword swallower,' declared the chief, and he got up and gave Bowden the hearty hand clasp of a brother and sent him on his way rejoicing." Seeking photos and more information. |
| Max Schlepsig |
Performed 1913 |
(Germany) (Albania) |
In 1913, at the time when Albania was looking for a king and hoped that prince Halim Eddine (Halim Etti), nephew of the sultan of Constantinople, would agree to ascend the throne, a 42 year old German, Otto Witte, circus clown and magician by profession who happened to resemble the prince, arranged to have a telegram sent from Constantinople to the head of the Albanian army announcing the arrival of the prince by boat. Witte and his accomplice, Max Schlepsig, a sword swallower promoted to "aide-de-camp" in the interest of the cause, disembarked at Durazzo (Durrës) dressed up in theatre uniforms, and inspected the Albanian guard who presented arms to them. A few days later, after establishing a harem of 25 women, the versatile circus performer and usurper Witte succeeded to be crowned King Otto the First of Albania on August 13th, 1913. The hoax lasted five days. The truth came out when Halim Eddine sent a telegram from Constantinople in which he said he was astonished to be crowned king of Albania without even being aware of it. With the assistance of the young women of the harem, Otto Witte and Max Schlepsig managed to flee from the palace just in time to escape on a fishing boat to Bari. Witte died in Hamburg, Germany exactly 45 years later on August 13th, 1958. Seeking photos and more information.. |
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Anatomisches Wunder Anatomical Wonder |
Performed circa 1916? |
Circus Shumann Berliner Theater Berlin (Germany) |
The Anatomisches Wunder (the Anatomical Wonder) was a German soldier and Schwertschlucker (sword swallower) who served in the German military in Kaiser Alexander Garde-Grenadier-Regiment Nr. 1. The Anatomisches Wunder performed for 15 days in the Berliner Theater, and for one month with Circus Schumann, and was photographed and x-rayed while swallowing a sword in uniform. According to the photo: "A talented member of Kaiser Alexander's Garde-Grenadier-Regiment Nr.1 demonstrates his talent for sword swallowing by downing a Hirschfänger, a long double-edged hunting knife used to kill deer and boar." Kaiser Alexander Garde-Grenadier-Regiment Nr. 1, (briefly Alexander-Regiment or Alexandriner) was an infantry regiment of the Guard Corps within the Royal Prussian Army and a Guards Grenadiers regiment of the Imperial German Army. After World War I, the regiment was demobilized on 27 November 1918). Could this have been Captain Heinrich von Bablitz or Paul Widowski? Seeking photos and more information.
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Capt. Heinrich von Bablitz "Dare Devil Sensationest" |
Performed ? |
(Germany) |
Sword swallower Capt. Heinrich von Bablitz was known as the "Daredevil Sensationest". Seeking photos and more information. |
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P. Widowski Paul Widowski Paul Widowsky "World Champion Sword Swallower" |
Performed 1890s-1930? |
Kaiser-Friedrich-Straße 68 IV Berlin (Germany) |
Paul Widowski or Paul Widowsky was known as "World Champion Sword Swallower" of his time (also labeled "Schwertschlucker" or "Sword Swallower" in German). Widowski was listed in 1930 in a Berlin address book as "Paul Widowski, Artist, Pankow, Kaiser-Friedrich-Straße 68 IV, Berlin". Paul Widowski was also listed as an artist in a 1943 address book as an Artist living at Kaiserstraße 145 in Mariends in Berlin. Could Paul Widowski have been the Anatomisches Wunder? Seeking photos and more information..
Paul Widowski Berlin Address (1943) |
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Borovik B. Ivanoff B. Ivanhoff Cossack Sword Dancer Kazakh Sword Dancer "World Champion Sword Dancer" |
Performed 191?s-30s |
Russian Royal Circus [Russia] Russian Tea Room New York, NY [USA] |
Seeking information on Borovik, who performed as a sword swallower with the Russian Royal Circus and apparently left Russia at the fall of the Czar in 1917. It is not known for sure if he moved to or performed in the US. However, there was also a Russian Sword Swallower named B. Ivanoff or B. Ivanhoff, who was known as a "World Champion Sword Dancer" with a troop of Russian "Cossacks" or Kazakhs known for their demonstration of horsemenship and dancing, who performed at the Russian Tea Room in NY in the 1920s. Could this have been the same person? Or was this the "Flaming Dagger Dancer" Dimitry Matvienko who performed at the Casino Russe, 157 W. 56th St., located in the Carnegie Hall Building in New York City? Seeking photos and more information. Russian Cossack B. Ivanhoff (1926) Russian Cossack B. Ivanoff Flaming Dagger Dancer Dimitry Matvienko |
| Alexander Joseph Dourof |
Born 1881 Performed 1917?-40s? Died Jan 12, 1949 |
Russian Royal Circus (Russia) (Wales) London (UK) |
Alexander Joseph Dourof was born in St. Petersburg, Russia in 1881 into the well-known Dourof Circus family. The Dourofs were initially animal trainers, and Alexander Dourof was allegedly one of the first trainers to train a bear without breaking its back. "The Dourof Family" performed as part of a non-staterun circus in Russia, and in the Russian Royal Circus until the Russian Revolution in 1917 when they escaped as refugees to the UK, settling for a short period in Wales. Their first performance in the UK was with a circus in Barmouth, Wales, and after a short time (the circus came to an end in Wales around 1925), the family later moved to England. Alexander was married to Sophia Elsa Dourof, who was born in Russia in 1888 and died in the UK in 1967. They had ten children who were born in various countries, with the eldest five becoming UK nationalized citizens, including a daughter named Sarah, and a son named Harry Phillip Dourof who was born in the UK and died in 1986. When they first landed in the UK, both Alexander and Sophia entertained British troops, as she was a tight rope walker and the eldest two children were performing acrobats in the ring. After immigrating to the UK, Dourof was required to join the military and was recruited into the Light Cavalry, where as an animal trainer, he handled horses with great skill, and as a sword swallower, he was a master with the saber. The Dourof family traveled together as a family circus and eventually settled down in Peckham England, where they were well-known and well-liked. There was a book written in Russian about Alexander Dourof and his family, but it is out of print and unavailable in English; There is also a plaque commemorating Dourof the sword swallower's assistance in the development of the stomach pump at the renowned Guys Hospital near London Bridge. The original 1943 film "The Man in Grey" (starring James Mason), featured Alexander Dourof in the background swallowing a sword during a carnival scene, although the original film was ruined, and the later version released on video does not include Dourof's scene. Dourof died in England at the age of 68 on January 12, 1949. Alexander Dourof and his wife Sophia are buried in Camberwell Old Cemetery in Honor Oak Park in southeast London. On his headstone, Dourof is hailed as being "A Great Showman and the Last of the Sword Swallowers". Seeking photos, dates, and more information Alexander Dourof - headstone Alexander Dourof - face Sophia Dourof - headstone Sophia Dourof - face |
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Miller Brothers 101 Wild West Show Miller Bros 101 Wild West Show Miller Brothers 101 Wild West Ranch |
Began 1905 Toured US 1907-1916 Toured Europe 1908 |
Miller Brothers 101 Wild West Show Miller Brothers 101 Wild West Ranch Ponca, OK (USA) |
The Miller Brothers 101 Ranch was founded in 1893 by Confederate Army veteran Colonel George Washington Miller on a 110,000-acre cattle ranch located near modern-day Ponca City in the Indian Territory of Oklahoma. The largest diversified farm and ranch in America at the time, the Miller Brothers 101 Ranch was one of the main focal points of the oil rush in northeastern Oklahoma, and the birthplace of the 101 Ranch Wild West Show.
After Colonel George Miller died in 1903, his three sons, Joseph, George Jr., and Zack Miller took over operation of the 110,000 acre ranch. The Millers' neighbor Major Gordon W. Lillie, who performed as Pawnee Bill, motivated the Millers to produce a Wild West Show of their own. In 1905, the Miller brothers put on an exhibition which they called "Oklahoma's Gala Day" to demonstrate the western skills and horsemanship of their ranch hands and the local American Indian tribes. The "National Editorial Association" attended the event, and as a result, the show received much publicity across the nation. The Miller Brothers decided to make the transition from local shows to touring on the national scene. Based on the recent success of Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show, and after the success of their initial exhibition, the Miller brothers decided to take their show on the road as a traveling wild west show. In 1907, Miller Brothers 101 Ranch Wild West Show performed at the Jamestown Exposition in Virginia. Later in 1907, the Miller Brothers 101 Wild West Show began their tour in Brighton Beach, New York. Joe Miller, the eldest son, was an exceptional equestrian and star performer. During their first year on the circuit, the show had more problems than most in a business that was harsh even in the best of times. During their first year on the circuit, the show suffered a serious railroad accident, and later several members of their cast contracted typhoid fever. In 1908, after Buffalo Bill and Pawnee Bill combined their shows into an extravaganza that broke records at Madison Square Gardens in New York City, the Miller Brothers decided to follow Buffalo Bill's lead and take their wild west show abroad to Europe, a decision they would later regret due to unfortunate timing. In 1908, with tensions running high in Europe just before World War I, the Miller Brothers 101 Ranch Wild West Show landed in Europe. When the Miller Brothers 101 Wild West Show toured Germany, authorities arrested some of their Oglala Sioux performers on suspicion of being Serbian spies, and they were never seen again. Zack Miller managed to get the rest of his cast out of Germany via Norway, and then to England. In England, the British military confiscated most of the 101's horses, stagecoaches, and automobiles in preparation for the upcoming war, as tensions were building up to the pending World War. Once in London, Miller had difficulty finding a steamship that would sell his people passage. Finally, he obtained passage for his cast on an American ship. Once the cast returned to Oklahoma, the eldest brother Joe Miller refused to pay the Indian cast overtime. As a result, the entire Indian cast quit the show. After World War I began, the show took a hiatus from 1916 until 1925. By 1916, the two younger Miller brothers, George Jr. and Zack, gave up trying to work with their volatile older brother, Joe. George and Zack worked at the ranch, while Joe schemed to make the Wild West Show a financial success. In 1916, Joe Miller hired an out-of-work, ill and aging Buffalo Bill Cody to star in a World War I recruitment show called the "Pageant of Preparedness." Soon Cody quit the show; he died within a year. Still unwilling to let the show close, Joe Miller continued to operate on a smaller scale. When the 101 Ranch Wild West Show returned to the road in 1926, they ran in to grave financial difficulties, losing over $100,000 in 1926 alone. As the Great Depression began, the show went deeper into debt. In 1927, Joe Miller was unsuccessful in his attempts to sell his show to the American Circus Corporation. On October 21, 1927, Joe Miller died and on February 2 1929, George Miller died, leaving brother Zack to cope with the financial losses. The situation became overwhelming, and in 1931 both the Miller Brothers 101 Wild West Show and the Miller Brothers 101 Wild West Ranch went into receivership. By 1932, most of the land on the 101 Ranch was owned by the Miller family, with other land leased from the Ponca, Pawnee, and Otoe Indians in Kay, Noble, Osage and Pawnee Counties of Oklahoma. Zack Miller tried to carry on alone, but in 1932, during the Great Depression, he filed for bankruptcy. The US government seized the show's remaining assets and bought 8,000 acres of the 101 Ranch. Most of the equipment and property were sold at auction in 1932. Completely broke, the 101 Ranch Show closed after the New York World's Fair in 1939. The 101 Ranch remained in the Miller family for almost 60 years. In 1952, Zack Miller died of cancer, and the ranch was subdivided and all of its buildings destroyed. In 2003, the ranch was inducted into the Texas Trail of Fame. Reknowned cowboy Bill Pickett's grave and the White Eagle Monument are located on the ranch grounds. An 82-acre area of the ranch is a National Historic Landmark. Over the course of the show's history, the cast included Bill Pickett, Lillian Smith, Bessie Herberg, Bee Ho Gray, Tom Mix, Jack Hoxie, Mexican Joe, Ross Hettan, and an elderly Buffalo Bill. Sword swallowers with the Miller Brothers 101 Wild West Ranch included Delno Fritz and Maude D'Auldin (1908), Sir Albert (1925), Milo Milse (1929), and Marie DeVere in early years unknown. Seeking photos and more information on sword swallowers with Miller Brothers 101 Wild West Show.
Miller Brothers 101 Wild West Show Timeline/Sword Swallowers:
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Ringling Brothers, Barnum & Bailey Circus RBB&B "Big Bertha" |
Purchased 1907 Combined Show 1918 Moved 1927 |
Baraboo WI Sarasota FL (USA) |
In 1918, Ringling Brothers Circus and Barnum and Bailey Circus combine to become one combined show, Ringling Brothers, Barnum & Bailey Circus (RBB&B).
Following the death of James Bailey in 1906, the Ringling brothers purchased the Barnum & Bailey Circus for $400,000 in 1907 but continued to operate the two circuses separately. By the second decade of the 20th century, the Ringling brothers' circus itself had swelled to employ more than 1,000 people who traveled with 16 camels, 26 elephants, and 335 horses on 92 railroad cars. In 1919, responding to labour shortages and complications with rail travel brought about by World War I, the Ringlings combined their two circuses into one, which they called Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Combined Shows. The consolidated circus employed more than 1,100 people, 735 horses, and almost 1,000 other animals, and traveled in 90-100 double-length train cars. On March 29, 1919, the combined "Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Combined Shows" debuted in New York City. The posters declared, "The Ringling Bros. World's Greatest Shows and the Barnum & Bailey Greatest Show on Earth are now combined into one record-breaking giant of all exhibitions." In the 1920s the circus thrived under the direction of the last living Ringling brother, John Nicholas Ringling, who moved the winter home from Baraboo Wisconsin to Sarasota Florida in 1927. In 1929 John Ringling purchased the American Circus Corporation for $1.7 million, thereby absorbing five major shows: Sells-Floto Circus, Al G. Barnes Circus, Sparks Circus, Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus, and John Robinson Circus. During the Great Depression, the combined circus suffered financially, and by 1932 it had come under the control of its creditors. Following John Ringling's death in 1936, an internal struggle for control among the surviving family members ended when John Ringling North, the son of the only Ringling sister, Ida, came up with the funds necessary to buy back the circus. North sought to modernize the circus and borrowed from the aesthetics of Broadway and motion pictures. In 1938 North introduced Gargantua the Great into the circus's lineup and employed an audacious advertising campaign to transform the 460-pound (210-kg) lowland gorilla into the most famous circus animal of the 20th century, rescuing Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey from looming bankruptcy in the process. On July 6, 1944, the infamous Hartford Circus Fire occured while RBB&B was performing in Hartford, CT. In 1951, Lady Patricia Zerm was filmed as the sword swallower with the 1951 edition of the Ringling Brothers B&B Circus in Cecil B. DeMille's film "The Greatest Show on Earth" which was filmed on location with Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Circus in 1951 and released in 1952. By the mid-1950s, competition from other forms of entertainment, high labor costs, and a lack of usable open spaces to stage such a large circus led Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey to cease operations after giving what was thought to be its last performance on July 16, 1956, in Pittsburgh. On July 16, 1956, RBB&B gave its last performance under canvas and ended what was thought to be its last season. In 1957, however, the circus resumed operations after North entered into an agreement with concert promoter Irvin Feld, under which the circus continued performing - not under the big-top tent but in indoor facilities which Feld contracted. Without the need to put up and take down the tent, the circus was able to reduce costs and cut its workforce from 1,400 to 300 employees (including 80 performers). In the spring of 1957, RBB&B begins performing in auditoriums. In the fall of 1967, Irving Feld and his brother Israel Feld buy the RBB&B circus from the North and Ringling family interests for $8-$10 million, formally taking possession in a ceremony that was held in the Colosseum in Rome on November 11, 1967. In 1968, Irving Feld buys the German Circus Williams specifically to add its famous animal trainer Gunther Gebel-Williams to the Ringling roster. In 1968, RBB&B eliminates the sideshow and menagerie when RBB&B Circus moves into the new Madison Square Gardens above Penn Station. In 1968, Irvin Feld establishes "Ringling Brothers Clown College." In 1969, Ringling Brothers adds a second traveling unit, called the Blue Unit. In 1971 Mattel, Inc. buys the circus from Feld for $40 million, although members of the Feld family continue to manage it. In 1982 the Felds buy back the circus, which in 1984 becomes part of Feld Entertainment, headed by Irvin Feld's son, Kenneth Feld. In the decades to come, Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey would continue to be managed and produced by members of the Feld family. In the 1990s it entertained audiences of 11 million attendees each year. In 2016, Ringling Brothers ceases using elephants in its shows. In 2017, Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Circus closes after 146 years with its final performance on May 21, 2017 at the Nassau Coliseum. Sword swallowers with Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Circus include Annie Roy, Charles Griffin, Capt. Fritz Lecardo, Edward Smith, Edith Clifford, Mighty Ajax, Delno Fritz, Edna Price, Joseph Grendol, Mimi Garneau, Lowell "Curly" Frisbie, Edward Willis, Alex Linton, Lady Patricia Zerm, Lady Beth Bancroft, Ricky Richiardi, Lee Bradley, Estelline Pike, Jim Lucky Ball II, Francis Doran, and Lady Sandra Reed
Ringling Brothers Circus Timeline, Routes, Sword Swallowers: |
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Maude D'Lean Mlle de Aldine Maud D'Aulin Maud D'Auldin Maud D.Auldin Maud DeAuldin Maud D'Aulden Maude D'Auldin Mrs. Delno Fritz Mrs. Francis Fritz |
Born c. 1878 Married 1899 Performed 1899-1920 Died 1920
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Barnum & Bailey Circus Greater Norris & Rowe Circus Miller Bros 101 Wild West Ranch Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus Al G. Barnes Circus Brook's Museum John Robinson Circus Side Show Dreamland Theatre World's Museum Phila (USA) |
Maud D'Auldin (sometimes spelled Maud D'Aulin, Maud D'Auldin, Maude D'Auldin, Maud D.Auldin, Maud DeAuldin, Mlle de Aldine, Maud DeAulden, Maud D'Aulden, Maude D'Lean or Mrs. Maude Fritz) was born around 1878 in Paisley Scotland.
In 1897, sword swallower Delno Fritz met Maud D'Auldin in Scotland while touring the UK with Barnum & Bailey Circus. In 1899, Delno Fritz married Maud D'Auldin in Paisley, Scotland probably between September 25-29, 1899 while Barnum & Bailey Circus was performing earby in Glasgow Scotland. The Fritz family lived in the UK another 8 years where Fritz bought and operated a few theatres, before they moved to Ashley Pennsylvania in June 1907. In 1912, the couple performed an act known as "Sword and Gun Manipulation" with the Hagenbeck Wallace Sideshow. In 1915, Delno Fritz and Maud D'Auldin were booked as sword swallowers on the Al G. Barnes Circus.
In 1916, Maude D.Auldin and Delno Fritz were featured as sword swallowers on the John Robinson Circus Side Show, while their 17-year-old niece Edna worked as the "floating lady", according to the 1916 John Robinson Shows program. An article in the Los Angeles Times dated Feb 1, 1916 states, "Mrs. Francis Fritz (38 years of age) who makes her living by shoving swords down her throat at Brook's Museum, No. 116 South Main street, early last night swallowed one sword too many and landed in the Receiving Hospital. The sword swallower declared last night that for over twenty years she had been entertaining people by swallowing swords and knives and never before injured herself. But last night, after she had swallowed and then pulled a long sword from her throat, Mrs. Fritz discovered that she had been injured, and was taken to the Receiving Hospital and later to the County Hospital, and according to doctors, she is in a serious condition." Maud died in 1920 at the age of 42 after she and Delno Fritz gave a command performance onboard a ship before the King and Queen of England. It was her practice to pass out her sword to the crowd for examination so they could see that it was real. Apparently someone in the crowd nicked the blade which resulted in an injury that led to her death. Their niece Edna Price took up sword swallowing in 1920 and continued the act with "Uncle Delno" beyond his death in 1925. Seeking photos and more information.
Maud D'Lean D'Auldin D.Auldin DeAuldin Timeline
John Robinson Shows program (1916) |
| Cuban Mack | Performed 1924 |
Sells Floto Circus (USA) |
Cuban Mack was the sword swallower and knife thrower with the Sells Floto Circus on June 8, 1924 in Pittsfield, Massachusetts. Seeking photos, dates and more information. |
| Herschel Allen |
Performed 1920s |
Pennsylvania (USA) |
Herschel Allen was a sword swallower with a circus in Pennsylvania in the 1920s. Seeking photos and more information. |
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William Moody The Sword Swallower |
Born c. 1905 Injured 1928 Died Jan 2, 1928 Buried Jan 13, 1928
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Kansas City, MO (USA) |
According to an article dated January 2, 1928 in the Miami OK Daily News Record, "Kansas City: William Moody, 23 years old, a professional sword swallower, died today in a hospital where he was taken Friday after injuring himself with a butcher knife while demonstrating his ability in a restaurant. Influenza developed, and it was believed this caused his death."
According to information listed on his grave site: "Unknown date of birth, "guess" of age on death certificate is 35 yrs. White male. His last residence is given as 505 Delaware. There is a "loft" currently listed for #505, 509 Delaware St., Kansas City, MO. Possibly same. Died of "Bilateral Lobar Pneumonia". Place of death is listed as Jackson County, Kansas City General Hospital, Kansas City. Occupation is listed as: "Showman". No next of kin listed. Burial Maple Hill Cemetery on 13 Jan 1928. Undertaker: Eylar Funeral Home, 1800 Linwood." Seeking photos and more information. |
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Anastasia Humeniuk Anastasia Lewchuk |
Performed 1920-1968? Died January 2005 |
N.P. Lewchuk Sideshow Saskatchewan (Canada) |
Anastasia Humeniuk married sideshow operator Nicholas Paul Lewchuk in 1916 and learned to swallow 7 swords. Their N.P. Lewchuk Sideshow Midway was Canada's largest travelling sideshow and performed around Canada from 1920 to 1968. Anastasia died in January 2005 in Canora, Saskatchewan. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Sankala Bruno E. Sankala |
Born 1889? Performed 1920s-30s Died after 1959 |
Kemi (Finland) |
Bruno E. Sankala was born around 1889 and performed as a magician and fakir around 1920-30's. Finnish sword swallower Timo Tuomivaara met Sankala in Kemi's retirment home in 1959. Sankala was approximately 70 years old in 1959. |
| Joseph Francis Rupply |
Born 29 Jan 1889 Performed ?? Died Feb 1967 |
Brooklyn, Kings, NY (USA) |
Joseph Francis Rupply was born on January 29, 1889 to Fritz Rupply in Kings, NY. Both his father Fritz Rupply and mother were born in Switzerland.
His first son Joseph C. Rupply was born on January 20, 1910, in New York, and died in July 1966. Between 1917-1920 Rupply lived in Brooklyn, Kings, New York. According to the 1920 Census, 30-year-old Joseph Rupply worked as a pipe fitter, and his wife Jessie Rupply (28) lived with him and their son Joseph Rupply Jr. in Brooklyn NY. On April 4, 1923, their second son Frederick Michael Rupply was born in Brooklyn Kings NY. According to census reports in 1925, 1930, 1935 and 1940, Rupply lived in Brooklyn Kings NY. According to the 1940 Census, 51-year-old Joseph Rupply worked as a machinist, and his wife Jessie Rupply (50) lived with him in Brooklyn NY. At one point he worked as a sword swallower with a circus. At another time, he owned a tavern in Goshen NY. Joseph Francis Rupply died in February 1967 in Hicksville, New York, at the age of 78. |
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Curly Brown Curley Brown The Sword Swallower |
Born c. 1892 Performed 1922-28 Died April 2, 1943
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E.E. Bonham Circus Prairie du Sac, WI (USA) |
Curly Brown was the sword swallower and fire-eater for the E.E. Bonham Circus from 1922-1928. According to his obituary in the April 13, 1943 Chicago Daily Tribune entitled "Circus Pals To Bury Curly in Own Valhalla": "Curly Brown the Sword Swallower, is to get a burial today with the great and near-great of the circus and carnival world instead of an unmarked Potter's field grave to which his remains were apparently destined before some of his pals learned of his death. By action voted yesterday by directors of the Showman's League, Curly will be interned in Showman's Rest, a huge plot in Woodlawn Cemetery maintained by the league as sort of a Valhalla for distinguished members of the outdoor showman's profession. It is a 600 grave plot whose boundaries are marked by four huge granite elephants and 300 veterans of the sawdust rings and flying trapeezes of the outdoor circuits already are buried there.
Curly died of pneumonia 10 days ago in a South State street hotel and his body was taken to the county morgue. Curly, 51, was alone in the world and there were no claimants to the body. Preparations for a Potter's grave burial were taking their routine course when members of the league heard of his death. Pall bearers will be clowns, performers, press agents, and bill posters who remember Curly as one of the best sword swallowers of them all." Curly Brown was buried in Woodlawn Cemetery, Forest Park, IL. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Captain Peterson Capt. Albert Peterson King of All Sword Swallowers |
Performed Dec 1936 |
World's Fair Museum Ogden, UT (USA) |
Capt. Albert Peterson was featured as the "King of all Sword Swallowers" with The Great Lorenzo, the "mental marvel of Radio fame" and 17 other freaks for two weeks in December 1936 at the World's Fair Museum at 2464 Washington in Ogden, Utah. According to the February 18, 1939 Billboard Magazine, Captain Peterson was sword swallower for at least five weeks with the Kortes' Museum at the Kortes' World Fair in Minneapolis, MN in January-February, 1939. Seeking photos and more information. |
| Charles Anderson |
Performed 1930s-1940s Died 1988 |
Tom Mix Mighty Haag Shows Texas Jack's Wild West Show Scranton Shrine Circus Carbondale, PA (USA) |
Charles Anderson was a side show performer and concessionaire. He toured in the 1930s-40s as a sword swallower and bally performer with Tom Mix, Mighty Haag Shows (1930-1938?), Texas Jack's Wild West Show (1901-1905), and the Scranton PA Shrine Circus. Charles Anderson died in 1988 at Carbondale, Pennsylvania, according to Circus Report, June 27, 1988, p. 3. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Gene Hemingway Gene Hemmingway Eugene Hemingway Eugene B. Hemmingway |
Born Dec. 28, 1896 Performed 1930s-1949 Died June 8, 1949
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Los Angeles, CA (USA) |
Eugene B. Hemmingway was born in South Carolina around 1893, and both of his parents were born in South Carolina. According to the 1930 US Census, Eugene Hemmingway was a veteran of World War I living in Los Angeles, CA, and working in "show business" as a sword swallower at the age of 37. In 1954 Gene Hemingway was featured in the Billboard Magazine 1954 Who's Who of the Circus as performing up to 1949.
Eugene Hemmingway died on June 8, 1949, and was buried at Los Angeles National Cemetery in Los Angeles, CA. Seeking photos and more information. |
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William Miller Sonny Miller William "Sonny" Miller Sonny the Sword Swallower |
Performed 1923-33 |
Miller Circus Miller Bros Circus Miller Brothers Circus Miller Bros. Wild Animal Shows Alabama? (USA) |
William "Sonny" Miller was a sword swallower and founder of the Miller Bros. Circus along with his brothers Earl Miller and Claude Miller. His wife Rose Miller was the snake handler and gypsy palm reader and fortune teller who went by the stage name "Madame Minge". or "Madame Menge". She also was the half snake/half woman attraction. Sonny Miller and his brother were horse traders in the south. On May 11, 1923, the Miller Bros. Wild Animal Shows played at DeQuoin, Illinois. On May 26, 1933, The Miller Bros. Shows played in Stockton, Missouri. At some point after the circus closed, an alligator from the circus was given to the Prichard Alabama Zoo, and he became quite old and a big attraction at the zoo. Seeking photos and more information. |
| Peter Kortos | Performed 1925 | (USA) | In 1925, Peter Kortos was featured as the sword swallower in the Tod Browning film "The Unholy Three". (1925, MGM 76mins. 7 reels. BW. silent with tinted sequences, US). Seeking photos and more information. |
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Professor Wishart "Sword Swallower Extraordinaire" |
Born c 1845 Performed 1926-1929? |
Adelaide (Australia) |
"Professor Wishart" was born around 1845 and performed sword swallowing in Adelaide Australia in 1926 at the age of 84 under the billboard "Professor Wishart, Sword Swallower Extraordinary, Entertainer to the Royalty and Crowned Heads of Europe and the East". In 1929, Professor Wishart was described as a thin old man with long gray whiskers who "dressed flashily, with glitter trousers, a red cummerbund and a green velvet jacket". He finished his act by swallowing a large tent peg. Wishart is mentioned in the book The Boy From Buninyong - The Life of an Australian Showman by Angela Badger. Seeking photos and more information. |
| Birkenshaw | Performed 1926-1929? |
Adelaide (Australia) |
Birkenshaw was an English escapologist and sword swallower who worked in Adelaide, Australia around 1926-29. He would escape from padlocked trunks and then swallow up to 5 swords at once. He taught Owen Lloyd how to swallow swords around 1926-27. Birkenshaw is mentioned in the book The Boy From Buninyong - The Life of an Australian Showman by Angela Badger. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Owen Rutherford Lloyd "The Boy From Buninyong" |
Born 1907 Performed 1926-79 Died 1980s |
Buninyong (Australia) |
Owen Rutherford Lloyd was born in Buninyong, Australia in 1907. In the mid 1920s Lloyd turned to busking for his livelihood. He worked first as a fiddler with Dr. Richard Rowe and Mystic Mora, where he learned the skills of street busking. Then around 1926 at around the age of 19, he moved to Adalaide where over the course of a month he learned sword swallowing from the English escapologist and sword swallower "Birkenshaw". Lloyd learned how to swallow up to three swords at once, and eventually added swallowing a lit "narrow electric lightbulb" to his act. Lloyd and Birkenshaw performed together in Adelaide from around 1926 to 1929. During the course of his life Lloyd also learned fire-eating, illusions, animal training, and virtually every other act associated with show life. In the 1940s Lloyd toured with a circus to Durban, South Africa, and after returning, travelled to New Zealand, where he performed under the stage name "The Baron" and was both celebrated as a healer and condemned as a devil worshipper. Lloyd spent the last years of his life in Sydney, Australia busking by the El Alamein Fountain in Kings Cross. In 1979 he won the ABC "Best of the Buskers" competition, and in the early 1980s retired to Papakura, Auckland, New Zealand to spend his last few years living happily with his children. He later moved to Gisborne where he lived with his daughter Elizabeth until his death. He is buried in the Taraheru Cemetary in Gisborne, New Zealand. In 1993 a book was written about his life called The Boy From Buninyong - The Life of an Australian Showman by Angela Badger. It is known that he is survived Kupu Lloyd, and a granddaughter Patricia Lloyd. Seeking photos and more information. |
| Unknown | Performed 1927 |
Christy Brothers Minstrel Show (USA) |
The Christy Brothers Minstrel Show roster included a sword swallower in 1927. Could this have been Delno Fritz? Seeking photos and more information. |
| Balmung | Performed 1928 |
Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey (USA) |
Balmung performed as a sword swallower with Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Circus in 1928. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Little Prince John H. Smith |
Born c. 1915-1918 Performed late 1920s? |
Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey (USA) |
The Little Prince performed as a snake charmer and sword swallower with Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Circus in the late 1920s or early 1930s. His real name was John H. Smith, he was African-American, he was a snake charmer and sword swallower, and he performed with Ringling Brothers Circus when he was 12 years old, approximately in the late 1920s, and with other shows after that. He also performed with a monkey named Bobo. Seeking photos and more information. |
| Ludvig Larsson |
Born 1894 Performed ? Died 1980 |
(Sweden) | Ludvig Larsson was a Swedish sword swallower born in 1894 and died in 1980. Seeking photos and more information. |
| Olga Boyd | Performed 1920s | (USA) |
Olga Boyd was a female sword swallower in the 1920's. Seeking photos, dates and more information. |
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Nelson the Sword Swallower Professor Nelson the Sword Swallower J.P. Nelson ? |
Performed 1921 Performed 1924 Performed 1927 Performed 1942-43 |
Santos & Artigas Circus Walter L. Main Circus Sparks Circus Sideshow World's Fair Museum (USA/Canada) |
According to the November 5, 1921 Billboard: "The Santos & Artigas Circus opened at the Payret Theater, Havana, Cuba, October 7, to capacity business," and the sword swallower featured was Prof. Nelson, sword swallower.
According to the Walter L. Main Circus Official Route Season 1924, the sword swallower is simply listed as Nelson.
Nelson was also listed as the sword swallower on the Sparks Circus sideshow during the 1927 season. Could this be J.P. Nelson the sword swallower? According to the Feb 13, 1943 Billboard Magazine, Professor Nelson was the featured sword swallower on the line-up with the 1943 World's Fair Museum in Jacksonville, FL. The World's Fair Museum show ran for 8 weeks (early December 1942 to February 6, 1943), and was booked to continue its run until March 15, 1943. Seeking photos and more information.
Nelson the Sword Swallower Timeline |
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Jack Lilja (Johann Lilja) |
Performed 1920s-30s | (Australia) |
Johann Lilija was a colorful character who came to Australia from his native Sweden in the early 1900's (around 1916?), where he became known as Jack Lilja. He became known as an accomplished circus performer and entertainer, sword swallower, knife thrower and part time tattooist, and performed into the 1930s. Seeking photos and more information. Johan Lilja Johan Lilja |
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Capt. Fritz The Great LaCardo Capt. Fritz Lecardo Capt. Fritz Lacardo Fritz Le Cardo Fritz LeCardo Fritz Lacardo Fritz LaCardo Fritz Lecardo Tattooed Sword Swallower |
Born 1876 Performed 1919-1959 Died Aprl 13, 1959
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Ringling Brothers Sells-Floto Circus Mighty Haag Shows Frank Forest Museum San Francisco, CA (USA) |
Fritz Lecardo was born in 1876 and performed as a sword swallower in 1919 and the 1920s under the name "Capt. Fritz Lecardo", and into the 1940s under the name "The Great LaCardo".
LaCardo was known for swallowing a sword and hanging a chair over the hilt of the sword, and later for swallowing a neon tube. A September 1943 Billboard article states, "Fritz Le Cardo, who was released from a San Francisco hospital recently, has joined the Frank Forest Museum in that city as ticket taker." Fritz Lecardo's obituary in the April 13, 1959 Billboard states: "LECARDO, Capt. Fritz, tattooed sword swallower, knife thrower, and weight lifter with many major circuses and carnivals, April 13, 1959 at San Francisco. He made the trip to Europe with the Ringling Show and was with Sells-Floto, Mighty Haag, and other shows. He was a charter member of Showfolks of America." Fritz Lecardo is buried in Olivet Memorial Park, Colma, California, USA. The banner depicting The Great LaCardo, estimated at $4,000 to $6,000, was bid to $3,800, but apparently did not sell. It was offered by Pook & Pook of Downington, Pennsylvania, during an auction on September 8, 2011. Seeking photos and more information.
Capt. Fritz LaCardo timeline
Fritz Lecardo with chair (1920s) Fritz LaCardo banner (1940-50s) Fritz Lecardo gravesite (1959) Fritz Lecardo headstone (1959) |
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Miss Vivian Lady Vivian Lady Vivian Dunning Vivian Dunning Vivian W. Dunning Vivian Mae Parish Dunning
John Dunning |
Born 18 Dec 1900 (John) Born 21 Oct 1908 (Vivian) Performed 1920s-49 Died 22 Jul 1979 (John) Died 23 Sep 1998 (Vivian) |
A.J. Budd's Shows Famous Circus Side Show Harry Lewiston's Traveling Museum Harry Lewiston's Big Circus Sideshow Harry Lewiston's World's Fair Freaks Bessie Bessette's Side Show Palace of Oddities Conklin and Garret Shows William Glick Shows Canadian National Exposition Johnny J. Jones Exposition Johnny J. Jones Carnival Jones Greater Shows Hennies Bros.' Shows Ripley's Believe It or Not! Dodson Imperial Shows Princeton, MN Charleston, SC (USA) |
John Dunning Jr. was born on December 18, 1900 in South Carolina to John Miles Dunning (1880-1950). Vivian Mae Parish Dunning was born Vivian Parish on October 21, 1908 in Princeton, MN. When describing how she got into sword swallowing, Vivian Dunning said, "I came from Princeton, Minnesota. I got sick of farm life. One night I went to a dance in the town hall. There was a carnival In town. I met the sword swallower. He asked me to join the show. So I joined the show, first as an illusion girl, and then I married him. I thought working on a carnival show would be a pleasant way to see the world." Her husband, sword swallower John Dunning Jr, also doubled as the Iron Eyelid Man with hooks in his eyelids (he once dragged a car through Main Street using his eyelids), took Vivian under his wing, and taught her to swallow swords.
Lady Vivian was friends with "Half Woman Half Man" Anna John Budd and performed in the 1920's and 1930's under A.J. Budd's Show the Famous Circus Side Show. Lady Vivian swallowed multiple swords, and would partially swallow a sword with a pistol mounted on the end of it which, when shot, would ram the sword down her throat. Lady Vivian was seen in a number of photographs swallowing swords with her contemporary sword swallower friend Mimi Garneau. According to the 1930 census, John Miles Dunning Jr. lived in Richland, SC. On March 2, 1931, John Miles Dunning Jr. and Vivian Parish Dunning gave birth to their son John Miles Dunning III in Charleston SC. In 1935, John and Vivian Dunning's residence was listed as Charleston, SC. In late 1937, Harry and Rose Lewiston left Ringling Bros. Barnum & Bailey Circus to form their own organization, and brought several circus freaks with them, including Grace McDaniels the "Mule-Faced Woman", tattooed girl Stella Grassman, Clico the African pygmy, "Human Balloon" Art Hubbell, Disco the magician, Lady Johanna the mentalist, Melvin Burkhart the "Anatomical Wonder", who subsequently developed his "Human Blockhead" act while working in this show, and sword swallowers John and Vivian Dunning. Harry Lewiston's Traveling Museum (also known as "Harry Lewiston's Big Circus Sideshow", "World's Fair Freaks", and "Palace of Oddities") featured a variety of sideshow and freak performers, a "girlie show," and snakes. They initially paired up with the Conklin and Garret Shows and performed at venues throughout the United States and Canada, including the Canadian National Exposition. While Rose Lewiston ran her "Palace of Knowledge" at the New York World's Fair in 1939 and 1940, Harry Lewiston continued to take his Traveling Museum on tour, traveling with organizations including truck carnival William Glick Shows and Johnny J. Jones Carnival. Lewiston ran an enlarged side show, including his snakes, plus a freak animal show. While traveling with Jones in Warren, Pennsylvania on July 2, 1940, Harry Lewiston's sword swallower Lady Vivian Dunning was profiled in the local Warren Times-Mirror. According to the 1940 census, the John and Vivian Dunning family lived in St Andrews, South Carolina with two sons and a daughter. Lady Vivian also performed with the Johnny J. Jones Exposition, and with Ripley's Believe It or Not! in Canton, OH on Feb 7-8, 1941, where she swallowed neon tubes. A February 26, 1944 Billboard shows Vivian Dunning performing as sword swallower with Harry Lewiston's World's Fair Freaks in Ohio and West Virginia, with Charles Zerm as Superintendent. According to the August 12, 1944, Billboard: "CORP. JOHN W. DUNNING, formerly with Robert L. Ripley, Johnny J. Jones Exposition, Hennies Bros.' Shows, A. J. Budd and others, reported from Italy of entertaining the boys and amazing Arabs in his spare time by swallowing swords, eating fire and performing his iron-eyelid act. " According to the Sep 7, 1946 Billboard: "Line-up on Bessie Bessette's Side Show on Jones Greater Shows follows: Andrew Udseth, talker, Johnny Dunning, sword swallower." An ad in the March 26, 1949 Billboard shows John W. Dunning of Earlington, KY searching for additional sideshow acts. On June 23, 1949, a group portrait was taken of Roundy Couglin and members of the Dodson Imperial Shows at Camp Wawbeek, Wisconsin, where they had gone to entertain the 93 children camping there. Front row, left to right: Harold Saxton, driver; Flash Ford, tap dancer; Poodoo, fire eater; "Jigsaw" Jackson, dancer. Back row left to right: Joe LaCrosse, and Chuck Doring, drivers: Mrs. Goodman, Roundy's secretary; Butter Beans and Susie, comedy dance team; Mrs. Norman Wang, Fun Fund committee member; Roundy; Chick Franklin, manager of Imperial Shows; Harold Smith, water glass musician: John Perry, pianist; the Great LeRoy, magician; and holding five swords is John W. Dunning, Champion Sword Swallower. John Miles Dunning Jr died at the age of 79 on July 22, 1979, and is buried at Live Oak Memorial Gardens in Charleston, SC. Vivian Mae Parish Dunning died on 23 September 1998 at the age of 89, and is buried next to John Miles Dunning Jr at Live Oak Memorial Gardens in Charleston, SC. On April 18, 2002, their son, "John Miles Dunning III, 71, of Greensboro and Charleston, died peacefully Thursday, April 18, 2002, at his home in Charleston SC. We will celebrate John's completed life with a Mass to be held at 10 a.m. Monday, April 22, 2002, at St. Pius X Catholic Church in Greensboro. Interment will be private. John Miles Dunning, III was born in Charleston March 2, 1931, to the late John Miles Dunning, Jr. and Vivian Parish Dunning. He attended the Citadel and was the former owner of Guilford Galleries, Dunning Industries and Dunning Ltd. Mr. Dunning was very active in Greensboro Beautiful, a former member of the Eastern Music Festival Board of Directors, a member of Summit Rotary Club, and in 1968 was named the North Carolina Small Businessman of the Year. John was an active member of St. Pius X Catholic Church, collected classic automobiles, and enjoyed woodworking and golf. Mr. Dunning is survived by his loving wife, Linda "Sam" Dunning of the home; six children, sons, Gary Dunning and his wife Kathy of Hickory, Larry Dunning and his wife Patti , Dan Dunning and his wife Mary and John Dunning, IV; daughters, Janet Conger and her husband John and Joan Gail DesJardins, all of Greensboro; sister, Glenda Hauge of Charleston; two brothers, James H. Dunning of Greensboro and C. Wayne Dunning of Dallas, Texas; 10 grandchildren; and his friend and first wife, Lois K. Wold of Greensboro.
Seeking photos and more information.
John & Lady Vivian Dunning Timeline: Lady Vivian (1920s-30s) Lady Vivian with Mimi Garneau (20s-30s) Lady Vivian with Mimi Garneau (20s-30s) Lady Vivian with A.J. Budd Sideshow (20s-30s) Lady Vivian swallowing 3 swords (1930s) Rochester NY article (1939) Rochester NY article (1939) Warren Times-Mirror PA article (1940) Ripley's World Fair in Canton OH (2-3-1941) John Dunning (1949) |
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Leo The Italian Sword Swallower Leo Olivetai |
1920s-30s? Injured March 1936
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Philadelphia, PA (USA) |
According to an article in the Greenville PA Record-Argus dated March 30, 1936, "Philadelphia -- It's real, genuine sword-swallowing when Leo Olivetai goes to work. Olivetai, a professional sword swallower, was being treated for an injury received while practicing. The blade he was swallowing pierced his chest wall." Seeking photos and more information on Leo Olivetai the Italian Sword Swallower. Leo Olivetai injury (3-30-1936) |
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Chief Willie Bowlegs Chief Willey Bowlegs Willy Bowlegs |
Born Jan 31, 1896 Died Dec 5, 1964 |
Everglades, FL Ringling Brothers Chicago, IL (USA) |
Willie Bowlegs was a Seminole Indian, alligator wrestler, sword swallower, knife thrower, and juggler who was born in the Florida Everglades on January 31, 1896 (or possibly 1894). His father was Willie Cornelius and his mother was Florida Tommy, who later became a Juvenile Judge in Illinois. He married his wife Irene Bowlegs Pyawassit in the Everglades, and they had one son named Buddy who died tragically in Louisiana in 1944. He performed as Chief Willie Bowlegs and traveled with various medicine shows and circuses including Ringling Brothers, Barnum and Bailey Circus out of Kansas. Willie Bowlegs also peddled a remedy that had his picture on the bottle, as well as other items from the trunk of his Cadillac, from Chicago to Del Rio, Texas. Although he was said to be Seminole, he dressed like a plains Indian, and was said to walk around in his Native American attire and full head dress in Cook County, IL. He and Irene lived in Chicago, IL for many years until his death on December 5, 1964. After a 35 year marriage to Bowlegs and 12 years after his death, his wife Irene Bowlegs was remarried to Wallace Pyawassit in 1976. Seeking photos and more information. Willie Bowlegs |
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Lucky Ball Prince Lucky Ball John G. Ball John Gregory Ball |
Born 29 Dec 1898 Learned 1916 Married 1927 Married 16 Aug 1928 Refined 1933 Performed 1933-48 Married 11 Dec 1953 Died 5 May 1977 |
Tom Mix Circus Clark's Greater Shows Brodbeck & Schrader Shows Clyde Beatty Circus Royal American Shows Ripley's Believe It or Not Claysville, NY Utica, NY Hoxie, KS Wadsworth, OH (USA) |
Lucky Ball was born John Gregory Lucky Ball to James B. Ball and Alice Bonfoy in Claysville, NY on December 29, 1898. In 1905, he worked as a child clown with his family on Ringling Bros Circus, and in 1916, he began learning the rudiments of sword swallowing over a period of 6 weeks. Over the years from the 1920's to the 1950's Lucky Ball worked with over a dozen circuses and sideshows including Tom Mix Circus in 1936, Clark's Greater Shows in San Diego in 1942, Brodbeck & Schrader Shows (1943?), Clyde Beatty Circus (1945?), and Royal American Shows (1946-47), besides being featured on Ripley's Believe It or Not! Ball originally worked as a child clown and later a big cat trainer, but after being injured in a big cat act, he began working full time as a sword swallower in 1933, after learning more tips from Alex Linton in 1933, when he began working under the name "Prince Lucky Ball".
In the winter of 1927, Lucky Ball wintered in Hoxie KS where he fell in love with a local Hoxie girl named Estelline Lovin. During that winter of 1927 to 1928, Lucky taught Estelline how to swallow swords. On August 16, 1928, Lucky Ball married Estelline Lovin (better known later as Estelline Pike) in Hoxie Kansas. In the early 1930's he gave Alex Linton tips on how to swallow swords, although some sources say that Alex Linton gave tips to Lucky Ball in 1933. On June 28, 1935, his son Jim Lucky Ball II was born to Estelline Pike in San Diego, CA. In early 1936, Lucky Ball filmed "Poppy" with W.C. Fields The film was released in June 1936, In 1936, Lucky Ball is listed on the lineup in the 1936 route book as the sword swallower for the 1936 Tom Mix Circus. In 1936, Lucky Ball also films "Pennies From Heaven" with Bing Crosby and Louis Armstrong. The film was released in November 1936. In 1937, Lucky filmed "They Gave Him a Gun" with Spencer Tracy. The film was released in May 1937. Later in 1937, Lucky Ball appeared with Shirley Temple in the 20th Century Fox film "Wee Willie Winkie" under the stage name "Mohammed Ali" where he swallowed 3 swords at once. The film was released in July 1937. He later swallowed a record 16 swords in 1937, and was featured in the May 1937 "Look" magazine. In 1937, he was also photographed with actor George Bent. According to an article in the August 19, 1937 The Daily Courier: "Ball is a versatile fellow with the swords, and entirely self-taught. He practiced with the sword swallower's weapons until he could down a 26-inch blade with ease. Since then he has taught his wife to swallow swords and he himself has developed a side-line as a fire-eater." An article in the December 11, 1938 The Ogden Standard Examiner reports that Ball "...quit taming lions and started swallowing swords in 1933 after a lion seriously injured him. Ball cites the fact that not once since he started swallowing swords five years ago has he been bothered with a sore throat. His wife, one of the few women sword swallowers in the country, likewise has not suffered from throat trouble although she has unusually large tonsils." Around 1939, Lucky and Estelline split up, and were eventually divorced in the 1940s, possibly around 1946. According to a November 28, 1948 article in the Indianapolis Star, Lucky Ball taught sword swallowing to Hawaiiian sideshow dancer Maxine Logsdon in the mid-1940s. In the 1946-1947 seasons, Lucky Ball performed with Royal American Show. The last time Lucky Ball was known to have performed was at the Kansas State Fair in Hutchison KS in 1947. Lucky got out of show business in 1948, was remarried on December 11, 1953 to Pearl Irene Ball, and spent the last 20 years of his life working with Goodrich Tires in Akron OH. Lucky Ball was known for swallowing swords up to 26 inches in length, the large cork screw, neon tubes, and for sword swallowing while sitting down, and was recognized by his colleagues as "The World's Greatest Sword Swallower". Lucky Ball died at the age of 78 in Wadsworth Ohio on May 5, 1978 (some sources site 1977) near Akron OH. He was survived by his son, sword swallower Jim Lucky Ball II, and daughter Ramona and another daughter. Seeking photos and more information.
Lucky Ball Timeline:
Lucky Ball with George Bent (1937) Lucky Ball article (8-19-1938) Lucky Ball article (12-11-1938) Lucky Ball swallowing 22 inch cutlass Lucky Ball (postcard) Lucky Ball (pitchcard) Lucky Ball (Ripley's Cartoon) Maxine Logsdon learned from Lucky Ball (11-28-1948) Lucky Ball remarried (12-11-1953) |
| Fred Marineu |
Performed 1923 |
John Robinson's World of Wonders Peru, IN (USA) |
According to the official John Robinson's Circus staff list, Fred Marineu was the sword swallower with John Robinson's Circus World of Wonders sideshow in 1923. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Bob Roberts Robert Roberts |
Born May 25, 1875 Performed 1922-1936 Died June 4, 1936
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Al G. Barnes Big 4 Ring Wild Animal Circus Carnival Sideshows Jacksonville, IL Milwaukee, WI (USA) |
Robert Bob Roberts was born in Slatington, Pennsylvania on May 25, 1875, and performed as a carnival sideshow sword swallower for 14 years from 1922 to 1936. According to the 1922 Official Season Route Book and Itinerary of the Al G. Barnes' Big 4 Ring Wild Animal Circus, Bob Roberts worked as the sword swallower with the Al G. Barnes' Big 4 Ring Wild Animal Circus during the 1922 season. As part of his act, he would swallow a shotgun barrel and ignite a fuse, causing an audible explosion.
Bob Roberts died at the age of 61 on June 4, 1936 in Jacksonville, IL from injuries sustained after his feat went wrong. His obituary was published in the June 5, 1936 Chicago Tribune entitled "Sword Swallower's Gun Fuse Backfire: He Dies": "Jacksonville, Ill, June 4 -- (AP) Bob Roberts, 61, sword swallower for a carnival, died today when his major trick backfired. His widow said that for 13 years he entertained crowds by swallowing a shotgun barrel and igniting a fuse that caused an explosion audible within the side-show tent. Tuesday night something went wrong and Roberts' stomach was burned." Robert Roberts died June 4, 1936 in Jacksonville, IL at the age of 61, and he was buried June 6, 1936 in the Jacksonville East Cemetery in Jacksonville, IL. His wife's name was Annette Roberts, and their home address was 1828 A. No 24th Place, Milwaukee, WI. Seeking photos and more information.
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Jude Mimi Garneau Mimi Garneaw Mimi Gayneau Mimmi Garneau Mimi J. Garneau Mimi Jude Garneau Hazel Thomas Hazel Garneau Hazel Hartshorn Hazel Kirk Thomas Hazel Jude Thomas |
Born Jan 27, 1894 Married 1910 Married 1916 Married 1920s Performed 1923-70s Died Feb 22, 1986 |
Chicago World's Fair Great Lakes Exposition Ringling Bros Barnum & Bailey Circus Al G. Barnes Circus Sells-Floto Circus Clyde Beatty Cole Bros Circus Wonder Shows of America Hippodrome Pan American Show Bessie Bessette Side Show Folk Celebration Shows Conklin's Canadian National Exhibition Gran Circo de Variedades E. K. Fernandez Hippodrome Show Lou Dufour Sideshow Sam Alexander's Sideshow Ripley's Believe It or Not! Steve Allen Show Tampa, FL (USA) |
Mimi Garneau was born Hazel Jude Kirk Thomas on January 27, 1894 (some sources claim 1890 or 1893, others 1896) in Centre County in Philipsburg, PA, just outside Bloomberg, PA. Her mother Jennie E. Thomas, was born in Union County Pennsylvania in July 1861, and her father Moses Thomas was born to Owen and Mary (Laugharne) Thomas in Kellybebill, Glamorganshire, Wales (some reports claim Pennsylvania), and died May 7, 1899 while working in a big mine near Eleanora Pennsylvania.
According to the 1910 census, 16 year old Hazel Kirk Thomas (b. Jan 1894, d. Jan 1986) lived in Philipsburg PA in Centre County in 1910 with her widowed mother Jennie E. Thomas (b. July 1861, d, 1943), and her four siblings (older brother John (b 1887), sister Bella (b. 1890), and younger brothers Harmon Peter (b. 1895, d. 1984) and Daniel (b. 1899, d 1953). In 1910, at the age of 16, Hazel was in a relationship with George J. Hamilton. According to the 1930 census, her first marriage was at the age of 16. On August 27, 1913, 19 year old Hazel gave birth to her first son, Billee Lavergne Hamilton (1913-1943) out of a relationship with George J. Hamilton. Around 1916, Hazel got married to Walter Hartshorne (1894-1941). By 1920, according to the 1920 census, Hazel was married to Walter Hartshorne. Walter was an engineer from Pennsylvania who worked at a steam plant, and they had three sons; Edwin Albert (1916-1922), Harmon Thomas (1918-2009), and William ("Billee" Lavergne Hamilton, from her 1910 relationship, who lived 1913-1943). Based on the age of the two younger boys, Hazel and Walter probably married around 1916. On December 28, 1922, Hazel's second son Edwin Albert Hartshorne died at the age of 6 from the Spanish Flu at the Cottage State Hospital in Rush PA just three days after Christmas, on 28 December 1922, from "acute dilation of the heart with the contributory cause of empyema". The most likely candidate for this is pneumonia, like the Spanish Flu that had been going around for a few years. (death certificate) Around 1923, Hazel began sword swallowing at about the age of 29, and began performing under the name "Jude" by the late 1920s. In the late 1920's, she gained acclaim as "the first woman to swallow the neon tube". Mimi's 1930 Census shows a few changes in her life. She is living in Detroit and she has divorced Walter Hartshone (according to family, she did this because of his drinking). In the late '20's, Hazel met Fred N. Garneau, and by the late 1920s or early 1930, they were married and living in Detroit Michigan. According to the 1930 Census, Hazel had divorced Walter Hartshone, and was now married to Frederick Napoleon Garneau, who was born 23 May 1891 in Philipsburg, the son of a French Canadian father and a Pennsylvanian mother. Fred's parents were Nepoléon Bonaparte and Theresa (Shontz) Garneau. His father was from Lac-Mégantic, Quebec and his mother was from Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania. Together they raised seven children, and all were boys. Both of Hazel's remaining sons, Billee Hamilton and Harmon, were living with them in Detroit, where Fred worked at an automobile factory, and Hazel worked as a sales lady at a candy store. Sometime in the early 1930s Hazel adopted the stage name Mimi. In 1933, Mimi became a big hit performing with Ripley's Believe It or Not in the 1933 Chicago World's Fair "Century of Progress", and with Ripley's Believe It or Not in the California Pacific International Exposition in San Diego in 1935-36. The 1935 US Census lists Mimi J. Garneau and Fred M. Garneau living in San Diego in 1935. Later in 1936 Mimi was the featured sword swallower with Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey Circus. In 1937, Mimi performed with Ripley's Believe It or Not in Cleveland, Ohio at the "Great Lakes Exposition" from May 29 to Sept 6, 1937. She worked with Ringling Bros. Barnum & Bailey Circus in 1936, possibly until the union strike shut down Ringling Brothers in June 1938, when she moved over with other Ringling performers to the Al G. Barnes Circus & Sells Floto Circus which closed in 1938, and then went on to work with Cole Brothers Circus later in 1938, with winters working in Hawaii in the late 1930's. The 1940 US Census lists Mimi J. Garneau and Fred M. Garneau had been living in San Diego in 1935, where in 1939 Fred had earned $700/year on a grade 8 education, and Mimi earned $840/year on a high school education. According to the family, Fred performed as a tattooed man for the circus. He even gave Mimi tattoos, which she kept hidden away. According to the 1940 Census, Mimi and Fred Garneau were living in Jackson, Breathitt County, Kentucky. They are both now listed as performers. The 1940s proved to be a difficult period for Garneau. Mimi's husband Fred N. Garneau died in Wichita Falls, Wichita, Texas on 11 April 1941 from a subdural hemorrhage from a "subdural hemorhage" that he had sustained 16 days earlier (from a circus accident?) (death certificate). Oddly enough, Mimi lost her husband and her ex-husband the same year. On August 18, 1941, Mimi's ex-husband Walter Hartshorne dies in PA. Mimi's son Billee Hamilton enlisted for World War II on March 8, 1940, was shipped off to Puerto Rico in 1940, was promoted from Private to 2nd Lieutenant, before he died in Sicily, Italy on August 23, 1943. Billee was killed while visiting a friend on a sub-chasing ship near Sicily, the USS SC696, that was attacked and sunk by a German bomber, Junkers JU-88. (Nov 1943 Billboard magazine clipping) In 1949, Billee's body was shipped back for reburial in Arlington National Cemetery. After Fred Garneau's death in 1941, Mimi teamed up with Woodrow F. "Woody" Dutton who also worked with sideshows. In 1945, Mimi worked for Douglas Aircraft for a brief period of time before returning to perfoming. According to the Feb 2, 1946 Billboard: "Jimmy Hurd, side show manager, Wonder Shows of America, has booked Frank Lentini, three-legged man, Mimi Garneau, sword swallower and blade box, Grady Stiles, lobster boy, Schlitzie, pinhead..." Later in 1946, Mimi Garneau worked with the Hippodrome Pan American Show and with the Bessie Bessette Side Show Folk Celebration Shows where Mimi did lectures for Bessie Bessette, "The Russian Wonder" or "The Russian Enigma". According to the March 14, 1951 Danville Bee, "A performer billed as the "Dean of Women Sword-Swallowers" will gulp four sword simultaneously for all to see on Dumont's "You Asked For It" Friday at 8:30 p.m. Televiewers will be able to see the swords inside Mimi Garneau's gullet by means of a fluoroscope." According to the Sept 22, 1951 Billboard: "Mimmi Garneau" was sword swallower with Conklin's Canadian National Exhibition while Woody Dutton worked the front. On March 5, 1952, Mimi worked with the Gran Circo de Variedades in Cuidad Trujillo in the Dominican Republic. In January 1955 Mimi was living and performing in Hawaii, later in Kauai, Hawaii from October 27, 1955 to November 10, 1955 with the E. K. Fernandez Hippodrome Show, and she lived in Honolulu up to at least November 1956. Sometime in the 1950s, she taught sword swallowing to Toni Del Rio and gave her some of her swords. In 1958, Mimi Garneaw (sic) was featured as sword swallower with the Dufour and Alexander Side Show, along with Woody Dotton performing magic. According to the Aug 10, 1959 Billboard: Mimi Gayneau (sic) was featured as sword swallower with the Dufour and Alexander Side Show, with W. F. Dutton as manager. In 1961, Mimi Garneau worked with the Dick Best Sideshow at the Canadian National Exhibition, and later in 1961 was on the Steve Allen Tonight Show where she swallowed swords and was interviewed by Steve Allen. Toward the end of the 1960s Mimi finally hung up her swords, but continued traveling for several years with her talented parasites, her trained fleas. In 1967, Mimi Garneau and Woody Dutton operated Lou Dufour Women's Show on the Gooding's Million Dollar Midway that they took over from Lou Dufour in 1966 or 1967. Garneau continued to perform with her flea circus, complete with specially designed props and real fleas. In 1978, Mimi and her Flea Circus were booked on Sam Alexander's Sideshow in Belmont Park in Montreal Canada for the season of 1978. Mimi stopped performing in the late '70's. In 1978, Mimi retired her flea circus when she left Montreal and returned to Tampa in 1978. Mimi and Woody Dutton owned a home in Tampa together, as he was her friend and companion for many years and took great care of her. Her address in Tampa was 910 E 120th Ave, Tampa, FL. Her social security number was 265-09-4305. Mimi did many remarkable things in her long life, including living and working in Hawaii and Dominican Republic, Venezuela, and other areas of Central and South America. On August 8, 1985, Woodrow F. "Woody" Dutton died in Tampa Florida. Within six months, Mimi Garneau died on February 22, 1986 at the age of 92 in Tampa, Florida, and both of them are immortalized at Showman's Rest in Tampa, FL. Mimi and Woody were creamated. Per Mimi's request and because her reasoning was that she had always been on the road, her ashes were spread where Highway 301 meets Fowler Avenue not far from their house in Tampa FL. Mimi had three sons, Edwin Hartshorne (1916-1922), who died in the Spanish influenza pandemic outbreak in 1922, Billee Lavergne Hamilton (1913-1943), who died in World Was II in Sicily Italy in 1943, and Harmon Thomas Hartshorne (b. c. 1918-1919 to 2009) who died on November 15, 2009 at the age of 91 in Tampa, FL.
One of Mimi Garneau's swords is owned by sword swallower Dan Meyer and resides in the archival collection of the Sword Swallowers Association International, while most of her other swords and photos are in the private collection of a documentary producer. Seeking photos and more information.
Hazel Jude Thomas Mimi Garneau Timeline:
Mimi Garneau & unknown male SwSw (1920s) Mimi Garneau & Lady Vivian (20s-30s) Mimi Garneau & Lady Vivian (20s-30s) Mimi Garneau early neon (20s-30s) Mimi Garneau San Diego (1935) Mimi Garneau saw (1935) Mimi Garneau 3 swords to Fred, San Diego (1935) Mimi Garneau composite, San Diego (1935) Mimi Garneau neon in Spanish (1935) Mimi Garneau Ringling postcard (1936) Mimi Garneau Ringling composite (1936) Mimi's Great Lakes Expo pass (1937) Mimi with Al G. Barnes Circus (7-23-1938) Mimi Garneau poster (pre-1940) Mimi Garneau with banner (1940s) Mimi Garneau with banner (1940s) Fred Garneau death certificate (4-11-1941) Billee Hamilton death Billboard (11-1943) Mimi Garneau on Hippodrome (1946) Mimi Garneau, Armless Marvel Jose de Leon (194?) Mimi Garneau pitchcard (1940s-50s) Mimi Garneau X-ray (1940s-50s) Mimi Garneau X-ray demonstration Danville Mimi Garneau sideshow (March 1952) Mimi Garneau neon (March 1952) Mimi Garneau Dom Republic (March 1952) Mimi Garneau with saber (1950s-60s) Mimi Garneau with saber (1950s-60s) Mimi Garneau with bayonet (1950s-60s) Mimi Garneau with saw (1950s-60s) Mimi Garneau holding swords (1950-60s?) Mimi Garneau 4 swords (1950s-60s) Mimi Garneau 5 swords (1950s-60s) Mimi Garneau retired with Fat Lady (1970s?) Mimi Garneau Hazel Thomas bio |
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"Stoney" St. Clair Leonard St. Clair |
Born 9 Nov 1912 Arthritis in 1916 Joined Cole Bros in 1927 Performed until 1950 Died 3 Dec 1980
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Cole Bros. Circus Princeton, WV (USA) |
Born on November 9, 1912 in Pageton, West Virginia, and wheelchair bound with arthritis at 4 after a bought with rheumatoid arthritis in 1916, Leonard "Stoney" St. Clair joined the Cole Bros Circus in 1927 and learned sword swallowing at the age of 15 from a drunken German sword swallower named Gretchen. Stoney got hired on the Cole Bros Sideshow in 1927 at $75/week, with stateroom on the train and two meals a day. Stoney swallowed 18 inch and 19 inch swords, and later sold his swords to Capt. Don Leslie. Stoney learned tattooing in 1928, and stayed on with the circus 33 years until 1950, when he became a well-known tattooer in the South.
Leonard Leroy "Stoney" St. Clair died at the age of 68 on December 3, 1980 in Hilliard, near Columbus, Ohio, and is buried at Roselawn Memorial Gardens in Princeton, WV. Book and film "Stoney Knows How" produced on his life of tattooing. |
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Cole Bros. Circus Cole Brothers Circus Cole Brothers-Clyde Beatty Circus Clyde Beatty-Cole Bros Circus |
1884 Cole Brother Circus founded 1906 Cole Bros Circus name used 1945 Clyde Beatty Circus opens 1959 Clyde Beatty-Cole Bros Circus 1981 Renamed Cole Bros Circus |
DeLand, FL (USA) |
Cole Brothers Circus was founded in 1884 by William Washington Cole as "W.W. Cole's New Colossal Shows". In 1906, the name was changed to "Cole Bros Circus".
According to the August 22, 1908 Billboard, "E. J. Kelly is managing the ticket boxes of the Cole Brothers Side Show and his wife, Mlle. Amoza is sword swallower." In 1935, teen-age animal trainer Clyde Beatty (1903-1965) joined the Cole Brothers Circus as a cage cleaner, and eventually grew to become famous as a lion tamer and animal trainer. During the winter of 1944-1945, Clyde Beatty purchased the Wallace Bros. Circus, and in April of 1945 the "Clyde Beatty Circus" was opened. In 1957, the Cole Bros. Circus converted from rail cars to trucks and moved to new winterquarters in DeLand, Florida. In 1959, the name was changed to the Clyde Beatty-Cole Bros Circus. In 1981, owner Jerry Collins donated the show in its entirety to Florida State University stating his disire to "..benefit people of all ages. I want to preserve the tented circus for children and also to help the students at Florida State." Johnny Pugh, who had been a manager on the show since the mid-60's, purchased the circus from FSU and has been operating it ever since, dropping "Clyde Beatty" from the title and operating the show again under the Cole Bros Circus name.
CBCB Sideshow with SwSw Jackie Lynn Loonie (1969) CBCB Sideshow with SwSw Baron Bill Unks (1972) CBCB Sideshow with SwSw Baron Bill Unks (1974)
Sword Swallowers with Cole Bros and Clyde Beatty-Cole Bros Circus: |
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Madame Amaza Madame Amoza Madam Amaza Madam Amoza M'lle. Amaza Mlle. Amaza Mrs. E.J. Kelly |
Learned 1906 Performed 1906-1913 Died October 8, 1913 |
Cole Brothers Shows Howe's Great London Shows Forepaugh-Sells Show Mighty Haag Shows (USA) |
According to the August 22, 1908 Billboard, "E. J. Kelly is managing the ticket boxes of the Cole Brothers Side Show and his wife, Mlle. Amoza is sword swallower."
According to the February 6, 1909 Billboard: "E. J. Kelly, formerly with the Cole Brothers Shows, will manage the side show with the Howe's Great London Shows the coming season. His wife, Madam Amoza, will join him in a sword swallowing act and other features." According to the August 28, 1909 Billboard: "Roster of the side shows with Howe's Great London Shows: E. J. Kelly, manager and concert announcer; Mlle. Amaza, sword swallower." According to the December 17, 1910 Billboard: "E. J. Kelly, side show manager of the Forepaugh-Sells Show, with his wife, Mlle. Amaza, will spend the winter in Chicago." According to the August 5, 1911 Billboard: "Roster of the side show with the Mighty Haag Shows: E. J. Kelly, manager and announcer; Mlle. Amaza, lady sword swallower; Del Fuego, fire king; Mrs. E. J. Kelly and her cockatoos". According to the February 8, 1913 Billboard: "E. J. Kelly, who formerly handled the side show with the Forepaugh-Sells Show, will fill the same position with the Downie & Wheeler Shows the coming season. Fred Kenno will again be principal producing clown, his second season. Ed M. Jackson, will again be on the business end. Charles (Pop) Evans will again be superintendent of stock." (There was no mention of Mrs. E.J. Kelly or Mlle Amaza)
According to the October 18, 1913 Billboard: Louisville, Ky., Oct. 8. Mrs. E. J. Kelly, wife of E. J. Kelly, side show manager with the Mighty Haag Shows, died after a long illness of a complication of diseases at the Deaconess Hospital here yesterday morning. Mrs. Kelly was well known in the profession, having done a sword-swallowing act for the past eight years with several large circuses. Funeral services will be held from the Broadway Christian Church, Thursday morning, at 10 o'clock. Interment in St. Louis Cemetery, this city.
Seeking photos and more information.
Madam Amaza Timeline:
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| Sig Sautelle Circus |
1882 Sig Sautelles Circus founded 1904 Sig Sautelles Circus sold 1911 Sig Sautelles Circus reopens 1913 Sig Sautelles Circus sold 1927 New truck Circus started 1928 Truck Circus closed |
Homer, NY (USA) |
Sig Sautelle's Circus was started in the 1880s by George Satterly. Satterly was born in 1848 in Luzerne, NY, the son of a shoemaker, and later changed his name to Sig Sautelle. After the outbreak of the Civil War young George persuaded his father to allow him to join the Union Army. Young George Satterly served as a drummer boy during the war. As it turned out, this may have been the beginning of his circus career. In the army Satterly made the acquaintance of a ventriloquist who began teaching young Sig the art of ventriloquism.
Sig worked on small side shows as a magician, ventriloquist and puppeteer. In 1876, Sig married Ida Belle Travers of Fort Edwards, New York. In 1880, Sig moved to Syracuse, NY. He commissioned A. J. Murray to build 34 special circus wagons. Each wagon had a short reach and extra short spokes. Sig intended to run his show on the Erie Canal and if the wagons were to fit under the low canal bridges while sitting on the deck of flat boats, they had to be built with a low center of gravity. In the 1882, Sig started the Sig Sautelles Circus, and christened his boat the "Belle," in honor of his wife, and cast off to bring smiles to the faces of the people living along the Erie Canal and its feeder canals. Soon Sig bought another boat, the "Kitty," and the show was on the way. For 7 years Sig's show trod the towpath. In 1889, he sold the boat "Kitty" to a modern day evangelical group, and hit the road again. Sig's plan was to tour his circus on a flatboat, (the "Belle" named after his wife Ida Belle) along the Erie Canal. He had special wagons build with short spoked wheels to lower the height so the wagons would pass under the bridges of the canal. This idea was successful, and after a few seasons Sig purchased a second boat , (the "Kitty") to accommodate the growing circus. The circus business was good to Sig and he became a very wealthy man. In 1900 he moved to Homer, NY where he purchased two hotels which he used to house his employees. In 1902 Sig constructed a "ring barn", a circular shaped building used for winter training of horses and circus acts. In 1904 Sig's wife Ida Belle suffered a stroke preventing her to keep up with the active pace of circus life. To care for his wife Sig return to Homer and sold his circus later in 1904. After several years of recovery Ida Belle's health improved. In 1911 Sig started a new circus with partners Oscar Lowande and George Rollins. In July 1913, the Sig Sautelle Circus performed in Newport RI, with Marie DeVere as their sword swallower. In 1913, tragedy struck again when Ida Belle suffered a second stroke. Sig sold his share of the circus to Danny Robinson and the Sautelles returned home to Homer, NY. In 1914 Sig, due to his wife's medical expenses, was unable to pay his property taxes, and was forced to file bankruptcy. Ida Belle Sautelle died in 1916. After his wife's death Sig worked at various jobs until 1927 when he formed a new truck show. However the fledgling circus failed the first year. Sig Sautelle died the following year on June 21, 1928.
Sig Sautelle Circus Timeline: |
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Marie DeVere Mlle Devere Marie De Vere Marie Ellmore Marie Ellmore De Vere |
Born May 24, 1874 Performed 1905-1928 Injured 1905 Died April 9, 1941
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John Robinson's Ten Big Shows Huber's 14th St. Museum Austin & Stones 9th and Arch Barnum & Bailey Circus Young Buffalo's Wild West Show Miller Bros 101 Wild West Show Col. Weeks Wild West Show Chicago Riverview Park Frank A Robbin's Circus Jack Kelly Sideshow Sig Sautelle Circus Hubert's Dime Museum Coney Island Dreamland Circus Side Show Richmond, RI (USA) |
Marie DeVere or Marie De Vere was a sword swallower who performed with a number of circuses and sideshows from 1905 to 1928, swallowing up to 15 swords at one time. Marie Ellmore, was born May 24, 1874, in either England or Ireland, and after coming to the United States, lived in Wyoming, Rhode Island. It was reported that Marie might have been a cousin of Mae West's father, Jack West, although the story is unsubstantiated. It is said that Marie may have been adopted and spent her early childhood in a home for girls, and later performed under the stage name Marie DeVere, strutted in chorus lines, acted in sketches, and posed with her sisters in ads for Seven Sutherland Sisters Hair Tonic. It is said that she wanted to become a sword swallower at a very young age and would practice with silverware to master the gag reflex. It is also said that she became a sword swallower at the age of 14 (around 1888?). There is also family history that Marie paid a show person a substantial amount of money to learn the art of sword swallowing. It may have been Edith Clifford, as an article from Billboard dated April 25, 1908 has DeVere as a pupil of Clifford: "The Cliffords, sword swallowers, were presented with a beautiful bouquet of flowers during their engagement at the Hippodrome, Boston, Mass., while Mlle. Clifford was presented with a beautiful pearl ring by her pupil, Marie DeVere."
The first real confirmation of Marie is in an article from The NY Clipper, dated March 4, 1905 as a sword swallower with Huber's Museum on 14th Street in New York. In June 1905, Marie DeVere worked as a sword swallower with John Robinson's Ten Big Shows. It appears, she may have sustained two injuries in 1905, one in Malone NY at the end of June, and another in Burlington VT. According to an article dated June 30, 1905 in the New York Morning Telegraph, "MALONE, NY, June 30 - While John Robinson's Show was exhibiting here to a large crowd, Aime, the Lion Queen, was attacked by one of the beasts with which she was performing. She was bitten about the head and her right arm was broken. It may have to be amputated. Marie Devere, sword-swallower with the show, was taken ill here and may die. She was not able to accompany the show when it left here." According to an article in a 1905 The Boston Herald, DeVere "broke an incandescent light while performing, and it was feared she would die. It took a team of four doctors to remove all the broken glass from her stomach." According to the New York Clipper dated July 15, 1905, "Marie De Vere, at Burlington, Vt., in swallowing a glass sword, broke the sword off within her. Physicians successfully removed the broken part from her throat." In 1907, Marie DeVere performed as "Mlle Devere, World Champion Lady Sword Swallower" with Barnum & Bailey Circus, following in the footsteps of her mentor Edith Clifford, who had been featured with Barnum & Bailey from 1901 to 1906. According to an article in Billboard dated April 25, 1908, "The Cliffords, sword swallowers, were presented with a beautiful bouquet of flowers during their engagement at the Hippodrome, Boston, Mass., while Mlle. Clifford was presented with a beautiful pearl ring by her pupil, Marie DeVere." In 1909, DeVere performed with Frank A. Robbin's Shows which opened its 29th annual season at Jersey City, NJ. The 1910 census records show that Marie De Vere lived in Washington RI in 1910. According to the July 2, 1910 Billboard, Marie DeVere was sword swallower with Young Buffalo's Wild West Show, and at another time with 101 Ranch Wild West Show. In 1910, sword swallower Marie DeVere, Barnum and Bailey Circus circus strong woman Barbara Rose, and world renowned fencer and sharpshooter Helen Englehart (or Engelhardt) pooled their savings together and bought a farm on Teft's Hill in Richmond, RI. (Dec 25, 1910 article in Brooklyn Eagle Daily Sun) While living in Wyoming, RI, Marie Devere was a communicant of St. Joseph's Church in Hope Valley, RI, where she gifted a statue of the Sacred Heart to St. Joseph's Catholic Church in Hope Valley in Hopkinton, Rhode Island. The statue was placed on one side of the altar on a wall bracket which was shaped like the head of an angel, where it still stands today. DeVere was also a member of the American Legion Ladies Auxiliary, also in Hope Valley, RI. Devere lived in Richmond RI from late 1909 until her death in 1941 with the exception being the times she lived in New York or traveled on the road. According to the Official Route Book of the Frank A. Robbins New and Greatest All Featured Shows for season 1911, Marie DeVere was sword swallower with the 1911 season of the Frank A Robbin's Show. According to the New York Clipper, dated May 4, 1912, Marie DeVere worked as sword swallower for the Frank A Robbin's Shows again in 1912. In 1913, Marie DeVere worked with the Sig Sautelle Circus, most likely at their July appearances in Newport RI. In 1915, Marie DeVere was hired as the lady sword swallower for the Jack Kelly Sideshow. According to the 1918 Billboard: "The Sig Sautelle Show opened at Newport, R.I. in May, and will play the New England States the balance of the season. The show is transported overland by trucks and trailers. Marie De Vere, sword swallowing." According to the March 29, 1919 Billboard: "Crompton, R. I., March 21. The two carloads of wagons purchased by the Irwin Bros. from the Sun Bros. Circus have arrived at the winter quarters here, and the painters and decorators have started to apply the new color scheme the show is using this year. Jack Kelly and wife will arrive next week to put the side show in shape. Kelly will have Princess Beatrice, tattooed lady; Ursa, bear lady; Prince Oskazuma, head hunter and fire king; Marie DeVere, lady sword swallower." The 1920 census records show Marie De Vere as living in New York NY in 1920. Marie De Vere was also photographed with Jolly Irene in 1920. Jolly Irene, whose real name was Amanda Siebert, was reported to have weighed in at 689 lbs, and worked for many years at Coney Island when it became too difficult to get in and out of Ringling Brothers train cars. In the 1920s, Marie DeVere was employed as a sword swallower at Hubert's Museum in NY (possibly as early as 1919?), and again in 1926 and 1927. In 1921, she worked for a time at Riverview Park in Chicago IL. In 1927, Marie DeVere worked as sword swallower at Coney Island Dreamland Circus Side Show, filling in for ( and dressed exacly like) the Mighty Ajax, who had moved on to the competing Sam Wagner's World Circus Sideshow in 1927. 1930 census records show that Marie De Vere lived in Washington RI in 1930. Marie DeVere had three husbands, but most of her neighbors did not ever realized that she was married, as the husbands were rarely, if ever seen. Marie DeVere had one adopted son named James G. Kennedy (born Aug. 12 1892, possibly in Chelsea Mass), who married Maria Martha Adler. The couple had 6 children (Marie's grandchildren): Frank Patrick Kennedy, Mary Veronica, Catherine Margaret, Theresa Frances, James George Kennedy Jr., and Josephine Margaret. James Kennedy died in an auto accident on Dec. 28, 1930, and is buried in Saint Sebastian Cemetery, Westerly, Rhode Island, USA. Marie's grandson James G. Kennedy Jr died in an ice skating accident on Jan 30, 1939 at the age of 10, and is buried with his grandmother.
Marie Devere was a communicant of St. Joseph's Church in Hope Valley, RI and a member of the American Legion Ladies Auxiliary, also in Hope Valley, RI. Marie Devere died at the age of 67 on April 9, 1941 at the Cranston State Infirmary after a long illness, and her swords were sold off after her death. She is buried in the Saint Sebastian Cemetery in Westerly, Washington County, Rhode Island. Seeking photos and more information.
Sword Swallower Marie Ellmore DeVere Timeline:
Marie DeVere (c 1905-1912) Marie DeVere (c 1905-1912) Marie DeVere & Edith Clifford in Billboard (4-25-1908) Marie & 2 other show women buy Teft Hill Farm (12-25-1910) Marie & 2 other show women buy Teft Hill Farm (1-20-1911) Marie De Vere with Jolly Irene (1920) Marie De Vere with Jolly Irene (1920) Marie De Vere with Jolly Irene back (1920) Dreamland Side Show Banquet (8-26-1923) Dreamland Side Show Banquet Pt. 2 (8-26-1923) Marie DeVere with Coney Island Dreamland Circus Side Show (1927) Marie DeVere w Josephine Joseph Sideshow in PA (12-31-1927) Marie DeVere's trunk Marie DeVere pitchcard swallowing 15 swords (inside trunk) Marie DeVere grave |
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Riverview Park Chicago Riverview Park |
Opened 1904 Closed 1967 |
Chicago Riverview Park 3727 N Western Ave Chicago, IL (USA) |
Chicago Riverview Park operated in Chicago Illinois as an amusement park and seasonal home for freaks and sword swallowers for over six decades from 1904 until 1967. Riverview Park was located at 3727 N Western Ave on 74 acres in an area bound on the south by Belmont Ave, on the east by Western Ave, on the north by Lane Tech High School, and on the west by the North Branch of the Chicago River.
Sword swallowers known to have performed at Riverview Park over the years include Marie DeVere (1921), Rita Roselle (1943), Jim Lucky Ball II (1953, 1956, 1964-65), Estelline Pike (1958-1964), Judy Ball (1964-65), and Billy Castello (1966?-1967). Today Riverview Park has been replaced by Riverview Plaza shopping center, the Belmont District Police Station, DeVry University, a manufacturing company and Richard Clark Park, part of the Chicago Park District. The south end of Clark Park has a wooded area where many of the Riverview Park foundations are still visible and is currently used as a bicycle dirt jump and pump track park maintained by the Chicago Area Mountain Bikers. A sculpture entitled Riverview by local artist Jerry Peart stands in front of the police station.
The Riverview Carousel continues to operate at Six Flags Over Georgia, and the Riverview Rotor was moved to Six Flags Great America where it operated as Cajun Cliffhanger, until it was shut down after the 2000 season due to an injury on the ride.
Riverview generic Sword Swallower banner
Sword Swallowers at Riverview Park:
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Estelline Pike Estelline Lovin Estelline Mable Lovin Estelline Ball Pike World's Greatest Lady Sword Swallower |
Born June 5, 1908 Married Aug 16, 1928 Learned 1928 Performed 1928-67 Died June 8, 1990
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Hoxie, KS Lauro Brothers Side Show Royal American Shows Riverview Park Ringling Bros Circus Ward Hall's World of Wonders Hubert's Museum Ripley's Believe It or Not NY American Theater of Magic New York, NY (USA) |
Estelline Pike was born June 5, 1908 as Estelline Mable Lovin, daughter of Ada I. Stevenson, and Jackson Sperlin Lovin, a railroader in Estelline TX (near Amarillo, TX). Her parents named her Estelline after Esteline TX, the name of the town where she was born. In 1920, the Lovin family lived in Kenneth, KS. In the 1925 census, Estelline Lovin was listed as single with a daughter at the age of 17 and living in Hoxie KS. Estelline Lovin graduated as valedictorian of her class at Hoxie High School, went to Barnes Business School and Brown-Mackie Business College in Denver, and was working as a legal stenographer for an attorney in Hoxie, KS when sword swallower Lucky Ball spent a winter in Hoxie in 1927 working for a local farmer and doing an occasional local show. Estelline and Lucky met, he whisked her off her feet, they got married in Hoxie, KS on August 16, 1928. Estelline learned sword swallowing from Lucky there in 1928 at the age of 20. The couple went on the road together, and after about a year of married life, Estelline was "holding her own" like a veteran performer. She became so proficient at swallowing swords that she and Lucky began performing together, and it was as a sword swallower that she gained her notoriety.
On June 28, 1935, their son Jim Lucky Ball II was born in San Diego, CA. Around 1939, Estelline and Lucky Ball separated and began performing separately. In 1943, Estelline married D.W. "Blackie" Pike, who passed away December 2, 1947. On August 20, 1944, Estelline was officially divorced from Lucky Ball. In 1947, her son Jimmy Ball asked his mother to teach him to swallow swords. So in 1947, at the age of 12, after several weeks of practice, Jim Lucky Ball learned to swallow swords and was known as the "World's Youngest Sword Swallower". In September 1948, Estelline Pike worked the Kansas State Fair during its 10 day run right after Labor Day in Huthinson KS. In 1948 and 1949, Estelline worked with Lauro Brothers Side Show on the Royal American Shows. According to the Oct 29, 1949 Billboard: "Estellle Pike, sword swallower, will winter in Dallas, following the windup of the State Fair of Texas there October 23." According to the May 21, 1955 Billboard, Estelline Pike was on the personnel roster of the 1955 Royal American Shows. According to an article in the July 9, 1955 Billboard, "Estelline (Ball) Pike, sword swallower on the Royal American Shows, letters that when she became ill of food poisoning recently when the show played Evansville, Indiana, her 19-year old son, James, stepped in and did a professional job of subbing for her. Tbe lad's father, John G. (Lucky) Ball, was a well-known sword swallower of a few years ago..." Around 1955, Pike moved to New York at the request of Hubert's Museum on 42nd Street to ply her talent. She was a featured performer at Hubert's Dime Museum for many years, taking her vacation in the Spring to work with the Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Circus sideshow during their Madison Square Garden engagement for six weeks each Spring from March 29 to May 13 from 1957 to 1967, then often working for Royal American Shows from May to October 30, and then returning to Hubert's Museum for the remainder of the year. According to the April 27, 1957 Billboard Magazine, "There are nine side show acts in use by Ringling in the Madison Square Garden basement. Last year, there were 17, which was an unusually large number in comparison with previous years. Acts include... Esteline, sword swallower." According to the November 25, 1957 Billboard Magazine, "Estelline Pike, sword swallower with Ringling-Barnum in New York and Boston, and with the Royal American Shows for the remainder of the season, is back in Tampa for the winter, and is booked to play Hubert's Museum in New York over the holidays." In May 1958, Estelline and her 22-year-old son Jim Ball appeared on the popular TV show "What's My Line?" as a sword swallowing team who were performing with Ringling Brothers Circus at Madison Square Gardens at the time. According to records, Estelline Pike worked at Hubert's Dime Museum on Nov. 18, 1958. In late 1958, Estelline Pike had the distinction of being the last American sword swallower to perform in Cuba before Fidel Castro took over on January 1, 1959. The revolution was in full progress while she was there, and at one point while she was performing, grenades were exploding in a nearby parking lot. After returning home from Cuba, according to a photo in the February 26, 1959 Circleville OH Herald, "Mrs. Estelline Pike, sword swallower at Hubert's Museum in New York, is working her act without her sword swallower son, James (Lucky) Ball, who is practicing with a rifle rod in Korea." On March 2, 1959, a UPI photo was released of Estelline Pike eyeing four swords at Hubert's Museum: "With a confident grin, Estelline Pike, a sword swallower at Hubert's Museum in New York City, eyes four blades she plans to have as a midafternoon snack. This savorer of sabres is also a mother and grandmother. Her relish for cold steel is apparently hereditary -- her son, U.S. Army Pvt. James (Lucky) Bell, was a sword swallower, too, in civilian life. Now stationed in Korea, he has to limit his metallic munching to rifle cleaning rods, with an occasional Japanese officer's sword for dessert.". According to a Billboard article dated September 26, 1960, "Estelline Pike, sword swallower, is in New York after a long junket thru the West that took her to visits with Royal American, with her daughter Melba and family, with friends at the Nu-Pike in Long Beach, with show clubs in Los Angeles, and with her daughter Ramona. Now in New York, she's with her son James, who is currently at Hubert's Museum." According to a December 31, 1960 Billboard Magazine article, "Estelline Pike, sword swallower with Ringling-Barnum in New York and Boston, and with the Royal American Shows for the remainder of the season, is back in Tampa for the winter, and is booked to play Hubert's Museum in New York over the holidays." Estelline Pike worked with Ward Hall's World of Wonders Sideshow on a variety of fairs and circuses from 1960 to 1967. During this time, Pike sold a pitchcard of herself swallowing a sword with a small hole punched where she inserted a little plastic sword cocktail skewer. According to Ward Hall, the pitchcards with cocktail swords were a huge seller. According to an article published in 1961, at 53 years of age, "Mrs. Pike could smoothly slide a 22-inch sword down her throat". Her throat was so "educated" that it didn't gag when she came to the climax of her act -- swallowing six swords at once. She said, "The trick to sword swallowing is to be completely relaxed. You have to relax to control your throat and your emotions." A widow and a grandmother, Mrs. Pike had already been swallowing swords for 33 years. According to an article by Estelline's friend John Chapman in the Chicago Tribune dated September 15, 1963, "...She will bring with her a spangled evening gown and 15 assorted swords, including a dress sabre from the Civil war, an English cadet's blade and a Masonic grand master's sword. She will wear the gown morning, noon and night, and she will swallow the swords - as many as four at a time, 15 or 20 times a day. "All you have to do to swallow a sword is to relax," she says. She is my old gadabout friend Estelline Pike, who has been guzzling cutlery for 35 years. Her 42d street theater is Hubert's Museum, also known as the flea circus. She always is happy to settle down for the winter in a modest west side Manhattan hotel room, but when good weather comes she is off and away somewhere. She is a good correspondent, too. Real letters, not saying "X marks my room" or "Wish you were here." I got a letter from her last spring postmarked Hilo, Hawaii, and another last week from London, Ontario. It was getting cool in Canada and she was worring about the snakes in the sideshow she's been traveling with. She says, "I have cared for and been concerned about them, but I'm sure that they most likely will die with the cold in the next spot. So I might as well quit thinking about them - they are not mine. "We have a good show. It's with the Conklin Shows. We have been very, very busy- 18 to 20 shows a day, from 9 a.m. to midnight. Manzini, the escape artist, is sitting in his section of our under-stage, strumming his guitar. Harris, the magician, is busy making up an item for his pitch. "The alligator skin twins, Carl and Christine, are sitting on the stage, about ready for their next presentation. Albert, the rubber skin boy, is performing. Next will be the blade box. Then the electric act is performed - lighting torches from a girl's finger tips. She gets a little tingle and the audience gets excited. I work after that, and then the big snakes... Will be so glad to get back to N.Y. about the 15th." Estelline began swallowing swords because she got mad one day long ago. Must have been 1928. She'd been a legal stenographer in Hoxie, Kan. She went to a sideshow there and saw, met and married a sword swallower named Lucky Ball. One time her husband was performing on a street and she was watching him when she heard a woman say the act was phony and couldn't be done. Her dander was up, the bride challenged, "Want to bet five dollars?" When the woman said she would Es took one of her husband's swords and swallowed it, and collected the five. Right then she decided this was an easy way to make a living. When Estelline checks in at the flea circus - and I expect she will, for the master of ceremonies told me last week he needs a sword swallower - I'll drop down and ask her to introduce me to some of her wonderful friends." Estelline Pike worked with the Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey Circus sideshow for six weeks each spring, starting in 1957 until 1967, with the exception of 1963. In 1963, Pike worked briefly with a circus sideshow operated by Sam Alexander in Hilo, Hawaii, but the next year she returned to her regular schedule in New York. The last time Ringling Brothers had a sideshow at Madison Square Garden was in 1967, as the sideshow and menagerie were eliminated when Irving and Israel Feld bought Ringling Brothers Circus in 1967, and Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey moved into the new Madison Square Garden above Penn Station in 1968. Pike continued for several more years at Hubert's Museum. From 1974 to 1976, Estelline Pike performed at the American Theater of Magic (Tom Laird, Proprietor) in Times Square on Broadway and West 45th St. Her specialty act was swallowing four giant swords together, which she called "a double deckered sword sandwich, it goes down the hatch without a scratch". She lived in an efficiency apartment at the Belvedere Hotel at 319 West 48th Street in New York, as did many of her fellow circus performers. While working at Ripley's Believe It or Not in New York, all of her swords, sword case, sword board and other props were stolen. When Hubert's Museum sideshow closed in the mid 1960s, Pike remained on to work as cashier for the arcade at the same location until the end of her life in 1990. Pike was known to say, "I don't want to go on the road. I love it here! I'm a New York girl!" Pike swallowed neon tubes, and up to six swords at once. She was also a jazz pianist, an accomplished songwriter who had written over 50 songs, and she enjoyed authoring numerous children's books in her spare time which were in demand by the publishers. Besides her son, sword swallower Jim Lucky Ball II, Pike also had two married daughters, Ramona and Melba, and five grandchildren when she died in New York on June 8, 1990 at the age of 82. She was buried on June 30, 1990 in Hoxie, Kansas. (obituary) Her Social Security number was 512-12-6319. Estelline Pike is buried in the Hoxie Cemetery in her hometown of Hoxie in Sheridan County, Kansas. On the grave, there is a photo on the headstone of Pike with her swords along with the inscription, "Estelline took her final curtain June 8, 1990. Remembered by many as the World's Greatest Lady Sword Swallower. Sadly missed by her son James, and daughters Ramona and Melba." Seeking photos and more information.
Estelline Pike Timeline:
Estelline Pike (early) Estelline Pike on Royal American Estelline Pike Estelline Pike Estelline Pike Estelline Pike Estelline Pike (pitchcard) Estelline Pike (pitchcard) Estelline Pike (pitchcard with cocktail sword) Estelline Pike (autograph) Jim & Estelline "What's My Line?" (1958) UPI photo (March 2, 1959) UPI photo back (March 2, 1959) Estelline Pike at Hubert's Museum (1958-62) Estelline Pike at Hubert's Museum (1958-62) Estelline Pike article (May 15, 1961) Estelline Pike at Hubert's (1961) Estelline Pike (1961) Estelline Pike (1962) Estelline Pike article (1966) Estelline Pike article (1966) Estelline Pike article (1966) Estelline Pike (1960s-70s) Estelline Pike (1960s-70s) Estelline Pike Schedule (1960s-70s) Estelline Pike Obituary (7-12-1990) Estelline Pike (headstone) Estelline Pike (headstone detail) Estelline Pike (headstone detail) |
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Hubert's Museum Hubert's Dime Museum and Flea Circus |
Operated 1926-1965 |
Hubert's Dime Museum 228-232 West 42nd St Times Square Manhattan New York, NY (USA) |
Hubert's Dime Museum operated at 228-232 West 42nd St near Times Square in New York for nearly four decades as a legendary seasonal home for well-known freaks and sword swallowers from 1926 until 1965. Nobody is quite sure how Hubert's Dime Museum got its name, since nobody named "Hubert" ever owned or managed Hubert's Dime Museum. It may have been named Hubert's simply to capitalize on the name of the previously established "Huber's 14th Street Museum" that had operated at 106 East 14th Street from 1893 to 1910 that had also featured fearks and sword swallowers. (See also Huber's 14th Street Museum).
The building that housed Hubert's Dime Museum at 228-232 West 42nd St was originally a schoolhouse built in the 1880's by prestigious architects McKim, Mead & White. The building had also been the location of Murray's Roman Gardens, a legendary "lobster palace" closed by prohibition, before becoming Hubert's Dime Museum in 1919 to 1920. Then from the early 1920s to 1965, Hubert's Dime Museum became legendary as the seasonal home for side show freaks for nearly four decades. At Hubert's, for 25 cents, you could catch a glimpse of Olga, the Bearded Lady, whose facial hair measured more than 13 inches. And the Man From World War Zero, who had a terribly deformed face. Well-known sword swallowers who made Hubert's their home included Marie DeVere, the Mighty Ajax, Charlie Lucas, Nereida Caswell, Rosita Reverdy, Alex Linton, Melvin Burkhart, and Estelline Pike. However, it was in the 1950s, that Hubert's manager, inside talker, and former sword swallower Charlie Lucas was befriended by a female photographer Diane Arbus, who was moving from shooting fashion to shooting those on society's fringes. Lucas became Arbus's friend and collaborator during the five years she photographed at Hubert's from 1958 to 1963. Lucas became her link to the freaks and performance artists and, in a larger sense, to the culture and traditions of the freak show. Lucas made the introductions for Arbus and in some cases set up photographic shoots with the performers. The freaks especially appealed to Arbus. She counted performers like Lucas and Suzy the Elephant Skin Girl among her friends. Argus was completely serious in her study of this archaic form of American entertainment. In her 1962 application for a Guggenheim Fellowship, she listed sideshows as one of her subjects, and specified "Hubert's Dime Museum and Flea Circus" among her working locations.
Revelations published a 1956 photo of the entrance to Hubert's showing the upstairs penny arcade and the Hubert's ticket booth, bright lights and skeeball, posters advertising Susie the Elephant Skin Girl, Lydia Suarez the contortionist, and Princess Sahloo (aka Woogie). Behind it all, off to the left, was the stairway leading down to the strange world of Hubert's Musem. "We had our awe and our shame in one gulp," Diane Arbus wrote of watching the assorted freaks and sideshow performers who populated Hubert's Dime Museum and Flea Circus, a celebrated basement phantasmagoria on 42nd Street in Manhattan where she began shooting in the late 1950s as she was beginning to hone her stark signature style. Tiny Tim started out singing at Hubert's. Famous freak Zip the Pinhead did time there as well. Even Bob Dylan and Jon Voight made pilgrimages to Hubert's. In a poignant 1966 obituary about the museum, which had mostly closed in 1965, Diane Arbus added, "What if we couldn't always tell a trick from a miracle?" Today Hubert's Museum has been replaced by a Starbucks. Seeking photos and more information. Hubert's wall featuring Estelline Pike Estelline Pike at Hubert's Museum (c 1960)
Sword Swallowers at Hubert's 42nd St Dime Museum: |
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Charlie Lucas Richard "Charlie" Lucas Richard Charles Lucas |
Born 1909 Performed 1924-1960s Died 1991 |
Conklin Circus Chicago World's Fair Hubert's Dime Museum New York, NY (USA) |
Born in Mississippi in 1909, Richard "Charlie" Lucas was a sword-swallower, fire-eater, hot-coal walker, blade-walker, and African wild man in sideshows across the country. Lucas, a black man who lived in Chicago, had been working circuses and sideshows in the US and Canada since 1924, but he got his big break at the Century of Progress at the Chicago World's Fair in 1933. During the 1933 Chicago World's Fair, Charlie Lucas presided over the "Darkest Africa" exhibit as "African Chief of the Duckbill Women," a.k.a. "WooFoo, the Immune Man". The core of his "tribe" was composed of 14 authentic Ashantis who had migrated to Manhattan, where they had been hired. The rest of the "natives" were rectruited from Chicago pool halls, many of them decked out in leopard-skin sarongs and zebra-hide shields furnished by Brooks Costume Company of New York. Lucas himself wore a bone through his nose, was dressed in ostrich feathers, spoke gibberish, swallowed fire, and climbed the blade ladder. (Lucas in center of photo with finger held to his eye). (The fair that year celebrated, without irony, a "Century of Progress."). Charlie and his wife Woogie found frequent employment with the Conklin Circus, a show that traveled in Canada and appeared in Toronto every year at the Canadian National Exposition. The CNE had an "African Village" in the 1940s and 50s, but Charlie and Woogie also performed the "Dance of Love." Judging by the two publicity photos that have survived, it must have been a fairly sizzling routine. By the 1950s, Lucas and his wife, the beautiful Woogie, settled in New York, and Lucas found work managing Hubert's Dime Museum & Flea Circus, where Lucas worked as manager and inside talker for the assortment of human curiosities on display, and Woogie performed her snake-charming act alongside Sealo, Professor Heckler's Flea Circus, Mildred the Alligator Skin Girl, a Russian midget named Andy Potato Chips and Eddie Carmel, the Jewish Giant. It was there at Hubert's that Lucas was befriended by female photographer Diane Arbus, who was moving from shooting fashion to shooting those on society's fringes, and who talked her way into the homes of his colleagues and shot what would later become iconic photos of, among others, Andy Potato Chips and two other midgets in his Uptown living room, and Eddie Carmel the Jewish Giant bent beneath the ceiling of his Bronx apartment, his parents looking like frightened Lilliputians beside him. Lucas became Arbus's friend and collaborator during the years she photographed at Hubert's, and Lucas was her link to the freaks and performance artists and, in a larger sense, to the culture and traditions of the freak show. He made the introductions for Arbus and in some cases set up photographic shoots with the performers.
Charlie Lucas died in 1991. Seeking photos and more information.
Charlie Lucas Woofoo & Woogie with Conklin Circus (c 1940s) Charlie Lucas (c 1940s) Charlie Lucas (c 1950s-60s) Charlie Lucas (c 1950s-60s) |
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Sylvester The Sword Swallower |
Performed 1930 | (USA) | In 1930, Sylvester was featured as the sword swallower in the Jack Conway remake of the film "The Unholy Three". (1930/MGM) 74mins. BW. US). Seeking photos and more information. |
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Sword Swallower Leroy Billy Leroy Buddy Leroy |
Performed 1931-51 |
Loca Conklin's Side Show Korie's Side Show Milo Anthony Side Show Los Banos, CA (USA) |
In 1931, Sword Swallower Leroy was sued when his partner claimed he didn't get his fair share of the money in a "buried alive" stunt. According to the November 20, 1948 Billboard: "Line-up of Korie's Side Show includes: Lady Jean, snakes; Buddy Leroy, sword swallower;" According to the April 16, 1949 Billboard, "Line-up on the Loca Conklin's Side Show on Husted's Central Amusement Company includes Billy Leroy, iron tongue, sword ladder and sword swallower, Lola Conklin, annex". According to the May 12, 1951 Billboard, Buddy Leroy was swallowing swords with the Milo Anthony Side Show at the 1951 Crafts Exhibition in Los Banos, California. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Milo Milse Prince Milo Prof. Milse Prof. L. Milse Prof. U. Milse Prof. Y. Milse Yale Milse The Great Milse Milo Larway Milo Laraway Milo Laroway Milse the Great World's Greatest Sword Swallower World's Greatest Enegma and Fire King Great Fire King and Champion Sword-Swallower |
Born March 6, 1881 Learned c. 1890? Performed c 1907-1937 Retired 1954 |
Coney Island Dreamland Circus Side-Show A.F. Crownse Circus Show Al G. Barnes Shows Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus Iowa Detroit, MI (USA) |
Milo Milse (also known as Milo or Milse or "Prof Milse") according to one pitchcard, was born in Russia on March 6, 1881, and started swallowing swords at the age of nine (around 1890?).
On November 22, 1907, "Russian sword swallower T. Milse" performed at the Bijou Theater in Marshalltown IA. According to the Augist 12, 1908 Chicago Tribune, Milse the sword swallower performed at the Chicago Dime Museums with Mrs. Clifford. On March 4, 1909, the "world's great fire eater and champion sword swallower Prof U. Milse" performed at the Majestic Theater in Council Bluffs, Iowa, On August 21, 1909, Prof Y. Milse performed at the Family Theatre at 511 Locust in Des Moines, Iowa according to the Des Moines Register: "Prof U. Milse, Champion Sword Swallower and King of Fire Eaters, swallows as many as 12 sixteen to twenty inch swords at once." In September 1909, "Austrian" sword swallower Prof Milse, performed in Sioux City, Iowa according to the Sept 15, 1909 Sioux City Journal. According to the August 9, 1910 Bakersfield Morning Echo, "Milse the great Spanish sword swallower and fire eater" performed at a small theater in Bakersfield CA. On September 20, 1910, fire eater and sword swallower Milse the Great performed at Broadway Theater in Oakland, CA. According to the Dec 24, 1910 South Bend Tribune, "L. Milse, the fire and sword king mystified a large audience at the Bijou in Mishawaka Indiana last evening. He is said to be one of the original sword swallowers and fire eaters." According to the October 26, 1912 Detroit Times, Milse the sword swallower performed at the Detroit Hippodrome. Milo Milse was billed as the "World's Greatest Sword Swallower" for swallowing up to 9 swords at once when he performed at the Dreamland Circus Side-Show, Coney Island, New York. From the back of this pitch card, apparently his address at the time was 1043 Washburne Ave, Canal, NY. Another pitchcard bills him as "The World's Greatest Enegma and Fire King". This pitchcard states that he had "traveled around the world 3 times" and had "mystified over 50,000,000,000 people". It also states that he swallowed swords from 16-24 inches, and up to 24 swords at once. According to the November 23, 1918 Billboard obituary, sword swallower Yale Milse died in Chicago of heart failure on October 25, 1918 at the age of 39, Could this be another Milse? What are the chances there were two sword swalowers with the name "Milse" in 1918? According to the Miller Brothers 101 Ranch Wild West Show 1929 Route Book, the featured sword swallower in the 1929 Miller Brothers 101 Wild West Show was Milo. According to the Russell Bros. Circus Season 1935 route book, Milo was the sword swallower for the Russell Bros Circus during the 1935 season. According to the February 27, 1937 Billboard Magazine, Milo was still sword swallowing in 1937. According to a 1950 Billboard article, sword swallower Milo Larway was a guest at Dailey Bros Circus in 1950, and as "sword swallower, he had performed with all the big ones, and many of the little ones...".
According to the Jan 17, 1953 Billboard: "The Wilson family, Dell Williams, and Kenneth Waite spent New Year's Eve (1952) with Milo, former sword swallower at the latter's home." According to the Sept 11, 1954 Billboard: "Friends gave Milo, retired sword swallower, a surprise birthday party at his Detroit home recently." Seeking photos and more information.
Milo Milse Timeline:
Milse Des Moines Tribune (1909) Milse The Morning Echo (1910) Milse at Coney Island Dreamland (1910?) Milse signature and address (1910?) Milse pitchcard front Milse pitchcard props Milse pitchcard back Yale Milse obituary (1918) Milse swallowing bayonet attached to rifle (1948) Negative of Milse swallowing bayonet attached to rifle (1948) Back of Milse photo (1948) |
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Laurie Frank Laurie Prince Laurie The Great Laurie Senor Laraway Señor Laraway The Spanish Sword Swallower The Russian Sword Swallower World's Greatest Sword Swallower World's Greatest Enegma and Fire King Great Fire King and Champion Sword-Swallower |
Born c 1897 Learned c. 1912 Performed 1912-1932 |
Coney Island Dreamland Circus Side-Show A.F. Crownse Circus Show Al G. Barnes Shows Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus Phoenix Mid-Winter Carnival E. K. Fernandez Shows New York, NY (USA) |
The Great Laurie (also known as Laurie or Prince Laurie) was born around 1897, and started swallowing swords by the age of 15 around 1912.
Accordinf to the January 22, 1919 The Sault Star, Prince Laurie performed in January 1919 in Sault St. Marie, Ontario, Canada. In 1923, Prince Laurie performed as the sword swallower with the Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus. According to route books for 1925 and 1926, the sword swallower with the Al G. Barnes Shows in 1925 and 1926 was The Great Laurie, "the world's foremost sword swallower". In December 1926, The Great Laurie was sword swallower at the Phoenix Mid-Winter Carnival in Waikiki, Hawaii. Then in January and February 1927, he worked with E. K. Fernandez Shows in Hawaii. According to a December 31, 1926 Honolulu Star Bulletin article, "The Great Laurie, in private life, Frank Laurie, has been swallowing standard army, cavalry, and dueling swords, steel bars and walking sticks for nearly 15 years. He is not yet 30 years old, which shows that he watered to study his profession in his earl bgvfy teens. Laurie has two advantages which ranks him at the summit of his class of professionals. One of these is a straight throat and esophagus, the passageway from the mouth to the stomach; the other is a low-hung stomach." Señor Laraway or Milo Laraway or Milo Laroway or Milo Larway or Laurie was the sword swallower on the Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus during the 1933 and 1934 seasons.
Seeking photos and more information.
Prince Laurie Great Laurie Timeline:
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| Michael Gherlas |
Died 1934
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Bucharest, Romania |
According to the NY Southern Cayoga Tribune dated October 5, 1934: Bayonet Is Fatal to Knife Swallower - Bukharest -- If it wasn't for an over-sceptical gendarme, Michael Gherlas, local fakir and sword swallower extraordinary, would still be bringing down the house by gobbling three good-sized daggers, one after another. But when he was faced by the hard-boiled officer who presented the magician his bayonet and demanded that he swallow it "just to show there was no fake," Michael was in a quandry. If he refused, the crowd would jeer him out of the hall and his job, and if he accepted, he was taking a long chance with a weapon he had never "swallowed" before. Michael took the chance. He got it down all right, but in bringing it back up something went wrong. A stream of blood welled out, and a few moments later, he collapsed on the floor. Michael Gherlas died in the hospital the same night of internal injuries." Seeking photos and more information. |
| George Dixon |
Born 1869 Performed pre-1936 |
Lord Sanger's Traveling Circus Pontypridd (Wales) |
George Dixon was born around 1869 and performed as sword swallower with Lord Sanger's Traveling Circus (which traveled the UK from 1853-1900). At the time this photo was taken on May 22, 1936, Dixon was 67 years old, retired from sword swallowing, and living in a stone hut in Pontypridd, Wales. He was unique at being one of the few negroid sword swallowers of his time. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Prince Neon William G. Knoll |
Born c 1909 Performed 1930s Injured July 7, 1936 Died July 1936
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Reading, PA (USA) |
Prince Neon was one of the first sword swallowers to popularize swallowing neon tubes in the 1930s. Born William G. Knoll around 1909 in Reading, PA, 27 year old "Prince Neon" suffered an injury in Anderson, Indiana on July 6, 1936 when a neon tube burst inside him. According to the July 7, 1936 Oakland Tribune, Knoll's act included turning on the electricity in the tube after he swallowed it, but Knoll didn't get that far before the accident occurred. Knoll was taken to St. John's Hospital in Anderson to have 12 inches of glass surgically removed from his stomach. According to Daniel Mannix' 1944 article "How to Swallow a Sword", a tube had broken inside of Prince Neon and he died in the hospital a week later. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Otto van der Ville Otto Ernst Wilhelm van der Ville |
Performed 1923-56 Died December 23, 1956 |
Schippers & van der Ville Altona (Germany) |
Schippers & van der Ville was the name of a German amusement company founded in Hamburg in 1912 that flourished between WWI and WWII. Created by founders Joseph Schippers and Otto Ernst Wilhelm van der Ville, they were . Josef Schippers was a fairground attraction known as the "Tallest Guard Soldier of all time" (he was 2,12 meters or 6' 9" tall, 2,39 meters or 7'8" tall with helmet). Otto Van der Ville's career as a showman began as a tight rope walker and sword swallower. Schippers and van der Ville started by operating a small 5 meter stage show known as Schippers and van der Ville. In 1923, they aquired a piece of land in Altona just outside of Hamburg, where they built a factory and built and repaired their rides. They constantly developed new models, and a mountain railway was built in 1929 in Altona, which was the then largest transportable amusement ride in the world. Josef Schippers died in 1948, and his son, Josef Schippers II (nicknamed "Jupp"), took over his father's position working with Otto van der Ville. In 1953 the Schippers and van der Ville amusement company traveled with 16 vehicles and 130 permanent employees, and employed an additional 200-300 temporary workers each month, and in the 1950s, they were regarded as „Könige unter den deutschen Schaustellern" ("Kings of the German Showmen "). Over the decades, more than 52 different rides were operated by the company Schippers & vd Ville. Otto van der Ville died on 23 December 1956. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Ripley's Believe It or Not Odditorium Century of Progress Expo Chicago World's Fair |
May 27-Nov 12, 1933 May 26-Nov, 1934 |
Ripley's Believe It or Not Odditorium Century of Progress Expo Chicago World's Fair Chicago, IL (USA) |
The 1933 Chicago World's Fair reflected a burst of optimism in the depths of a depression felt around the globe. Celebrating a Century of Progress, the 1933 Chicago World's Fair marked scientific triumphs including the telegraph, telephone, automobile, and airplane. For Chicago, the Fair proved, as did the 1893 Chicago Columbian Exposition fifty years earlier, that the city of Chicago had truly risen from the ashes of the Great Fire of 1871. In 1933, Mimi Garneau performed in the original Ripley's Believe It or Not Odditorium at the Century of Progress Expo. Additionally, sword swallower Edna Price also swallowed her neon tube at the Ripley's Believe It or Not Odditorium at the 1933 Chicago World's Fair, while Joseph Grendol, Chester Dolphin, and Prince Yucon also tooks stints at swallowing swords.
The Chicago World's Fair was originally scheduled to open in May 27, 1933 and close November 12, 1933, but due to the popularity of the Century of Progress Expo, the fair reopened the next year on May 26, 1934 as an effort to earn enough money to help recoup some of its debts, with Joseph Grendol returning as sword swallower again with the 1934 Ripley's Odditorium. At the end of the 1934 show, the Century of Progress closed with a small profit, a rarity for ventures like these at the time, with a grand total of 48,769,227 attendees for the two years. As part of its legacy, the Chicago World's Fair inspired New York to mount its own New York World's Fair in 1939-1940.
Sword Swallowers at the Chicago World's Fair 1933-34 |
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Edna Price Edna Irene Price Edna Price Harris Queen of Sword Swallowers |
Born Sept. 12, 1899 (1900?) Performed 1920-39 Injured Oct 1937 Died Oct. 17, 1987
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John Robinson Circus Side Show Al G. Barnes Circus Cole Bros Circus Sam Wagner's World Circus Side Show Coney Island George Hamid's Playland Circus Ringling Bros Circus Ripley's Believe It or Not Chicago World's Fair New York World's Fair Ashley, Wilkes-Barre, PA Melbourne, FL (USA) |
Edna Irene Price was born on September 12, 1899 (1900?) in Ashley, PA near Wilkes-Barre, PA as the second of six children of Robert J. Price (born in Wales in 1868-?) and Ada Fritz Price (born in Pennsylvania in 1873, sister of sword swallower Delno Fritz). Of her five siblings, Edna's closest sister was Anna Price Jones (1903-1973).
At the age of 16, Edna got her start in the field of entertainment as the "floating lady" with John Robinson Circus Side Show in 1916 while her uncle Delno Fritz and aunt Maude D'Auldin worked as sword swallowers on the John Robinson Side Show. Edna Price was niece to Delno Fritz and Maude D'Lean or Maud D'Auldin, and learned sword swallowing in 1920 at the age of 20 from her uncle Delno Fritz, after her aunt Maude passed away from a sword swallowing accident while performing onboard a ship during a command performance before the King and Queen of England in 1920. In the 1920's, when Edna wanted to go out on a date with someone that Uncle Delno did not approve of, Edna would hide his wooden leg to make her escape. According to the October 21, 1922 Billboard: "Delno Fritz, well known sword swallower, who recently completed an eight months' engagement in Honolulu and the Hawaiian Islands, under the management of E. K. Fernandez, has joined his niece, Edna Price, who is with the Ringling-Barnum Circus." According to circus route books, Delno Fritz and Edna Price performed together with the Al G. Barnes Circus during the 1920 and 1923 seasons, with Ringling Brothers, Barnum and Bailey Circus in 1923 and 1924, and after Delno Fritz died in 1925, Edna alone with Ringling Brothers in 1925, part of 1927, then with Cole Brothers Circus for the remainder of 1927, then back on Ringling Brothers in 1928 and 1930-1932 (Ringling 1931 line-up). Edna never performed in her hometown of Wilkes-Barre, PA, as she had a phrase in her contract with Ringling Brothers that stipulated she would never be required to perform in her hometown so she could spend time with family and friends. Edna had many sideshow friends, and was a close personal friend of Major Mite and Harry Houdini. According to an April 20 1932 article in the Pittston Gazette, Edna Price was performing with Ringling Brothers Circus at Madison Square Gardens in New York and entering into her 10th year with the Ringling Show in 1932. According to a May 27, 1933 article in the Wilkes-Barre Record, Edna Price prepared for the 1933 Chicago World's Fair. Edna performed at the Ripley's Odditorium at the Chicago World's Fair in 1933 and again in 1934. On July 1, 1933 Edna's family made the trip up to Chicago to visit Edna Price at Ripley's Odditorium at the 1933 Chicago World's Fair. In 1934, Edna returned to work with the Ripley's Odditorium at the Chicago World's Fair of 1934. In 1937, Edna swallowed neon tubes at Sam Wagner's World Circus Side Show and George Hamid's Playland Circus at Coney Island in 1937. Oct 8, 1937 article on Miss Edna Price swallowing neon tubes. Edna Price home after neon tubes break (10-8-1937) In 1939, Edna Price was featured again by Robert Ripley at Ripley's Believe It or Not at the New York World's Fair (1939-1940). Edna was known by Ripley's as "Queen of Sword Swallowers" and the "First Woman to Swallow the 'White' Neon Tube"., and she would swallow up to 12 practice swords at the same time, removing the blades one at a time. She made it a practice to have her swords chromed each year to protect against nicks and scratches. Edna swallowed swords for about 20 years until she retired from sword swallowing after the New York World's Fair in 1939. Edna Price worked with Ripley's Believe It or Not! in Atlantic City as a hostess, and later moved to Miami Beach, Florida where she worked as a hostess in the 1950s. In 1970 she moved from Miami Beach to Melbourne, FL. Edna Price had four sisters, Margaret Price, Martha Price (b 1905), Catharine Price (b 1907) and Anna Price Jones (1903-1973), and Edna later remarried a boxer named John "Jack" Harris. Edna Price died in Melbourne, Florida at the age of 88 on October 17, 1987. Her obituary in The Orlando Sentinel dated October 18, 1987 reports: EDNA PRICE HARRIS, 88, 1857 Harrison Ave., Melbourne, died Saturday (October 17, 1987). Born in Ashley, PA., she moved to Melbourne from Miami Beach in 1970. She was a retired sword swallower for Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus and was a Baptist. Survivor: sister, Anna R. Jones, Bethlehem, PA. Graveside services will be held at a later date in the Palmer Township in Pennsylvania. Davis Funeral Home, Melbourne. Edna Price is buried in the family plot in the Northampton Memorial Shrine in Palmer Township, PA. Price's swords and neon tube were kept in a large trunk owned by her sister Anna Price Jones (1903-1973), and were dispersed after her death. Seeking photos and more information.
Edna Price Timeline:
Edna Price with Major Mite (1920s) Edna Price - Globe Swallower (1920s) Edna Price with Cole Bros (video) (1927) Edna Price Postcard (1930s) Edna Price Poster (1930s) Edna Price w Ringling (1931) Edna Price with Ringling at Madison Sq Garden (4-20-1932) Edna Price with Ringling at Madison Sq Garden (4-20-1932) Edna Price prepares for World's Fair (5-27-1933) Family to visit Edna Price at Chicago World's Fair (7-1-1933) Edna Price World's Fair (1933) Edna Price swallowing Neon Tube (1933) Edna Price swallowing Neon for Ripley's (May 1933 article) Edna Price returns home after Ripley's Chicago World's Fair (12-3-1934) Edna Price swallowing Neon Tube for Ripley's (film) (1933? 39?) Edna Price Coney Island Playland Circus (1937) Edna Price Coney Island Playland Circus (1937) Edna Price swallowing neon tubes article (10-8-1937) Edna Price home after neon tubes break (10-8-1937) Edna Price NY World's Fair Poster (1939) Edna Price with great nephew (1969) Edna Price grave Edna Price grave |
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Russell Brothers Circus Russell Bros Circus C. W. Webb's Wild Animal Show |
1928 Founded 1944 Sold |
Russell Brothers Circus Russell Bros Circus Rolla, MO (USA) |
Russell Bros Circus
The Russell Brothers Circus was founded in 1928 by husband and wife team Claude Webb and Pauline (Russell) Webb. In the early 1920s Claude Webb had operated pit shows featuring large snakes and other exotic animals. 1n 1927 Webb expanded his animal exhibit and opened C.W. Webb's Wild Animal Show. The show played fairs and carnivals in the Iowa area. In 1928, Webb purchased an elephant, added two rings, and opened Webb Brothers 2 Ring Circus. In 1929, Webb expanded the show to three rings and changed the name to Russell Bros Circus (Pauline's maiden name was Russell). The Webbs carefully watched over the circus operation, seeing that the show was clean, brightly painted, and that all money and expenses were accounted for. This led to the circus becoming profitable and developing a good reputation in the cities they played. In 1937 the Russell Bros Circus had grown to a 40 truck show, the big top canvas was a 120" round with three 50 foot middles, the menagerie 70' with three 30s, and the sideshow tent was a 60 with three 30s. The seasons of 1938 and 1939 was not a good one for circuses and the Russell Bros. was no exception. Over the next few years, the show slowly regained it's grandeur. In 1943, the show played the west coast and was doing very well, in that same year the Webbs let it be known that the show was for sale. After several meetings with perspective buyers, the show was sold mid-season to former aerialist and showmen Art Concello. In 1944 Concello opened his new circus under title of Clyde Beatty-Russell Bros. Circus. Sword swallowers with the Russell Bros Circus included Milo (1935), Red Pepper Joe Sweet (1934), Joseph Grendol (1937). (Seeking info and photos of sword swallowers with the Russell BrosCircus).
Russell Bros Circus/Russell Brothers Circus: |
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Grendol Gendol Glendol The Great Grendol Joseph Grendol |
Performed 1929-40 |
Ringling Bros Barnum & Bailey Dick Best Sideshow Royal American Shows Ripley's Believe It or Not Odditorium Century of Progress Expo Chicago World's Fair Cole Bros Circus Russell Bros Circus Chicago, IL Worchester, MA (USA) |
In 1929, "Glendol" the Sword Swallower (Joseph Grendol) was featured as the sword swallower featured with Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Circus. On September 7, 1933, Grendol the Sword Swallower was featured with the Dick Best Sideshow on Royal American Shows at the South Dakota State Fair in Huron SD. In 1933-34, Grendol was the sword swallower with Ripley's Odditorium at the 1933-34 "Century of Progress Expo". In his act, Grendol would swallow a bayonet attached to the butt of a rifle which when fired, would propel the bayonet down his throat. In 1934, Grendol performed as sword swallower with the Cole Bros. Circus. In 1935, "Gendol" performed as sword swallower with Ringling Brothers Circus. In an April 1935 article about Grendol with Ringling Brothers in NY, it adds that he was from the Grendol family of Worchester, MA, and his wife was Miss Virginia, the Iron-Tongued Girl.
In 1937, Grendol worked as sword swallower with C. W. Webb's Russell Brothers Circus, and in 1940, he returned to work as sword swallower with Cole Bros. Circus again. Seeking photos and more information.
Joseph Grendol Timeline:
Grendol with Dick Best on Royal American (9-7-1933) Joseph Grendol (1934) Joseph Grendol (1934) Joseph Grendol (1934) Joseph Grendol pitchard (1934) Grendol with Ripley's (9-27-1934) Joseph Grendol Ringling Bros (1935?) Article on Grendol with Ringling Bros (April 1935) |
| Frank Boulware |
Born 1901 Performed 1916-1949 Retired 1949 Died 27 Oct 1960 |
Royal American Shows Ripley's Believe It or Not! Decatur, IL (USA) |
Frank Boulware was born in Noble Illinois around 1901, grew up in Decatur, Illinois, and first learned sword swallowing at the age of 15 when he sneaked into a sword swallower's tent to practice. Frank Boulware performed with a variety of shows including Royal American Shows and Ripley's Believe It or Not over a period of 33 years from 1916 to 1949, when he retired at the age of 63 in Decatur, Illinois.
According to the November 7, 1960 Billboard, "FINAL CURTAIN - BOULARE, Frank, 59, sword swallower and human pin cushion, at a Decatur, Ill., hospital October 27 after a long illness. He was with circuses until about 1949. He was a veteran of World War I. Survivors include three brothers, Albert, William and Samuel, all of Decatur." Seeking photos and more information on sword swallower Frank Boulware.
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| Capt. Robert Elms |
Performed 1940 |
Duke Jeannette's Circus Side Show John H. Marks Shows (USA) |
According to the August 17, 1940 Bilboard Magazine, Capt. Robert Elms was sword swallower in 1940 with Duke Jeannette's Circus Side Show on the John H. Marks Shows.
Seeking photos and more information on sword swallower Capt. Robert Elms
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| Jack Manning |
Performed 1940 |
Steelton, PA (USA) |
Jack Manning the sword swallower was one of the circus sideshow guests attended the wedding of Monkey Girl Priscilla Lauther and Alligator Boy Emmitt Bejano in Steelton PA on May 10, 1940 according to the May 10, 1940 Harrisburg Daily News. Seeking photos and more information on sword swallower Jack Manning.
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| Bob Ely |
Performed 1942 |
Mark Williams' Ten-in-One Show P. E. Gooding Amusement Company (USA) |
According to the June 13, 1942 Bilboard Magazine, Bob Ely was sword swallower in 1942 with Mark Williams Ten-in-One Show playing Ohio territory with the P. E. Gooding Amusement Company. His wife, Mrs. Ely, did the blade ladder.
Seeking photos and more information on sword swallower Bob Ely
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Capt. Gillien Captain Gillien |
Performed 1942 |
James Thompson's Side Show Endy Bros.' Shows (USA) |
According to the June 13, 1942 Bilboard Magazine, Captain Gillien was sword swallower in 1942 with James Thompson's Side Show on Endy Bros.' Shows.
Seeking photos and more information on sword swallower Captain Gillien
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| H. Brown |
Performed 1946 |
Bailey Brothers Circus (USA) |
According to the Bailey Bros. Circus Official Route & Program Season 1946, H . Brown was the sword swallower with Bailey Bros. Circus for the 1946 season.
Seeking photos and more information. |
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Howard E. Lee, Jr. Howard E. Leo, Jr. |
Deserted US Army 1944 Performed -1950 |
Chatham, Ontario Crown Point, IN (USA) |
Howard E. Lee, Jr. was a carnival sword swallower and knife thrower from Chatham Ontario Canada who deserted the US Army in 1944 and disguised himself as an Indian and hid by working with carnivals. An AP article entitled "DESERTER CAUGHT DESPITE DISGUISE - Disguise as Indian Fails To Fool FBI" ran in newspapers across the US on November 13, 1950:
Crown Point, Ind (API) - "The Indian disguise of Howard E. Lee, Jr., carnival sword swallower and knife thrower from Chatham, Ont didn't help him much in Lake County jail today. ' H. G. Foster, FBI special agent, said agents spotted him, shoulder-length hair and all at the home of relatives in Crisman, Ind, and picked him up on a charge of deserting the U.S. Army six years ago."
Seeking photos and more information. |
| Bill Balsewice |
Performed 1950 |
(USA) |
According to the March 25, 1950 Billboard Magazine, Bill Balsewice was a sword swallower in March 1950.
Seeking photos and more information. |
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Vernon LeFeber Vernon George LeFeber, Jr. |
Born Feb 24, 1899 Married 1917-18 Married 1928 Married 1941 Performed 1913-1940s Died March 17, 1951
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Marion, IN Indianapolis, IN (USA) |
Vernon LeFeber worked with circuses from 1913 to the late 1940s as a lion trainer, fire-eater, sword swallower and glass eater. Vernon George LeFeber Jr was born on February 24, 1899 in Fairmount, Grant County, Indiana to Vernon LeFeber Sr. (1876-1954) and May Elma Ross LeFeber (1875-1961). In August 1913, according to articles published in the August 25-28, 1913 Indianapolis Star, 14 year old Vernon LeFeber Jr. and his friend Wylie Flick ran away to work with a circus. Young Vernon sent a postcard to his father informing him that he had run away with the circus, and eventually called his father, just as his father was preparing to put out a state-wide search for his son. Vernon Jr. went on to serve in World War I in Luxembourg, a tiny European country bordered by Belgium, France and Germany. Per a letter written by Vernon LeFeber posted in the April 10, 1919 issue of the Clinton County Review in Colfax, IN, LeFeber was housed during WWI in Evacuation Hospital #13 in Luxembourg.
Vernon LeFeber was married in his first marriage to Eva Veatrice Males Radcliff (1901-1984). In 1918, they had their first child Eva Viola LeFeber Wolfe (1918-2003). In 1920, the couple had a son named Vernon Raymond LeFeber (1920-1920) who died the day he was born in April 23, 1920. In 1921, the couple had another son named Lloyd LeFeber (1921-1921) who also died on the same day he was born on April 6, 1921. In 1924, they had a daughter named Doretta Eileen LeFeber Tissot Sease who currently lives in Ohio. It was also in 1924 that Vernon began seeing Mildred Hutchison Shane. In the 1930s, Vernon LeFeber worked in a circus owned by Gene Gordon probably located in nearby Peru IN. In 1928 Vernon LeFeber married Mildred L. Hutchison Shane (1910-2001) who also worked in the circus as a snake-charmer while Vernon worked as a lion tamer. In 1930, the couple had a daughter named Verna Joan LeFeber who was born on August 11, 1930, and died 2 months later on Oct. 21, 1930. In 1931, the couple had a son named Vernon George LeFeber, who currently lives in Michigan. In 1934, the couple gave birth to Harry Edward LeFeber (1934-2014) in Marion, IN on August 7, 1934. In 1935, Vernon and Mildred divorced, and Mildred went on to marry a man named Robert "Bob" Wales. In 1941, Vernon LeFeber later married his third wife, a little person named Edith May Martin (-LeFeber -Hayes) (1922-2003), while he was working in the circus as a fire-eater, sword swallower and glass-eater. The circus was owned by Gene Gordon, and Vernon also worked as a "barker" and Mildred worked as a "snake charmer". In 1942, the couple gave birth to a daughter Dorothea May LeFeber Reidy (1942-2010), who died in 2010. In 1944, the couple gave birth to Albert Vernon "Butch" LeFeber (1944 - 2008) in Indianapolis, IN, also a little person like his mother. Vernon LeFeber Jr. died of drowning on March 17, 1951 at the age of 52 at Fall Creek in Indianapolis, IN. In the death certificate, LeFeber's occupation was listed as "Sign Painter", and the coroner reported the cause of death as an accident: "Drowning. Acute Alcoholism. Intoxicated man in some undetermined manner fell or stumbled into creek", Vernon LeFeber was buried on March 20, 1951 at Sutherland Park Cemetery, Indianapolis, Indiana. (grave) Seeking photos and more information.
Vernon LeFeber's Death Certificate (1951) Vernon LeFeber gravesite (1951) Vernon LeFeber gravesite
Vernon LeFeber Timeline: |
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Chester Dolphin Champion Swallower of Swords Charles H. Dolphin |
Born June 3, 1907 Performed 1933-1948 Died March 2, 1986
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Ripley's Odditorium Chicago World's Fair Royal American Shows Worcester, MA (USA) |
Chester Dolphin was a sword swallower, juggler, unicycle rider, and handbalancer who performed first with his brother in circuses and fairs in the mid 1930s as "Chester Dolphin, Champion swallower of swords, carpenter saws and stove pokers", and later in the late 1940s with his wife Charmon Dolphin as Chester Dolphin and Co. Chester Dolphin was known for swallowing sabers, long scissors, a stove poker, and a 23 inch long-toothed carpenter saw early in his career, and later for performing a free headstand balance trick with seven rings.
The Dolphin brothers started in Worchester, Massachusetts and worked with circuses and fairs in the early 1930s. A third brother helped the other two brothers in making props, a unicycle, and the balance globe, but he did not perform with them. On October 28, 1934, Chester Dolphin was featured with Royal American Shows in Biloxi, MS with 15 other acts who were brought directly from a successful run with the Ripley's Odditorium at the Chicago World's Fair Century of Progress of 1933-1934. The two brothers served in the military together in Weisbaden, Germany in the 1940s, and eventually traveled the world performing with their acts, since neither had any children. After the war, Dolphin performed with his talented wife, Charmon Dolphin. According to the Juggler's Bulletin 1948: "Chester Dolphin and Co. were at the Hipp Theatre the week of September 9th to 15th (1948). A customer was in my shop and told me there was a juggler there that had some great comedy, but did not do a lot of juggling. So I went over to see. The customer was right to an extent, the comedy and gags were terrific and kept the audience in howls all through the act, but the juggling was wonderful. After a comedy egg and cane balance, he did a three ball routine, four and five ball routine, and then a great gag on nine balls (not the old one of having the balls fastened together in threes) but something else of his own. Then the head stand bouncing four balls on drum while upside down. Some fine routines with three Lind clubs. A bottle balanced on his head is jerked to back of the neck, and he does a hand stand balancing bottle and picks up a glass of liquid in teeth back to feet, and drinks from glass as he jerks bottle back to top of head. Then does headstand on revolving globe ball and spins rings on each leg and each arm and one on stick in mouth. Company is Mrs. Dolphin who adds "cheesecake" to the act and a few comedy bits. Went over great, and was a delightful conversationalist as we had a bite together after the show." Charles H. Dolphin died on March 2, 1986 and is buried with his wife Lillian S. Hanson Dolphin (1911-2007) in All Faiths Cemetery in Worchester MA. Seeking photos and more information.
Chester Dolphin juggler/balancer (1940s) |
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Sid Marion Sidney Marion |
Born Sept 14, 1900 Performed 1934-35 Died June 29, 1965
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Hollywood, CA (USA) |
Sidney "Sid" Marion was born September 14, 1900 in Massachusetts. He performed as the sword swallower in the films "The Mighty Barnum", (1934) and "Magnificent Obsession" (1935), and as an actor in "Beau James" (1957), "The Five Pennies" (1959), "My Fair Lady" (1964) with Audrey Hepburn, and "The Outlaws Is Coming" (1965) with The Three Stooges. He died June 29, 1965 in Hollywood CA of a heart attack. He is buried in Home of Peace Memorial Park in East Los Angeles, CA. Plot: Between Corridor of Harmony and Benovolence, Niche 57-E111. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Red Pepper Joe Joseph A. Sweet (Souilliere) |
Born ? Performed 1934-1963? Died? |
Circus Shaw Sweet Weldon Variety Co Seils-Sterling Circus Russell Bros. Circus (USA) |
Joseph A. Sweet (Souilliere) performed as a sword swallower under the name Red Pepper Joe. He performed with Circus Shaw, with Russell Bros. Circus on June 18, 1934 in Hudson, NY, and with the Seils-Sterling Four Ring Circus on August 23, 1936 in Ripon, Wisconsin.
According to the Hobby-Bandwagon dated May 1949, Joe Sweet is also listed as sword swallower on the 1936 Seils-Sterling Circus program. Joe Sweet was also known to have appeared in photos dated as late as 1963. Seeking photos and more information. Joseph Sweet Joe Sweet with Russell Brothers (1934) Joe Sweet with Russell Brothers (1934) Joe Sweet with Russell Brothers (1934) Joe Sweet with Seils Sterling (1936) Joe Sweet with Seils Sterling (1936) Joe Sweet with Seils Sterling (1936) Joe Sweet with Seils Sterling (1936) Joe Sweet swallowing sword Joe Sweet with Poster Joe Sweet with Indians (1963) |
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The Amazing Blondini Mike Blondini Michael Costello The White Yogi "World's Youngest Sword Swallower" |
Born Aug 1922 Performed 1935-80s Died Nov 20, 1996 |
Dublin Ireland British Fairgrounds (Ireland/UK) |
The Amazing Blondini (1922-1996) was an Irish sword swallower, fairground performer and escapologist who took up sword swallowing at the age of 13 in 1935 and performed circus arts and daredevil stunts around the world.
Born at a fairground in Dublin Ireland in August 1922, The Amazing Blondini was born Michael Costello; Both of his parents were fairground novelty acts from Tralee, his mother a fortune teller, and his father a fairground strongman who performed under the name "The Mighty Atom". Costello had no formal education and spent his formative years on the fairgrounds of Ireland and England. At 13, he left his family and began his career featured as the "World's Youngest Sword Swallower". Two years later in 1937 he added fire-eating to his act at the age of 15. However, after his sister fell to her death during her trapeze act, he left the fairgrounds and spent many years as a drifter, mostly around Dublin. In 1939 Costello moved to London and worked for a time with a quack selling health potions. With the onset of World War II, he joined the British army as an infantryman. After the war he returned to the business of entertaining. He became an escapologist, learned the art of self-hypnosis, developed into a strongman and an explosives expert. His stunts included lying on a bed of nails and inviting people to walk on him, pulling a Rolls-Royce with his teeth and lying in a coffin filled with explosives and blowing it up. Costello toured the world under the names The Amazing Blondini and The White Yogi, and his death-defying stunts attracted audiences of more than 10,000 people. A book written about his life called "Bed of Nails: The Story of the Amazing Blondini", by Gordon Thomas was set in the British fairgrounds. It was first published in 1950, and later republished by Allan Wingate in 1955. Costello was constantly inventing new stunts and acts: at Bellevue Fairground in Manchester in 1975 he was buried alive for 78 days. His acts were not illusions, and on one occasion he was badly burned after his exploding coffin trick went wrong, However he continued to perform the trick well into his 60th year. Described as "one of the world's greatest circus performers", Costello appeared in fairgrounds and theatres in Asia, the US, South Africa and Europe. He also worked as a film stuntman for actors such as Alan Ladd and Victor Mature, and appeared on many British television shows, including The Billy Cotton Band Show, Sunday Night at the London Palladium and The Russell Harty Show. Michael Costello died in Wicklow on November 20th 1996 at the age of 74, and is buried in Greystones, Ireland. He had been visiting his friend and biographer Gordon Thomas and was thinking of retiring to Ireland. He was survived by his common-law wife, Sally. Seeking photos and more information.
Mike Blondini Bed of Nails (1955) Mike Blondini Rope around Neck |
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Cristiani Family Circus Cristiani Brothers Circus King Bros Cristiani Circus Cristiani Bros Circus Wallace Bros Circus Cristiani-Wallace Bros Circus |
1840s perform in Italy 1934 joins Ringling Bros 1949 Cristiani Bros Circus 1950 King Cristiani Circus 1953 Cristiani Bros Circus 1960 Wallace Bros Circus 1962 Cristiani-Wallace Bros Circus |
Cristiani Bros Circus Sarasota, FL (USA) |
Cristiani-Wallace Bros Circus
The Cristiani family of Italy, known as the "Royal Family of the Circus", were one of the most famous equestrian families in circus history, with a history dating back to the mid-19th century. The Cristiani family traces its circus roots back to 1840 when gymnast and bareback rider Emilio Cristiani joined a traveling circus in Pisa, Italy. The Cristiani Family history in the USA started in 1933, when circus scout Pat Valdo of Ringling Bros, Barnum & Bailey Circus "discovered" the troupe performing in Brussels Belgium. Ringling Bros Circus owner John Ringling North convinced the Cristiani family to suspend operations in Italy and come to America in the spring of 1934 to debut their world-famous bareback riding act for Ringling Bros Barnum & Bailey Circus at Madison Square Garden in New York. Sailing out of Great Yarmouth in 1934 to make their Ringling Bros. debut at Madison Square Garden were Papa and Mama Cristiani and 10 siblings. However, after a dispute with the Loyal-Repenski riding act, the Cristianis were moved to the Ringling-owned Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus, part of the American Circus Corporation, which was also owned by the Ringling Circus organization for the remainder of the 1934 season. At the end of the 1934 season, the Cristianis stayed in the Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus winterquarters in Peru, Indiana. The Cristianis continued with Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus Forepaugh Sells Circus in 1935. In 1936, the Cristiani family moved over to the Ringling-owned Al G. Barnes Circus where they introduced a teeterboard act to their repetoire. They remained with the newly named Al G. Barnes Sells-Floto circus through the 1937 season. In 1938, the Cristianis toured with the Ringling Bros Barnum & Bailey Circus for their entire tour, and remained there for several seasons as a featured attraction. At that point, in 1938, the Cristiani family moved to Sarasota, FL where the Ringling circus wintered. Several members of the Cristianis still live in Sarasota. During the mid to late 1940's the Cristianis toured with the Cole Bros. Circus. In 1949, Papa and Mama Cristiani, along with their children and grandchildren, a family of 26, pulled their circus equipment out of storage to form "Cristiani Brothers Circus" to great acclaim and success. During the 1950s, the Cristiani show merged with partner Floyd King's King Bros Circus to successfully operate as the King Bros-Cristiani Circus. In 1950, Pete Cristiani married Norma Davenport, daughter of Ben Davenport, owner of the Dailey Bros. Circus. As a wedding gift, Ben Davenport gave the newlywed couple five performing elephants. Norma and Pete Cristiani joined the rest of the Cristiani family who were working with the King Bros. Circus owned by showman Floyd King. The Cristianis then joined forces with Floyd King and the "King Bros. and Cristiani Circus" was born. Lucio Cristiani and Floyd King managed the circus, Pete Cristiani served as concession manager, Ernesto and Oscar Cristiani were general superintendents, Mugador Cristiani handled ticket sales, and Belmonte Cristiani was boss canvasman. From 1950 until 1953, the King Bros. and Cristiani Circus played the eastern United States and into Canada. (1953 program and route) In 1953, the Cristiani family took their show back under the name Cristiani Bros. Circus. Floyd King formed a partnership with Arnold Maley and his show reverted back to the King Bros Circus. In 1954, the Cristiani Bros Circus made the long trek up the Trans Alaskan and Canadian Highway to become the first circus ever to tour Alaska to outstanding critical acclaim and financial success. By 1958, the Cristiani Bros Circus had grown from a small family circus to the second largest circus in North America after Ringling Bros. Barnum & Bailey Circus. It took 52 trucks alone to move the Cristiani Bros Circus from one town to the next. In the 1960's, circus economics changed, forcing the show to close. In 1960, the Cristiani family opened the Wallace Bros Circus which played dates in the eastern United States in 1960 and 1961. In 1962, the show was renamed to the Cristiani-Wallace Bros Circus. The Cristiani-Wallace Bros Circus was a medium sized circus operating in the early 1960s, owned by the Cristiani family and managed by Pete Cristiani. The circus toured mostly states east of the Mississippi. Sword swallowers with the Cristiani Bros Circus, King Bros-Cristiani Circus and Cristiani-Wallace Bros Circus included Carlos Leal (1954-55), Capt. Don Leslie (1956-59), Duke Alphonse (1960), Francis Doran (1960?-61), and David L. Vaughn (1965). (Seeking info and photos of sword swallowers with the Cristiani BrosCircus).
Cristiani/Cristiani-Wallace Bros Circus: |
| Carson and Barnes Circus | 1937 Carson and Barnes Circus founded |
Hugo, OK (USA) |
Carson and Barnes Circus
Sword Swallowers with Carson and Barnes Circus: |
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Johnny Nugent Johnnie Nugent John Adam Nugent |
Born November 24, 1914 Performed 1920s-70s Died May 27, 1980
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Brinson Bros Circus Johnny's "Claw and Fang" Jungleland Zoo Bartok Circus Hoxie Brothers Circus King Brothers Circus Petersburg, VA (USA) |
Johnny Nugent was born on November 24, 1914 in Petersburg, VA, and lived most of his life in the Colonial Heights/ Petersburg area when he wasn't on the road or in the military. A circus made its winter quarters in the fairgrounds at Petersburg, and Johnny started spending time there every winter as a teen, probably around 1927-29, just before the Great Depression. There was a sword swallower on the show and Johnny was really intrigued, and even carved some wooden bayonets to match what he'd seen. He began practicing with a fly swatter and either was taught sword swallowing by someone on the show, or learned enough to take it on himself. When the Depression hit, Johnny went off with the circus. No jobs were available then, and the circus would at least get him from town to town and make sure he was fed, even if there wasn't any money to pay him. Times were hard. One of the early shows he worked on was the Brinson Bros Circus in the 1920s - It was an all wagon show, owned by Sam Dock, Ray Brison and Ed Davidson. Johnny Nugent performed as a sword swallower with various shows doing sword swallowing and other acts until about 1936-38 when he formed his own traveling reptile show, Johnny's "Claw and Fang" Jungleland Zoo. He then toured with various circus and carnival shows until World War II, when he was drafted into the US Army, sold the show, and went to war. In World War II, he was a Sergeant in the US Army, and was injured severely in a munitions dump explosion where he lost his right eye and his legs were so badly damaged they said he would never walk again. But he learned to walk again, and learned to walk without a limp. After the war, he started another reptile show for a few years, but got tired of traveling with it, and set up a permanent location in Colonial Heights, VA called "Johnny's Jungleland Zoo" which was open to the public. About 1955-57 he got tired of dealing with the public and closed down the zoo. At this time, Nugent got a part time Civil Service job working at Ft. Lee, VA, and started working part time with circuses and sideshows during the show season, where he performed several different acts besides sword swallowing, including fire eating, knife throwing, magic, trick and fancy roping, whips and trick riding. Nugent generally didn't stay with the same show all season. He would travel out and meet up with a show headed toward Virginia, then travel with it for a while. When it would start getting too far away from home, he would head back and connect with another show passing up or down the eastern seaboard, a few weeks at a time with each show, sometimes big tops, sometimes sideshows or carnivals. Nugent never married or had any children while he was on the road. When asked why he never married, he would always respond, "I was in one damn war, that was enough!" However, it appears he may have been married at one time to Helena C. Nugent (1890-1970). According to a White Tops circus report, "Johnnie Nugent" filled in as a sword swallower with Hoxie Bros Circus in 1961. He was known as the "Expert Snake Catcher" as well as under the nickname "Bobo" when he semi-retired from the sideshow business in the mid-1970s. In 1979 Johnny Nugent performed for the Kay Brothers Tent. According to the October 29,1979 Circus Report, "Johnny Nugent is well known as a sword swallower, trick roper, knife thrower, fire eater and magic
performer. He is retired now, but still loves to talk about the circus with everyone."
Johnny Nugent died May 27, 1980 at the age of 65, and is buried in the family cemetery plot at Saint Joseph's Roman Catholic Cemetery in Petersburg, VA. He is survived by a brother in Sevier County, just outside Gatlinburg, TN, and a nephew who used to perform with him. Seeking photos and more information. Johnny Nugent swallowing sword (1960-61) Johnny Nugent swallowing sword (1960-61) Johnny Nugent swallowing sword (1960-61) Johnny Nugent postcard (1960-61) Johnny Nugent swallowing sword (1961-62) Johnny Nugent with horse (1970) Johnny Nugent swallowing sword (1974-75) Johnny Nugent's swords (1974-75) Johnny Nugent with swords (1975) Johnny Nugent (1975) Johnny Nugent eating fire (1974-75) Johnny Nugent knife thrower (1974-75) Johnny Nugent at home (late 1970s) Johnny Nugent article (1979) Johnny Nugent grave (1980) |
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"Prince Tracey" "World's Smallest Sword Swallower" Bob Tracy Bob Tracey Gilbert Tracy Gilbert Tracey Gilbert (Bob) Tracey Howard Gilbert Tracey Leonard Tracey Leonard Tracy |
Born May 3, 1907 Performed 1930s-40s Died May 15, 1968
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Coleman Brothers Circus Bentley's All-American Shows Tracey Bros Side Show Texas Gibsonton, FL (USA) |
Howard Gilbert "Bob" Tracey was born on May , 1907. At 4 foot 2 inches tall, Gilbert (Bob) Tracey performed in the 1930s and '40s as "Prince Tracey", the "World's Smallest Sword Swallower" on the Coleman Brothers Circus Midget Sideshow with his brothers Leonard Tracey and Arthur Tracey. Gilbert swallowed a large scissors and a number of Masonic Knights of Columbus swords, and Leonard and Arthur performed as the midget boxers "Mo" and "Ko" of the "Mo and Ko Boxers". A September 2 1944 Billboard article states: "TRACEY BROS' SIDE SHOW closed with Bentley's All-American Shows and joined the Crescent Amusement Company. Present line-up includes Gilbert Tracey, manager and magic; Anna Williams, lady of swords; Leonard Tracy, sword swallower". Gilbert Bob Tracey was married to Norma Tracey (1904-1972).
Gilbert Bob Tracey died on May 15, 1968 at 61 years old, and is buried in Showmans Rest Cemetery in Gibsonton, FL. Seeking photos, dates, and more information. Tracey Brothers with Coleman Midget Sideshow Prince Gilbert Bob Tracey Gilbert Bob Tracey grave |
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Prince Charles Prince Charles Prester Little Charlie Chas Prester Charlie Prester Charley Prester Charles Prester Charles A. Prester Anne M. Prester |
Born April 24, 1913 Married 1935 Performed 1931-39? Died Sept 25, 1990
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Kent and Sussex Fair World of Mirth Show Dodson's Worlds Fair Shows Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus Forepaugh-Sells Sideshow Cole Bros Circus Garfield, NJ Fort Pierce, FL (USA) |
Charles A. Prester was born of Hungarian parents in Garfield, New Jersey on April 24, 1913. In 1931, Charlie Prester learned sword swallowing at 18 years of age from sword swallower Alex Linton (pitch card from Alex Linton to Charley Prester signed January 7, 1932 in NYC).
In 1933, "Prince Charles" Prester worked with Kent and Sussex Fair in Harrington, Delaware. In July 1933, he sent a postcard to a "Friend": "Dear Friend, I am here at the Kent and Sussex Fair Harrington, Del, feeling fine, wish you all the same. I wish you and family would come down here to see me. I am here for this week. Come and say hello. Your pal, Prince Charles, Charile Prester, Swordswallower, Little Charlie, Harrington Del Fair" In 1934, at the age of 21, Charles Prester worked with the World of Mirth show with 18 year old Anne A. Mukosey. Anne was born in Springfield, MA on December 22, 1916 of Russian heritage. In 1935, Charles and Anne were married in Chicago in Cook County, IL when Charles was about 22 and Anne was about 19. Sometime after they got married in 1935, Charles and Anne worked with Dodson's World Fairs, and the address on their ID cards showed that they lived in Garfield, NJ. Anne Prester worked primarily as a contortionist, and worked illusion acts such as the bladebox and as The Headless Wonder, but in some early photos, there is evidence that Anne may have also performed as a female sword swallower with Charles in their early years together. From 1935 to 1938, Charlie and Anne Prester performed with the Hagenbeck-Wallace Forepaugh-Sells Combined Circus Sideshow. In 1935, the circus split from Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey and became the Hagenbeck-Wallace and Forepaugh-Sells Bros. Circus, which did not tour in 1936. In 1936 and 1937, Charles and Anne traveled with Cole Brothers Circus (Charles Prester with Cole Bros Circus in 1937), then went back with Hagenbeck-Wallace and Forepaugh-Sells Bros. Circus for its final 1938 season. Charles Prester swallowed up to 5 swords at once, and displayed his props on two sword shields that contained swords, knives, bayonets, long nails, fire pokers, and a keyhole saw. The 1940 census shows Charles and Anne Prester living on Boulevard Drive in St. Lucie Florida.
In 1941, Charlie and Anne moved to Fort Pierce, FL when Charlie was around 25 years old and Anne was about 21. In 1954, Charlie and Anne had one daughter named Annette, who they raised in Fort Pierce where they lived the rest of their lives. Charles and Anne were married for 55 years before Charles died on Sep. 25, 1990 at the age of 77 in Fort Pierce FL. At the time, Charles was survived by his wife, Anne M. Prester, daughter Annette McMullian, grand-daughter Debra Shaffer, and a great-grandson Alex Shaffer, all of Fort Pierce; two sisters, Theresa Pantess of Garfield, NJ and Julia Grap of Patterson, NJ. Charles A. Prester is buried at Hillcrest Memorial Gardens in Fort Pierce, FL. Anne M. Prester (1916-2006) passed away on December 15, 2006. Survivors include their daughter, Annette McMullian of Fort Pierce, FL, three grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren. Seeking photos and more information.
Prince Charles Prester Timeline:
Alex Linton signed pitch card (1-7-1932) Prince Charles postcard (4-1933) Prince Charles postcard back (4-1933) Charles Prester with sword shield Charles Prester & Alex Linton with sword shield Chas Prester Dodson's World Fair ID Anne Prester Dodson's World Fair ID Anne Prester contortionist Anne Prester with swords Charlie and Anne Prester swallowing swords Charlie & Anne with Hagenbeck Wallace (1935?) Charles Prester with Cole Bros (1936-37?) Charles Prester Cole Bros Circus (1937) Charles and Anne Prester with Forepaugh-Sells (1935? 38?) Charles and Anne Prester with Forepaugh-Sells (1935? 38?) Charles Prester swallowing bayonet Forepaugh-Sells (1935? 38?) Charlie Prester with sideshow Charles Prester with sword shields Charles Prester swallowing 5 swords Charles Prester performing in tent Charlie Prester sword shield Charlie Prester sword shield Charles Prester grave |
| Maria Cortez | Performed 1930s-40s? | (USA) |
Maria Cortez swallowed a variety of swords in a miniature video. Seeking photos and more information. Maria Cortez video (hi res 15M .wmv) |
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Ripley's Believe It or Not Odditorium Century of Progress Expo New York World's Fair |
April 30 to Oct 1939 April to October 27, 1940 |
Ripley's Believe It or Not Odditorium "The World of Tomorrow" New York World's Fair New York, NY (USA) |
The 1939-1940 New York World's Fair, which covered 1,216 acres of Flushing Meadows-Corona Park (same location as the later 1964-1965 New York World's Fair), was the second largest American world's fair of all time, exceeded only by St. Louis's Louisiana Purchase Exposition of 1904. Many countries around the world participated, and over 44 million people attended its exhibits in its two seasons. The NYWF of 1939-1940 claimed to be the "first" exposition to be based on the future, with an opening slogan of "Dawn of a New Day", which allowed visitors to take a look at "The World of Tomorrow".
Sword swallower Edna Price, who was a big hit at the 1933-34 Chicago World's Fair was brought back by popular demand for the Ripley's Believe It or Not Odditorim at the New York World's Fair of 1939, where she swallowed her neon tube at the Ripley's Believe It or Not Odditorium. The New York World's Fair was open for two seasons, from April to October each year 1939 and 1940. To get the fair's budget overruns under control before the 1940 season and augment gate revenues, the fair management in the second year replaced the president of the fair committee with a banker, and placed much greater emphasis on the amusement features and less on the educational and uplifting exhibits. The fair attracted over 45 million visitors and generated roughly $48 million in revenue. Since the Fair Corporation had invested $67 million (in addition to nearly $100 million dollars from other sources), it was a financial failure, and the corporation declared bankruptcy. The New York World's Fair officially closed its doors forever on October 27, 1940. |
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Jimmy Kuhn Jimmy Gene Kuhn James Gene Kuhn "World's Youngest Sword Swallower" |
Born April 9, 1931 Performed 1944-1970s Married 1951 Died October 23, 1979
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Carmi, IL (USA) |
Jimmy Gene Kuhn was born in Carmi, IL on April 9, 1931. Kuhn started sword swallowing around 1944-1945 at the age of 13 to 14 years old, was billed as the "World's Youngest Sword Swallower". He performed with circus sideshows as a fire-eater and sword swallower for many years. Kuhn was married in 1951 to Betty Jean Holland (born 1934, died Nov 13, 2009 in Cisco, GA), served as a PFC in the US Marines in Korea, and they had two children, a son, Jimmy Ray Kuhn (born February 13, 1952, died Nov 1994), and a daughter, Tyronta Kuhn (born in 1953). Kuhn performed for around 25 years until the late 1960s or early 1970s. He died on October 23, 1979 in Gooding, Idaho at the age of 48, and is buried at Kuykendall Cemetery in Carmi, IL. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Alex Linton Alex Lonton Alec Linton Alex Lang Alexander P Linton "The Young Ajax" "Prince of Swords" |
Born Oct 25, 1904 Performed 1920s-60s Died Sept 2, 1972
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A.J. Budd Shows E. K. Fernandez Shows World of Mirth Cetlin & Wilson Ringling Bros Clyde Beatty Circus Cole Bros Circus Hubert's Museum Sells & Gray Circus Cavalcade Variety Shows Sarasota, FL (USA) |
Alex Linton (sometimes spelled "Alec Linton" or "Alex Lonton") was born Alexander P. Linton in Roscommon, Boyle County, Ireland on October 25, 1904, and moved with his family to the United States (possibly arriving in Washington DC in 1919). Alex Linton learned sword swallowing at the age of 12 around 1916 from his father who was a sword swallower who died at age 84.
Early in his career, Linton performed under the stage name "The Young Ajax" to capitalize on the reputation of the renowned sword swallower "The Mighty Ajax" (Joseph Milana) who had become popular in the early 1900s. He also performed under the name "Alex Linton, Prince of Swords". During his early career, Linton performed with a sword shield of 20 different swords. In 1927, Alex Linton was tattooed by Charlie Wagner. Linton also claimed to have studied sword swallowing under Lucky Ball in the early 1930's. From October to December 1931, Alex Linton worked with film producer Tod Browning and Halfman Johnny Eck when Linton replaced the late Delno Fritz as sword swallower in the Tod Browning film "Freaks" that premiered at the Fox Criterion in Los Angeles on February 20, 1932 and later became a cult classic. (Clip of Alex Linton in "Freaks") On January 7, 1932, Alex Linton signed a pitch card for 18 year old sword swallower Charley Prester who had also recently learned the art of sword swallowing. Linton's first major booking was with Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey Circus. In 1936, Linton performed as the sword swallower with the Cole Bros Circus. According to the May 28, 1938 Billboard Magazine, "E. K. Fernandez Shows made a 10 -day stand at Moikai, Hawaii. Bob Godwin, "Dr. Q. Hypnotist," departed for mainland, as did Alex Linton, sword swallower, and Anato Hayes, anatomical wonder. Very rough trip to Molkai. Ship could not dock and everybody was taken off in small boats." Linton was employed at Hubert's Museum for 10 months from November 13, 1938 to September 13, 1939. According to the September 9, 1939 Billboard Magazine, "Alex Linton, bayonet hurler and sword swallower, who will have completed a 10 months' engagement at Hubert's Museum September 13, has compiled an interesting record. His calculations show he has thrown an average of 300 bayonets a day or a total of 90,000 for the 10 months without hitting Stella, tattoo girl, his target. He has swallowed approximately 260 feet of steel per day, or about 78,000 feet in all. He performed these feats without being late or missing a single performance during the entire run." During World War II, Linton was enlisted at Camp Bowie, Brownwood, TX as "Pvt. Alex Linton", where he put on a sword swallowing show for his buddies of the 27th Signal Construction Battalion in 1944. Linton was hired to perform with Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey Circus in Beaumont Texas in late 1945 to replace Lady Patricia Zerm who was ill. Alex Linton returned again to Ringling Brothers in 1946, '47, and '49, and was featured with Clyde Beatty Circus in 1948 and the early 1950s, and with Cavalcade Variety Shows in 1953-1954. According to a January 6, 1948 article in Stars & Stripes: Swallowing Swords is Simple, But Long Hours Get Al Down -- New York (UP) -- It's not the long blade that bothers Alex Lonton (sic), 43, as he goes about his daily chore of swallowing 100 swords. It's the long hours that get him down. "You come in around noon on this job," he complained, wiping down a bayonet blade with a dry cloth before performing his act at Hubert's Museum, "and you never get away before 11:30 p.m." Lonton, only a few inches taller than most of his working tools, has been swallowing swords since he was 12. "My father was in the trade before me," he said, "and he died at 84. I guess the business didn't do him too much harm. The first time I tried it, I gagged and became ill. Afterwards it started getting easier though. I got tired of telling other kids my old man was a sword swallower, and that's why I started. They thought I was lying." Lonton (sic) swallows four 27-inchers at the same time. He swallows another two with a flaming cigaret sandwiched between them. He said the swords don't cut his throat because the edges arene't sharp. "But I can swallow a blade with only one sharp edge without any trouble," he added. "If both edges are sharp, then I've got to be careful." Alex Linton was married to Betty Broadbent (1909-1983), the most famous tattooed lady who worked with Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Circus in 1939, the New York World's Fair of 1939-40, and many other shows. On Wednesday, May 1, 1946, the entire Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Circus show was televised in black and white, featuring Alex Linton in the sideshow, marking the first time that a full circus performance was aired. In 1947, Linton appeared in the film "Nightmare Alley". Linton also taught sword swallowing to 16 year old Bobby Reynolds in 1947-'48 in the boiler room of Hubert's Dime Museum. Linton performed at Hubert's Dime Museum in New York in January 1948, with the Royal American Shows Sideshow in May 1948. In 1950, Linton was on the roster for the Clyde Beatty Cole Brothers Circus. In 1951, Linton worked at Hubert's Dime Museum in New York, and was photographed by photographer Irving Penn. In 1952, Alex Linton worked with Lorow Side Show, and in 1953 with Royal American Shows: "...swallowing the blades of three swords at one gulp, is "King of the Sword Swallowers" Alex Linton, Sarasota, Fla. Alex is a top feature of the Congress of Freaks of the Royal American Shows mammoth midway attraction..." In March 1954, Linton was sword swallower with Clyde Beatty Cole Bros Circus and taught sword swallowing to Capt. Don Leslie in 1954. In 1956, Alex Linton and Betty Broadbent worked for Ringling Bros Barnum & Bailey Circus Sideshow in New York. In 1956, Linton returned to work with Hubert's Museum in New York from Dec. 5, 1956 through April 3, 1957. In 1959, Bill English, manager for Clyde Beatty-Cole Bros Circus and Sells and Gray Circus hired Linton for the Clyde Beatty sideshow in 1959. In May of 1960, Alex Linton and Betty Broadbent worked for Clyde Beatty-Cole Bros Circus, and Linton continued to work on the Beatty show from 1959 until 1966, when English hired him for the Sells and Gray show. Alex Linton and Betty Broadbent performed together on shows from 1946 to at least 1960, and possibly later. Linton retired officially in 1966, but continued to swallow swords up until his death in 1972. Linton was well-liked by many circus and sideshow performers, and was a close friend to "Half Man" Johnny Eck whom he worked with on the set of "Freaks" in 1931. "He was a quiet, little guy, always pleasant, and with never a bad word about anybody," English claimed about Linton. Linton was 5' 3" tall and "pure energy", and tattooed over nearly every inch of his body. Linton was tattooed by Charlie Wagner of the Bowery, who inked many of the first tattooes on Betty Broadbent. (Broadbent also became a prolific tattoo artist, and created some of the tattooes on Linton). Linton performed many unique feats in his day that were innovative for his time. He was known as a Guinness World Record Holder for swallowing four 27 inch blades: "The longest length of sword swallowed by a practiced exponent is Alex Linton who was 5-foot-3-inches tall and swallowed four 27-inch swords at one time." Linton would routinely do a "sword-sandwich" of six blades, all full sized, and he was known for swallowing as many as 7-8 thick-bladed swords. His feature was a trick he called the "Shimmy-Shawabble", which was where he swallowed a plated layout pin bent into a series of "S" curves that made his Adam's Apple visibly wobble from side to side when he passed the pin up and down his throat. Linton liked to finish his act by throwing his final sword into a block of wood on the stage, a nice no-nonsense way of proving it was real. Linton lived in Sarasota Florida on Beeridge Road with his friend, tattoo artist Capt. Al Wrigglesworth, neighbors to the famous "Doll Family" who lived next door to Linton. Linton's close friends continued to call him by the nickname "Ajax" until his death. Prop hand and ticket seller Dave Delaney helped Linton in his later years up until his death. In spite of the fact that he had been bleeding internally for many months, Linton continued to swallow swords up to his death. Some sources claimed that Linton died on June 6, 1971 on the Clyde Beatty-Cole Bros Circus. However, his obituary in the Naples, FL Daily News dated Sept 19, 1972 reports that Linton died at the age of 68 of a stroke on September 2, 1972 in Sarasota FL where he lived. According to a September 19, 1972 Times Bureau article by William H. Braun: "SARASOTA - For more than 40 years, Alex Linton was a circus sword swallower. Many, including the Guinness Book of World Records, say Linton was the greatest ever. About two years apo, in the words of one of Linton's former bosses, "he kind of dropped out of sight." Then about two weeks ago - Sept. 2, to be exact -- Linton died of an apparent stroke in his Sarasota home. He was 68. Described by those who had known him as "a loner" or "very quiet," Linton had no known survivors. His body lay unclaimed in the morgue at Sarasota Memorial Hospital." The Sarasota County Sheriff's Dept, and the County Medical Examiner's Office began a search for relatives to claim his body, but Linton's remains laid in the Sarasota Hospital Morgue over a weekend and police said it appeared that he would be claimed by the county anatomical society for medical research and a pauper's grave. (There was talk that Linton had a son in New Jersey, but no information was found to corroborate this). However, a local organization of retired performers called Show Folks of Sarasota called a meeting at the hospital and voted to underwrite expenses to insure that Linton received a proper burial.
Alex Linton is buried at Bee Ridge Presbyterian Church Memorial Gardens in Sarasota, FL.Seeking photos and more information.
Alex Linton Timeline:
Early Alex Linton with 20 swords Early Alex Linton with sword shield Early Alex Linton Charles Prester & Alex Linton with sword shield Tattooed by Charlie Wagner (1927) Alex Linton playing cards Alex Linton in Tod Browning's Freaks (1931-32) video Alex Linton article (12-17-1947) Alex Lonton article (1-6-1948) Alex Linton photographed by Irving Penn NY (1951) Later Alex Linton swallowing 5 swords Alex Linton tattooed on Capt Don's hand Alex Linton Obit (9-1972) |
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Melvin Burkhart The Anatomical Wonder The Human Blockhead Clarence Melvin Burkhart Maria Gonzalez Burkhart |
Born Feb 6, 1907 Performed 1930s-1989 Died Nov. 8, 2001
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Conroy Bros Circus Ringling Bros Circus Harry Lewiston's Traveling Museum Harry Lewiston's Big Circus Sideshow Harry Lewiston's World's Fair Freaks Palace of Oddities James E. Strates Shows Hubert's Museum Ripley's Believe It or Not! Coney Island Gibsonton, FL (USA) |
Melvin Burkhart was born Clarence Melvin Burkhart, in Louisville, KY in 1905 (or Atlanta, GA on Feb 6, 1907?). He began working with sideshows in the 1930s in a variety of roles. Over his long career, he performed as a sword swallower, fire-eater, snake wrestler, and knife thrower, but he is best known for his acts as the Human Blockhead and the Anatomical Wonder that he developed while traveling with Harry Lewiston's Traveling Museum, Harry Lewiston's Big Circus Sideshow, and Harry Lewiston's World's Fair Freaks. According to the Nov 26, 1942 Billboard Magazine, a Maria Gonzalez Burkhart was the sword swallower with Harry Lewiston's World's Fair Freaks Museum in South Bend, Indiana, while Burkhart the Magician was featured, and Melvin Burkhart was the Anatomical Wonder. For 30 years from 1955 to 1985, Burkhart was the emcee for both Slim Kelley's Museum of Natural Mistakes and Sutton's Circus Sideshow, the 10-in-one shows of the James E. Strates' Shows midway, where he would introduce himself as four of the acts. During his 60+ year career, he performed with numerous circuses and sideshows including Conroy Brothers Circus, Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Circus, James E. Strates Shows, Hubert's Museum, Ripley's Believe it or Not Odditorium, and Coney Island Sideshow.
Melvin Burkhart retired to Gibsonton, FL, where he died of a stroke on Nov 8, 2001. Burkhart was cremated, and his ashes were scattered into the bay off of Coney Island, New York. Melvin Burkhart Human Blockhead (later) Melvin Burkhart Anatomical Wonder Melvin Burkhart Human Blockhead |
| Paul Le Merveilleux |
Performed 1940s Died mid 1990s |
Montreal, Quebec (Canada) |
Paul Le Merveilleux had a long, unremarkable and unillustrious career as a local variety performer in Montreal Quebec, and in the 1940's would perform stunts by climbing the surface of buildings as a precursor to Spiderman. Gaston Auger, a talent agent, once saw Paul Le Merveilleux inside a cage featured as the wild man. Besides eating fire and doing climbing stunts, Paul Le Merveilleux also swallowed swords and bayonettes but never became great - just a local Montreal talent who hung around for years but never really made it big.
In June 1942, actress Angela Lansbury performed at the age of 16 at a Montreal nightclub called the "Sama Bar" with a Yugoslavian singer, a Spanish dancer, a slavic band, and an unknown sword swallower. Could this have been Paul Le Merveilleux? Seeking photos and more information. |
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Ray "Heavy" Case Heavy Case Ray Case Raymond Case |
Performed 1940s |
James E. Strates Shows (USA) |
Ray "Heavy" Case was the head tentsman, strongman, fire-eater and sword swallower with the James E. Strates Shows in the mid 1940s. He later married one of the burlesque dancers who went by the name Leilani, and lost a leg by the 1970s. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Bunsterbaum Sword Swallower |
Performed March 1942 |
(USA) | According to the March 21, 1942 Billboard magazine, there was a circus sword swallower in 1942 by the name of Bunsterbaum the sword swallower. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Prince Yucon Algerian Mystic |
Performed 1933-1941 |
Ripley's Odditorium Chicago World's Fair San Antonio, TX (USA) |
According to a San Antonio Light article dated February 10, 1941: "Prince Yucon, The Algerian Mystic was treated at the Robert B. Green Hospital Monday after collapsing at the corner of Crockett and Press Streets. Attendants said his weakened condition had been caused by influenza. The prince said he climbed ropes, swallowed swords, and ate fire at Ripley's Odditorium at the Chicago World's Fair (1933-1934). He stated he was visiting here after a trip to California." Could this be sword swallower Joseph Grendol or Chester Dolphin? Seeking photos and more information. |
| E.K. Fernandez Shows |
1903-date |
E.K. Fernandez Shows Honolulu, Hawaii (USA) |
E.K. Fernandez Shows has been entertaining families in Hawaii for over 100 years. From its founding in the Territory of Hawaii in 1903 through today, this third-generation, family-owned kama'aina business has devoted itself to bringing unique entertainment experiences to the people of the Hawaiian Islands.
Its founder, Edwin Kane (E. K.) Fernandez, was affectionately known as "The Barnum of the Pacific." Throughout his life, he searched the world for the best acts he could find and brought them to Hawaii. Some of the most famous acts to perform in an E. K. Fernandez production were the Flying Wallendas and their seven-person aerial pyramid, wild animal trainer Clyde Beatty, and the famous clown Emmett Kelly. The first elephant at the Honolulu Zoo was named Daisy and was one of the elephants that came to Hawaii to perform in an E. K. Fernandez show. E. K. Fernandez also produced shows that traveled to Hong Kong, Manila, Singapore, Japan, Guam, India, and China. Sword swallowers who performed with E.K. Fernandez Shows included Delno Fritz (1921-22), Great Laurie I1927), Alex Linton (1938), Mimi Garneau (1955-56), Jonda Henry Burns (1960), and Estelline Pike (1962). Seeking photos and more information on sword swallowers with E.K. Fernandez Shows
Sword Swallowers with E.K. Fernandez Shows:
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Dailey Bros Circus Dailey Brothers Circus |
1940 - 1950 |
Aransas Pass, TX La Grange, TX (USA) |
Dailey Brothers Circus owner Ben Davenport began his circus career in 1914, working as an animal trainer. He had his own touring animal exhibits, wrestled bears and operated Medicine shows.
In 1935 with only two trucks, Davenport took out a "sidewall" (no tent) circus which he named "Davenport Society Circus". The small circus did well and grew, and Davenport operated under the name until 1939. For the 1940 season Ben and his wife Eva renamed the truck show the "Dailey Bros. Circus". 1940 they purchased their first elephant "Nemo" from Honest Bill Newton's Circus, and later bought a second elephant "Rosie" from Newton. After the opening pains of the first year, the 1941 season was very successful, and the show had added acts and front end personnel. The circus wintered that year in Aransas Pass, Texas. For the 1942 season, the circus grew to 16 trucks. World War II had begun and people found circuses to be a needed diversion from the war. The Dailey Bros Circus focused on performing in towns that had large defense plants where the money would be plentiful. At the close, the circus winterd in La Grange, TX. During the winter of 1943-1944 Davenport began buying railroad cars from various circuses and carnivals. For the 1944 season, Davenport converted his truck show to a 10 car railroad circus. During the course of the 1944 season, Davenport purchased even more rail cars to be used the following year. The circus opened that year in Yoakum, TX. In 1945 the circus had grown to a 15 car railroad show, also Ben opened a second unit called the "Austin Bros. Circus". The Dailey Bros. 5 Ring Circus continued another 5 years, featuring heavy-weight champion of the world fighter Joe Louis live in their shows. In 1950, Pete Cristiani married Norma Davenport, daughter of Ben Davenport, owner of the Dailey Bros. Circus. As a wedding gift, Ben Davenport gave the newlywed couple five performing elephants which became part of the newly formed Cristiani Bros Circus. In 1950, the Dailey Bros Circus closed. After the close of the Dailey Bros. Railroad Circus, Davenport took out several more truck shows, the Campa Bros. Circus in 1951, Wallace Bros. Circus in 1952 and Diano Bros. Circus in 1953.
Sword Swallowers with Dailey Bros Circus: (complete routes)
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| Unknown Sword Swallower |
Injured Aug 4, 1940
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Butte, MT (USA) |
According to the August 5, 1940 Salt Lake City Tribune: "BUTTE, Mont., Aug. 4 UPI -- The carnival man "who would not fool the public" (that's the way the dodgers read) jammed his sword down his throat. The public got more than it's money's worth -- for the sword, a long glass tube containing an illuminating gas, broke. A piece of it lodged in the exhibitionist's esophagus. At a hospital, they tied his legs to a table, then tipped it up so that his head hung down. He coughed. Out came a nine-inch piece of the tube. The sword swallower opined that he'd prefer a job of watering the elephants. P.S. Carnivals are known for pulling out of town in a hurry after concluding their stay, and no one thought to get the fellow's name." Seeking name, photos and more information.
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Curly Frisby Curly Frisbie Curley Frisby Curley Frisbie Lowell E. Frisbie Lowell Eugene Frisbie |
Born March 17, 1927 Learned 1942 Performed 1942-87 Died May 19 or 29, 1987
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Roberts Bros Circus Ringling Bros Sideshow Preacher and Deacon Monroe's Monroe's 10-in-One Shows Peter G Hennen's Hells Belles Show Dean Potter's Circus of the Fantastic Jeff & Sue Murray's World's Fair Freaks Harmur Sideshows Freso, CA (USA) |
Lowell E. "Curly" Frisbie was born in California on March 17, 1927 to Bernice Frisbie (1908-1944) and Lowell M. Frisbie (1900-1943). According to the 1940 census, the Frisbie family lived in Kalamazoo, Michigan in 1940, when young Lowell E. Frisbie Jr was 13 years old, his sister Charlotte was 10, and his brother Kenneth C. Frisbie (1935-2015) was 5 years old.
Two years later, around 1942, young Lowell's's sword swallowing career began when he learned sword swallowing at the age of 15 in his family's Roberts Bros Circus. However, in 1943, his father Lowell Sr. died at the age of 40, and in 1944, his mother Bernice died at the age of 36, which may have propelled young Lowell Jr. to take care of himself by following his performing career. "Curley" Frisbie was later employed by Ringling Brother Circus Sideshow where he was billed as the "World's Youngest Sword Swallower" (possibly 1943-44?). Curly was a well-known all-around sideshow performer, and performed fire-eating, fire-breathing, human blockhead, pincushion, and was known as a one-time holder of the "World Championship in Sword Swallowing". He performed for over 45 years on a variety of shows. Curly served in the US Army, and was also associated at various times with Preacher and Deacon Monroe's 10-in-One Shows, Peter G. Hennen's Hell's Belles Show, Dean Potter's Circus of the Fantastic, and Jeff and Sue Murray's World's Fair Freaks. He was last associated with Jeff and Sue Murray on Harris Amusement Lucky Land Shows in California and Nevada, having worked with Jeff and Sue Murray from 1983 until his death in 1987. Lowell Eugene "Curly" Frisbie died in Fresno on May 29, 1987 at the age of 60 of complications following heart bypass surgery, and his remains are located at the Belmont Memorial Park in Fresno CA. Seeking photos and more information.
Lowell Frisbie Gravesite
Curly Frisbie/Lowell E. Frisbie Timeline: |
| Angelo Paticelli |
Performed 1942 |
Bazinet Shows Minneapolis, MN (USA) |
According to the May 16, 1942 Billboard magazine, Angelo Paticelli was sword swallower with Bazinet Shows Ten-in-One in Minneapolis MN in May 1942. Seeking photos and more information.
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Merida Nerida Nuretta Miss Nerida Miss Nereida Helen Caswell Helen B. Caswell Helen N. Caswell Nereida Caswell Nereida B. Caswell Helen B. Nereida Caswell Queen of Sword Swallowers |
Performed 1931-1945 |
E. K. Fernandez Show Hubbard-McCaslin Museum Hubert's Museum World of Mirth Carnival (USA) |
Nereida Caswell was a woman with many names and many talents. The sword swallower was also known as Helen Caswell, Miss Nerida, and at times just Merida, and performed various acts from the early 1930s to the 1940s.
One of her shows was a tank act -- meaning she would don a bathing suit and dive into a giant tank of water. At that time, seeing a woman in a bathing suit meant seeing a lot more flesh than was typically permitted. That made her an extra draw, starting at least as early as 1931 for the E. K. Fernandez Show in Hawaii. Described by a reporter as a "shapely young lady," she would eat, talk, sew, and do "practically everything that a normal person can do with an unlimited supply of oxygen." In 1938, Caswell appeared at the Gray Wolf Tavern in Youngstown, Ohio, as the "Miracle Girl" who, according to an advertisement, "eats glass, phonograph records, razor blades." She was joined by "frisky, frivolous, flirtatious 'French models.' " Two years later, Caswell performed at the Hubbard-McCaslin Museum in Washington, D.C. She performed as "Merida" for her tank act, and as Caswell for her sword swallowing show. Johnny Eck, the half boy and several other sideshow attractions entertained alongside her. In 1940, Caswell also appeared as the "Queen of Sword Swallowers" at Hubert's Museum in New York City. Sharing the stage with her (at least in a photo op that appeared in newspapers across the country) was retired baseball player Grover Cleveland Alexander, who was running a flea circus at the time. The swimming sword swallower stayed on the move, dropping steel and performing her tank act with the World of Mirth carnival in 1941. By March 1943, she took part in a public discussion in Jacksonville, Florida, about the potential for carnival and small-time circuses to tour in the spring while about 800,000 show people awaited a green light from Washington. "The war and tire and gasoline shortage didn't bother us much last year," noted showman Milton Cohen. It's unknown if Caswell continued performing afterward, and if the war had anything to do with it. Seeking photos and more information.
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Pat Smith Patsy Smith Patricia Smith Miss Patsy Miss Patricia Mrs. Speedy Smith Lady Patricia Pat Zerm Patsy Zerm Patsy Zurm Patricia Katts Patricia Zern Patricia Zerm Patricia Zurm Patsy Nellie Kennedy Patricia Nellie Kennedy Neon Tube Artist Neon Tube Swallower |
Born 1 Sept 1910 Performed 1939-76 Married 39 Nov 1945 Retired 1 Sept 1976 Died 8 Jan 1986
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Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Circus Peter Kortes Circus Side Show Lloyd Serfass Penn Premier Shows Reynolds & Wells World of Today Shows Dailey Bros Circus Mickey Mansion-Stanley Baebet Sideshow Ward Hall's World of Wonders Lexington, KY Tampa, FL (USA) |
Patricia "Patsy" Nellie Kennedy was born on September 1, 1910, and early in her life she called Lexington, KY her home. Miss Patricia worked as sword swallower for 37 years with a number of circuses and sideshows between 1939 and 1986, most notably with Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey sideshow for many years between 1939 and 1952, and with Ward Hall's World of Wonders sideshow from 1959 to 1976.
In 1939, at the age of 29, she performed under the name "Patsy Smith" with the Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey sideshow, and was known as Pat Smith and Mrs. Speedy Smith in 1942 and 1943. Her 1942 Postcard with Ringling Brothers lists her as "Miss Patricia". An article in the October 7, 1942 Iola Register reported that Miss Patricia Smith the sword swallower and the fat lady Baby Betty were called to court to settle a dispute in the dressing room tent when Miss Patricia cut the fat lady with a pop bottle. According to the Aug 21, 1943 Billboard: "Ringling Side Show Notes: Patricia (Mrs. Speedy Smith), sword swallower, has been on the sick list, but is expected back shortly." A month later in the Sept 18, 1943 Billboard: "Ringling Side Show Notes: Patricia (Mrs. Speedy Smith), sword swallower, terminated her engagement in Detroit due to an illness and left for home in Lexington, Kentucky." (C. D. "Speedy" Smith of Lexington KY was ticket taker with the Ringling show from 1941 to 1947). Starting in 1943-44, Patricia continued performing as the sword swallower with Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey sideshow, but she returned to being billed under the name "Patricia Katts" or "Miss Patricia Katts" or simply "Miss Patricia", although she was later often billed as "The Neon Tube Swallower" or "The Neon Tube Artist". The 1944 Ringling Brothers route book listed "Miss Patricia" under the billing of "Neon Tube Artist" since Ringling also featured Lady Louise Long as their main sword swallower in 1944. On November 30, 1945, in Sarasota Florida, 35-year-old "Miss Patricia" married 60-year-old Ringling ticket seller and assistant manager Charles A. Zerm (1883-1968), who was at one time the manager of the Worthan & Rice Show 10-in-1 sideshow in 1918. (marriage license) After getting married, there was an effort to change her stage name from "Miss Patricia" to bill her as "Lady Patricia", although the stage name of "Miss Patricia" was often used interchangeably as well and stuck with her throughout her entire career. To her friends, she was simply known as "Pat Zerm" or simply "Patsy". In 1946, Charlie and Patsy Zerm ran the sideshow on the Reynolds and Wells "World of Today Shows" with Harry Leonard. When their route closed in September 1946, Harry Leonard joined Dailey Bros Circus where they met Ward Hall. In 1947 Charlie and Patsy Zerm were with the Mickey Mansion-Stanley Baebet Sideshow and left about halfway through the season. "Miss Patricia" went back to work with Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey in 1948, 1950, and 1951. According to the Sep 25, 1948 Billboard: "Miss Patricia, sword swallower, her husband, and Rasmus Nielsen, tattooed man and weight lifter, all of the Ringling show, were recent guests at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Owen Jensen in Los Angeles. Mrs. Jensen, (Dainty Dotty) was a fat lady with the Big Show." In 1949, Patricia and Charlie Zerm worked for Peter Kortes Circus Side Show. According to the Apr 15, 1950 Billboard, the personnel on the 1950 Ringling Brothers Kid Show includes Emmett and Priscilla Bejano, monkey girl and alligator skin man, Patricia Zern (sic), sword swallower, with Charles Zern (sic) as lecturer and ticket seller. In 1951, Lady Patricia was photographed in front of her banner holding a neon tube. In 1951, Lady Patricia was also featured as the sword swallower with Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Circus in Cecil B. DeMille's feature film "The Greatest Show on Earth" which was filmed on location with Ringling Brothers in 1951 and released in 1952. In February 1955, Lady Patricia worked the Tampa Fair for Bobby Hasson on the Royal American Shows show. In the next few years, the Zerms had an office-owned show on Lloyd Serfass "Penn Premier Shows". On May 10, 1958, Pat Zerm was photographed by the St. Petersburg Sun performing for the First Baptist Church Sunday School of Gibsonton, FL. The photos may have run in the "Sun". On January 2, 1968, Charlie A. Zerm died at the age of 85 (1883-1968). Lady Patricia then worked with Ward Hall's World of Wonders from 1969 to 1975, where she also swallowed neon tubes. According to Ward Hall, "Miss Patricia was known for always wearing beautiful formal gowns. Patsy had a twangy voice with a Kentucky accent, and because of this, she never spoke in her act, but instead would perform silently to the song "Fascination" while the lights went low for her neon tube act. It was incredible! Patsy was a great cook and she always cooked for Chris and me and Emmett Blackwelder, The 'Turtle Man' ". Ward Hall says in his book "My Very Unusual Friends" that Patricia always said she was going to retire on her 65th birthday. On September 1, 1976, she stuck to her promise - she walked up to Ward, reminded him that it was her 65th birthday, and politely retired on the spot.
Patricia Zerm owned a home in Gibsonton, FL, as did her sister whose late husband had been a carnival electrician. After she retired, Patricia and her sister both sold their homes and moved from Gibsonton to Tampa, FL, "never venturing near a show again". They moved into an apartment in central Tampa at the Baptist retirement home (Tampa Baptist Manor) where they lived out the rest of their lives. They had both become devout Baptists and didn't associate with their old friends. Lady Patricia Zerm died in Tampa, Florida on January 8, 1986 at the age of 75. Charles Zerm and Patricia Zerm are buried in Garden of Memories Cemetery in Tampa, Florida. Her SSN was 225-09-7623. Seeking photos, dates and more information.
Patricia Zerm Timeline:
Miss Patricia Courtroom brawl (10-7-1942) Patricia Katts RBBB (1944) Miss Patricia Katts RBBB (1944) Miss Patricia Katts RBBB (1944) Patricia Kennedy / Charles Zerm marriage license (11-30-1945) Miss Patricia banner Lady Patricia banner RBBB (1948) Lady Patricia Zerm Lady Patricia with neon in Phila (1951) Lady Patricia with World of Wonders (1970) |
| Rita Roselle | Performed 1943 |
Coney Island Freak Museum Riverview Park (USA) |
According to a June 27, 1943 article in the Chicago Tribune, Rita Roselle was a blonde model turned sword swallower who worked with the Coney Island Freak Museum at Chicago Riverview Park in 1943. Could this be the Rita Roselle who was in the 1931 film "Beauty Secrets from Hollywood"? Or could this be sword swallower Janet Roselle who performed with Dailey Brothers Circus in 1950? Seeking photos and more information.
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"The Great Zadma" Daniel Mannix Daniel Pratt Mannix IV |
Born October 27, 1911 Performed 1944? Died January 29, 1997 |
Sunnyhill Farm Malvern, PA (USA) |
Daniel Pratt Mannix IV was born on October 27, 1911 in Bacton Hill, Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. Mannix was a Philadelphia blue blood whose paternal grandfather was one of the founders of the Pennsylvania Railroad. Mannix' first job after college was traveling with a carnival sideshow where he was a fire-eater and sword swallower, and a journalist who wrote with the help of his actress-writer wife, Jule Junker Mannix, books on a variety of subjects, from carny life to big-game hunting to the history of torture. Mannix grew to be over 6'5" tall, and he and his wife Julie traveled the world, hunted with eagles and falcons, raised exotic animals, and wrote numerous books and magazine articles:
Daniel Mannix Daniel Mannix X-ray "How to Swallow a Sword" (March 1945) |
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Lady Louise Miss Louise Louise Long |
Performed 1944-54 |
Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey Royal American Shows (USA) |
Louise Long was listed as the sword swallower with the Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey Circus Sideshow in the 1944 Ringling Bros. Barnum & Bailey route book. According to the 1944 route book, Fred Smythe was Manager, Charles A. Zerm, Assistant Manager, Ticket Sellers were Chas. A. Zerm, Geo, Johnson, Robt. Ellis, Jack Elkins; Lecturer was Judson L. Langill. Other attractions on the 1944 sideshow were Senorita Carmen, Snake Trainer;
Mr. and Mrs. Fischer, Giant and Giantess;
Freda Pushnik, Armless and Legless Girl;
Mo-Lay, Comedy Juggler;
Miss Patricia, Neon Tube Artist;
Kutty Singlee, Fire Proof Man;
Baby Thelma, Fat Girl;
Egan Twist, Rubber-Armed Man;
Hanka Kelter, Long Haired Girl;
Alex Demeroff, Arabian Gun Spinner;
Percy Pape, Living Skeleton;
Nabor Feliz, Pueblo Indian Sculptor;
Tinytown, World's Smallest Performers; and
Joseph Nawrath, Midget Musician.
Louise Long was also featured on a Colgate Palmolive card dated 1946. According to the Jun 5, 1954 Billboard, the line-up for the 1954 Royal American Shows in Joliet includes Lady Louise, sword swallower. Seeking photos and more information. Louise Long card (1946) Louise Long |
| Bill Baldwin | Performed 1945-1950 |
Bartholomew Fair (USA) |
Bill Baldwin was the sword swallower at the Bartholomew Fair featured in the Jack Dadswell book "Hey There, Sucker!" published in 1946. Bill Baldwin was also still sword swallowing in 1950. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Tony Marino Tony Mareno Tony Moreno Anthony Moreno Tony Donato Cuellar Anthony Donato Cuellar |
Born May 13, 1913 Performed 1929-60's Injured June 17, 1947 Married July 2, 1949 Died December 21, 1997
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Circus of the Fantastic The Pike Harry Lewiston's Big Circus Sideshow Harry Lewiston's Traveling Museum Harry Lewiston's World's Fair Freaks Royal American Shows Ward Hall's World of Wonders Dallas, TX (USA) |
Anthony Tony Donato Cuellar was born on May 13, 1913 in Bastrop, TX to Pablo and Eugenia Donato Cuellar. Tony worked with Harry Lewiston's World's Fair Freaks at the age of 16 in 1929, and served in WWII as a supply clerk in the early 1940's. According to a June 17, 1947 Troy New York Times Record, "Detroit (AP) - Sword swallower Anthony Mareno has a sore throat today. Performing in a sideshow act at Eastwood Park he substituted a neon tube for his cutomary sword. The tube broke. Mareno was taken to Saratoga General Hospital for treatment of cuts to his throat." A June 19, 1947 article in Stars and Stripes reported, Sword Swallower's Bow Breaks Neon Tube Inside Him -- Detroit (AP) June 18 (UP) -- As Anthony Moreno, one-time sword swallower passed a glowing neon tube down his throat at a Detroit fairground, the crowd burst into applause. Moreno bowed acknowledging the applause, and the tube burst into pieces. Doctors today said they were getting glass fragments from his mouth and throat and that there were severe cuts. Time Magazine reported in their July 7, 1947 article entitled "Something He Ate": "In Detroit, Sword Swallower Tony Marino gulped a two-foot length of lighted neon tube, glowed at his appreciative audience, bowed, thereupon went out like a light, and was hustled to a hospital for removal of the shattered tube." The incident happened while Marino was working on the Harry Lewiston Show in Detroit on June 17, 1947. According to Harry Lewiston's autobiography "Freak Show Man", after two weeks of recuperation, including treatment with a stomach pump, milk of magnesia, and oatmeal, Marino was back to performing with Lewiston's Museum.
On July 2, 1949, Marino married Ruby Wallace (1928-1988) in Detroit, MI, and they briefly lived in Ponce, PR. They moved to Long Beach, CA in the 1950's and lived there in the early 1960's, where Tony worked with various shows swallowing swords and neon tubes under the name Tony Marino, Tony Mareno, and Tony Moreno. Tony Marino is listed as sword swallower with the W. G. Wade Shows at the Michigan State Fair in Detroit in the Oct 23 1954 Billboard Magazine. In 1957, while working as the manager of The Pike at Long Beach, Marino swallowed swords and neon tubes, taught tattooist Lyle Tuttle to swallow his bayonet, and hired the Amazing Vanteen as magician. He also worked in the Dominican Republic and Florida and throughout much of the US and Canada. Besides performing as a sword swallower, Marino also performed as a fire-eater and knife thrower, and he performed in an episode of Bonanza in the 1960's. Marino later moved to Dallas, TX where he worked at the Texas State Fair in the late 60's and early 70's in October of each year, performing one season with Ward Hall's World of Wonders Show. He retired from US Cement Pipe at age 70, and died at his home in Dallas, Texas on December 21, 1997 at the age of 83. Cuellar is buried in the Calvary Hill Cemetery and Mausoleum in Dallas TX. He is survived by 5 children: Lawrence, Victor, Gail, Toni and Nancy. Seeking photos and more information.
Tony Marino w Harry Lewiston Tony Marino w Harry Lewiston Tony Marino (c 1940s) Tony Marino Tony Marino Tony Marino (later in life) Tony Cuellar grave |
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Leatha Smith Letha Smith Miss Letha Wade Leatha Rowe Smith "Lady Sword Swallower" |
Married 1938 Learned 1939 Performed 1939-1964 |
Hennis Brothers Show Cole Brothers Circus Clyde Beatty Circus John L. Ward's World Fair Shows Al Wagner's Cavalcade of Amusements Arthur Sturmark's Biller Bros Circus Witte Musuem Coleman, TX San Antonio, TX (USA) |
Leatha Smith (sometimes "Letha Smith") was married to Marvin E Smith, the "Anatomical Man" and manager of the Clyde Beatty Cole Brothers Circus Sideshow, and together they performed with sideshows for many years.
Leatha Wade met her future husband Marvin Smith in 1938 when she was working with the Hennis Brothers carnival doing a stand in Shreveport, LA. "I was just a nobody then," Leatha said, "doing odd jobs like ballying out in front or standing for the armless man to throw knives at me. And then Marvin joined the show. We fell in love and got married later that same year in St. Louis." After the honeymoon was over, Marvin said, "Honey, how would you like to be a sword swallower?" Leatha got all starry-eyed at the thought of being a professional entertainer with her own billing. So Marvin bought her a brand-new set of props, including a cutlass, rapier, a scimitar, a saber, a couple of bayonets and a short steel practice bar, all nickel plated and shiny, with no nicks on the edges to snag her tonsils. "The first time I tried to stick that bar down my throat, I decided I'd never get to be a sword swallower," Leatha said. "But I kept trying, and finally got so I could get the point three or four inches past my throat without gagging." During the winter of 1938-39, Leatha practiced daily with Marvin coaching her. "By the middle of the winter I could get the bar down 18 inches, using plenty of olive oil, and then I began trying swords." She learned to arch her torso just right to swallow a curved blade, and finally she learned how to smile and pretend she didn't want to be sick while sliding three swords down her throat at the same time. Leatha made her debut in Houston at the Fat Stock Show in the spring of 1939, and everything went fine until Marvin got an idea for tricking up the act. He rigged up a 21-inch red neon to for Leatha to swallow as the grand finale in her act. That went over big. The electrician would turn out all the lights in the big tent, and the customers could see the red light shining right through her throat, and imagined, when they were ballied right, that they could see it all the way down. But one night in Gonzales, with the crowd applauding enthusiastically, Leatha withdrew the tube and saw to her horror that it was no longer glowing. "I kept on taking that thing out," she said, "and then I saw what was the matter. The end had broken off. What did I do? I went back into the two-faced man's tent, and was sick. And, brother, until you swallowed neon gas, you don't know what real hangover is!" Leatha didn't go to a doctor because she had to do another show in less than an hour. "But I didn't worry," she said. "I got rid of the gas, and I figured I could digest that glass alright because neon tubing is not ordinary glass, but is made of lead glass. And I guess I did, because it never bothered me." In 1941, Leatha Smith was featured as the "Lady Sword Swallower" with the Cole Brothers Circus, and again in the 1942 in the Cole Brothers Circus route book. According the May 6, 1944 Billboard, "Mllle Lethea" was sword swallower with the Cole Circus. From 1945 to 1951, Leatha and Marvin worked together on the Clyde Beatty Circus Side Show. The April 7, 1945 Billboard lists Leatha Smith as sword swallower with the Clyde Beatty Kid Show. From an April 1946 Jacksonville Journal article: "Anyone can do it", the sword swallower said to the reporter. As though anyone would want to. Leatha Smith swallowed a small sword for breakfast, a corkscrew for lunch and a "long, piercing weapon" for dinner, she told Jacksonville Journal reporter Joy Reese Coleman. "And with no sauce," Coleman observed. "Sometimes, if she is really hungry, she gulps down two or three at a time." Leatha Smith gobbled cutlery for the John L. Ward's World Fair Shows. She was the new sword-swallower in town. The World Fair Shows wintered in Jacksonville in the 1940s. It was on the left bank of Show Biz. The common man would call it a freak show. The World Fair Shows was one of a series of carnie coterie that called Jacksonville home over the years in the first half of the century. Come April, they would slap fresh paint on the wagons, load up the Calliope and the chimps and head north to astound and amaze the multitude. Indeed, it was a special time for all America, Coleman wrote in April of 1946. The war was over. It was showtime in the spring of peace. "Folks are entertainment hungry," said show boss Ray Cramer. "We have better talent than at any time during the war. Old employees are back and we have many new ones." Leatha Smith fit both bills. With 8 years under her belt, literally, she was considered one of the best in her profession, wrote Coleman." In a November 6, 1947 article while performing at the World Fair Freak Show in Houston TX: Leatha is young and blonde and pretty. She wears a cerise evening gown, rimless glasses and flowers in her hair, and she crochets beautifully. The piece she's working on between the acts now is a long table runner which she proposes to put it over the radio in the Smith house-trailer. But if Leatha had her way, she'd be selling baby clothes, or at least darning Marvin's socks, or doing something equally domestic. Leatha said, "I don't mind telling you," she admitted, "These dang swords make me sick to my esophagus sometimes." The lady sword swallower still uses the neon tube finale, but her new tube is encased in a slotted piece of steel tubing. That dims the light some, but you can still see the faint red glow through her throat, and it always gets her a big applause. Now, after nine years of professional sword swallowing, Leatha says she enjoys her work except when she has a sore throat or has eaten something that has disagreed with her. "Don't get the idea that just because we're show people, we drink and stay up late and raise the devil," she said. "Marvin and I don't drink, and when we're not working, you can find us at the movies or just sitting in the trailer talking about the home we're buying." The home is in Coleman, Texas. One day when Leatha has swallowed her last sword and Marvin has thrown his shoulders out a joint for the last time, they plan on settling down and running a crossroads filling station out on the Brownwood highway. A 1949 photo shows Leatha Smith as the "Lady Sword Swallower" with the Biller Bros Circus in 1949. The April 22, 1950 Billboard lists Marvin and Leatha Smith as performing with Arthur Sturmark's Biller Bros Circus following the old Cole Bros Circus route, with Leatha Smith as sword swallower. On August 25, 1951, Leatha Smith was sword swallower on the roster of Al Wagner's Cavalcade of Amusements. On August 27, 1957, Marvin Elwood Smith and Leatha Rowe Smith flew home from Mexico City Mexico to San Antonio TX on American Airlines.
On November 18, 1960, Leatha Smith performed at the 18th anniversary party of the Harry Hertzburg collection of the Witte Museum in San Antonio, TX. In the mid to late 1960's, Leatha and Marvin Smith lived in San Antonio, Texas, where they attended the Trinity Assembly Church. Leatha's swords, sword shield, and two dresses are in the private Harry Hertzburg collection of the Witte Museum in San Antonio, TX. Seeking photos and more information.
Leatha Smith Timeline:
Leatha Smith Leatha Smith Leatha and Marvin Smith Leatha and Marvin Smith Xmas Card Leatha and Marvin Smith Xmas Card Leatha Smith with Cole Bros? (1942) Leatha Smith with Cole Bros? (1942 movie) Leatha Smith (1960s) Leatha & Marvin Smith (1960s) Leatha Smith display at Witte Museum (2004) |
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Arthur Plum Art Plumhoff Arthur Plumhoff Wilbur Plumhoff Dick Plumhoff Arthur August Plumhoff Pain Proof Man Human Pincushion Hillbilly Sword Swallower |
Born 1903 Performed 1933-1957 Retired 1957 Died 1963
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Ripley's Believe It or Not Chicago World's Fair New York World's Fair Ray Marsh Brydon's Side Show Pete Kortes Side Show Gold Medal Shows Martin County, MN (USA) |
Arthur Plumhoff was best known as "The Human Pincushion" and "Pain-Proof Man", but he was also known to have performed as a sword swallower.
Arthur August Plumhoff was born in 1903 and spent much of his early life in Martin, MN. In 1923, Arthur and his wife Lila (Eickhoff) gave birth to their first of 7 children, LaJune Olga Katy Plumhoff, born June 30, 1923 in rural Welcome, Minnesota. LaJune attended Welcome country school through the 8th grade. The oldest of seven children, she left the family home at age 14 to work for the Smock family in rural Trimont, who provided her the opportunity to continue her education, graduating with the Class of 1943 from Triumph High School. Brothers Merle William Plumhoff (1925-2005) and Marlen Ray Plumhoff (1927-2006) followed 2 years after each other. In 1933, at the age of 30, Arthur Plumhoff became a big hit as the Human Pincushion and Pain-Proof Man at Robert Ripley's Believe-It-or-Not Odditorium at A Century of Progress at the Chicago World's Fair International Exposition held in Chicago from 1933 to 1934. According to the Martin County Minnesota birth registry of 1935, Arthur A. Plumhoff and his wife Lila A. Eichoff (1903-1989) gave birth to a daughter Charlotte Yvonne Plumhoff on 25 Oct 1935 in Martin County Minnesota. In 1939 and 1940, Robert Ripley ran posters and advertized "Wilbur Plumhoff" as the Human Pincushion and Pain-Proof Man at the Ripley's Believe It or Not Odditorium at the New York World's Fair that ran from 1939 to 1940. According to the March 31, 1945 Billboard, Arthur Plumb was the "hillbilly sword swallower" with the Pete Kortes Side Show. According to the August 3, 1946 Billboard, Dick Plumhoff was the sword swallower and human pincushion with Ray Marsh Brydon's Side Show on the Gold Medal Shows in 1946. According to Edward Meyer, VP and historian at Ripley's Believe It or Not, Wilbur Plumhoff performed as the Pain Proof Man at Ripley's Believe It or Not Steel Pier Atlantic City NJ in the 1950s. Ward Hall knew Arthur Plumhoff in the 1950s, and according to Ward, Plumhoff retired in 1957, and gave a 1929 Model A car axle that he had swallowed to Ward. In 1989, Ward Hall passed that car axle on to Red Stuart, who later gave it to sideshow historian James Taylor who displayed it at the Palace of Wonders in Washington DC. When the Palace of Wonders transitioned ino the Red Palace in Washington DC, the car axle mysteriously disappeared somehow during the transition.
Arthur August Plumhoff died at the age of 60 in 1963, and is buried at the Lake Belt Cemetery Ceylon, Martin County, MN USA. Seeking photos and more information.
Arthur Plumhoff Ripley's Chicago World's Fair (1933-34) Arthur Plumhoff Ripley's Chicago World's Fair (1933-34) Wilbur Plumhoff NY World's Fair (1939-40)
Sword Swallower Arthur Plumhoff Timeline: |
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Charlotte Hoyer Schwertschluckerin |
1930s-50s? |
(Germany) |
Charlotte Hoyer was a tattooed female sword swallower from Germany who performed sometime from the late 1930s into the 1950s. Charlotte Hoyer was tattooed and may have also been a tattoo artist and photographer. Seeking photos and more information. Charlotte Hoyer Charlotte Hoyer |
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Carl Carlsson Carl H. Carlsson Carl Carlsson-Wollbruck Carl H. Carlsson-Wollbruck Juggler, Sword swallower |
Born July 17, 1920 Married 1935 Performed 1950s-1996 Died 2003 |
[Sweden] Los Angeles, CA [USA] |
Circus artist Carl Carlsson was an circus performer, juggler, knife thrower, plate spinner, sword swallower and Hollywood character actor, who, along with his wife Ruth Carlsson, was known primarily for juggling in films, as well as performing a variety of circus skills, including sword swallowing.
Carl Carlsson was born in Sweden on July 17, 1920 as Carl H. Carlsson-Wollbruck. Ruth Carlsson-Wollbruck was born on September 19, 1919 in Vienna Austria. As a child, Ruth was always very active; She enjoyed learning performing and visual arts. She painted watercolors with needlepoint embroidery, and created fashionable dresses. In 1935 Carl and Ruth were married. In 1950, they immigrated to the United States on a ship. They toured the entire continent, wowing viewers with their stunt and juggling show. The family moved to Seattle in 1950, residing in Angle Lake and Burien WA areas. In 1954, they decided to move to California with their two daughters, Dorian Michaud and Silvia von Kluge. In the1950s. the Carlssons' acts were a huge success. While Carl and Ruth were both known primarily as top-notch jugglers, Carl and Ruth both performed other circus skills such as knife throwing, plate spinning and sword swallowing. Ruth was known for using turntables and kicking cups and chopsticks to her head. She also created a comical routine: playing a xylophone by spitting a table tennis ball at the instrument. The Carlssons performed their acts in theaters, cruises, and nightclubs around the United States. They began appearing on television shows such as the Ed Sullivan Show and Johnny Carson. The skills they had acquired in Europe and America were transmitted in comedy shows in the "Golden Age of Hollywood" From there, a new door opened: the cinema. The Carlssons began a cinematographic career in films and TV. The first movie Carl and Ruth Carlsson were in was "Cult of the Cobra" in 1955. Filmographgy Notable TV and Film Guest Appearances:
Ruth and Carl Carlsson were married for 63 years. The couple had two daughters Dorian Michaud and Silvia von Kluge; five grandchildren Lauren, Nadia and Louis Michaud and Eamon, who died in 1993, and Jason von Kluge; and two great-grandchildren Timo and Cameron von Kluge. The last time Ruth participated on camera was on Jay Leno's show in early 1990; and she performed live for the last time at the Magic Castle in Los Angeles. Ruth published her autobiography "Lady Ruth: Still Kicking"; and an anthology of photographs from the Carlsson's 70-year career: "My View of the Stars."
Carl H Carlsson died in 2003 at the age of 83. Ruth Carlsson-Wollbruck died in her home in Pacific Palisades, California on Dec. 16, 2013 at the age of 94.
Seeking photos and more information.
Juggler Sword Swallower Carl Carlsson-Wollbruck Timeline: |
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Cavalcade Sideshow Cavalcade Variety Show Cavalcade of Amusements Cavalcade of Oddities |
Cavalcade Sideshow Cavalcade Variety Show Cavalcade of Amusements Cavalcade of Oddities |
(USA) | Over the years there have been a number of sideshows that worked under variations of the name of Cavalcade such as Fred Sindell's Cavalcade Variety Show, Al Wagner's Cavalcade of Amusements, and James Strates Cavalcade of Oddities. Sword swallowers who have worked with sideshows advertized as "Cavalcade" include Slim Price, Shumpert Eko, Alex Linton, Leatha Smith, Ricky Richiardi, and Sir James Baron of the Blade.
Seeking photos and more information about sword swallowers with Cavalcade Sideshows
Sword Swallowers with Fred Sindell's Cavalcade Variety Show:
Sword Swallowers with Al Wagner's Cavalcade of Amusements:
Sword Swallowers with James Strate's Cavalcade of Oddities:
Cavalcade of Oddities banner |
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Slim Price (Jerry Pickard) |
Born January 29, 1935 Performed 1948-1949 Died June 13, 2006 |
Coney Island Cavalcade Variety Show El Cajon, CA (USA) |
Jerry Pickard was born January 29, 1935, and started in the sideshow business at the age of 14 as a shill for a show on Coney Island. He was eager, young, and wanted to know it all. He performed under the stage name "Slim Price" and claimed he was passable as a fire-eater, loved snakes, had good hands as a magician, understood the principals of the human dynamo act, loved to talk and work the mike on the grind, and did a myriad of other jobs on the show. Even though Shumpert Eko was their inside sword swallower, Price learned the basics of swordswallowing around 1948 from the Mighty Ajax, a huge Irishman who worked as sword swallower on another show. The Mighty Ajax gave Price some tips on sword swallowing as well as one of his own bayonets, which was the only sword Price ever used in his act. Price also worked with Alex Linton for a time when they were both working with Walter Wanous where Price learned some additional sword swallowing tips from Linton.
As a sword swallower, Price claimed, "I was the king of the mediocre; I never got good enough to do anything but work the bally, and the fire-act was much more dramatic". Price mostly worked as a bally talker, and only performed sword swallowing occasionally for a limited time around 1948-1949. In October 2000, at the age of 65, he married his 27 year old bride Krista from England. In August 2005, Slim and Krista left their apartment in El Cajon, CA to tour the United States, attending the Sideshow Gathering and Sword Swallowers Convention in Wilkes-Barre, PA over Labor Day weekend September 1-4, 2005, where Price was presented the honorary "Lifetime Achievement Award" by the Sword Swallowers Association International. As Moderator of Slim's Sideshow Digest, Price always reminded others to "keep the candle burning" for the sideshow arts. Slim Price died on June 13, 2006 at the age of 71, and was remembered by sword swallowers and other sideshow performers in a special candle light memorial tribute at the 2006 Sideshow Gathering. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Bobby Reynolds "Greatest Showman in the World" |
Born Oct 5, 1931 Performed 1948-51 |
Hubert's Museum Coney Island Filmore, CA (USA) |
Bobby Reynolds was born on October 5, 1931. In the 1940's, he worked at Hubert's Museum and Flea Circus in New York, where he learned the art of being a "talker", fire-eater, and more.
While working at Hubert's Museum in 1948-1949, Bobby Reynolds learned sword swallowing from Alex Linton at the age of 15 or 16 when Linton taught Reynolds how to swallow a metal bar in the boiler room of Hubert's Museum.
After working with various circuses in the 1950s and 60s, Bobby Reynolds opened his own show at Coney Island with his partner Jack Waller in the 1960s. Reynolds went on to manage several sideshows over the years.
In 1995, Reynolds taught sword swallowing to George the Giant McArthur.
Bobby Reynolds is now semi-retired and lives in Filmore, CA. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Duke Alphonse Alfonso Curatolo Duke Alphonse Curatolo Alphonse Curatolo |
Born 20 Sept 1936 Performed 1948-1960 |
Ringling Brothers Circus Cristiani Brothers Circus Chicago, IL (USA) |
Duke Alphonse -- A Chicago Daily Tribune article dated May 19, 1960 states, "Alphonse Curatolo, known in circus life as "Duke Alphonse", fire-eater, sword swallower, and escape artist, will get out of University of Illinois next month with a degree in architecture. Since he was 11 years old, he has worked with circuses to help pay his tuition. Curatolo, who lives at 1446 Polk St., graduated from Crane Technical High School. Curatolo picked up his first job in 1948 with Ringling Brothers Circus. A master of sleight of hand, he was billed as the "world's youngest magician." His friends taught him to eat fire and swallow swords. Duke Alphonse's most sensational stunts today are his escapes from straightjackets, handcuffs, and locked safes. He learned these tricks from Harry Hardini, a safe expert, and former rival of Harry Houdini. Curatolo once considered being a professional boxer. As an amateur, he won 49 of 52 bouts - 11 by knockout - and was the 1955 Golden Gloves Champion in the featherweight division.
Curatolo won a scholarship to the Art Institute and later enrolled in the University of Illinois at Navy Pier. He transferred to the Urbana campus in 1957. As a student at Urbana, Curatolo only performed once when he entertained at a university fine arts club dance, to the amazement of the students. Between semesters this year, Curatolo flew to California and appeared on Art Linkletter's television show. Next summer, he will perform with Cristiani Brothers Circus. Curatolo is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Curatolo of the Polk Street address. His brother Ralph Curatolo is a juggler and tumbler with the Cristiani Brothers Circus." Seeking photos and more information. |
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Jim Ball Jimmy Ball James Ball Jim Lucky Ball Lucky Ball II World's Youngest Sword Swallower |
Born June 28, 1935 Learned 1947 Performed 1948-date |
Dick Best Sideshow Riverview Park Royal American Shows Walter Wannous Sideshow Cetlin and Wilson Show Hubert's Museum Ringling Brothers Bob Hammonds Traveling Shows Hoxie, KS Oakley, KS (USA) |
Born into the sword swallowing family of Prince Lucky Ball and Estelline Pike in San Diego, CA on June 28, 1935, Jim Lucky Ball II asked his mother Estelline Pike to teach him how to swallow swords at the age of 12 while in the 7th grade in 1947, earning him the title "World's Youngest Sword Swallower". During the winter of 1947, young Jimmy Ball worked on sword swallowing until he swallowed his first sword at the age of 12. After he learned, it took him about 3 weeks to perform regularly.
Ball's first professional paying show was a Saturday Night Jubilee with Madame Burlison's Colored Girl Show Revue in 1948 at the ripe old age of 13. His next full professional show was in 1951 at the age of 16 while working as a talker for Dick Best Sideshow on the Royal American Shows at the Calgary Exhibition in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, where he had been working as a talker and selling tickets with his mother, and eventually working swords on the outside bally, while Estelline did the inside show. In 1953, Ball worked as sword swallower for the Dick Best Sideshow at Riverview Park in Chicago. In 1953, Ball met and watched Alex Linton perform in Columbus OH. In 1953-54, Jim worked with Walter Wannous on Cetlin and Wilson in Tonawanda NY near Niagara Falls. Jim came back to Hoxie KS to return to Hoxie High School in the fall of 1954. For Jim, the fall of 1954 was a difficult time. When he went to get his high school ring, they wouldn't let him have his ring because the principal said he wouldn't graduate. Eventually, with perseverence, Jim did graduate from Hoxie High School in 1955. Immediately after graduating from Hoxie High School in May 1955, Jim Ball went with his high school class to Branson MO to celebrate their graduation. When the rest of the class returned to Hoxie KS, Jim headed on from Branson straight to Memphis TN to join Dick Best Sideshow on Royal American Shows which headed on to Minneapolis and Canada. One day, Estelline got very sick with ptomaine poisoning, and Dick Best asked Jimmy Ball to fill in as sword swallower. According to an article in the July 9, 1955 Billboard, "Estelline (Ball) Pike, sword swallower on the Royal American Shows, letters that when she became ill of food poisoning recently when the show played Evansville, Indiana, her 19-year old son, James stepped in and did a professional job of subbing for her. The lad's father, John G. (Lucky) Ball, was a well-known sword swallower of a few years ago..." While Estelline recuperated, Jim continued to perform as sword swallower, and Dick Best realized they didn't need two sword swallowers, so Estelline went on to work with the World of Mirth Show, while Jim continued with the Dick Best Sideshow on Royal American Shows. In 1955, Estelline Pike went on to work with the Walter Wannous and the World of Mirth Show. In the fall of 1955, Ball went on to study at Fort Hays State Teacher's College. From there he went on to perform at the Kansas State Fair in Hutchinson KS. He finished his freshman year at Ft. Hays Teacher's College in 1955-56. During the winter of 1955-56, Ball worked as a lineman for Southwest Bell Telephone through the winter. After a cold winter of laying wire and climbing poles in terrible blizzards, in April/May 1956, Ball finally called Dick Best to see if he needed him as sword swallower again. He did, and Ball was glad to go back to work for Dick Best as his sword swallower again. So during the summer of 1956, Ball returned to Chicago to work for Dick Best as manager of Riverview Park. In 1957, Ball was booked at Hubert's Dime Museum in New York, where his mother Estelline Pike was working. According to a September 3, 1958 article in the Alton ILL Evening Telegraph, "Fort Dix, NJ -- AP - Pvt. James Ball of Hoxie Kan., started his Army career by plunging a 26-inch rifle cleaning rod down his throat, but people who know him won't be concerned by the news. He's a professional sword swallower." In 1958, Ball worked with his mother Estelline Pike when she performed with Ringling Brothers Circus at Madison Square Garden. During this time, he appeared with her on the TV program "What's My Line?" as a sword swallowing team in 1958. In June of 1958, Ball was drafted into the US Army. On September 3, 1958, he was shipped off to Fort Dix, NJ to undergo 8 weeks of basic training. He signed up for Officer's Candidate School (OCS). During this time, his mother Estelline Pike left Hubert's Museum in New York to work at Riverview Park in Chicago, so Jim went on a furlough to Chicago with a Cuban dancer to visit his mother in 1958. When he returned a few days late, he got in trouble for being AWOL, but at the same time, he was given his own quarters as an OCS candidate. In 1958, Ball went on to Fort Benning, GA near Columbus where he became a platoon leader. In 1959, Jim Lucky Ball served with the US Army in Korea. Before he left, when sword swallower Mighty Ajax died in 1959, he willed his swords and sword board to young Jimmy Lucky Ball. On March 2, 1959, a UPI photo was released of Estelline Pike eyeing four swords at Hubert's Museum: "With a confident grin, Estelline Pike, a sword swallower at Hubert's Museum in New York City, eyes four blades she plans to have as a midafternoon snack. This savorer of sabres is also a mother and grandmother. Her relish for cold steel is apparently hereditary -- her son, U.S. Army Pvt. James (Lucky) Ball, was a sword swallower, too, in civilian life. Now stationed in Korea, he has to limit his metallic munching to rifle cleaning rods, with an occasional Japanese officer's sword for dessert.". In 1960, after he returned from Korea and got out of the military, Ball worked for the Dick Best Sideshow for Royal American Shows in 1960 as talker and sword swallower. According to an article in the July 6, 1960 Milwaukee Journal, Jim Lucky Ball was working his way through college as a sword swallower. In 1963, after working at a Show Bar club in New Orleans, LA, Jim Ball picked up his buddy magician Eduardo Adriani and they headed "north". After stumbling upon a carnival with a sideshow in Wheeling WV, Ball looked over the tease curtain to see Jim Beech, his old canvas boss with Bobby Hasson, working on equipment. The show needed help, and Ball signed on with the Jim Beech Circus Sideshow, while Eduardo continued on. From Wheeling, the Jim Beech Circus Sideshow ran its route, working in Panama City, FL, where Jim found himself working 4 different shows at once. In 1963, he worked wtih Bob Hammonds Traveling Shows with Judy Ball. In 1964, he auditioned for Diamond Jim's Casino in Las Vegas, NV. During his audition, everything in the casino stopped - the slots, bartenders, everyone - to watch Jim swallow swords. The casino operator told him, "I can't afford to hire you... I'd lose business!" In 1964, Ball had a Giant Snake Show in Hoxie KS that he took out on the road. In 1964, Jim Lucky Ball taught Judy Ball how to swallow a sabre in a trailer in Wichita, Kansas. Jim said he taught Judy with the most difficult sword first so that she would later be able to swallow just about any sword. In 1964-65, Ball and his first wife, Judy Ball swallowed swords at Riverview Park in Chicago, where Ball, his wife Judy, and his mother Estelline Pike were billed as the "World's Only Sword Swallowing Family". On February 7, 1975, Ball married his high school friend Lona Ball in Oakley KS. Soon after this time, the Viking Giant Johann Petersson asked Ball to manage him. Ball had to turn him down because he had just gotten married to Lona in February 1975. On June 8, 1990, his mother Estelline Pike died at her hotel in NY city. In 2005, Ball was invited to perform on a recreated version of "What's My Line?" in Hollywood, CA where Ted Lange from The Love Boat removed the sword from his throat. Jim Ball works as an independent life and health insurance agent in Oakley, KS, works with a local roofing company, and still performs sword swallowing as often as possible. On "World Sword Swallower's Day" February 28, 2008, at the age of 82, Ball was inducted into the Sword Swallower's Hall of Fame and awarded the SSAI Lifetime Achievement Award by the Sword Swallower's Association International for his years of service to the art of sword swallowing for the distinction of having been the "World's Youngest Sword Swallower", the "World's Oldest Sword Swallower", and the "World's Longest Performing Sword Swallower" by performing for over 62 years. Jim Lucky Ball II now holds the distinction of being the World's Oldest Performing Sword Swallower, having performed for over 62 years,
Jim Lucky Ball II Timeline:
Jimmy Ball II (1956) Jim Ball II Jim Ball II Jim Ball II Jim Ball & Estelline Pike "What's My Line?" (1958) James Ball II article (9-3-1958) Milwaukee Journal Article on Jim Ball (7-6-1960) Jim Ball II "What's My Line?" (2005) Jim Ball sword swallowing at 79 (2015) Jim Ball with swords (4-2015) |
| Judy Ball |
Born 1 June 1941 Performed 1964-70s Died 28 Oct 2018 |
Bob Hammonds Traveling Shows Dick Best Sideshow Riverview Park Cut 'n Shoot, TX (USA) |
Judy Ball was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota on June 1, 1941, and graduated from Wayzata High School in 1958. In 1963, while working as an exotic dancer under the name of "Zuzette" in a New Orleans club on Bourbon Street, Judy met sword swallower Jim "Lucky" Ball who was performing in the club at the time. Judy noticed Jim and the pair "fell in love". The pair left New Orleans and toured with Bob Hammonds traveling shows in the summer of 1963. During the winter of 1964, they lived in a travel trailer in Wichita, Kansas, where Jim Ball taught Judy how to swallow a 26 inch curved cavalry sabre. Because the trailer was so small, Judy had to get on one knee on the floor to be able to put the sword down her throat. Jim said he taught her with the most difficult sword first so that she would later be able to swallow just about any sword.
In 1965 Judy Ball was the bally person and sword swallower on the Dick Best Sideshow in Riverview Park in Chicago. She also was the inside talker announcing the acts, and performed as Electric Woman and worked the Sword Box and a Head on a Ladder illusions, with Jim "Lucky" Ball managing and doing the talking, and Jim's mother, Estelline Pike swallowing swords on the inside. Jim and Judy Ball toured for many years with numerous traveling carnivals. Jim and Judy Ball and Jim's mother Estelline Pike were billed as the "World's Only Sword Swallowing Family". During this time, Judy also worked with Strecho, Hoyt Shoemaker, Armless and Legless Wonder, Sadie Anderson the Leopard Skinned Woman, Pop-Eye, Tommy Thompson, Vernon Goins the Tattooed man, Ester Blackman, the Alligator Skinned Woman, Yvonne and Yvette the Siamese Twins. The only injury Judy sustained was not a sword swallowing injury. At one time, while she was on the bally in Chicago with Pop-Eye, a black performer who could pop his eyeballs out of their socekts, a racist threw a brick at the performers. The brick bounced off Popeye and hit Judy on the temple. The performers didn't react until they got off the stage and saw that she was bleeding. After Jim and Judy were divorced, Judy traveled by herself and with her two sons, Scott Ball and Paul " Red" Ball. When Estelline Pike's swords were stolen in New York, Judy Ball sent her swords to Estelline. Judy Ball eventually retired from sword swallowing in the 1970s and settled down in Cut 'n Shoot, Texas. Judy Ball was one of the first women in the Lions Club International, with a 19 year membership in the Cut 'n Shoot Family Lions Club. She was the Trustee for the "Lions Project for Canine Companions" in Texas, and in 2007, she was awarded the title "Trustee of the Year" nationwide by LPCCI.
Judy Ball had 5 grandchildren and 8 great grandchildren, and was retired and living in Cut 'n Shoot, TX with her grandson Chain Ball and her three great grandsons raising Border Collies. She was the author of several nationally sold cookbooks, and was in the process of writing her life story. In 2018, she moved to Minnesota, where she died on October 28, 1018 at the age of 77. Seeking photos and more information. |
| Frank Lyons | Performed 1940s? |
Washington DC (USA) |
In an August 23, 1952 article in the Saturday Evening Post, Drug Agent Gon Sam Mue writes, "I knew Frank Lyons was pushing (drugs), and I was deeping chagrined when, after stripping him naked, I couldn't find a single grain. In talking to him, I noticed a small red spot between his teeth, at the gum line. Then I remembered that in palmier days, Frank had been a circus sword swallower. Examining the red spot closely, I found that it was red string. Hooking the red string out of his mouth, I found on the other end a rubber finger stall, full of hop, which he had swallowed." Seeking photos, dates and more information. |
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Butch Trout Clifford Trout |
Performed 1940s-69 |
Royal American Shows Ringling Brothers Circus Deggeller Attractions Central Florida Fair Stuart, FL (USA) |
Clifford Trout was a sword swallower in the 1940's to late 60's. He worked as a sword swallower, but also performed a knife throwing act and traveled with Royal American Shows, Deggeller Attractions, and even performed with Ringling Brothers Circus in Madison Square Gardens in New York. Trout performed at least up until the Central Florida Fair in Orlando, FL in 1969, and possibly into the 1970s. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Ricko the Great Ricky Libhart (Fredrick Hiram Libhart Frederick Hiram Libhart) |
Born Sept 11, 1929 Married Sept 2, 1950 Performed 1950s-60s Died March 3, 1990
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West Coast Shows Butler Shows Foley and Burke Shows Vancouver, WA Santa Rosa, CA Port Angeles, WA (USA) |
Fredrick Hiram Libhart was born September 11, 1929 in Duluth, MN. He worked with carnivals on the west coast and in the Pacific Northwest as a sword swallower and fire-eater under the stage name Ricko the Great. After Libhart dropped out of school in the sixth grade, he joined a circus, where he learned to eat fire and swallow swords. At the age of 16, he joined up with a carnival around 1945, which is where he met and became friends with the carnival fat lady, "Jolly G", (Gladys Laverne Ruoff, who was born November 1, 1929 in Port Angeles, WA). Ricky and Gladys were married on September 02, 1950. They worked with carnivals around Ohio during the 1950s, with Butler Shows for 1 year, with West Coast Shows from 1951 to 1957 in Eugene, Salem, and Portland OR, and for 3 years with Foley and Burke Shows in California at the end of their career in the late 50's from 1957 to 1960. In his show, Libhart swallowed up to 3 swords at once. One evening, just after he had finished eating a cherry pie for dinner, the announcer called him to come out and perform his act. Libhart did not want to perform because he knew his dinner had not digested yet, but the announcer was persistent, so Libhart came out and swallowed his sword. When he went to pull the sword out, it was stuck. So he pulled a little harder, and out came the the sword along with 3 half-digested cherries. This ended up making it into a news story in the local newspaper. Ricky and Gladys had to leave the carnival business in 1960 when Gladys became pregnant. The Libharts moved to Orchards WA, a suburb of Vancouver WA, where Gladys gave birth to a set of twin boys, Curt and Carl on Sept.7, 1960, and later another son Rick on January 26, 1963 in Vancouver, WA. Because Gladys was so large (at one time weighing 621 lbs), they had to hypnotize her for the births. Ricky and Gladys did not talk much about their circus/carnival careers. Ricky said he did not want his children to travel with a carnival and refused to teach his sons sword swallowing. Ricky contracted tuberculosis around 1962 and was treated at the VA Hospital in Livermore, CA around 1964. Eventually, the family moved to Santa Rosa, CA, where Gladys died on August 11, 1976 at the age of 46. Ricky moved that night after the funeral, but lived with his sons in Santa Rosa for a year after Gladys' death. To support his family, Ricky became a male nurse in Santa Rosa CA, after graduating from Sonoma State University. Around 1977, Ricky and the boys moved to Port Angeles, WA. During a trip to Vancouver WA, Ricky met Maxine Ross, whom he later married and lived with until his death in Vancouver, WA on March 3, 1990 at the age of 60. Ricky Lubhart is buried at Evergreen Memorial Gardens in Vancouver, WA. One of his swords is owned by his son Curt Libhart. Seeking photos, dates and more information. |
| Eli Radtke | Performed 1949 |
Royal Bros Circus (USA) |
Eli Radtke was the sword swallower with the Royal Brothers Circus in 1949 until the circus closed in Montclair, New Jersey on July 6, 1949. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Amir Rahvis The White Fakir Maurice Jarvis |
Performed 1949-57 |
West Ham, London (UK) |
Amir Rahvis performed from around 1949 to 1957 and was known for driving a 6 inch nail into his nose and swallowing an 18 inch neon tube. He underwent examinations at the Royal Cancer Hospital, where for two hours he swallowed objects for doctors while being xrayed, sliding a tube down his throat and into his stomach. He did this five times, retaining the tube internally for periods of from one to two and a half minutes while being xrayed. He would also lay on a bed of nails and allow three women to stand on top of him. He was also featured in the 1954 edition of "Would You Believe It!" He originally came from West Ham, London, his real name was Maurice Jarvis, and before he was a sword swallower, he was an Income Tax official at Bow. He said that lighted 18-inch neon tubes were a lot easier to swallow than some of the tales he was told by the tax dodgers, and far more profitable. Seeking photos and more information. Amir Rahvis bed of nails Amir Rahvis (Maurice Jarvis) |
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French Sword Swallower L'avaleur de sabres |
Performed 1950-1958 |
Expo 58 World Fair Paris (France) Brussels (Belgium) |
In 1950, a sword swallower performed in Paris, France swallowing up to 4 swords and bayonets at once. There is another photo of a sword swallower swallowing a bayonet and swords in France in the 1950s. In 1955, two film shorts were produced about a sword swallower in France. (video video) In 1956, this sword swallower performed on the street in Paris with a half-smoked cigarette in his hand. The Expo 58 World's Fair opened in Brussels Belgium from April 17, 1958 through October 19, 1958, and on April 23, 1958, a French sword swallower was filmed swallowing a bayonet. Could this be the same sword swallower? Seeking name, photos and more information.
Sword Swallower 4 swords in Paris (1950) Avaleur de sabre in France (1950s) Sword Swallower in France (video) (1955) Sword Swallower in France (video) (1955) Avaleur de sabre in Paris with cigarette (1956) Sword Swallower at Expo 58 in Brussels video (4-23-1958) |
| Shumpert Eko | Performed 1950-1951 |
Cavalcade Variety Show Coney Island Brooklyn, NY (USA) |
Originally from East India, Shumpert Eko had 2 wives and swallowed neon tubes. He worked with Cavalcade Variety Show as well as Coney Island Sideshow in NY. Seeking photos and more information. |
| Yrjö Lehvonen |
Born 1938 Performed 1950-64 Died 19?? |
(Finland) |
Yrjö Lehvonen was born in Finland in 1938 and was possibly the best-known sword swallower in Finland, performing from around 1950 into the 1960's. In 1964 Lehvonen swallowed a 63 centimeter long blade to the hilt, which Kotiposti magazine claimed was a world record at the time for Finland. Lehvonen also performed as a contortionist. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Ali Kabah Aly Kabah "Fakir Magician Aly Kabah" (Gerald Gerry Holmes) |
Born March 29 1922 Performed 1942-1980s Died February 10, 2009 |
Sydney (Australia) |
Aly Kabah was born in Melbourne Australia on March 29, 1922 as Gerald Holmes. At the age of 12, Holmes began experimenting with self-hypnosis, which enabled him to hammer a nail through his tongue and pierce his body with needles. In 1942 at the age of 20, he taught himself sword swallowing and learned to bow to the audience while the sword was down his throat. He combined fakir feats with magic and became known as the "Fakir Magician Aly Kabah" (sometimes "Ali Kabah"). In the late 1950s he began performing in hotels and clubs around Australia. In 1964 he began working overseas and performed in England, France, Germany, Lebanon, Cyprus, Italy, Pakistan, Iran, Japan, Singapore, Hong Kong, Sarawak, Liberia, Nigeria, Ghana, Tahiti, Noumea, Fiji, and New Zealand. In 1973 he performed in Canada and the US at the World Festival of Magic and Occult at Madison Square Gardens in New York. In 1977 he returned to perform in the US again at Richiardi's Festival of Witchcraft and Magic at Konova Hotel Miami. In the early 1980s he preformed a regular show at The Broadbeach International Hotel on the Gold Coast Australia. In 1983 he worked in Bahrain with frequent trips back and forth to Australia. He retired from performing in the late 1980s. His show was a combination of magic and mysticism, and included fire-eating, glass-eating, body piercing, and sword swallowing, where he swallowed a single 24 inch long sword. He was retired and living in Sydney, Australia. According to a death notice in the Sydney Daily Telegraph, Holmes died on February 10, 2009 at the age of 86. Seeking photos and more information. Ali Kabah clipping (1973) Aly Kabah photo Aly Kabah article Aly Kabah video (1960s) Aly Kabah video (1975) |
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Lennart Pettersson Lenart Pettersson |
Born ? Performed ? Died 1976 |
Umeå (Sweden) |
Lennart Pettersson was born in Umeå Sweden. He performed as a fakir, and swallowed swords, ate light bulbs, swallowed razor blades, drove skewers through his face, sewed his mouth shut, and had x-rays taken of his stomach with bits of glass inside. He lived his life in Umeå where he worked as a caretaker in a
school. He had three children with his first wife Astrid - Inger, Lena, and Bengt. He had two other daughters, Jenny and Sara, with his second wife. Pettersson died in his early 60's in 1976. Looking for photos and more information. Sök efter fotos och upplysningen. Petterson as fakir with skewers Petterson sewing mouth shut Last known photo of Petterson |
| Otto Butkus |
Born 1904 Performed 1939-1959 Died 1993 |
Cathay Restaurant (Singapore) Sydney (Australia) |
Otto Butkus (1904-1993) was a fakir, magician, fire-eater, hot coal eater, sword swallower, neon tube swallower, and collector and manufacturer of magic apparatus. Butkus performed a show called 100 Minutes China Fantasy where he performed in flashy Asian costume, ate fire and hot coals with chopsticks, swallowed a Tai Chi sword and neon tubes. A Singapore Straits Times article dated March 24, 1959 reads: 3,000 Volt Neon Tube is Just Breakfast for Otto While Otto Butkus, world-renowned magician, stood calmly swallowing a lighted glass neon tube filled with gas and charged with 3,000 volts, his audience sat perspiring. At a preview today in the Dragon Room of the Cathay, Butkus fascinated as well as horrified his audience. In his act, he also swallows a sword, razor blades, and fire. Nothing like that for breakfast, he told reporters. Later Butkus confessed that swallowing the neon tube is his most complicated act. If the tube breaks or explodes, it will mean the end of him. "I always get a strange feeling when I do this act, but the show must go on," said Butkus, who has been performing for more than 20 years. He will be performing nightly at the Cathay Restaurant for four weeks before he goes to the Federation. In the September 14, 1964 Sydney Morning Herald, when striptease artist Valerie Ford was being questioned about her title, "Valerie, the Hottest Girl Alive", Otto Butkus, entertainer, of Glen Street, Milson's Point, denied that he had hoped Mrs. Ford would do strip tease acts before native audiences in New Guinea. Butkus said this title referred to a fire-eating act, and an act that involved electricity, although the term "hottest girl alive" also referred to Mrs. Jones' figure." Butkus retired to Sydney Australia, where he sold one of his neon tubes to Orchante before he died in 1994 at the age of 89. Seeking photos and more information Otto Butkus Tai Chi sword Otto Butkus pitchcard Otto Butkus eating coals Otto Butkus eating coals Otto Butkus eating coals Otto Butkus swallowing neon Otto Butkus swallowing neon closeup 100 Minutes China Fantasy poster |
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The Great Arlos The Sword Swallower |
Performed 1944 |
Altoona, PA (USA) |
The Great Arlos the Sword Swallower performed at a Lion's Club party in Altoona PA on October 3, 1944. According to an article in the Altoona Tribune dated Oct 3, 1944: "Charles W. Kline, chairman of the entertainment committee, presented The Great Arlos, the sword swallower, who mystified the group by swallowing straight and curved weapons which varied in length from 18 to 24 inches in length, singly and several at a time. The program ended with Arlos swallowing a ten-inch neon bulb which shone very brightly when the lights were turned out." Seeking photos and more information on The Great Arlos |
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Lady Louise Louise Chavanne Louise Chevanne Louise Chavanee Louise Chevaney Louise Cheveney Louise Chaveney Louise Chavaney Louise Chivanne Louise Chibanny Louise Chebanny Lois Chibanny Louise Crane Chavanne Louise Crane "Hazel" Chavanne |
Born 1904 Performed 1945-71 Died 1982
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Johnny Bejanos Sideshow Sterling Crown Shows Royal Crown Shows Kelly-Sutton Show James Strates Shows Pete Kortes Show Gibsonton, FL (USA) |
Louise Crane "Hazel" Chavanne (sometimes spelled "Lois Chevanne", "Chevaney", "Chaveney", "Chaveny", "Chivanne" or "Chibanny") was married to Jimmy Chavanne (1891-1965), who was the front talker while Louise was inside lecturer on Johnny J. Bejanos Sideshow from the mid-1930s through 1945. At Johnny Bejanos' death, the Chavannes took management of the office and ran the sideshow on Dolly Young's "Royal Crown Shows". Louise first swallowed swords after 1945 and performed in the late 1940's and early 1950's on the Kelly-Sutton Show.
According to the November 1, 1952 Billboard, "Upon conclusion of the Muskogee Oklahoma Fair, Jimmy Chavanne and his side show joined the Sterling Crown Shows at Russellville, Alabama. Line-up includes Louise Chavanne, emsee and sword swallower." In her shows, Louise, after making a few remarks, would take a chrome fireplace poker and swallow it. Then she would swallow a single sword or two, then she swallowed 2 swords at once and called it a "sword sandwich". Pulling the swords out, while wiping them off, she would conclude, "Sword swallowing is a lot of fun! You should try it sometime!" In the 1950's, Louise and Jimmy lived in a small trailer at Edna Fred's Trailer Camp off Elliot St in Riverview, FL. A childhood friend said Louise and Jimmy had their trailer parked on her grandparents' property Edna Fred's Trailer Camp that was designed as a fishing trailer park in 1950, but ended up being used more as a carny winter quarters, so between 1952 and 1962, she would often spend time with the Chaveneys and became close friends with them. Louise once showed her how she could swallow swords, and as a young girl, she would accompany Jimmy on his paper route around Riverview. After her grandfather died, her grandmother sold the trailer camp, and the Chaveneys moved to Gibsonton FL. After Jimmy's death in 1965, Louise Chavanne lived alone in a small trailer in Gibsonton, FL and continued working as the sword swallower on the Kelly-Sutton Sideshow with James E. Strates Shows. Louise worked in the Kelly-Sutton Show as late as October 1968 before Sandra Reed started working with the show in 1969. Louise's last season performing as sword swallower was with Pete Kortes in 1971. In 1971, Louise recalled that on one or two occasions, the swords pierced her stomach, and she was rushed to the hospital, and her injuries made the news wire services. Louise was known by those she worked with as a very gracious, fine Southern lady. Her age and slightly matronly appearance gave her a grandmotherly persona that was charming and appealing.
In 1982, Louise Chavanne died at the age of 77-78 in Gibsonton FL, and her body was interred in Garden of Memories Cemetery in Tampa, Florida. Her husband, Jimmy James "William" Crane Chavanne, died in 1965, and is buried in Garden of Memories Cemetery in Tampa, Florida. Seeking photos and more information. Edna Fred's Trailer Camp Riverview FL Edna Fred's Trailer Camp Riverview FL |
| Arthur Kliwert | Performed 1950 |
Cumberland, MD Frederick, MD (USA) |
According to a newspaper article in the Frederick Post dated December 30, 1950, sword swallower Arthur Kliwert of Cumberland, MD had recently arrived in Frederick to perform, when he was picked up by the police for being a vagrant. When he got to the police station, he proved he was not a vagrant by opening his suitcase and displaying two swords, a small dagger and a larger 20" sword, and a set of fire-eating torches. He swallowed the dagger first, and then the longer sword, and offered to eat fire, but the police were convinced. Because he had no money, they offered him a free night in jail, even though he was technically free to go on his own reconnaissance. Seeking photos and more information. |
| Arthur Layfield |
Born c. 1930 Performed 1952 Shot August 27, 1952 |
Philadelphia, PA (USA) |
According to an article in the Philadelphia Inquirer dated August 28, 1952, "Arthur Layfield, a professional sword swallower shot and critically wounded himself last night, police said, at 5th St. and Columbia Ave. "I was unhappy over all my past mistakes," Arthur Layfield, 22, of 1638 E. Eyne St., told Detectives Robert Hamilton and Robert Nugent at Stetson Hospital where he was under treatment for a .32-caliber bullet wound in his left side." Seeking photos and more information. |
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Lady Beth Lady Betty Miss Betty Buckskin Betty Betty Bancroft Mrs. Fred Bancroft Elizabeth J. Bancroft Elizabeth Jane Bancroft Elizabeth Jane Wrisley Elizabeth Jane Hudson Elizabeth Jane Housel Elizabeth J. Wrisley Hudson Housel-Bancroft |
Born January 15, 1902 Married 1924 Performed 1953-54 Died March 1, 1985 |
Fred Bancroft's Circus Side Show Golden West Shows John R. Ward Shows Wallace Bros Shows Royal Crown Shows Blue Grass Shows Dick Slayton Shows Rowe Brothers Circus Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Forrest City, AR (USA) |
Betty Bancroft was born Elizabeth Jane Wrisley on January 15, 1902, and may have originally been from Ashtabula, Ohio (in some reports, she later claimed to be from North Hampton, MA where she may have been living at the time.) In 1926, under her married name Elizabeth Jane Housel gave birth to her daughter Betty Jane Housel. After marrying Fred Ford Bancroft (1885-1963), Elizabeth changed her daughter's name to Zoe Ann Bancroft.
By the 1940s, Fred and Betty Bancroft of Forrest City, Arkansas owned their own sideshow "Fred Bancroft's Circus Side Show" and traveled with several different circuses throughout the years, performing under the names "Colorado Fred, the Knife Thrower", and "Buckskin Betty", or under the combined name as the "Shooting Stars". The highlight of their early act was when "Colorado Fred" threw knives at "Buckskin Betty" while she was spinning on the "Wheel of Death". Besides being an "impalement artist" and target for Fred, Betty also performed as trick rifle sharpshooter, a rope spinner, and whip artist, and later as a sword swallower. In 1940, the Bancrofts worked with Rowe Brothers Circus. In March, 1942 Fred Bancroft's Side Show performed in Louisiana; in June 1942, Fred and Betty Bancroft performed with the Golden West Shows in Minnesota. On October 16, 1942, their daughter Zoe Ann Bancroft married concessionaire William Brown. In 1943, Fred and Betty were signed to perform as the "Shooting Stars" as well as manage the office of their Bancroft's Side Show which toured Indiana and Illinois. On January 25, 1945, their daughter Zoe Ann Bancroft was married to Thomas P. Mangos in Pensacola, FL, but Zoe Ann continued to work the sideshow with her parents while her husband was deployed overseas. In May 1945, Fred Bancroft's Side Show worked the John Marks midway with "Buckskin Betty" sharpshooting, "Colorado Fred" doing impalement, and daughter "Zo Anne" Bancroft working the blade box. From 1944-48, the Bancrofts worked with Wallace Bros Shows, Cetlin and Wilson Shows and John R. Ward Shows, and with the Royal Crown Shows in 1948. According to the August 14, 1948 Billboard listing, "Mrs. Elizabeth Bancroft of the Circus Side Show with the Royal Crown Shows, writes denying any knowledge of an Ed S. Torbert, who it was reported in the Billboard, was employed by her and Fred Bancroft as a calliope player. She said she has no responsibility since May 30 for any salaries or any other indebtedness contracted by Fred Bancroft." In 1949, the Bancrofts worked with the Blue Grass Shows in Kentucky. In 1951, their daughter Zoe Ann was married to Jim Wolff. According to July 26, 1952 Billboard, "Fred and Betty Bancroft, also of the same back-end unit, took delivery of a Chevrolet town car recently." The first mention of Betty Bancroft performing as a sword swallower is in April 18, 1953 with the Dick Slayton show on the Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey Sideshow. Betty Bancroft first appears on the Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey Circus route book as their sword swallower in 1953 while her husband Fred Bancroft appears as the knife thrower with Betty as his target. According to the Dec. 5, 1953 Billboard, the 1953 Ringling Brothers season ended well, and Manager Dick Slayton has been signed for 1954 season. Fred and Betty Bancroft spend their winter quarters in Rattlesnake, FL. The Bancrofts returned again for a second season with Ringling Brothers again in 1954, when Betty performed as their sword swallower in Madison Square Garden in New York under the stage name "Lady Beth". She was also known to swallow a neon tube. In 1954, Elizabeth J. Bancroft appeared on episode #201 of the popular TV show "What's My Line?", filmed April 4, 1954, and aired a week later on April 11, 1954. A description of the TV episode says, "Mrs. Elizabeth J. Bancroft - "Sword Swallower" (salaried; she performs with the Ringling Brothers Circus which is currently in NY; from North Hampton, MA; She has such a severe case of laryngitis that she can barely speak!)" (video) In 1955, Fred and Betty Bancroft do their Wheel of Death knife throwing act in the Paul Flanagan show. Their son, Harry L. Bancroft, was a tattoo artist and had a trained chimp named "Cheeta" who was supposed to have been the offspring of Cheeta on Tarzan, and another son, Raymond Bancroft helped out with the show. Fred Ford Bancroft died on 23 Aug 1963 at the age of 78 in Houston TX. (grave) Elizabeth Jane Wrisley Hudson Housel Bancroft died on March 1, 1985 in North Fort Myers, Florida at the age of 83. (Could this be the grave of Elizabeth Jane Hudson Bancroft?)Seeking photos and more information on Elizabeth Jane Wrisley Hudson Housel Bancroft.
Buckskin Betty Elizabeth Bancroft Timeline
Betty & Fred Bancroft (1940s) Betty & Fred Bancroft gun & knives (c 1940s) Lady Beth & Fred Bancroft RBBB (1954) Lady Beth RBBB in NC (1954) Lady Beth RBBB (1954) Elizabeth Bancroft on What's My Line? (4-4-1954) Betty & Fred Bancroft on Ringling (1954) Betty Bancroft swallowing neon Miss Betty Sword Swallower banner Fred Ford Bancroft grave (1885-1963) |
| Marion Dempsey | Performed 1953-56 |
(USA) |
Marion Dempsey was the featured sword swallower in the films "Houdini" (1953) and Rodgers and Hammerstein's "Carousel" (1956). Seeking photos, dates and more information. |
| Abbdurama |
Performed 1954 |
(Sweden) | Abbdurama performed as a sword swallower in Sweden in 1954. Sök efter fotos och upplysninging. |
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Carlos Leal Carlos Lial |
Born about 1914 Performed early 1950s-60 |
King Bros Cristiani Show King Brothers Circus Cristiani Bros Circus (Argentina) Scranton, PA (USA) |
Carlos Leal was originally from Argentina and worked mainly as a fire act on shows such as the King Bros Cristiani show. Leal taught Capt. Don Leslie how to swallow swords in the mid 1950's.
In 1954, Carlos Leal sent a letter to the King Bros and Cristiani Circus asking about employment for the coming year. In May of 1954, there is mention of Carlos Leal from Scranton, PA at the age of 40 working as fire-eater with the King Brothers Circus. The "The Times Recorder" article says Leal was pulling a house trailer and was "passing another auto on the West Pike some six and a half miles from Zanesville, OH, when it hit the median strip and went out of control careening into the ditch. The house trailer was demolished and the car damaged. Leal was not hurt, the patrol said."
According to an April 1960 article on the King Bros Circus in the Bandwagon, "Carlos Leal does outside fire-eating and bally, and does fire and sword acts inside." Carlos Leal apparently had a brother named Joey F. Lial. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Capt. Don Capt. Don Leslie Donald Paul Leslie |
Born Dec 26, 1938 Performed 1954-1994 Injured 1989 Died June 4, 2007
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King Bros Cristiani Circus Cristiani Bros Circus Clyde Beatty Cole Brothers Ringling Brothers Circus Great American Circus Dick Best Sideshow Circus Bruno Hanneford Circus Tommy Hart Show Kyle Taylor Norman Brooks Slim Kelly/ Whitey Sutton Jeff Murray Bill English Ward Hall's World of Wonders Charlie Cox Harmur Shows O.C. Buck Shows Reithoffer Shows Coleman Bros. Amusements Fiesta Shows Murphy Bros. Shows Conklin Amusement Carnival Orig Boston, MA Died Chico, CA (USA) |
Donald Paul Leslie was born on Dec 26, 1938 in Boston, MA. Like many boys of his day, he dreamed of running away from home to join the circus. In 1952, at the age of 14, Don Leslie ran away and joined the King Brothers Cristiani Circus, where he ran the pony ride across the midway from the sideshow bally stage that was to inspire and influence him to later become a sideshow performer. In 1953, when he was just 15 years old, Leslie got his first tattoo from Carol Nightingale while the circus was performing in Washington DC.
In 1954, at the age of 16, Leslie learned fire-eating from the Argentinian fire eater and sword swallower Carlos Leal while working with the Cristiani Brothers Circus. He began billing himself as a fire-eater with the Cristiani Bros Circus. It wasn't long before Leal taught Leslie how to swallow swords, teaching him to cough and gag and make a big production to add drama to his sword swallowing act. In 1955, while his family was wintering in Los Angeles, Leslie wandered into a tattoo parlor on Main Street where he got his "Rock of Ages" tattoo on his back by Lee Roy Minugh. In 1956, Lee Roy Minugh did the tattoos on his chest, back and arms, and throughout the 1960s and 70s most of Capt. Don's tattoos were done by Lee Roy Minugh at Lee Roy's Tattoo Parlor on The Pike in Long Beach CA. In 1956, while being tattooed by Lyle Tuttle in California, Leslie and Tuttle became friends, and Leslie taught some of the basics of sword swallowing to Lyle Tuttle with a stove poker. In 1956, when he was 18, Leslie hung up his swords and did a brief stint with the Marines. In 1957 at the age of 19, he returned to the circus life and picked up where he had left off with Cristiani Bros Circus. After working a variety of circus jobs in concessions, animal care and general labor, Leslie eventually worked his way into becoming a full-time circus sideshow performer. He worked with the Cristiani Bros Circus from 1956 to 1959. He eventually became a complete 10-in-one act: talker, grind man, tattooed man, escape artist, bed of nails, bed of glass, electric chair, fire-eater, human blockhead, human pincushion, and sword swallower. During the off-season when the circus was in winter quarters, Leslie made a name for himself by working as a tattoo artist. In 1957, while working with the Cristiani Bros Circus, Harry Doll of the famous Doll Family of performing midgets christened Leslie with the name "Captain Don" after telling the young sword swallower he needed a catchy stage name. In 1958, "Capt Don Leslie" was featured as the sword swallower with the Doll family on Cristiani Bros Circus. Doll also introduced 19-year-old Leslie to legendary sword swallower Alex Linton who was in his late 40s or early 50s at the time. Linton gave Leslie some valuable tips on sword swallowing, teaching him how to swallow swords smoothly and not gag while adding flair to his show. At the time, Alex Linton held the record for swallowing four 30 inch swords at once until Capt. Don later broke his record by swallowing five 30 inch swords in 1979.
In October 1961, Capt. Don married his first wife Sherry in Key West, FL, and on November 22, 1962, their first son Don Lee was born in Ft. Lauderdale FL. On January 31, 1964, their second son Daryl Wayne was born in Dallas, TX.
In 1979, Capt. Don became known for swallowing a sword sandwich of five 30 inch swords with the blades perpendicular to the tongue instead of flat on the tongue, a feat he performed for 10 years from 1979 to 1989. For most of the 1980s, Capt. Don performed on the streets of Boston and was a regular on Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco. In the late 1980s, after recovering from alcoholism, Capt. Don worked with Jeff and Sue Murray on the Harmur Shows. During this time, Capt. Don brought out his son and daughter from his second marriage who also worked the show with him in New England. From October 1988 into 1989 Capt. Don and sword swallower Lady Diane Falk did a boat tour of the Micronesian Islands and Guam in the South Pacific. Then in 1989, Capt. Don sustained his most serious injury while swallowing five swords while performing before a packed house at the Center for Contemporary Arts in Seattle, WA for the opening of the photo exhibit for the book "Modern Primitives". While performing his grand finale sword sandwich of 5 vertical blades, the blades scissored and lacerated his esophagus, causing a serious injury with internal bleeding that nearly killed him. After the accident, Capt. Don gave up sword swallowing and gave most of his swords to Lady Diane Falk. In 1990, Capt. Don performed in the Hollywood film "The Problem Child" with John Ritter. In the early 1990s, Capt. Don built a sideshow for $60,000 that he took on tour in Canada for the Conklin Amusement Carnival Shows. Leslie managed the show and performed all the acts but sword swallowing, so he hired Lady Diane Falk as his sword swallower. Here Capt Don is pictured with Lady Diane on the 1992 Conklin Show in Canada.
Capt. Don found it hard to give up performing, and he started swallowing swords periodically again around 1997 at tattoo conventions, where he was known as a bit of a celebrity. Capt. Don semi-retired in Chico, California after having spent over 51 years with most of the major circuses, sideshows and carnivals that trekked the US and Canada from the 1950's through the early 1990's, including King Bros, Ringling Bros, Barnum and Bailey Circus, Cristiani Bros Circus, Great American Circus, Circus Bruno, Hanneford Circus, and Clyde Beatty and Cole Bros. Circus. He appeared live in nightclubs, dance halls and theatres in most major cities of the United States, Canada, Holland, Japan, and the Micronesian Islands. He was featured on TV shows such as the Art Baker Show, "You Asked For It" in 1957, The Dinah Shore Show, Evening Magazine, Hildegard's Party, Capt. Kangaroo, Mike Douglas Show, Jerry Springer Show, and on a Discovery Channel documentary. He was in the motion pictures "Problem Child" in 1988 and "Beloved" in 1997. Over the course of his life, his acts included Sword Swallower, Fire-Eater, Human Pin Cushion, Human Blockhead, Escape Artist, Tattooed Attraction, Electric Chair, Bed of Machetes, Bed of Glass, Sideshow Manager, and Master of Ceremonies. Besides being known for his long circus and sideshow background, Capt. Don was also a musician and a songwriter (his first record was called "Tattoo Songs By A Tattooed Man"), and he was featured in two Hollywood feature films, "The Problem Child" with John Ritter (1990), and "Beloved" with Oprah Winfrey and Danny Glover (1998) (Don's banner painting). Up to the last few weeks of his life, Capt. Don still made occasional appearances at tattoo conventions and other events, occasionally performing with his favorite 1863 saber. His last appearance was in CA in February 2007, but he didn't swallow his favorite bayonet. By then, he had been diagnosed with cancer of the throat and jaw, and doctors had given him only four months to live. He hung in for six months. Capt. Don Leslie died at the age of 68 at his home in Chico, CA on June 4, 2007, six months after being diagnosed with mouth and throat cancer brought on by decades of ingesting fire-eating fuel. His dear life-long friend tattoo artist and fellow sword swallower Lyle Tuttle was by his side when he passed away. Capt. Don was an avowed atheist, had no use for Christianity, and ran off anyone trying to convert him to the faith. It was said that "he smoked like a Frenchman, wore his hair long like a rock star and had more tattoos than a sailor". Most of Capt. Don's tattoos in the 1960s-70s were done by Lee Roy Minugh at Lee Roy's Tattoo Parlor on the Pike in Long Beach CA. Capt. Don is survived by his ex-wives, Sherry and Joannie, four children, Don Leslie Jr. of Finland, Darryl Wayne Leslie of Phoenix, AZ, David Leslie of Boston, MA and Stephanie Leslie of Quincy, MA, and by six grandsons. According to his peers, his death closes the golden age of circus sideshow sword swallowing. Seeking photos and more information.
Capt. Don Leslie Timeline:
Capt. Don Leslie (1955) Capt. Don Leslie (1957) Capt. Don Leslie on Cristiani Bros (1958) Capt. Don Leslie (1960s) Capt. Don Leslie Capt. Don Leslie Capt. Don Leslie Capt. Don Leslie Capt Don Leslie back tattoos (1960s-70s) Capt. Don on the Midway Capt. Don swallowing 5 30" swords (1983) Capt Don and Lady Diane on Conklin Show (1992) Capt. Don's Banner (1998) Capt. Don's Banner Capt. Don's back tattoos Alex Linton tattooed on Capt Don's hand |
| Timo Tuomivaara |
Born April 7, 1938 Performed 1955-58 Died Aug 3, 2004
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Rovaniemi (Finland) |
Timo Tuomivaara was born in Finland on April 7, 1938, and lived his childhood in Posio, Finland. He performed his shows all over Finland so he lived in several places, but Rovaniemi was the city which was his base and where he lived most time of his life. Even though he was best known as an escape artist under the nickname the "Scandinavian Houdini" for his escapes and other stunts, Tuomivaara also taught himself sword swallowing in 1955 at the age of 17. He got the idea of swallowing swords from a magazine article and started practicing on his own. His first sword was a fencing foil, but he also swallowed a broadsword. He said that the last thing he swallowed was a rifle ramrod when he was in the Finnish army in 1958. He performed sword swallowing from 1955 until an accident caused him to give up sword swallowing in 1958. He helped teach Jari Tapanainen how to swallow swords. Timo died on August 3, 2004 at the age of 66. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Jimmy Farmer Jimmie Farmer |
Performed 1951 |
Linda Lopez Side Show Hill's Greater Shows (USA) |
According to the May 19, 1951 Billboard Magazine, Jimmie Farmer was sword swallower in 1951 with the Linda Lopez Side Show on Hill's Greater Shows. According to the May 19, 1951 Billboard Magazine, "Line-up of the Linda Lopez Side Show on Hill's Greater Shows includes Jimmie Farmer, sword swallower, knife thrower and manager."
Seeking photos and more information on sword swallower Jimmie Farmer. |
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Linda Lopez Linda-Lynn Lynn Lopez Linda Lynn Lopez David Logsdon David Rush Logsdon |
Born 22 June 1920 Active 1943-53 Died 13 Sept 1953
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John R. Ward Shows Linda Lopez Side Show Hill's Greater Shows American Midway Shows TX (USA) |
David Logsdon was a contorionist, sword swallower, Half-And-Half, and female impersonator who worked under the name Linda Lopez (aka Linda-Lynn, aka Lynn Lopez, aka Linda Lynn Lopez), who later owned and operated the Linda Lopez Sideshow with shows such as Hill's Greater Shows and American Midway Shows.
As a teenager, David Logsdon worked with his brother "Half-and-Half" Billy "Louis-Louise" Logsdon wearing a dress, and appeared as "Lynn Lopez" as well as a contortionist. David Logsdon had a later career performing in drag as "Linda Lynn Lopez" and also owned a Harem show with the John R. Ward Shows in 1943. According to the May 1, 1943 Billboard Magazine, "David Logsdon has a Dancing Show featuring Linda Lopez; Billie Logsdon" According to the July 21, 1945 Billboard Magazine, "ORIENTAL HAREM SHOW, featuring Linda Lopez, with David Logsdon, owner, and Jimmy Farmer, talker and manager, joined the North American Exposition at Rock Island, Ill." According to the May 19, 1951 Billboard Magazine, "Line-up of the Linda Lopez Side Show on Hill's Greater Shows includes Jimmie Farmer, sword swallower, knife thrower and manager." According to a September 26, 1953 Billboard Magazine, "LINDA LOPEZ DIES IN CRASH - BOWIE, Tex., Sept, 19 - David Logsdon, 33, who for years has operated back-end shows under the name Linda Lopez, died here Sunday (13) from injuries received in an automobile crash. Logsdon was en route from Hutz, Tex., to Bowie with American Midway Shows. Survivors include a sister, Thelma J. Faust, and a brother, Billie Logsdon."
David Rush Logsdon is buried in the Vine Hills Cemetery in Clermont, KY.
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Rosita Reverdy Queen of Swords |
Performed 1945-1950s? |
Clyde Beatty Circus Hubert's Museum New York, NY (USA) |
Rosita Reverdy performed the blade ladder on the new Clyde Beatty Circus in 1945, and was known as the "Queen of Swords" when she appeared at Hubert's Dime Museum in New York City. Seeking photos and more information. |
| George Dalton |
Born 1930s? Performed 1954-55? |
Hunt Bros Circus (USA) |
George Dalton worked as a sideshow canvasman for the Hunt Brothers Circus in 1954. The show had an American Indian fire eater and sword swallower in the sideshow (Chief Willie Bowlegs?) whose family performed an act with the sideshow and who exhibited a menagerie of animals (foxes, raccoons, etc.). The family was quiet and kept to themselves, but they took Dalton under their wing and they taught him fire-eating and sword swallowing during the last half of the 1954 season. Sometime in 1954 or '55 Dalton was hospitalized with severe burns (possibly internal) while practicing fire-eating, and was never heard from again. Tom Mac Dermott worked as a peanuts and crackerjack butcher with the Hunt Brothers Circus in 1953-54, and Johnny Meah worked as a candy floss butcher with the show in 1954-55 before working his way into clowning and learning sword swallowing from Dalton. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Jonda The Great Henry A. Burns Henry Amedeo Burns |
Born March 6, 1930 Performed 1950s-61 Injured Oct 9, 1959 Injured Feb 19, 1960 Died February 1989
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The Pike, Long Beach, CA E. K. Fernandez Show Honolulu, HI (USA) |
"Jonda The Great" was born Henry Amedeo Burns on March 6, 1930 in San Francisco, CA. He was of Italian background, dark-haired, short-statured at about 5'6", had a pierced ear and an eagle tattooed across his chest, and performed as a sword swallower in the late 1950's and early 60's at the Pike in Long Beach, CA with sword swallower Tony Mareno.
In 1960, Burns worked in Honolulu Hawaii with the E. K. Fernandez Show. Among other things, he swallowed a curved sword and a saw, but his claim to fame was swallowing neon tubes. It was also his claim to failure, as twice the tubes broke during performance and he was hospitalized. According to an article in the Pasadena CA Independent dated Oct 12, 1959, "LONG BEACH - UPI - Sword Swallower Henry A. Burns looked up from his hospital bed yesterday and vowed to stick to swords from now on. Burns, 29, works at a beach fun zone. Friday night he tried his act with two 21-inch neon tubes -- both plugged in and lighted. He swallowed the tubes -- then hiccuped. Doctors at Seaside Hospital where he is being treated for a throat laceration said he was improving." A smiliar article in the Stars and Stripes dated October 12, 1959 reads, "Sword Swallower Finds Neon, Esophagus Tubes Won't Mix - LONG BEACH, Calif. (AP) -- Sword swallower Henry A. Burns got the hiccups during his act -- and a bad sore throat too. Burns decided to use 21-inch neon tubes instead of swords. He placed the tubes, a half-inch in diameter, in his throat. Then he plugged the wires into a socket. The neons glowed. Then Burns hiccuped and caused a short circuit. One of the tubes burst. He quickly removed the good tube and spit out what he could of the other one. He rushed to a hospital, where doctors removed minced glass from his throat. His condition was good. From his hospital bed he vowed to stick to swallowing steel swords." An article in the Holland MI Evening Sentinel dated February 22, 1960 described his second neon tube injury on Friday, February 19, 1960: HONOLULU (UPI) -- "It might be a good idea for sword swallower Henry Burns, billed as Jonda the Great, to seek a different profession. He was hospitalized Friday after swallowing an 18-inch neon tube and then making the mistake of bending over. It was his first performance since recovering from internal injuries -- suffered when he made the same mistake earlier."
Burns quit sword swallowing professionally around 1961 after his second neon tube injury, but would perform impromptu acts for children and audiences on the beach on occasion. His competitive nature led him from sword swallowing into motorcycle racing and eventually yacht racing. He died in his sleep of a heart attack at the age of 58 in February 1989 on the sailboat that he called home for the last 10 years of his life in Long Beach Harbor, CA. He was buried at sea. His daughter Carolyn Bass Burns is writing a book loosely based on his life, entitled "The Sword Swallower's Daughter". Seeking photos and more information. Henry Burns injury article (Oct 12 1959) Henry Burns injury article (Oct 12 1959) Henry Burns injury article (Feb 22 1960) |
| Dick Best Sideshow | Operated 1950s-1967 |
Riverview Park Chicago IL (USA) |
Sword swallowers with the Dick Best Sideshow included Estelline Pike, Jim Ball II, Judy Ball, Capt Don Leslie, Sir Thomas Thomas, Mimi Garneau and Billy Castello.
Seeking more info on sword swallowers with Dick Best Sideshow. |
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Aleksander Casso (Johannes Hyvärinen) |
Born June 2, 1933 Performed 1950s-60s Died Nov 13, 1976 |
(Finland) | Born Johannes Hyvärinen, Casso worked as a magician, learned sword swallowing from Yrjö Lehvonen, and performed sword swallowing from the 1950's to 60's. He started under the stage name Carambo. It is said that Casso swallowed a sword that was 63 centimeters long. |
| Johnny Eagle | Performed 1950-60s | London, England (UK) | Johnny Eagle was a well-known Gypsy Strongman in 1950s-60s in the UK. He was known as the king of the showmen at the Lee Gap Fair, the Appleby Horse Fair in Cumbrian, and other fairs throughout the UK. He performed sword swallowing and other fakir stunts regularly on Tuesdays at Tower Hill in London during the late 50s and early 60s, and was probably in his 50s or 60s at the time. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Janet Roselle "The Lady Sword Swallower" |
Performed 1950 |
Dailey Bros Circus Sideshow (USA) |
Janet Roselle performed as "The Lady Sword Swallower" with the Dailey Bros Circus Sideshow final year in 1950. Could this be sword swallower Rita Roselle who performed at Chicago Riverview Park in 1943? Seeking photos and more information.
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| Lady Jean | Performed c 1955-60s? |
Texas (USA) |
Lady Jean is featured as a sword swallower on a banner in the Baraboo Circus World Museum. Lady Jean had dark hair and swallowed swords, a saw, and neon tubes. Seeking photos and more information. Lady Jean banner |
| Lyle Tuttle |
Born Oct 7, 1931 Learned 1956-57 Performed 1956-90s Died March 25, 2019 |
Ukiah, CA (USA) |
Lyle Tuttle, the "father of modern tattooing," began his career in tattooing in 1949, and learned the basics of sword swallowing on a stove poker from sword swallower Capt. Don Leslie in 1956.
Lyle Tuttle was born on October 7, 1931 in Chariton Iowa. In early 1947, when he was just 14 years old, he saw troops returning from World War II with decorated skin, and he felt the itch to ink his own. One day he skipped school, boarded a Greyhound bus from his hometown of Ukiah CA to San Francisco, and got his first tattoo -- a heart with the word "Mother" on his forearm -- for $3.50. "It looked like romance and adventure to me" he said. Eventually, Tuttle dropped out of high school. At the age of 17, Tuttle tried to join the world of tatoo artists. But in the 1940s, the world of tattoos was hidden, and tattoo artists didn't welcome outsiders. Finally, at the age of 18, Tuttle began his career in tattooing in 1949. After a brief stint with the Marine Corp, he apprenticed at several tattoo parlors in Long Beach and Oakland, California, and Anchorage, Alaska before opening his own shop in San Francisco in 1960. In 1966, when asked why men got tattoos, Tuttle replied, "Superstition, patriotism, and love." In 1956, Tuttle learned the basics of sword swallowing from tattooed sword swallower Capt. Don Leslie. While Tuttle was tattooing Capt. Don at a tattoo parlor in California, their conversation turned to sword swallowing, and Capt. Don agreed to teach Lyle the basics of sword swallowing on a stove poker. Tuttle later learned the finer points of sword swallowing from sword swallower Tony Mareno in 1957 at The Pike in Long Beach, California using Mareno's WW I bayonet, which Mareno gave to Tuttle, becoming one of first swords in his collection. In 2002, Tuttle bought the swords that had once belonged to Ringling Brothers albino sword swallower Annie Roy. Tuttle usually swallowed 24 inch blades, and occasionally neon tubes about a dozen times in his life, but did not make neon tubes a regular part of his act. In 1960, Tuttle opened his own tattoo shop on Seventh Street in San Francisco near the old Greyhound bus station. In his heyday of the 1960s and '70s, Tuttle tattooed celebrities such as Janis Joplin, Cher, and Peter Fonda, who was featured on the cover of "Rolling Stone" magazine. In 1969, Tuttle was featured on the TV programs "What's My Line" and "To Tell The Truth" in New York. In 1990, Tuttle officially retired from tattooing, but continued to travel extensively to tattoo shows around the world. On June 4, 2007, Tuttle was at the bedside for the death of his life-long friend and tattooed sword swallower Capt. Don Leslie at his home in Chico, CA. In 2014, Tuttle earned the distinction of becoming the first person to tattoo on all seven continents after tattooing historian Anna Felicity Friedman at the Russian Bellingshausen Station in Antarctica. Tuttle retired from sword swallowing around 1990, but still enjoyed traveling the world and tattooing. Tuttle was known as "one of America's preeminent tattoo artists, historians and educators," and "the granddaddy of modern American tattooing." Lyle Tuttle died at the age of 87 at his home in Ukiah CA on March 25, 2019. A memorial service was held for Tuttle at Eversol Funeral Home in Ukiah CA on Saturday, March 30, 2019. Seeking photos and more information.
Lyle Tuttle photo
Lyle Tuttle Timeline
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William Morgan "The Yanqui Commandante" William Alexander Morgan |
Born April 19, 1928 Performed 1956-57 Died March 12, 1961 |
Cleveland, OH (USA) Havana (Cuba) |
Thirty-three years before his brutal execution in a desolate Cuban field, William Alexander Morgan was born in Cleveland, Ohio, on April 19, 1928. The son of affluent parents, Morgan was a particularly troubled teen-ager. He was expelled from four high schools, repeatedly ran away from home and was arrested on grand larceny charges, all before his 16th birthday. Shortly after his 17th birthday, he was arrested in San Antonio, Texas, where he had hitchhiked as a lark. He was returned to Toledo, Ohio, where police suspected him of armed robbery. One law-enforcement official later described the blond-haired, blue-eyed youth as "a superannuated juvenile delinquent." After he turned 18 years old, in a bid to begin anew, Morgan enlisted in the Army. He took basic and advanced infantry training stateside and then shipped out to occupied Japan, where he spent time at the Atsugi Army-Air Force base. After only a few weeks in Japan, Morgan married an attractive Japanese woman who worked in a nightclub. A short while later, he went AWOL at least twice, was court-martialed on Nov. 7, 1947, and thrown into the Kyoto stockade for three months. He promptly escaped after overpowering a guard and stealing his uniform and weapon. Recaptured, he was again court-martialed, found guilty of escape, assault and robbery, and sentenced to five years of hard labor. Declared a "recalcitrant military prisoner," Morgan was transported to the maximum-security disciplinary barracks at Camp Cooke, California (today Vandenberg Air Force Base). At Camp Cooke, he entertained other prisoners by spinning fanciful stories about his being a direct descendant of another William Morgan who, in 1826, became quite notorious after vanishing from his upstate New York home. Morgan's chatter soon earned him the nickname "Gabby." After his sentence was reduced to three years, Morgan was transferred to the federal correctional institution in Chillicothe, OH. There he was placed in solitary confinement for attempting to escape, fighting and refusing to work. He spent his last months of imprisonment at the federal facility in Milan, MI, and was released on April 11, 1950. A confidential FBI memorandum dated May 5, 1959, states that Morgan was given a dishonorable discharge from the Army in 1950, and that "he reportedly is [a] veteran of the Korean War and is described as a judo expert." Oddly, none of Morgan's surviving family remember his being in Korea. His brother-in-law, Edric Costain, said, "I don't know where that came from. He was an Army veteran, not one that anyone is very proud of, who had been in Japan, not Korea." Following his release from prison, Morgan headed back to Toledo, Ohio, where he had grown up. After a succession of menial jobs, he took up a nomadic lifestyle. Morgan's wanderings took him all over the US and included a stint as a sword swallower in a traveling carnival. He fell in love with the carnival's snake charmer, Teresa Bethel, who he married. By 1957, the couple had two children together, a son, William Jr., and a girl, Anna. But fatherhood did nothing to quell Morgan's wanderlust and, after failed attempts to work in electronics, he began disappearing for months at a time, leaving his family to live with his parents. About this time, Morgan reportedly developed a keen sense of righteous indignation and a longing for social justice. He is said to have despised the oppressive regime of Cuban dictator Fulgencio Baptista. In the 1950s, Havana served as a hedonistic playground for the world's elite, producing huge gambling, prostitution and drug profits for American Mafiosos, corrupt law-enforcement officials and their politically elected cronies. Morgan arrived in Cuba in late 1957, a precipitous time in the island's rapidly shifting political and economic climate. The conventional story about why Morgan journeyed there turns on the age-old tale of consummate adventurer drawn to the place of action, like a moth to the flame. But the real story is more involved than that. In 1956, Morgan began popping up in Tampa, FL and points further south in the Florida Keys. According to Michael Falcone, a former numbers runner for the Trafficante crime family, Morgan "was a familiar face around here in the mid-'50s. He was with the outfit that was running guns to Cuba, a pretty lucrative undertaking back then." Other sources confirm Morgan's gunrunning and say that for about 16 months, he traveled between Tampa and Miami, and occasionally to Houston, Texas, and Hope, Ark., arranging large shipments of Cuba-bound weapons. Morgan is also believed to have been involved in the arms-smuggling operations of Cleveland mobster and twice-convicted gunrunner Dominick E. Bartone. Morgan's first several months in Cuba are shrouded in mystery, but if one is to believe the highly fictionalized account of his life portrayed in Alex Abella's novel, "The Great American", an unwitting Morgan was literally recruited off Havana's streets for work with the CIA. It is more likely that Morgan was vetted for covert work while still in the United States. Indeed, in interviews with journalists in Cuba, Morgan vaguely alluded to contacts he had in Florida with the militant group Directoro Revolucinario, which operated with CIA support. Former intelligence officials say that while Morgan was in South Florida, he also had contacts with CIA operatives there that included future-Watergate burglars Howard Hunt and Frank Sturgis, and Mafia go-between Johnny Rosselli. In February 1958, Morgan turned up in Cuba's lush highlands in the Escambray Mountains looking to join the anti-Batista rebels headquartered there. Former rebel Roger Redondo told a Time magazine correspondent that he suspected Morgan worked "for the CIA or FBI" but that Morgan was allowed to stay and assist with training. Within a few weeks, "the gringo from Ohio" was leading rebel bands in ferocious attacks against Batista's troops and was quickly promoted to the rank of major in the National Second Front of the Escambray. Fidel Castro praised Morgan at the time and said that he was "the kind of American that Cuba needs." As news of his exploits filtered out, Morgan became an international celebrity and media darling. Accounts of his exploits were sensationalized by New York Times reporter Herbert L. Matthews, who dubbed Morgan "the Yanqui Commandante." Matthews failed to mention Morgan's dismal Army record and dishonorable discharge and embellished Morgan's allure by telling readers that he was a master paratrooper and Korean War veteran, thus confusing even the FBI. Many young Americans idolized Morgan, including a Marine named Lee Harvey Oswald. Like Morgan, Oswald was stationed in Japan at the Atsugi base. Edward Jay Epstein has reported that in August 1959, Oswald's hero, as expressed to fellow Marine Nelson Delgado, was William Morgan. Oswald was especially attracted to Morgan's achievements as "a double agent." Further, Oswald suggested to Delgado that they both go to Cuba and "emulate Maj. Morgan." Delgado, a Cuban-American, reported that Oswald actually wrote to and visited the Cuban consulate in Los Angeles in pursuit of this objective. Gen. Fabian Escalante, former head of Cuban State Security and today an adviser to Castro, claims that he has a thick intelligence dossier on Morgan that firmly establishes he was a CIA agent under the control of the agency's former Western Hemisphere Division chief, Col. Joseph Caldwell King. However, Escalante says, Morgan's cover legend of being a chronic disciplinary problem for the Army and perennial outsider was too close to reality, and Col. King and CIA personnel operating out of the embassy in Havana were unable to control him. Writes Escalante: "Morgan was undisciplined and reported little, greatly displeasing the CIA station, which complained about him constantly." The CIA's displeasure soon prompted the agency to dispatch another agent to Cuba who could watch over the unpredictable American. That agent, operating under the alias John Maples Spiritto, was a former "special employee" of the Federal Narcotics Bureau. Morgan and Spiritto met on a regular basis at Havana's Capri Hotel. Paul D. Bethel, who was the press officer at the U.S. Embassy in Havana during Castro's rise to power, revealed in his 1969 book entitled "The Losers" that William Morgan produced great consternation among U.S. officials in 1959 when he began "keeping company with a very unwholesome American who lived at the Capri Hotel," whom others described as a "gangster." In September 1959, the U.S. State Department, at the insistence of Pennsylvania Rep. Francis E. Walter, revoked William Morgan's citizenship. Walter, chairman of the House Un-American Activities Committee, demanded the action based on a section of the Immigration and Nationality Act that forbids U.S. citizens to serve in foreign armies. Morgan was said to be devastated by the action. He argued that he had never done anything against the interests of the U.S. But, several months prior, Morgan had publicly declared that he would "kill any American Marines" who attempted to invade Cuba or to interfere with Castro's objectives. Following Castro's takeover of Cuba – which was duly celebrated when William Morgan marched arm-in-arm with Che Guevara and Castro down Havana's main streets as thousands cheered – Morgan reportedly decided to settle down and raise a family. Earlier, in November 1958, Morgan had married a 23-year old Cuban rebel named Olga Rodriguez. With a $70,000 loan from Cuba's Agricultural Ministry, he and Olga began developing a frog farm. By early 1960, they had nearly a half million croaking frogs ready for export. But the past wouldn't leave Morgan alone. Morgan was ordered arrested by Castro on Oct. 16, 1960. The charges against him to this day remain vague but appear to have turned on his perceived betrayal of Castro. Some Cuban officials say bluntly that Morgan was "a traitor" to his adopted country, reminding people that the American had been officially bestowed Cuban citizenship by Castro. Victor Dreke, a former Cuban rebel who went on to fight with Guevara in the Congo, says that after Castro's victory Morgan "took up arms against the revolution." Further, Dreke claims that Morgan, at the direction of his CIA handlers, "murdered peasants and raped women during the war in the zone where the [Escambray Front] operated." Others, who knew Morgan and fought alongside him, deny this as "communistic nonsense" and say that Morgan was "a freedom fighter" who, for the sake of "political expediency," was "betrayed by [U.S. Ambassador to Cuba] Philip Bonsal." To support this charge, they point to once-secret State Department documents that reveal that, shortly before Morgan's arrest, Bonsal surreptitiously sent word to Castro that Morgan was organizing a secret army to push Castro from power. After his arrest, Morgan was confined to La Cabana prison in Havana, where he eventually was tried and sentenced to death. William Morgan was executed on March 12, 1961, one month before 1,500 US-backed counterrevolutionaries invaded Cuba at the Bay of Pigs. Fidel and Raul Castro attended Morgan's execution, which took place in the middle of the night. Over the years, there have been reports that Guevara was also present, but this has never been confirmed. According to eyewitnesses, Morgan was led out into an open field to face a firing squad of seven men. Standing with his hands tied behind his back, several floodlights were focused on him. A voice, out of the darkness, ordered him to kneel down. Morgan refused by shaking his head. "Kneel and beg for your life," the voice again commanded. "I kneel for no man," Morgan shouted back. Then an order was given, some say by Castro himself, and a member of the firing squad stepped forward and shot Morgan in his right knee. Morgan still did not go down, and another round was fired into his left knee. Morgan fell to the ground withering in pain. Forcing one of his wrists into his mouth, he bit down hard so as not to cry out in pain. With Morgan on the ground, the voice shouted, "There! You see, we made you kneel." Morgan spat blood in response, and another marksman fired a round into his right shoulder. When Morgan still made no sound, his left shoulder was shattered by another bullet. Then the captain of the firing squad approached and fired a full clip from his machine gun into Morgan's chest. Needlessly, another soldier fired five revolver rounds into Morgan's head. A local priest, Rev. Dario Casado, who helped bury Morgan's body in nearby Colon Cemetery, said that there was nothing left of Morgan's face. The location of Morgan's body, like that of the 19th century namesake he bragged about at Camp Cooke, is today unknown. Sometime after 1971, Morgan's grave was disturbed and his remains taken to an undisclosed site or destroyed. Morgan's Cuban-born wife, Olga Goodwin (she has remarried) announced that she was going to petition the Cuban government for the return of her husband's body. Goodwin, who today lives in Morgan's boyhood city of Toledo, Ohio, says she also wants the U.S. government to restore her husband's citizenship. Cuban officials have yet to respond to Goodwin because they say they "have received nothing official about Morgan from anyone." The State Department and the CIA are remaining silent about Goodwin's anticipated requests and refuse to discuss Morgan. One State Department spokesperson, who declined to speak on the record, said "Morgan is ancient history, and we'd like to see him stay that way." Seeking photos and more information. |
| Rahnee Matie | Performed 1957 |
(USA) |
Rahnee Matie was a female sword swallower featured in a sword swallowing article entitled "Cold Steel For Dinner" in the March 5th, 1957 issue of the magazine "Tempo", Volume 8, Number 5. Seeking photos, dates and more information. Rahnee Matie Rahnee Matie (Xray) |
| Don Ward | Performed 1957-60s |
Pete Kortes Show Arizone State Fair (USA) |
Don Ward worked for Helen Golden as the sword swallower for her Freakshow when they performed at the Arizona State Fair in Phoenix AZ in 1957. Ward was the inspiration for Stan Marye who learned sword swallowing from studying Ward's performance and from conversations with Ward. Stan Marye later worked with Don Ward again for a few days in 1964. Seeking photos, dates and more information. |
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Toni Del Rio (Nilo Garrido) |
Born April 2, 1924 Performed 1950s-80s Died April 28, 1987 |
Lou Walters Show William D. Stanley Shows Johnny Howard Sideshow Dean Potter's Sideshow Gibsonton, FL (USA) |
Toni Del Rio was originally born into a Cuban family in Tampa, Florida on April 2, 1924 as Nilo Garrido. Nilo grew up as boy, but was a pseudo hermaphrodite, so before WW II, he worked with circuses and sideshows as a "Half and Half" as well as a sword swallower. During WW II, as he was working as a registered nurse in Hawaii, his breasts began to grow, and he was given a medical discharge from the Navy, so he had transgender surgery done and became the second person in the US to become transgendered. After WW II, he changed his name to Toni Del Rio and went back to working with circuses and sideshows.
Toni learned sword swallowing from her uncle and from Mimi Garneau while in winter quarters in Gibsonton, Florida, and Mimi gave Toni some of her swords. In the 1950s and 60s Toni worked as a female sword swallower and swallowed a 17 inch bayonet. Toni worked with Johnny Meah on the Lou Walters show in the late '50's, and taught sword swallowing to Eddie Miller in the early 1960s (1963-64), and to Red Stuart in 1967. In 1969 she worked with the Johnny Howard Sideshow. According to an article in the Dixon Evening Telegraph dated September 22, 1971, Toni Del Rio was bitten by a South American Anaconda in Little Rock, Arkansas on Monday September 20, 1971. In 1982, Toni Del Rio worked as the Half and Half on Dean Potter's Sideshow. Toni Del Rio died on April 28, 1987 at Tampa General Hospital in Tampa, Florida at around the age of 63, and is buried in an unknown Potter's field. Toni's sister gave her swords to Red Stuart after Toni's death. In 2003, one of her swords was presented by Red Stuart to Dan Meyer and is now in the archival collection of the SSAI Sword Swallower's Hall of Fame. Seeking photos and more information.
Toni Del Rio Timeline
Toni Del Rio bitten by anaconda (8-20-1971) Toni Del Rio bitten by anaconda (9-21-1971) Toni Del Rio (1982) Toni Del Rio (1982) Toni Del Rio's last sideshow Toni Del Rio Gibtown Show Museum (1985-86) |
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Count Desmond Evel Knievel of the Sword Spiderman (Eddie Benjamin) (Edward Benjamin) |
Born July 30, 1941 Performed 1957-94 Died Dec 18, 2022
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Circus Bartok Royal Hanneford Circus Worldwide Indoor Circus Guinness World Records Museum Gillett, PA, Bentley Creek, PA (USA) |
Count Desmond performed from 1957 into the 1990s, was known professionally as the "Evel Knievel of the Sword", and was renowned for swallowing 13 swords at one time and combining sword swallowing with daredevil stunts.
Born July 30, 1941 in Binghamton, NY, and later relocating to Le Raysville, PA, Edward Benjamin attended Northeast Bradford High School before showing an interest in daredevil performing. Ultimately, his interest in performing would take him around the world and garnered him worldwide recognition by placing him 3 times in the Guinness Book of World Records for stunts such as swallowing 13 swords at one time. In 1956, Eddie Benjamin began learning to swallow coat hangers in his bedroom from King Brothers Circus sword swallower Stan Marye in Binghamton, NY at the age of 15. It was 6 months before he was able to master the art in 1957. He started out working with the Shrine Circus swallowing coat hangers. He said it became "a hang-up" with him, so once he became comfortable swallowing coat hangers, he moved on to swallowing swords. During this time, he took on the stage name "Count Desmond". Count Desmond also performed with the Shrine Circus as Ring Master of Ceremonies, SideShow Talker and Fire Manipulator. In August 1967, he worked on the Circus Bartok sideshow bally doing fire-eating and sword swallowing, as well as announcing in the big top and managing the show for Milton (Doc) Bartok, while his wife Loretta was a hair-hanging artist. In 1970-71, he worked for the March of Dimes in Binghamton, NY at various fundraisers with his assistant "Princess Eustasia". In 1975, he taught sword swallowing to Dale Pritchard, and during the winter of 1977, he taught sword swallowing to Rhea Roma. During the summer of 1979, he performed at The Bowery and the Guinness Book of World's Records Museum in Myrtle Beach, SC. Over the years, Count Desmond encountered a few injuries. At one time, a table knife accidentally slipped from his fingers into his stomach and had to be surgically removed. An article in the Canadian "Globe and Mail" dated Saturday, March 22, 1980 with the headline "Stabs himself in sword act, man in hospital" reports his injury: "Guelph -- Count Desmond, a sword swallower, is in hospital after stabbing himself during a performance at the Royal Hotel here. The Count, whose real name is Edward Benjamin, was half-way through his act when one of the three-foot-long swords punctured his esophagus. A spokesman at Guelph General Hospital said yesterday that his condition is satisfactory but tests are being done to see whether fluids are leaking into the lungs. Steven Hindmarsh, a waiter at the hotel, said that when the sword swallower withdrew the blade, the last 10 inches of it was covered with blood. Mr. Benjamin attributed his bad judgment to an inflamed throat caused by a cold. He is listed in the Guinness Book of World Records three times for sword-swallowing feats. He said he began his career in Binghamton, NY at the age of 10 by swallowing coathangers." A few weeks later, at the peak of his career, the Count chose Friday the 13th of June 1980, to defy superstition and pull off his most mind-blowing stunt - to hang upside down while spinning from a helicopter 200 feet over Niagara Falls and swallow a sword upward, making him Niagara Falls' only living aerial daredevil. The feat garnered him international attention. Count Desmond swallowed coathangers (a record 18 at one time for Guinness), pool cues, canes, neon tubes, a frying pan handle, a rat-tail file, and up to 13 swords at one time. He was known for being a three-time Guinness World Record holder - first for swallowing 5 swords and 3 coathangers, then for swallowing 10 swords, and finally for swallowing 13 swords at once once on July 6th, 1980. It was after he set this record 13 sword swallow that Guinness closed the category for sword swallowing after Count Desmond removed his swords with blood on the blades. Other special feats he performed include swallowing a coat hanger while riding a mechanical bucking bull, and swallowing a "live" microphone to hear his heartbeat (first onstage with "Alabama" at the Bowery in Myrtle Beach, SC). Among other appearances, the Count performed with his friend Rick Dennis on Circus Bartok in the late 1960's and early '70's and again in 1990, was Ringmaster with the Royal Hanneford Circus, performed with the Worldwide Indoor Circus, Von Brothers, and various carnival and nightclub shows across the US and Canada, sometimes appearing with his friend Rick Dennis. Count Desmond was featured on several national and international TV shows and local radio shows. Notable TV appearances included the "David Frost Guinness Special", "That's Incredible" hosted by John Davidson and Cathy Lee Crosby, "Guinness World Record Breakers" hosted by Richard Dawson, "I've Got A Secret", "You Asked For It," and "PM Magazine International.", a Soviet television interview "20/20 News Magazine", and as one of the 15 top daredevils in the world on the "Saturday Top Special" in Japan where he swallowed a sword while spinning suspended upside-down. The Count also performed in many famous venues, including Madison Square Garden, the Gatorball Complex and in many nightclubs doing adult shows, mostly all written by him. In one of his popular acts, the "Suicide Show," Count would call a stranger from the audience, preferably a non-believing skeptic, to come up on stage and shove a sword down his throat while the Count was blindfolded. One time a young man jammed the blade down the Count's throat, brushing his heart and ripping his esophogus, sending him directly to the nearest emergency room. Count Desmond was described as being rather thin, with a red goatee and a huge red afro style hair style as big as a beach ball. His swords were handmade surgical steel swords measuring 26" from the lips down. He wore crimson, complete with a crimson cape even as street clothes when he was not performing, and he was known for his trademark 3 inch blinking medalion containing a spider with a sword through it with his blood mixed in with the spider's blood, which is how he got his nickname "Spiderman". He was once seen mowing his lawn on his riding lawn mower while wearing his trademark crimson cape at his home in northern Bradford County, Pennsylvania, outside of Towanda. In 1990, Count Desmond was seen doing a school performance at Athens Area Middle School in Athens, PA in Bradford County. Count Desmond retired in 1994 and lived in northeastern PA, and still performed locally on occasion for several years. A 2004 article entitled "A Crimson Cape" described Count Desmond and his illustrous career. On Sept 4, 2005, Count Desmond was honored with the SSAI Lifetime Achievement Award by the Sword Swallowers Association Int'l for his many sword-swallowing feats, including being the first to mix daredevil stunts with swallowing swords. He was also honored with a Gold Medal from Japan for placing in the Top 15 Daredevil Acts of the world, by hanging 35 feet in the air, spinning upside down from a rope while his wife inserted a sword up his throat. On December 18, 2022, Edward C. Benjamin, better known professionally as Count Desmond, passed away unexpectedly with his family at his side. According to his obituary, "Count is predeceased by his parents William and Dorothy Cutler, Ernest Benjamin, and by his brother, William Cutler, Jr. and his step-son Donovan in 2022. Count leaves behind his wife, Maria Benjamin, and his daughter Melissa (Brian) Zimmerman from a previous marriage. Also, 2 sisters: Bonnie Cutler Treiber of Kirkwood, NY, and Sally Cutler Hagadorn of Bentley Creek, PA, his grandchildren and several cousins, nieces and nephews." Per the Count's wishes, there will be no funeral services. He will be cremated, with part of his ashes to go over Niagara Falls. The remainder of the Count's ashes will rest at the East Herrick Cemetery in Wyalusing, PA. A celebration-of-life ceremony will be held in the future at the convenience of the Count's family. Seeking photos and more information.
Count Desmond Timeline
Count Desmond on David Frost Count Desmond's 1980 Guinness World Record Certificate For Swallowing 13 Swords (1980) Museum exhibit of Count Desmond Article on Count Desmond (2004) |
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Johnny Meah "The Czar of Bizarre" John Francis Meah |
Born Dec 12, 1937 Performed 1957-date |
King Bros Circus Cristiani Bros Circus Hunt Bros Circus O.C. Buck Shows Ross Manning Shows Smithsonian Institute Ward Hall's World of Wonders Safety Harbor, FL (USA) |
Sideshow banner painter and sword swallower Johnny Meah is a respected painter whose banners of sideshow performers hang in such places as the Smithsonian Institute in Washington DC, the Barnum Museum in Westport CT, and Intuit The Center for Intuitive and Outsider Art.
Johnny Meah was born in Bristol, CT on December 12, 1937 as John Francis Meah. His father, Harold Meah, was an editorial cartoonist for the Bristol Press, and his grandfather had been a calligrapher. At the age of 8, Johnny Meah began drawing caricatures. "I lived under the drafting table," he says. "I grew up in a totally black-and-white household" dominated by the pen-and-ink drawings of his father. When he was 14, Meah's uncles introduced him to Hugo Zachinni, the original Human Cannonball, who was working for the King Brothers and Cristiani Circus. In 1952, Meah spent his summer vacation with the Zachinni family, traveling with the King Bros and Cristiani Circus. Zachinni was also known as a painter of sideshow banners, so for a few months that summer, Meah studied as his apprentice. "After that first season I was hooked," Meah said. "I discovered color and what you could do with it." In the morning, Meah would help Zachinni paint small signs that would hang from the big top to advertise the circus. In the evening, Meah worked as a clown, a job he found boring. "As a clown you're sort of this gray generic entity," Meah said. During their downtime, Zachinni taught Meah various circus acts. "You learn things to broaden out your repertoire, because it makes you more valuable. At one time I claimed 17 acts." In 1954, Meah joined the Hunt Bros Circus as a candy butcher selling candy floss. Two of the clowns, Ray Sinclair and Paul Kaye got Meah to participate in an act about a quarter of the way through the season. Meah was on the track with his floss and the clowns started clowning around him. He started to run, and one of the clowns grabbed the back of his breakaway pants, pulled them off, leaving Meah to run out the back door in his skivvies, still holding the board of floss cones over his head. During this time, Meah worked with George Dalton, who also worked as a candy butcher with the Hunt Bros Circus in 1954, and he began learning sword swallowing during that season. Meah continued learning sword swallowing in 1955 while clowning as "Junkyard Johnny" with the Hunt Brothers Circus. Meah returned home to attend school at the Rhode Island School of Design for one semester, but couldn't stay away from the circus. He learned to eat fire ("a no-brainer," he said), and became fascinated with learning sword swallowing. "You had to have a sword swallower in a sideshow." Johnny Meah began painting sideshow banners in 1956. In 1956 Meah worked a carnival tour with the Ross Manning Company, whose sideshow was run by Leola, also known as "Leo/Leola, Half Man Half Woman", or Homer Tracy, a female impersonator. Leola hired him first to touch-up older banners, then sketch new ones. His banner painting career was launched. Meah didn't start performing professionally as a sword swallower until 1957 while working for Leola Tracy on the sideshow on Ross Manning Shows. During the next two decades, Meah worked with numerous circuses and sideshows, but garnered the majority of his notoriety as a banner painter, forcing him to balance his focus between banner painting and sword swallowing. In 1980 Meah returned to performing full-time as a sword swallower with the Ward Hall & Chris Christ's World of Wonders Show. In March 1980, the Smithsonian Institution mounted a show of carnival banners in an exhibition celebrating the outdoor amusement business, and Life magazine did a story on them. Curator Richard Flynt remembered seeing Meah's banners years before and asked him to show his work. The exhibit was such a success and Meah was invited to perform at the Smithsonian. After a 1983 Smithsonian performance, Life magazine ran a story on Meah, featuring some of his banners. Chicago gallery owner Carl Hammer saw the article and tracked down the artist since he had been looking for carnival and sideshow banners. "At that time there was no real value to the things," Meah said. "We had just made a monster bonfire with probably 50 banners that were shot. Now, hindsight being the wonderful thing it is, that bonfire would be worth $20,000. Then it was just crap we were getting rid of." From the mid 1980s through the late 90s Johnny Meah worked high paying gigs in extraordinary venues doing many of the same acts he had done in carnival sideshows for years because there were very few practitioners of the sideshow arts left and even fewer that were entertaining enough to hold the attention of a non-sideshow audience. Sword swallowers were in very short supply at the time. During this time Meah also contined working for World of Wonders for several years from 1980 until 1994. In 2003, Meah served as consultant for Carnivale, the short-lived HBO series about a supernaturally charged traveling carnival from the Depression. In 2003, Meah also published a novel about carnival life called "Polidore" (2003). On WorldSword Swallower's Day February 28, 2008, Johny Meah was awarded the SSAI Lifetime Achievement Award by the Sword Swallower's Association International for his years of service to the art of sword swallowing. Johnny Meah has been especially known over the years for both his sideshow banner art and sword swallowing, and he still enjoys clowning on an occasional basis. Johnny Meah is semi-retired and living in Safety Harbor, FL with his wife, Mary, where they enjoy the theater and studying Eastern philosophy. Seeking photos and more information on Johnny Meah.
Sword Swallower Johnny Meah Timeline
Photographed with Pete Poobah Terhune in Life Magazine (1983)
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| Harvey Eldred |
Injured 1958
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Kalamazoo, MI (USA) |
A Chicago Daily Tribune article dated Aug 24, 1958 states, "Harvey Eldred, professional sword swallower, was in the hospital Saturday. He had a sore throat." Seeking photos and more information. |
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Ricky Richiardi Ricky Richardi Ricky Riccardi Ricky Ricciardi Ricky Rickiardi Rickard Richiardi Kenny Poss, Jr. Herman Kennedy Poss, Jr. |
Born August 8, 1931 Performed 1955-69 Died January 31, 1970
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Ringling Brothers Circus Hoxie Bros Circus Cavalcade of Oddities Gooding Amusements James E. Strates Shows Buford, GA Gibsonton, FL (USA) |
Richard Richiardi, (usually known as Ricky Richiardi or Ricky Richardi, but often billed simply as "Richiardi"), was originally born Herman Kennedy Poss, Jr. in Buford (Atlanta) GA on August 8, 1931. To close friends and family, he was originally known as Kenny.
He performed as a sword swallower with Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey Circus in Chicago IL under the stage name Ricky Richiardi as early as July 23, 1955 at the age of 23. By 1958, Richiardi had worked his way up to swallowing up to 4 swords at a time and 5 swords at once in 1959. According to a photo of Ricky Richiardi swallowing 5 swords at once in June 1959, "Ricky Richiardi presents his sword swallowing act in the big Cavalcade of Oddities, one of the many big shows with James E. Strates Shows, now playing on Schuyler Flats Circus grounds, Albany, Troy Road, under auspices of Watervliet Masonic Clubs. The big 50 -car railroad show will be there all this week and next week." In 1961, Ricky Richiardi performed at the Erie County Fair in Hamburg NY. Richiardi was a friend of sword swallower Mimi Garneau, and worked with Hoxie Brothers Circus from 1965 to 1969 with fire-eater Harvey Wray from Jefferson City, NC. Richiardi may have played off the reputation of the popular Peruvian shock magician of the day, Richiardi Jr. (Aldo Izquierdo (24 November 1923 - 6 September 1985), who was known for his dramatic and gory stage presentations of classic stage illusions with 24 appearances on the Ed Sullivan Show. According to some descriptions, sword swallower Ricky Richiardi was "...very good looking, very dark skinned, with black hair, and very smooth when he performed his act". Besides being known as a sword swallower, Richiardi also performed as a wire walker, cloud swing artist, and was reputed to have done a great "Lionel The Lion Faced Boy" pit show. In the fall of 1969, Richiardi taught sword swallowing to Sandra Reed in Gibsonton, Florida, made Lady Sandra's sword shield, gave her some of his old swords, and taught her how to put together an act. Richiardi lived in Gibsonton, Florida, and was hit by a hit-and-run driver in a pickup truck while repairing a tire and walking south of town near Moore Haven, Florida on January 30, 1970 at the age of 38, and died on January 31, 1970. He was a member of the Greater Tampa Showman's Association, and the International Independent Showman's Association. According to his obituary, Richiardi was survived by his parents in Buford, GA, five brothers and two sisters, and his remains are interred at Showman's Rest in Gibsonton, FL. Seeking photos and more information.
Ricky Richardi Richiardi Timeline
Ricky Richiardi Ricky Richiardi Ricky Richiardi swallowing 5 swords (1959) Ricky Richiardi at Erie County Fair (1961) Ricky Richiardi on Hoxie Bros (1960s) Ricky Richiardi on Hoxie Bros (1969) Ricky Richiardi on Hoxie Bros (1969) Ricky Richiardi on Hoxie Bros (1969) Ricky Richiardi on Hoxie Bros (1969) Ricky Richiardi on Hoxie Bros (1969) Ricky Richiardi on Hoxie Bros (1969) Ricky Richiardi on Hoxie Bros (1969) Ricky Richiardi on Hoxie Bros (1969) Ricky Richiardi on Hoxie Bros (1969) Ricky Richiardi on Hoxie Bros (1969) Ricky Richardi Obituary (1970) Herman K. Poss, Jr. gravesite |
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The Baron The Barron Baron the Sword Swallower Baron Dudley of the Blades Baker Bill Unks William Unks |
Born Nov. 17, 1923 Performed 1947-91 Died March 12, 1997
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Amazing Vanteen's Circus of the Fantastic Vanteen & Lee Collins Side Show Capell Bros. Carnival Foley and Burke Hoxie Bros Circus Clyde Beatty Cole Bros Coney Island Sideshow> Oakland, CA (USA) |
"Anyone could do it if he really wanted to," Bill Unks said of sword swallowing to a reporter in 1971. Of course, he was among the few who really wanted to.
William "Bill" Unks was born on November 17, 1923 and started swallowing swords in 1947 at age 24 (although he also claimed to have started learning at 18). During World War II, Bill Unks served in the Army, and by 1945, shortly after returning home to Oakland, California, he found a job opening for a fire-eater at a carnival and took the job, despite having no experience. He quickly learned the stunt and fell in love with carnival life, especially the thrill-seeking crowds. In January 1959, Unks began working as the fire-eater with Amazing Vanteen's Circus of the Fantastic. Sometime in early 1959, Unks claimed to have learned sword swallowing while living in Oakland California. According to a June 8, 1959 Billboard article, "Vanteen and Lee Collins' Side Show personnel on Foley and Burk also includes Bill Unks, Fire and Sword Swallower." Later in 1959, Unks joined Capell Bros. Carnival at their winter quarters in Coolidge, AZ. "I never touch the edge," he told a journalist, explaining how he removes only a fraction of the point to maintain the appearance of sharpness. "If you're going to swallow something, do it. Make it look dangerous." But just to be safe, Unks always ran a silk stocking over the blade to ensure there were no nicks. "In a carnival, you see more characters in front of the stage than you do on it," he told the Oakland Tribune in a January 24, 1960 article "Turns from Hot to Hotter." "Most people watch you because they expect you to cut yourself, set yourself on fire, or blow yourself up." Unks knew all three were possible, having witnessed for himself a fire eater get severely burned after the wind changed directions and blew the flames back in his face. In May, 1960, Unks booked back on Vanteen & Lee Show with Foley and Burke with Gary Hearn. In 1961 and 1962 Unks worked with showman George Surtees, who also served as guardian to famed sideshow pinhead Schlitzie (one of the stars of 1932's Freaks). Schlitzie, a microcephalic whose real name was Simon Metz, was beloved by audiences and the sideshow community. Unks continued to work with the Vanteen & Lee Show in 1964 and 1965. In 1965, Schlitzie's manager and caretaker George Surtees died, leaving Schlitzie alone without a caretaker. During the 1965-66 off-season, Unks worked as an orderly in the Los Angeles County Hospital.To his surprise, Unks ran into his old sideshow friend Schlitzie who had been committed to the hospital by Surtees' duaghter, leaving Schlitzie sad and drepressed. Schlitzie missed the carnival, missed his friends and the adoration of the crowds. When Unks saw his old friend and heard the story from the hospital officials, he called fellow showman Sam Alexander, who came immediately. A state psychologist also came, gave Schlitize an evaluation, and allowed Alexander to take him into his custody. "The state psychiatrist having learned the background of Schlitzie said that if they would institutionalize Schlitzie, which would have been the route they would have taken, that Schlitzie wouldn't have lived six months away from the love of the show people and the attention of the public," Ward Hall said in a 2003 interview. "And the state of California made Sam the ward to Schlitzie. Schlitzie was legally taken care of by Sam. For the next several years Sam had Schlitzie in his show." According to that story, the off-season sword swallower saved Schlitzie's life. Hospital authorities eventually determined that the best care for Schlitzie would be to make him a ward of Unks' employer, showman Sam Kortes, and Unks helped Schlitzie return to the sideshow circuit in 1967 playing in Toronto, Santa Fe NM, and Bloomsburg, PA. In 1967, Unks again worked with the Vanteen & Lee Show, and in 1967, he was featured in the film "She Freak". Shlitzie was featured on the 1968 sideshow of the brief Dobritch International Circus held at the LA Memorial Sports Arena with Ed Sullivan, one of his last major appearances, in 1968 or 1969. Unks continued to work with Vanteen and Lee through 1969 and into 1970, until they had an altercation and Unks left the show in Sioux Falls, SD in 1970. In 1970, Schlitzie retired and moved to Santa Monica Boulevard, hanging out in MacArthur Park and speaking Spanish. Schlitzie died from bronchial pneumonia at the age of 70 at Fountain View Convalescent Home in Los Angeles on September 24, 1971, and is buried in Queen of Heaven Cemetery in Rowland Heights, CA. On May 5, 1971, the Daily Mail published an article on sword swallower Bill Unks, In 1972, Unks worked under the stage name The Baron with Clyde Beatty Cole Brothers Circus (Bill Unks with CBCB in 1972) in 1973, and again in 1974. From 1976 to 1978 Unks worked on the Hoxie Bros Circus as sword swallower and fire-eater under sudesbow manager Roger Boyd Jr. Unks continued to work with Hoxie Bros into the 1980s. In 1977, Bill Unks and Bobby Reynolds were booked as sideshow "sword swallower" and "magician" at the MGM Hotel anniversary party in Las Vegas, NV. In the 1980s, Unks worked with Bobby Reynolds Sideshow. In 1985, Unks attempted to teach magician Penn Jillette how to swallow a sword on the Penn and Teller TV show "Penn and Teller Go Public". After brief instructions, Jillette got the blade about halfway down before gagging and pulling it out. The Baron then demonstrated the act, effortlessly dropping the steel down his throat. He then told Jillette that a typical day of work involved twelve shows, with five blades swallowed per show. "I've never seen anybody do sword swallowing smoother," Jillette said. During the later part of his career starting during his stint with Hoxie Bros Circus, Unks became known for his unique presentation of sword swallowing while sitting down. In 1991, Unks visited and eventually worked at Coney Island Sideshows by the Seashore in Brooklyn, NY. When he worked at Coney Island, he only swallowed swords while sitting down, as he had been partially retired from sword swallowing after injuring himself sometime earlier. While at Coney Island, Unks passed the steel torch on to a young performer named Frank Hartman, and taught Hartman to swallow swords in 1993-94. Once mastering it, the apprentice bought a few of Unks' swords and swallowed them at Coney Island for several years. The Baron William Bill Unks died on March 12, 1997, at the age of 73, and is buried at Sea Pines Memorial Gardens, Edgewater, Volusia County, Florida, USA. His wife Virginia "Jean" (Anderson) Fitzgerald Unks (1926-2001), died three years later in 2001 and is buried next to him. Seeking photos and more information.
Baron Bill Unks Timeline
Baron Bill Unks on sideshow Article on Bill Unks (1971) Baron Bill Unks with Cole Bros (1972) Baron Bill Unks with Cole Bros (1974) Baron Bill Unks with Hoxie Brothers Bill Unks teaching Penn Gillette (1985) (video) |
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Sir Frances Durran Sir Frances Doran Sir Francis Doran Frances Doran Francis Doran Francis Duran Francis Durran Francis Durant Francis Doram Frankie Dorn Frankie Doran Francis P. Doran Francis F. Doran |
Born April 10, 1918 (1908?) Learned 1960 Performed 1960-1979 Injured June 16, 1969 Died October 18, 1979
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Dick Hard's Side Show Reynolds & Wells Shows Anderson Side Show Bailey Bros Circus Duke Del Rio Side Show Dailey Bros Circus Robbins Bros. Side Show Charles Rourke's Side Show Hall and Leonard Side Show Buff Hottie Shows Barney Tassell Shows Francis Doran Side Show Clyde Beatty Cole Bros Circus Ward Hall's World of Wonders Wallace Bros Circus Hoxie Bros Circus Ringling Bros Barnum & Bailey John Bradshaw Sideshow Aransas Pass, TX (USA) |
Francis Doran was born on April 10, 1908. Early in his career, Doran originally worked with several sideshows as a half-and-half under the stage name "The Original Maxine". According to the Jan 9, 1943 Billboard, "Formerly with Dick Hard's Side Show on Reynolds & Wells Shows, Francis Doran is a welder in a Richmond (Calif.) shipyard. According to the Feb 3, 1945 Billboard, with the Anderson Side Show, "...The Side Show will be under the management of Leon Bennett. Francis Doran will be with it... and the cookhouse will be managed by Mrs. Doran." According to the Oct 19, 1946 Billboard: "Francis Doran recently left Bailey Bros.' Side Show and joined the Duke Del Rio Side Show on the Sunflower State Shows." According to the Jun 7, 1947 Billboard: "Francis Doran reports the biggest season of his career in show biz" in 1947 while performing with the Dailey Bros Circus that winter quartered in Aransas Pass, Texas.
According to the Sep 25, 1948 Billboard, "Francis Doran annex attraction, and mother join Charles Rourke's Side Show." According to the Oct 30, 1948 Billboard "Bailey Bros Side Show: Francis Doran and her mother, and the Del Rio Trio, Aransas Pass, Texas." In 1949, Francis Doran did the Half-and-Half in the Robbins Bros. Side Show. According to the May 20, 1950 Billboard, Francis Doran performed in the annex with the Dailey Bros Circus in its final 1950 season. When Ward Hall acquired his first side show, the first one to join was Frankie Doran and his mother Ivy Doran who always traveled with him and worked in the cookhouse and as a ticket taker. According to the Jan 13, 1951Billboard: "Ten years ago in 1941, Francis Doran was framing a new Side Show in Parsons, Kan..." According to the Sept 1, 1951 Billboard, "Francis and Ivy Doran have joined the Hall and Leonard Varieties on American Midway Shows." A dynamic speaker who butchered the English language, Frankie was a big attraction and a money maker. Despite this, Frankie and his mother Ivy seldom had much money because Frankie would trade for a new house trailer three or four times a year. Deep sea fishing was his hobby, so Frankie and Ivy wintered at Aransas Pass, Texas in order to indulge his hobby. According to the Dec 22, 1951 Billboard: "Ward Hall and Harry Leonard, of Hall and Leonard Shows, info from winter quarters in New Orleans that they recently took delivery on a new trailer. Francis Doran of the same org is also sporting a new trailer." According to the Feb 9, 1952 Billboard: "Hall and Leonard Side Show joined Barney Tassell Shows in Bowling Green, Fla., recently. Francis Doran is featured and Ivy Doran is handling tickets." According to the June 14, 1952 Billboard: "Glen Hall recently joined the Hall and Leonard Side Show on Buff Hottie Shows. Also with the unit are Ward Hall, Harry Leonard, Dave Curtis, Millie Curtis, Francis Doran, Ivy Doran, the Original Maxine." According to the Sep 6, 1952 Billboard, Leonard and Hall Side Show has Ward Hall as vent, Harry Leonard, punch, and featuring the Original Maxine, double bodied girl presented by Francis Doran and Ivy Doran. When Ivy became ill and could no longer travel, Frankie and Ivy opened a sporting goods store at Aransas Pass, TX. According to the May 26, 1956 Billboard, Francis Doran ran his own Francis Doran Side Show in 1956 while performing as Maxine: "Personel on the Francis Doran Side Show on Central States Shows includes Pete Schuch, George Choate, Jack Frost, James Allen and Maxine." In 1959, Francis Doran's mother Mrs. Iva Jones Doran (1885-1959) died in Corpus Christi TX on February (21?), 1959 at the age of 73 (Iva Jones Doran obituary). After his mother died, Francis became so despondent that he attempted suicide. His priest advised him to go back on the road. He went back on the road with Ward Hall's Show as a front talker, but was unhappy not being a performer. Explaining that he no longer wanted to work in drag, he asked Ward Hall to teach him to swallow swords. Even though Ward had never actually swallowed swords, Ward said he "...agreed to teach Frankie on condition Frankie would never swallow neon." In 1959, according to a poster made by Capt Don Leslie, Francis Doran said, "He who teaches himself the art of sword swallowing is a potential death, cocked and ready to happen." In 1960, Ward Hall taught Francis Doran the basics of sword swallowing, and Francis Doran performed as sword swallower with Ward Hall's World of Wonders from 1960 to 1965. In May 1961, Francis Doran was the featured sword swallower with the Wallace Bros Circus. He then went on to perform with Clyde Beatty Cole Bros Circus in 1966 (slide of Francis Doran with Clyde Beatty Cole Bros June 1966 Frances Doran banner with Clyde Beatty Cole Bros 1966) and 1967, with Ward Hall's World of Wonders from 1967 to 1969. On June 16, 1969, while appearing under different management with Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Circus at the Houston Astro Hall in Houston, TX , Francis Doran swallowed a neon tube that exploded inside him. On June 17, 1969, an article and photo circulated the US with the caption "Francis P. Doran, 61, rests in a Houston hospital following surgery for removal of a 36-inch long neon tube from his stomach. About 200 persons were watching the sideshow performer when the tube exploded inside of him, releasing gas and glass into his system. Doran was performing at the Ringling Brothers, Barnum and Bailey Circus at Astrohall when the mishap occurred." According to Charles Keeler, "Life became very interesting in the Astro Hall. We were open by 12 and had to work until about an hour before the first Circus performance. The first 2 weeks they wouldn't let the Astrodome tours into the Astro Hall. Business was terrible. We had the entrance, a slight intermission, the interval between first and second show and show's end. After the second week they made many changes. The tours were allowed to come into the Astro Hall which now made for a full day. Now we had a morning tour, the circus, another tour, the blow off and second circus. Between shows when it was slow, we visited with the sideshow people. We all became pretty close friends. One day Francis Doran the sword swallower was celebrating his birthday quite early and every one was helping him. The 12 hour days were getting a little boring during the slow period. My help and I were standing outside my joints, when we heard this scream from the sideshow. We ran over right away as it was a different scream from that of the gorilla crowd. Francis had tried to swallow a neon tube in the show and in his inebriated condition had some how bent his body and broke the tube inside. We laid him down and called for 911. They arrived and took him to the hospital. All the performers were shook up. They had tried to talk him out of swallowing the neon tube as he had been drinking all day. He had done the act before but he had also had one break before, but he insisted he was able to do it. Anyway, they took him to the hospital and they removed the glass, and three days later he was back again. It was a while before he was able to work again, but not long. June 17, 1969 article on Francis Doran surgery. After that life went on as though nothing out of the ordinary happened." Doran recovered enough to return to his act after a few months, but was never quite completely well again. After recuperating from his injury, Doran returned to work with Ward Hall's World of Wonders from 1969 to 1973, when Jimmy Rapp borrowed Doran's swords and learned to swallow them on his first attempt while they were both working with Ward Hall's World of Wonders. In the mid 1970s (1974-76?), Francis Doran went on to work with Hoxie Bros Circus (Francis Doran with Hoxie Brothers Circus circa 1974-76). In 1976, John Bradshaw started his own 10-in-1 show without a sword swallower, but hired Sir Frances Durran/Francis Doran in 1977. Doran worked 2 seasons with John Bradshaw's Sideshow in 1977 and 1978, until his health began to fail. In 1978 Lady Sandra Reed began working on stage with Doran when Doran's health began to fail. In 1978 Diane Falk started as John Bradshaw's "Bally Girl", and during the 1978 season, Doran began teaching Diane how to swallow swords. Francis Doran gave most of his collection of swords to Diane Falk later in 1978, when she began filling in as Bradshaw's sword swallower in 1978 and 1979 under the stage name "Lady Diane". The 1979 John Bradshaw Sideshow line-up included 110 feet of banners, most by Snap Wyatt, with John Bradshaw as inside talker, "Sir Frances Duran" as sword swallower, "Lady Diane" as Bally Girl and part time sword swallower, Otis Jordan, Albert Short, Eddie Miller, Big John Conner as Fat Man, and Sandy Reed Conner as Albino Lecturer and later sword swallower.
Francis Doran died on October 18, 1979 at the age of 71 from pneumonia that resulted from the neon tube injury that had happened ten years earlier in June 1969 when the neon tube exploded inside him, causing his lungs to fill with fluid. Francis Doran and Iva Doran's joint grave is located in Prairie View Cemetery Aransas Pass, TX. Seeking dates, photos, and more information.
Francis Doran Timeline:
Early Francis Doran as Maxine Francis Doran with WOW (c 1967) Francis Doran (early) Francis Doran holding sword Francis Doran swallowing multiples Francis Doran swallowing in bow (1964) Frances Doran banner with Clyde Beatty Cole Bros (1966) Francis Doran with Clyde Beatty Cole Bros (6-1966) Francis Doran with Ward Hall Show (1967) Francis Doran on stage Francis Doran seated Francis Doran swallowing 1 Francis Doran swallowing 3 Francis Doran surgery Houston Astro (6-17-1969) Francis Doran banner Hoxie Bros (1970s) Francis Doran behind Stu Miller (1974?) Francis & Iva Doran grave, Aransas Pass, TX |
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Orchanté Orchanti Tommy Orchard Tom Orchard |
Born 1943 Performed 1961-96 Died March 12, 2013 |
Doncaster (UK) |
Born part Maori in 1943 in Auckland, New Zealand, Tom Orchard began sword swallowing in 1961 at the age of 17, the youngest sword swallower at the time. He toured the length and breadth of the UK and Ireland at least twice a year as Orchanté, working in various clubs, discos, and hotels performing sword swallowing, fire-eating, blockhead, and the string out of the stomach routine from 1987 up to 1996. He had a regular slot every morning on Sydney's Channel 10 Television, performing close-up magic. The programme "Good Morning Australia" was broadcast live nationwide, so there was no room for mistakes. Orchanté was also working close-up magic 3 or 4 nights a week at Sydney's most exclusive restaurant The Manor House. He bought a neon tube from Otto Butkus in Sydney Australia, before Butkus died in 1993, but his wife Veronica refused to let him swallow it on national TV. Orchante retired to Doncaster, UK in 1996, and traveled back and forth to New Zealand, where he was in the process of writing the autobiography of his life.
In 2005, he was presented with the Sword Swallowers Association International Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2011, he was given a Lifetime Achievment Award by the Variety Artists Club of New Zealand. Tom Orchard died in the Doncaster Royal Infirmary on March 12, 2013 after 17 years of illness caused in part by his fire-eating act. |
| Don Carlos | Performed 1962 |
Sells and Gray Circus Sideshow TX (USA) |
Don Carlos performed as fire-eater and sword swallower on the Sells and Gray Circus Sideshow in 1962.
Seeking photos and more information. |
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Mike Burford Michael Burford |
Born Sept 3, 1956 Performed 1962-? |
Henry Valentine Shows Ward Hall's World of Wonders Austin, TX (USA) |
Mike Burford was born in Waterloo, Iowa on Sept 3, 1956. He grew up on the sideshow midway with his father, Henry Valentine, who had 3 different sideshows, an illusion show, and many grind shows. Burford began to learn sword swallowing and fire-eating from his father at an early age, and was performing on stage as sword swallower and fire-eater by the time he had turned 6 around the year 1962. By the time Burford had reached his 15th birthday, he had played every major state fair in the US. On Sept 3, 1972, Burford celebrated his 16th birthday while working on the Ward Hall and Chris Christ's Worlds of Wonders Sideshow as the "World's Youngest Sword Swallower". A cake was presented to him onstage at the Ohio State Fair, and it went over so well that they repeated the stunt at every show that day - eight times in all. Burford later served in the U.S. Army in Korea and elsewhere in the Orient. Upon discharging from the service, Burford returned to a society he didn't fit into. The traditional carnival sideshows had just about died out, so Burford went in search of a new "midway" where he could put his "carnie education" to good use. His search eventually landed him in Austin TX, which was home to a sizeable "artist's community" and it was here where his experience with the carnival, and the knowledge gained from his old tattoo artist friends on the midway that he was to form a partnership with old time Carnie tattooist Singapore John Anderson, where he had the perfect opportunity to use his unusual life experiences in a whole new venue, on a brand new stage on a new kind of freak show. Burford and Singapore John opened their first studio, Singapore John's Tattoo Arcade. By 2001, Burford had 10 studios in Austin and one in San Marcos, TX. But the stress of managing the studios, along with Austin's urban sprawl, crime, and drug-abuse was taking its toll. So Burford closed down the shops, and took over management of a historic TX roadhouse, Henry's Hideout, located near the TX Renaissance Festival. Mike and Ed opened their first studio Ol Poop & Rudy's Olde School Tattoo and Professional Piercing, in Bryan, TX in Dec. 2003, and their second studio, Pinky's New School Tattoos and Exotic Piercing in College Station in May 2005. Burford now runs several tattoo parlors throughout TX. To view photos and read stories of Mike Burford's days on his dad's shows, visit www.mburford.com Seeking photos and more information. |
| Eddie Miller | Performed c 1963-79? |
Toni Del Rio Ward Hall's World of Wonders John Bradshaw Sideshow (USA) |
Eddie Miller learned sword swallowing from Toni Del Rio in the early 1960s (1963-'64?), and did several acts such as knife throwing with a number of shows. Miller did his sword swallowing and knife throwing act with Ward Hall's World of Wonders Show in 1973 and in 1978. John Bradshaw added Eddie Miller to his show as knife thrower at the Midsouth Fair in Memphis in 1979, and David Sweeney lectured for Eddie Miller on the John Bradshow Sideshows in 1979. Miller dressed in a black western costume resembling Johnny Cash and had a very flashy knife act using butcher knives. In 1973, Miller had a pregnant woman assistant with him who was beginning to show her pregnancy and was ultimately too nervous to stand against the board that Miller threw his knives at. Because she and other women with the show were concerned about Miller's performing after drinking, it was difficult if not impossible to get a female assistant to be part of Miller's knife throwing act. So front talker Diego Domingo volunteered to be his assistant for an extra $10 dollars a week for his heroism. If Domingo tried to watch the knives being thrown towards him, he would flinch in the wrong direction, so he closed his eyes, and only moved when he felt Miller's hand on his shoulder indicating the end of the act so he could go back to working the front. Eddie Miller only filled in with sword swallowing on a few occasions, but when he did, it was memorable. He stepped foward with a sword and two knives. "It says on the tape that I swallow daggers, swords, and bayonets..." He swallowed the dagger, then the sword. "...and bayonets. Watch how high the bayonet goes..." He got down on one knee, swallowed the K-Bar, then flicked it with his thumb about eight feet in the air and stood up so the blade stuck in the floor between his feet. Sir Frances Doran commented that "...it was a pretty act". In 1981 Eddie Miller wintered in Gibsonton, FL with sword swallower Lady Diane Falk. It has been rumored that Eddie Miller was last known working at a telemarketing job sometime in the early 80's. Seeking photos and more information.
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Vino Venito Veno Venito |
Performed 1970-80? |
Ed Sullivan Show International Three Ring Circus Great American Three Ring Circus L.N. Fleckles Circus Des Plaines, IL (USA) |
Vino Venito or Veno Venito performed a variety of acts with the L.N. Fleckles Circus -- as a high wire walker, sway pole performer, knife and sword balancer, and as sword swallower on top of the sway pole. L.N. Fleckles Circus was based out of Des Plaines, Illinois.
In 1970, Vino Venito was featured on episode 23.16 of the Ed Sullivan Show. According to the March 1973 Billboard magazine, Vino Venito was on the lineup of the Hanneford Circus performing "swords" from March 15-18, 1973 at the 135th annual Upstate NY Outdoor Show and Spring Fair at Utica Memorial Auditorium in Utica NY. The February 25, 1980 Circus Report reports that "On the heels of Herbie's call came one from VENO VENITO, spending the winter in Montreal with his gorgeous fiance, a modern jazz and ballet dancer. The couple has been going together for several months. Veno says his parting from Elizabeth Rodriquez was amicable and there were no hard feelings on either side." In the August 25, 1980 Circus Report, Vino Venito was listed as doing his sword balancing act with the International Three Ring Circus, when it played the Blaisdell Center in Honolulu, HI Aug. 7-17, 1980. In the September, 1980 Circus Report, it was reported that Vino Venito toured Japan with the Great American Three Ring Circus, Japan. On November 3, 1980, according to Circus Report, Vino Venito performed with Mahi Annual Fall Shrine Circus, Olympic International Circus Corp Seeking photos, dates and more information.
Veno Venito sword swallowing on sway pole (c. 1970s?)
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Danny Larsen Danny Raymond Larsen King Daredevil |
Born Dec 18, 1943 Performed 1963-2003 Died Jan 29, 2008 |
Royal American Shows Ringling Bros Sideshow Independent Midways Royal Canadian ThrillSeekers Abbottsford, British Columbia (Canada) |
Danny Larsen was born in Copenhagen, Denmark on December 18, 1943. He learned sword swallowing in 1963 at around the age of 21 in the Vancouver area, and performed under the stage name King Daredevil. Larsen performed as a sword swallower, contortionist, fire-eater, fire-breather, and human blockhead. Larsen had his worst sword swallowing accident early in his career in a Vancouver nightclub around 1963-64 at the age of about 21 when someone surprised him while swallowing a sword, causing him to split his neck and vocal cords, and leaving him with a 14" scar on the right side of his neck. Larsen performed sword swallowing for over 40 years from 1963 to 2003 with shows such as the Thomas West Coast Amusement Show, Royal American Shows, Independent Midways, Ringling Brothers Sideshow, and his own Royal Canadian Thrill Seekers Show which he toured Canada with for many years.
Over his career, Larsen swallowed neon tubes, the serpentine sword, long swords up to 30" in length, and multiple sword sandwiches up to 12 swords with 23" (58,4 cm) blades. In September 1979, Larsen performed on the TV show "Beyond Reason", where he set the Guinness World Record for swallowing twelve 23" long swords at one time, and for swallowing swords up to 30" long, both of which were admitted into the 1980 and 1981 Guinness World Record books. At one point, Larsen was knighted by the King/Queen of his native Denmark. He resided with his wife Esther in Abbotsford, British Columbia, Canada, where he worked as an advocate for the disabled until his death of lung cancer at the age of 65 on January 29, 2008 at MSA General Hospital in Abbottsford BC. Danny Larsen is buried at Hazelwood Cemetery in Abbotsford, British Colombia, Canada, plot 322-13. Seeking photos and more information.
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| Edward Ernest Willis, Sr. |
Born July 4, 1924 Married Dec. 28, 1964 Died Aug 14, 1995
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Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey Circus Portland, OR (USA) |
Edward Ernest Willis Sr. was born on July 4, 1924 in Seaside, OR, and moved to Portland as a child, where he graduated from Raleigh Hills High School and later served as a US Merchant Marine. According to his obituary in the The Oregonian (Portland, OR) dated August 17, 1995: EDWARD ERNEST WILLIS SR. Mr. Willis died Aug. 14 1995 in Milwaukie at age 71. He traveled with the Barnum & Bailey Circus as a sword swallower before returning to Portland. He worked as a paramedic for Bucks Ambulance and then for Boeing Company for 20 years. He retired in 1986. He married Margaret Brackenbury on Dec. 28, 1964. They moved to Oroville, Calif., in 1987. Mr. Willis was a member of the New Life Christian Center in Thermalito, Calif. A funeral will be at 1 p.m. Friday, Aug. 18, 1995, in Bateman Carroll Funeral Chapel in Gresham. Interment will follow in Willamette National Cemetery. Survivors are his wife; sons, Leslie Bohrer of Deer Lodge, Mont., and Edward Jr. and Harold, both of Oroville, Calif.; daughters, Bernice Nolen of Portland, Jeannette Brackenbury of Fairview, and Cindy McKinnon, Sharon McKinnon and Nona Fox, all of Oroville; sister, Jeannette Schnelting of Fairview; 24 grandchildren; and one great-grandchild. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Royal American Shows |
Started 1933 Closed 1997 |
(USA/Canada) | Royal American Shows was founded in 1933 by Carl J. Sedlmayr and became one of the largest American carnivals throughout most of the 20th century.
Royal American's first contract with the Calgary Stampede was in 1934. However, during the Second World War, the company was unable to travel to Canada from 1942 to 1945, as it relied on a large train (up to 90 rail cars) for transportation. During the war, use of the rail system was restricted by the US government to the movement of military personnel and equipment. In 1967, Royal American Shows was at its pinnacle in terms of size -- over 800 people along with livestock and equipment and over 80 railroad cars. By 1971, Royal American Shows carried the greatest number of flatcars ever carried by any traveling amusement organization in the world. The show traveled with a full complement of carpenters, canvas men, electricians, painters, full working machine shops with mills, lathes, drills, welders, mechanics, cookhouse, portable showers, and mail department. Royal American Shows' history took a turn as the changing economy in the 1970's led to a loss of revenue due to longer distances in travel, equipment seized from a 1975 tax issue in Edmonton and Regina, and the loss of its Canadian route in 1977 causing Royal American to be locked out of Canada. The carnival equipment seized from the 1975 tax issue at Edmonton and Regina was held in storage until the mid-1990's, at which time the assets were sold at auction and the proceeds were used to pay the outstanding fines. Royal American Shows continued to operate in the United States for the next 20 years, diminishing in size over time; its last show was in Lubbock, Texas in October 1997. Known sword swallowers with Royal American Shows include Joseph Grendol on the Dick Best Sideshow (1933), Chester Dolphin (1934), Frank Boulware (1940s?), Alex Linton (1948, '53), Lady Louise Long (1954), Lady Patricia Zerm (1955), Estelline Pike (1948-51, 1955-60), Jim Lucky Ball II (1955, '57), Stan Marye (1958), Sir Thomas Thomas (1960, 1964), Tony Mareno, Danny Larsen, Clifford "Butch" Trout and Billy Costello. Seeking photos and more information on sword swallowers with Royal American.
Sword Swallowers with Royal American: |
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Kelly-Miller Circus Kelly Miller Circus Kelly Miller Brothers Circus Al G. Kelly Miller Bros Circus |
1938 Founded | (USA) | Kelly Miller Brothers Circus
Started in 1938 by Obert Miller and his sons, Kelly and Dory, the Al G. Kelly Miller Brothers Circus, is now known as Kelly Miller Circus. The Miller family devoted their lives to their circus, and through talent and hard work, built it into America's 2nd largest big top show. From 1984 through 2006, third generation circus performer David Rawls, directed the Kelly Miller Circus as president and manager. In 2007, the show was purchased by John Ringling North II. Mr. North's great uncles were the famous Ringling Brothers, his grandmother, their only sister. Born into this most famous of circus families, John grew up on the "Greatest Show on Earth", learning circus operation from his father Henry Ringling North, and Uncle John Ringling North. Mr. North can be seen at most Kelly Miller Brothers shows watching the show with a critical eye. The last circus to have a sideshow as part of their operation was the Kelly Miller Circus. They gave up the circus sideshow in 1995. The sideshow was combined with the menagerie tent and most of the performers doubled up by also doing acts in the big show. The Kelly Miller Circus travels on a fleet of 36 vehicles and requires an area of 350' by 350' to set up on. The colorful circus big top has a seating capacity of 1100 and is made of waterproof vinyl. The tent is 120' by 120' and is 40' high and is supported by more than a quarter of a mile of heavy gauge aluminum tubing as well as several miles of rope, steel cable and chain. Known sword swallowers with Kelly Miller Brothers Circus include Tommy Thompson (1950), Stan Marye (1962-63), Jim Scott (1965-66?), and Rosemary Puente (1967). Seeking photos and more information on sword swallowers with Kelly Miller Brothers Circus.
Sword Swallowers with Kelly Miller Brothers Circus: |
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Stan Marye Stanley Andrew Marye |
Born Oct. 18, 1937 Performed 1958-65
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Glades Amusements Helen Golden AZ State Fair Royal American Shows James E. Strates Shows Kelly/Sutton Kitty Kelly Johnny Howard Pete Kortes Noel Lester Bill Chalcus Robie Del Mar Jerry Lipko Charlie Roark Stu Miller Vanteen & Lee Ward Hall's World of Wonders RB Thomas Shows King Brothers Circus Kelly Miller Bros Wellsville, NY Binghamton, NY Whitney Point, NY (USA) |
Stan Marye was born in Portland OR on October 18, 1937, and began learning sword swallowing at the age of 14 after reading the condensed version of the Daniel Mannix book "Step Right Up" in Reader's Digest. Marye ran away from home in Wellsville, NY in 1954 at the age of 16 and worked as a canvas tramp for Tiny Cowens with Glades Amusements. One of the first sideshow acts Marye learned was fire-eating, which he learned by using cotton as a wick on a coat hanger with acetone for fuel. Marye saw his first sword swallower, Don Ward, in 1957 when Marye and Ward both worked for Helen Golden at the Arizona State Fair for a week in Phoenix, AZ. There were actually two sideshows playing the same midway at the same time, with Helen Golden's sideshow on the side, and Pete Kortes' Freak Show on the back end. After watching and talking with Don Ward for a week, Marye studied the Mannix article "Step Right Up", the book Gray's Anatomy, and practiced with a coat hanger until he managed to swallow his first sword in 1958. He claims he "learned the art by trial and error - mainly error!"
Stan Marye first began sword swallowing professionally with a carnival at the age of 20 when he performed the bed of nails and fire-eating, and eventually worked in sword swallowing. At 6'2" and 145 pounds, he was known as "the only sword swallower who didn't swallow a sword", as he used to begin his act by swallowing a bent coat hanger, then a stove poker, a long handled spoon, and a bayonet, but not a full-sized sword. Eventually, he worked in swallowing a Toledo blade. He complained that working without a public address system sometimes gave him laryngitis, and he always stayed underweight, as "there are no calories in a stove poker." In 1958 Marye worked for Kitty Kelly on the James E. Strates/Kelly/Sutton Show in Garden City, KS. In 1958, he also worked as the sword swallower for Royal American Shows, sometime after Estelline Pike had left. Her son, Jimmy Lucky Ball II visited and performed once with Royal American Shows once during a visit in 1958. According to the November 24, 1958 Billboard: "Pete Kortes, playing the date (Arizona State Fair) for the third consecutive year with his Side Show, had a larger gross than last year. His attractions include fat man Vernon (Tiny) Miller, Jesus Gonzalez, seal boy, Stanley Marye, sword swallower, Jules Gauburt, pinhead, Eko and Iko, sheephead.." In 1959, Marye again worked for Pete Kortes. On Election Day 1959, he and two other sideshow performers were featured on TV on Art Linkletter's House Party which was televised live from the AZ State Fair. In 1959, Marye also worked for Ward Hall and Harry Leonard for one week at the La Porte County Fair in La Porte, IN, and for Vanteen and Lee at a street fair in El Paso, TX. In 1960, Marye started the year working for Noel Lester who did a mermaid illusion show on the James E. Strates show. In 1960, Marye worked for Jerry Lipko with Fat Lady Sword Swallower Vickie Pope who swallowed some of Marye's swords, including his 1860 Cavalry saber. Vickie Pope was billed as the "Fat Lady Sword Swallower", but both she and Marye swallowed swords with the show. In 1960 Marye met a girl in Whitney Point, NY and they got married in 1960. Together they worked carnivals with Jerry Lipko and finished the year out in November 1960 working a sideshow with Bill Chalcus in Jacksonville, FL. In 1961, they started the year working for Robie Del Mar in central Florida, then worked in Texas for Gary Hearn, and eventually worked for Johnny Howard on RB Thomas Shows. Marye swallowed a neon tube for a few years until one day in 1961 when he was performing a free show in front of the Corn Palace in Mitchell, SD. At the time, Marye had no extension cord for the transformer for his neon tube, so he set the transformer on a chair and had to get down on his knees to swallow the tube. As he was swallowing the tube, the light suddenly went out, and he knew something had gone wrong. After very carefully removing the tube, he began to check the tube to locate the crack, but was surprised when he found no crack at all. Apparently, the tube was not broken, but the cord has just pulled loose. After this scare, he was never able to swallow the neon tube again. From 1962-1965 Marye and his wife worked for Charlie Roark with King Brothers Circus. In December 1962 through January 1963, they worked for Stu Miller who was sideshow manager for Kelly Miller Brothers Circus in Kingston Jamaica. According to a newspaper article, Marye was "an omnivorous gent who downed broadswords like they were oysters". As part of his show, he would swallow a parade sword with a blade length of 27 1/2 inches, a 20 inch stove poker, a 22 inch barbeque skewer, an 18 inch tri-cornered Civil War bayonet, an 18 inch broadsword that was 1.5 inches wide, and a 15 inch Army serving spoon. He would also swallow a "Hot Sandwich" of two swords with a lit cigarette wedged between them, then remove the swords and continue smoking the cigarette. He also swallowed a multiple sword sandwich of up to 5 swords, until he had an injury in 1962 while swallowing 5 swords in Cadiz, KY. After this, he would swallow a sword sandwich of 3 swords - 1 wide broadsword with a blade 1 1/2" wide in the middle between two narrower swords. In 1965, he watched Count Desmond swallow his first sword in Binghamton, NY. In 1965, he got a "real job" in construction, but returned to show business in 1968 working with a tented theater in Bridgeport, CT. He and his wife moved back to Binghamton NY in 1972. In 1976 he was hired to work for 8 weeks as the tent manager for Disney for the largest tented circus in Johannesburg, South Africa, but the job stretched out longer and he and his family didn't leave until 20 months later. In 1987, he swallowed a coat hanger for the crew of "Kool and the Gang". Stan Marye and his wife reside in Whitney Point, NY. Seeking dates, photos, and more information.
Stan Marye Timeline:
Stan Marye article |
| Harry Wagner | Performed 1960 |
Bill Chalicus (USA) |
Harry Wagner worked as the sword swallower for Bill Chalicus in 1960. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Bella Haich Bella Haicha World's Prettiest Sword Swallower |
Xrayed 1960 |
Copenhagen [Denmark] [Turkey] |
Bella Haicha or Bella Haich was a Turkish-born sword swallower known as the World's Prettiest Sword Swallower, who was x-rayed while sword swallowing at various times in 1960.
According to the May 22, 1960 Sunday Pictorial, Bella Haicha swallowed a sword for Dr. M. Radamacher at a hospital in Copenhagen Denmark. "You've wondered HOW it was done. You've wondered if it was REALLY done. So here before your very eyes -- and with an X-ray canera joining you in the audience -- is the fabulous sword-swallowing act that's fascinated the world for centures. Performing it is one of the few women sword -swallowers in the world, Turkish-born Bella Haicha. Now Bella got mighty mad about cracks from circus audiences about her act being one big fake, so the other day she marched off to a military hospital in Copenhagen -- and made her critics swallow their words. Bella swallowed her sword in front fo chief surgeon Dr. M. Rademacher. Then she stepped in front of the X-ray camera to get a permanent record of the inside story of her act. How does she do it? The secret is simply relaxation of the throat muscles, a sword which is EXACTLY the right length, practice, -- and sheer nerve. The although the edes of the sword are dulled so that they don't cut into the throat, one false move can mean that the sword point penetrates the thin lining of the stomach. And that can mean DEATH." The Aug 28, 1960 St. Louis Globe Democrat also describes Bella Haicha being x-rayed at a military hospital in Copenhagen Denmark. Seeking photos and more information.
Bella Haicha Timeline
Bella Haicha being x-rayed (5-23-1960) Bella Haicha being x-rayed (8-28-1960) Bella Haicha being x-rayed (12-26-1960) |
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Vickie Pope "The Sword Swallowing Fat Lady" |
Performed early 1960s |
Jerry Lipko Jim Steinmetz Goodings Magic Midway Ward Hall's World of Wonders (USA) |
Vickie Pope worked as "The Sword Swallowing Fat Lady" for sideshow manager Jerry Lipko in 1960 with sword swallower Stan Marye. Pope was billed as the "Fat Lady Sword Swallower", but both she and Stan Marye swallowed swords with the show, and Pope swallowed some of Stan's swords, including his 1860 Cavalry saber. At one point, Pope's neon tube broke inside her, and after she removed it, she commented, "That's going to cost me $7 for another one!" (At that time, they only made about $5/week). Pope also worked for Jim Steinmetz on Goodings Magic Midway in the 1960's, and for Ward Hall's World of Wonders show in later years. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Dingi Cherokee Sword Swallower |
Performed early 1960s |
Ward Hall's World of Wonders Oklahoma (USA) |
Dingi was a Native American Cherokee sword swallower from Oklahoma who worked with Ward Hall's World of Wonders Show in the late 1950s and early 1960s as an Indian fakir. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Sir Thomas Thomas Sir Thomas-Thomas Arthur Thomas |
Born circa 1931 Performed 1960-66 |
Dick Best Sideshow Royal American Shows Belmont Park Montreal Dave Rosen Side Show Ringling Brothers Circus Memphis, TN East Rutherford, NJ Chicago, IL (USA) |
Arthur Thomas from Memphis TN was a roustabout who worked on the canvas crew for Dick Best Sideshow for Royal American Shows in 1960 when Jim Lucky Ball II was the talker and Estelline Pike was sword swallower with the show. Thomas witnessed Estelline Pike sword swallowing during the 1959-60 season, and then learned sword swallowing from Estelline Pike at Hubert's Dime Museum on 42nd Street in New York city in early 1960. According to the March 1, 1960 Herald-News in Passaic NJ, Sir Thomas Thomas was sword swallower with Royal American Shows in 1960. According to the October 10, 1960 Billboard, in 1960, Sir Thomas Thomas was sword swallower with Dave Rosen Side Show at the New Jersey State Fair, Dunbury and Mineola, and then the show went into winter quarters at Coney Island.
According to the Oct 5, 1961 Florence Morning News, sword swallower Sir Thomas Thomas worked with sword swallower Col. Jerry Lipko at the Eastern Carolina Agricultural Fair in Florence SC. According to an article in the February 5, 1964 Tampa Times, Sir Thomas Thomas from Memphis TN prefers to swallow stainless steel US Army bayonets with the Royal American Shows at the Florida State Fair in Tampa FL. "Sir Thomas-Thomas is in a cut-throat business. He swallows swords. Actually, they're not really swords. They're stainless steel bayonnets. He prefers U.S. Army bayonnets. Not that they taste better than the Argentine or the Royal Canadian Navy bayonnets he also plunges down his throat. It's just that U.S. Army bayonnets are flatter and easier to swallow. Sir Thomas-Thomas is actually Arthur Thomas of Memphis, Tenn. He's currently appearing at the Royal American Midway at the Florida State Fair. In his business, you don't need a throat of steel. You need nerves of steel. 'You can't get nervous. You've always got to be relaxed.' he explained yesterday. 'If you're tense, the blade won't go down.' The secret of sword swallowing is in muscle control and throat control. It took him three months to learn the trick and to stretch his throat. He still practices. 'The longest blade I use goes the entire way down my chest. I also drive a bayonnet down my throat with a .32 calibre revolver hooked onto the handle. I can also swallow stretched out coat hangers. I call them my 'drink mixers',' he added. He's slipped only once. 'That was last year in Madison Square Garden,' he recalls. 'I was sick with a high fever and a dry throat. I ripped the inside of my throat with a blade. That put me out of business for a couple of weeks'." According to the article, the "Barker" for Royal American Midway in 1964 was Paul (Mush) Wunder who talked Thomas' act. According to an Appleton, WI Post Crescent article dated January 2, 1966, Sir Thomas Thomas taught sword swallowing to Jim Scott of Crystal Falls, MI in Chicago in 1962, and in 1966 Sir Thomas Thomas was sword swallower with Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey Circus. It is believed Thomas passed away sometime after that. Seeking photos and more information.
Sir Arthur Thomas Thomas Timeline:
Sir Thomas Thomas story (3-30-1960) Sir Thomas Thomas Florida State Fair Tampa (2-5-1964) |
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Hoxie Bros Circus Hoxie Brothers Circus |
Started 1943 | (USA) | Hoxie Brothers Circus On November 17, 1943, Hoxie Tucker started the Hoxie Bros. Circus and opened the show in Greenville, FL. Hoxie played mountainous towns in the southern states-where other shows would not go. In the late 50s and 60s the Hoxie Circus became known for its trucks unusual lavender color. The story goes that Betty Tucker pulled into a gas station and noticed one of the pumps painted in an unusual purple color. She immediately fell in love with the color, returned to the lot and told Hoxie she had found a new color or the show: purple! From then on, the trucks, signs, and even route arrows used their signature purple color, which became the Hoxie Brothers signature color that everyone always seemed to remember!
During the 1961 season, the sword swallower with Hoxie Brothers Circus was Johnny Nugent. For the 1962 season, Hoxie teamed with Milton "Doc" Bartoc who had operated medicine shows for many years. Hoxie and Doc combined their equipment and operated the 1962 season as the Hoxie-Bardex Bros Circus. From 1965 to 1969, the sword swallower with Hoxie Bros Circus was Ricky Richiardi. In the early 1970s, John Hall became manager of the show and a new era began for the circus. Hall brought new ideas and breathed new life into the Hoxie Bros. Circus. The purple trucks were repained to a much brighter color, and much of the aging equipment was replaced. The new format was a huge success and Hoxie Bros. now competed with the bigger circuses. In 1972, Hoxie Bros. Circus was featured in the March 1972 edition of National Geographic magazine. For the 1976 season, the color theme featured a red, white and blue bicentennial spectacular with a patriotic themed performance. Also in 1976, the sideshow featured "Mongo the Gorilla", the first true gorilla to be exhibited in a circus in many years. By the late 1970s the Hoxie Bros. Circus had grown, making money and playing larger towns. Hoxie decided to open a smaller second unit that could play the smaller towns that the Hoxie show had outgrown. The name of the new show was Hoxie's Great American Circus. In 1981, Hoxie's employee and good friend Allan C. Hill took over the operational management of Hoxie's Great American Circus. In 1983, Allan C. Hill bought the show from Hoxie and renamed it Allan C. Hill's Great American Circus. Approximately 150 performers traveled with the show. The Great American Circus traveled to more than 300 cities in the eastern US from January to November each year before returning to winter quarters in Sarasota FL. 1994 was the final season of the Great American Circus, and it ended up not performing for the full 1994 season. On September 17, 1999, Leonard Basil "Hoxie" Tucker died at the age of 89. Known sword swallowers with Hoxie Brothers Circus included Johnny Nugent (1961), Henry Thompson (early 60s?), Ricky Richiardi (1965-69), Joe Abrams / Eric Tauber (1973), Sir Francis Doran (1974-76?), and Baron Bill Unks (1976-78, 80s?) Sword swallowers with Hoxie's Great American Circus included Sammy Johnson (1981), Brian LaPalme, and Capt. Don Leslie.
Sword Swallowers with Hoxie Brothers Circus: |
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Lee Bradley Lee Roy Bradley |
Born Jan 14, 1914 Performed 1942-1962 Died May 4, 1967
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Hamid-Morton Circus Sells Bros Circus Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Circus Al G. Kelly & Miller Bros Circus Clyde Beatty Circus Hoxie Bros Circus Hunt Brothers Circus Hugo, OK (USA) |
Lee Roy Bradley was born Jan 14, 1914 and worked with Hunt Brothers Circus in 1941 with Lou Barton (photo). According to a Billboard dated May 1942, "Barton has the Hunt Side Show - Side Show is in charge of Lee Barton, who has lined up a good selection of acts and specialties. A Hawaiian native show, featuring Lewella and Tonita, is a new addition to Barton's show, and Bradley the sword swallower is still with it."
According to a Billboard dated Dec 4, 1943, Lee Bradley and Jim Stutz worked with the Hamid-Morton Circus in Atlanta, GA in 1943. According to a Billboard dated Dec 11, 1943, Lee Roy Bradley, was concessionaire with Hunt Bros. Circus. According to Brownwood Bulletin dated November 17, 1953, an 18 foot python escaped from Lee Bradley, sideshow operator for Al G. Kelly & Miller Bros Circus as he was giving it a bath in Hugo OK. According to a March 14 1956 article in the Paris TX News, "Two showmen from Hugo leaving to join Clyde Beatty Circus, opening Wednesday in Deming, NM were Lee Bradley and Freddie Claus. Both are with the circus business department."
In 1961, Lee Bradley and his wife Hazel worked on the Hoxie Bros. Show in 1961. Lee had the side show and he and his wife Hazel presented a riding mechanic/bareback act in the main show. Later on Hazel had age and weight stands. According to Bandwagon, Vol. 6, No. 3 (May-June), 1962, pp. 12-13, with the Sells Bros Circus, "Nucleus of the show-owned rolling stock came from the Stevens and Sterling Bros Circuses. Lee Bradley has his two sideshow trucks on for a few dates." According to the Bridgeport CT Post article dated June 18, 1962, "Sword swallower Lee Bradley with the Hunt Brothers Circus was "stuck" when a child ran off with his 14-inch silver sword". Lee Bradley reportedly died a painful death from burns when he climbed to the top of a big top to waterproof the canvas, and apparently the big top caught on fire, with Bradley dying in the resulting fire. Lee Roy Bradley died on May 4, 1967 at the age of 53. According to family reports, Bradley may have worked as sword swallower and glass eater with Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Circus at some time, dates unknown. Lee Roy Bradley is buried in Showman's Rest in Mount Olivet Cemetery Hugo, Choctaw County, Oklahoma, USA. Seeking photos and more information.
Lee Bradley Timeline: Sword Swallower Lee Bradley |
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Peanuts the Sword Swallower (?) |
Performed 1962-65 |
Sells and Gray Circus Sideshow Bob Earl Show (USA) |
Peanuts worked as the sword swallower and fire-eater with the Sells and Gray Show in 1962, and as the sideshow operator for the Bob Earl Show in 1965. Peanuts lived in a Plymouth sedan with his dog. The entire back seat of the car was full to the windows with stuff, and he had a blade box lying on top of the pile about window level. That meant that Peanuts' living space was the front seat of the car, which he shared with his dog. Peanuts was short several of the essential amenities of life, and he looked it. He was always unkempt. After many years of traveling without washing facilities, the dirt had ground into him and his skin was a swarthy color. In all the years that he had been a fire eater, he had burned out all his taste buds. When he came to the dining top cookhouse, he would sit down and start pulling from his pockets all kinds of bottles of hot sauce, which he would pour liberally on the food, just so he could taste something. Seeking photos and more information. |
| David L. Vaughn |
Born 7 July 1918 Married 1940 Performed June 1965 Died 8 Jan 1976
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Cristiani Wallace Bros Circus Greensboro, NC (USA) |
David L. Vaughn of Greensboro, NC was sword swallower and contortonist with Cristiani Wallace Bros. Circus in June 1965. Vaughn was born in Raleigh NC on 7 July, 1918, and performed as sword swallower and contortonist with Cristiani-Wallace Bros. Circus in June 1965. He was married to Jewell Brown Glenn in 1940, and they had two children, David Vaughn Jr and Dwayne Vaughn. David L. Vaughn Sr died at age 57 on January 8, 1976, and is buried in West Park Cemetery in Cleveland OH. Seeking photos, dates, and more information. |
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Stromboli The Great Stromboli Danny Lynch Daniel Lynch |
Born 7 July 1927 Learned 1940s Performed 1950s-1997 Died 9 April 2019 |
Belle Vue Circus Ripley's Believe It or Not Blackpool Gorton Radcliffe Stoneclough Greater Manchester England [UK] |
Daniel "Danny" Lynch was a British sword swallower and fire eater who performed with his wife and assistant Silvia Lynch with their sideshow that toured the world in the 1950s and 60s, even performing for royalty. Lynch, who held a distinguished career in the British military, had also been presented with a prestigious medal for his wartime heroics.
Daniel Cornelius Lynch was born on July 7 1926 at Rosyth, near Dunfermline on the Firth of Forth, England, and grew up in Stoneclough, Greater Manchester, one of four children of a carpenter. Before his career in entertainment, Lynch joined the British Royal Navy at 15, and in 1942, served on a destroyer protecting the Arctic convoys of merchant ships sailing between Scotland and Murmansk. It was during this period that he first tried his hand at fire-eating and sword swallowing, planting a seed of fascination that would have an effect on the rest of his life. Lynch left the Navy in 1946 with the rank of Chief Petty Officer. The centerpiece of his act, known as The Strangest Show on Earth, saw Lynch, assisted by his wife, Sylvia, lighting lightbulbs after being strapped into a 16,000 volt electrified chair, now owned by the Museum of Science and Industry. Lynch was also an actor, known for performing as a circus showman and fire-eater in films. In 1980, Lynch was featured as a circus showman in the film The Elephant Man. In 1990, Stromboli was featured on the British TV program "This is Your Life". He was also featured in the films The Bride (1985) and Princess Caraboo (1994). In 1997, a book entitled "The Great Stromboli and Sylvia" was written by Abigail Lane on their lives in the show business. Retired in his 80s in 2010, their home in Radcliffe was known as a "private museum" for friends and acquaintances in the circus world. In 2017, Lynch, along with 72 other convoy veterans, was presented with the Ushakov Medal by the Russian Ambassador to London for his role in the defense of the USSR. On March 3, 2019, Lynch's wife and assistant Sylvia Lynch passed away at the age of 87. Danny suffered a stroke shortly afterwards, passing away at the age of 92 on April 9, 2019, just 5 weeks after Sylvia's death. Lynch's requiem mass was held at John Fisher RC Church, Manchester Road, Kearsley, BL48QQ on Friday, April 26, 2019. His funeral was held at Kearlsey in Greater Manchester. The couple had been befriended by a fraudster who had seized everything they had in the way of newspaper clippings and props before their deaths. The Lynches had no children, but are survived by a number of nieces and nephews. Seeking photos and more information.
Stromboli and Silvia poster
Great Stromboli Danny Lynch Timeline: |
| Wäinö Hamari |
Born April 29, 1943 Performed 1965-76 |
(Finland) | Finnish magician Wäinö Hamari bought a sword from Aleksander Casso, and performed sword swallowing in Finland from 1965-1976. |
| Jim Scott | Performed 1965-66 |
King Reid Shows Kelly Miller Brothers Circus Royal Canadian Shows Vanteen and Lee Crystal Falls, MI Marquette, MI (USA) |
Jim Scott graduated from Crystal Falls, MI High School in 1962 (1958-62), and went to Chicago, where he first started learning sword swallowing from Ringling Brothers sword swallower Sir Thomas Thomas. In 1966, Scott was a junior at Northern Michigan University in Marquette, MI and worked on the summer show circuit where he performed fire-eating and sword swallowing. Before that, he had worked with King Reid Shows, Kelly Miller Brothers Circus and Royal Canadian Shows.
According to a January 1, 1966 article in the Appleton, WI Post Crescent, "The learning process was slow," Scott said. "The hardest part was overcoming the impulse to gag when I'd lower something down my throat. I began by swallowing a small, flat iron bar. After I became accustomed to the bar, I next worked with bayonets, and then finally graduated to swords". He took his apprentice sword-swallowing from Sir Thomas Thomas, sword-swallower with Ringling Brothers. Through constant practice, Scott now can swallow four swords at a time. He also swallows an interesting variety of other articles including corkscrews, keyhole saws, giant shears, and neon tubes. "The thing I hate most to swallow is neon." Scott said. "I used tubes in one of my acts for a while, but there is always the great danger of one shattering when it is inside your mouth or body that it just isn't worth taking the chance." In the summer of 1966, Jim Scott was scheduled to work with Vanteen and Lee Sideshow, a part of Century 21 Shows on the west coast. |
| Denita and Roney Biancas de Toledo | Performed 1967 |
Hansa Theater Hamburg (Germany) La Hulpe, Brussels (Belgium) |
Denita and Roney Biancas deToledo lived in the village of La Hulpe, just outside of Brussels Belgium, and performed at the Hansa Theater in Hamburg Germany in February 1967. Their stage costume included spandex suits with superhero capes and showcased a sword shield with a variety of several swords.
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Chris M. Christ Chris Michael Christ |
Born Feb 23, 1948 Performed 1966-72 Co-Managed 1966-2017 |
Hall & Christ World of Wonders Show Gibsonton, FL (USA) |
Chris M. Christ learned sword swallowing from Francis Doran in 1966-67 when he co-managed the Hall & Christ World of Wonders Show with Ward Hall and performed as a sword swallower until about 1972. At one point early in his career, around 1966 to 1967, while Christ was swallowing a sword, his dentures came loose and dropped down the back of his throat, lodging the sword in place. With the help of sideshow electrician Red Trower (who later became a sword swallower himself), they managed to remove the sword and dentures from his throat.
Over his long career in the sideshow business, Christ taught sword swallowing to Dale Pritchard, Edward Robinson/ Phoenix Blaze I1984), Molotov/Matthew Bouvier (2000), and many other sword swallowers. Together with Ward Hall, they produced sideshows for Circus Vargas, Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey Circus, and countless state fairs over the decades. Christ continues to operate the World of Wonders show with his partner Ward Hall out of Gibsonton, FL. (more info)
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Doc Blood Ricardo the Sword Swallower Rick Dennis |
Born June 5, 1952 Performed 1966-94 |
Clyde Beatty Cole Bros Carson & Barnes Circus Sells & Gray Circus Circus Bartok Ward Hall's World of Wonders Vestal, NY (USA) |
Rick Dennis was born on June 5, 1952 and grew up in Vestal, NY where he started his career as a magician and juggler at the age of 10. During the summer of 1966, Dennis got hired on the Clyde Beatty Cole Brothers Circus lot in New York as a magician at the age of 13. During the summer of 1966, Dennis learned fire-eating from Andy Brisky on the Clyde Beatty show. It was also during the summer of 1966 that Dennis worked with and studied Francis Doran perform sword swallowing, and secretly taught himself how to swallow coathangers and eventually swords during the summer of 1966 at the age of 13. Starting in 1966, Dennis was billed as the "World's Youngest Sword Swallower".
In the Fall of 1966, Dennis taught Joe Prosch ("De Lion") how to eat fire and swallow swords. Dennis worked with Clyde Beatty Cole Brothers Circus again the following summers of 1967 to '69, where he got to work with and study sword swallowing with The Baron Bill Unks when they both worked with Clyde Beatty-Cole Bros Circus in 1968 and 1969. In 1968, at the age of 16, Dennis sustained a severe fire-breathing injury in front of a live audience in New York that left him with second and third degree injuries and put him on his back in the hospital for 6 weeks, requiring 7 skin grafts where doctors took skin off his thigh and grafted it to his chest. Eventually Dennis recovered and returned to fire eating, but left out the fire-breathing "blast". About 1970, Dennis worked a short season with his fellow sword swallower Count Desmond for Circus Bartok before they began working night clubs together in the early 70s. In 1973, Dennis worked with the Sells and Gray Circus. According to a April 16, 1973 Circus Report, "Jon Friday, sideshow manager with Sells & Gray Circus reports they have the world's youngest sword swallower - he's 20 year old Rick Dennis." In the mid 1970s, Dennis worked with Ward Hall's World of Wonders under the "European Illusion Theater" from 1974 to 1976. In 1977, Dennis put together his own 10-in-1 show which worked with Coleman Brothers in New England. Around 1978 Dennis taught John Stevens how to swallow swords and eat fire behind his garage. Dennis also worked with Jackie Lynn on Carson and Barnes Circus Sideshow in 1978-79 under Jim Steinmetz, and with several other shows until 1987. In 1988 Dennis put together four grind shows with fold-out panels and worked with J & J Amusements in Allentown, PA. Besides sword swallowing his favorite 22" nickel-plated blade given to him by Count Desmond, Dennis also did fire-eating, knife throwing, juggling, bed of nails, suspended straight jacket escape, low wire walk, was the sideshow talker, and occasionally the Big Show announcer. Dennis is now retired from sword swallowing. Seeking photos and more information.
Rick Dennis Timeline
Rick Dennis (2000) |
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De Lion Joe Prosch |
Performed 1966 |
Endicott, NY Melbourne, FL (USA) |
Joe Prosch learned fire-eating and sword swallowing in the Fall of 1966 from Rick Dennis. Prosch went on to perform in his own night club act as a magician, fire-eater, sword swallower and stand-up comedian under the stage name "De Lion". He was known to have performed his sword swallowing as the Magic Bartender at the Glass Onion in Rochester, NY in the late 70s, and eventually owned his own large club in Syracuse, NY. He is now living in Melbourne, FL. Seeking photos and more information. |
| Jan Refne Borge |
Born June 23, 1953 Learned 1966-67 Performed 1967 |
Nestlun (Norway) |
Jan Refne Borge was born on June 23, 1953, and learned sword swallowing in 1966-67 at the age of 13. He lives in Nestlun, Norway. Seeking photos and more information. |
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"Red" Stuart John Stuart XXVIII |
Born March 21, 1951 Performed 1967-date |
Toni Del Rio Johnny Howard Pete Kortes Sideshow Gary Hearn Wm D Stanley Jimmy Dixon Bernard Thomas Ward Hall's World of Wonders American Dime Museum Tim Deremer's Side Show Great American Sideshow Co Philadelphia, PA Gibsonton, FL (USA) |
John "Red" Stuart was born in Camp Kilmer, New Jersey on March 21, 1951. When he was 4, his mother put him up for adoption in Philadelphia, PA. He grew up in an orphanage and foster homes from 1955 to 1966. In the winter of 1966, he graduated with a GED from Walter Biddle Saul High School of Agricultural Sciences, a magnet high school in Roxborough, Philadelphia. In January 1967, he began hitchhiking across the US, until he got a job with Ted's Rides at a carnival in Choctaw, Louisiana on Easter weekend 1967. On Good Thursday of Lent in early 1967 at the age of 16, Red learned sword swallowing and fire eating and other sideshow feats from a gypsy sideshow owner named Toni Del Rio. Over the next 50+ years, Red Stuart has performed with a number of shows, including working for Toni Del Rio Sideshow ('67-'68), Johnny Howard ('69), Pete Kortes ('69), Gary Hearn ('70), William D. Stanley Shows ('72-'73), Jimmy Dixon on Mighty Thomas Shows ('74), with Bernard Thomas Shows ('76-'78), the American Dime Museum, and Ward Hall's World of Wonders ('89-'91 and 2005-2017), often wintering in Gibsonton, FL.
In 1976, Red was known as Lizard Red, the caretaker and sleeping bag bedmate of Haa-Soo, the smallest of 8 Komodo dragons in captivity in the US (photo taken in Leithbridge Alberta, Canada in 1976). In 1977, the clown Skippy Siegel offered to sell Red an A-frame that he could use to lower a car axle down his throat, but Red couldn't afford the A-frame at the time. Instead, Ward Hall gave Red a 1929 Model A car axle that he had been given by Arthur Plumhoff when Plumhoff retired from sideshow business in 1957, which Red swallowed on the Ward Hall's World of Wonders 1977-78 season, and continued to swallow on Ward Hall's World of Wonders until 1990. Red Stuart later passed Arthur Plumhoff's car axle on to sideshow historian James Taylor who displayed it at the Palace of Wonders in Washington DC. Arthur Plumhoff's car axle mysteriously disappeared somehow when the Palace of Wonders transitioned ino the Red Palace in Washington DC. In honor of his 40th anniversary, in 2006 Red prepared a second car axle that he swallowed for the first time in Houston TX, which he later presented to Todd Robbins. In 2011, Red prepared another car axle for the Oklahoma Steampunk Exposition in 2011, which after swallowing it, he presented to Dan Meyer, who later swallowed it on America's Got Talent 2016 in Pasadena CA and now swallows it regularly in his shows. Red gave two axles to Jim Zajicek to have prepared and nickel plated. Red swallowed one of these car axles in every show at the 2012 Florida State Fair in Tampa and during the 2012 season with Ward Hall's World of Wonders. Red Stuart is known for swallowing multiple swords, kriss blades, wide broadsword blades, fire pokers, sword sheaths, and the car axle. He has taught sword swallowing to a number of other sword swallowers, including Charon Henning in 2002. On September 3, 2005, he swallowed 25 swords at one time, with each sword at least 18" long x 1/2" in width, which was recognized by Guinness World Records as part of the group mass swallow Guinness World Record (video). On Sept 4, 2005, Red was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award by Dan Meyer of the Sword Swallowers Association Int'l Red Stuart has now been swallowing swords for over 50 years, and is one of the top 20 oldest living sword swallowers still performing in the world today. Red retired from the road in 1996, then moved back to Gibsonton, Florida and went back to performing part-time with Ward Hall's World of Wonders Show from 1996 to May 2017. During the 2017 summer season, Red worked as sword swallower with Tim Deremer's sideshow based out of Cincinnati Ohio. Several of Red Stuart's swords and his car axle belong to sword swallower Dan Meyer and are housed in the archival collection of the Sword Swallowers Association Int'l.
Red Stuart Timeline:
Red Stuart, Fridley MN (1970s) Red Stuart, Waterloo IA (1972) Red Stuart with Komodo dragon (1976) Red Stuart, Huron SD (1977) Red Stuart, Lost Angeles set (1980s) Red Stuart (1980-90s) Red Stuart, Sideshow Gathering (2002) Red Stuart, Sideshow Gathrinng (2002) Red Stuart, Sideshow Gathering (2002) Red Stuart swallowing Mimi Garneau's sword (2002) Red Stuart swallowing serpentine (2004) Red Stuart swallowing car axle |
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Ward Hall's World of Wonders Sideshow Hall and Christ's World of Wonders Sideshow |
1959-date |
Ward Hall's World of Wonders Show Gibsonton, FL (USA) |
Ward Hall's World of Wonders Sideshow Ward Hall was born on June 21, 1930 in Trenton Nebraska. At the age of 8, he saw his first circus and became obsessed with wanting to run away and join the circus. Seeking dates, photos, and more information.
Sword Swallowers with World of Wonders Sideshow
WoW Sideshow with Lady Patricia (1970) WoW Sideshow Gibsonton FL with Sandy Reed (1973-74) WoW Sideshow with Jimmy Rapp, Red Trower (1977) WoW Sideshow with Jimmy Rapp, Eddie Miller (1978) WoW Sideshow Tampa State Fair with Lady Diane (2007) WoW Sideshow Meadowlands with Brett Loudermilk (2007) World of Wonders Banner Line (20??) |
| James E. Strates Shows |
1923-date |
James E. Strates Shows Taft, Orlando, FL (USA) |
James E. Strates Shows has its history dating back to 1923 when James E. Strates, a Greek immigrant, began his first show. Strates came to America in 1909 and, like many immigrants, worked at a number of odd jobs. In 1919, he joined a carnival athletic show as a wrestler taking on all challengers. In 1923, James E. Strates acquired Southern Tier Shows and in 1932 changed its name to James E. Strates Shows. Mr. Strates continued to build and manage the carnival until his death in 1959. At that time his son, E. James Strates, assumed responsibility for the carnival and still operates it today.
Since 1959, many changes have occurred in the carnival business. E. James Strates was an innovator, bringing many firsts to the amusement business such as cooperative promotions, advance ticket sales and a centralized ticket system. Today, fairgoers are more attracted to large spectacular thrill rides, and now animals and rare "freak shows" have become a thing of the past. Seeking dates, photos, and information on sword swallowers with James E. Strates Shows.
Sword Swallowers with James E. Strates Shows
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Rosemary Puente Rose Maria Puente |
Born Sept 3, 1943 Performed 1968 Injured February 25, 1968 Died February 27, 1968
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King Reid Shows Kelly Miller Brothers Circus Royal Canadian Shows Vanteen and Lee Dallas, TX (USA) |
Rose Maria Puente was born on September 3, 1943 in Harlingen, TX, and performed as sword swallower Rosemary Puente with shows including King Reid Shows, Kelly Miller Brothers Circus, and Royal Canadian Shows with Vanteen and Lee. Rosemary and her husband Arthuro Puente lived at 1819 S. Marsalis in Dallas, TX with their two children, Aaron and Michelle Puente. On February 25, 1968, while practicing at home with a bayonet performing for friends of her husband, Rosemary suffered a tiny injury from a quarter-inch nick in her esophagus. After the accident, Rosemary laid down on a bed to rest while her husband Arthuro went off to work on his nightshift job. When Arthuro returned home from work in the morning, he found Rosemary laying in the same position, and discovered that she was dead and that rigormortis had set in. According to a March 2, 1968 obituary in the Washington Post Times Herald: "DALLAS, Texas, March 1 (AP) -- An infection in a tiny cut in the throat caused the death of a sword swallower, Rosemary Puente, County Medical Examiner Earl Rese said today." An article in the March 1, 1968 Odessa American reported: "DALLAS (UPI) - A medical examiner said Thursday a tiny, infected cut in the esophagus caused the death of 25-year-old Rosemary Puente, a female sword swallower. The cut, less than a quarter-inch long, was inflicted during a sword swallowing practice session Sunday. Mrs. Puente was given an examination after the accident but showed no sign of Illness. The cut became infected and she later became ill and died. She was found dead Tuesday afternoon." Rosemary Puente died on February 27, 1968 at the age of 25. The death certificate stated the cause of death was "Acute purulent mediastinitis and infection of soft tissue of neck due to lacerated esophagus while demonstrating sword swallowing". Puente was buried on February 29, 1968 in Calvary Hill Cemetery in Dallas, Texas. She was survived by her husband, Arthuro Puente, and two children, Michelle, (who was 20 months old at the time of her death), and Aaron Garcia, (3 years, 2 months, and 18 days old at the time of her death) who now lives in San Diego, CA. Seeking photos and more information. Rosemary & Arthuro Puente Wedding Rosemary & Arthuro Puente Rosemary Puente & Children Dallas Location of Death Bed that Rosemary Puente died in Rosemary Puente Death Certificate Rosemary Puente headstone Rosemary Puente News articles Rosemary Puente Obituary |
| Clinton Ross |
Born Jan 8, 1948 Performed 1969-1989 |
Plymouth, MA (USA) |
Clinton Ross was born on January 8, 1948 and learned sword swallowing from a book around 1969 at the age of 21. He swallowed a sword with 24 inch long blade for over 20 years. Ross retired from sword swallowing around 1989. "No photographs... only memories." The town of Plymouth MA had "Sword Swallowing" listed as his profession for over the past 11 years. Seeking dates, photos, and more information. |
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Joe Jagger Schwertschlucker Most Famous Man of Mauerberg Josef Zehetbauer |
Born 26 Aug 1947 Performed 1980s-90s Died 31 May 2007 |
Reeperbahn Hamburg Mühldorf Fair Münchner Biergarten Garching an der Alz Mauerberg, Bavaria (Germany) |
Joe Jagger was born Josef Zehetbauer on August 26, 1947 in Mauerberg in Garching an der Alz, Bavaria, Germany. Even though he was not world famous, Joe Jagger became quite famous in his community and region of Bavaria and came to be called "The Most Famous Man of Mauerberg".
No one knows exactly how or when Joe Jagger learned sword swallowing. During his career as a sword swallower and fire-eater, Jagger performed shows at the Reeperbahn in Hamburg, at the Münchner Biergarten Munich Beergarden, and as far away as Las Vegas, Nevada. Early in his career, his performance was professional and he was paid a "considerable" fee for his art. When he performed, Jagger wore tailored black pants and a leopard print vest over bare skin. As proof of his art, he displayed x-rays of him swallowing swords, and he let audiences check out his sword before performances. His sword was forged from one solid piece of metal. When he returned home to his region after a long absence, he refused a bottle of beer at the local tavern bar, shrugged his shoulders and shouted, "Hey bartender! I just came straight from Las Vegas! Bring on a carton of whiskey and an arm full of bubbly!" This was Jagger at the height of his career. Jagger earned good money during the height of his career, and would have been successful had he been more disciplined. In 1987, when Jagger turned 40 years old, he began drinking again. He drank more than he could handle and eventually began missing engagements. If the Kapellmeister had not been there, Jagger would have been totally drunk and fallen off the stage with his sword in his throat. His market value fell, and for a liter of beer he would make a fool of himself. Years later, when his fame had faded, a table was placed in marquees where the art of sword swallowing was celebrated. Jagger also owned an ape and a python. The life of the primate came to an abrupt end when the monkey tried to feed the reptile, as he had always done when Jagger was on tour, and the snake caught and devoured the monkey. During his finals years, sword swallowing did not matter to him. Jagger began being seen wearing makeup, women's clothes, nylons, high heels, and riding a bicycle with a trailer on which a coffin was attached. This is how he presented himself at rural German folk festivals. He traveled his last years with a coffin on wheels, pulled by the bicycle. His home was an old caravan which burned down at some point. On May 31, 2007 Joe Jagger died at the age of 60 under mysterious circumstances drowned in a shallow pond at Park Muhldorfer moat. No one knows exactly how he died. For more infomation on Joe Jagger, get the book "Fünf originale mit dem Namen Josef" by Anneliese Kiermeier. Seeking dates, photos, and more information on Schwertschlucker Joe Jagger.
Joe Jagger on motorcycle Joe Jagger at Mühldorf Fair Joe Jagger at Volksfest (1995) Joe Jagger at Volksfest (1995) Joe Jagger at Volksfest (1995) Joe Jagger at Volksfest (1995) Joe Jagger (c. 1995-96) Joe Jagger (c, 1995-96) Joe Jagger (video) |
| Tommy Dworzack |
Born c 1957 Performed 1969-? |
Starr Bros Circus Sideshow (USA) |
Tommy Dworzack started sword swallowing at the age of 12, and now runs the sideshow for Starr Brothers Circus. Seeking dates, photos, and more information. |
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Crazy Horse Cajun Sword Swallower Peewee
George DeSoto |
Born 18 Oct 1945 Learned 1969 Performed 1969-76 |
Friendship House Laguna Beach, CA New Orleans, LA Westwego, LA Pineville, LA (USA) |
Crazy Horse was a towering street performing hippie Cajun sword swallower with Timothy Leary's Laguna Beach Brotherhood in Laguna Beach, CA in the late 1960's. Crazy Horse stood 6' 3" tall, wore a safety pin through his nose, chanted with a drum, and performed in Laguna Beach into the early 1970s. A photo of Crazy Horse with Laguna Beach Police Officer Neil Purcell (taken about 1969-70) was published in the book Orange Sunshine: The Brotherhood of Eternal Love.
Crazy Horse later moved to New Orleans Louisiana around the mid 1970s.
Crazy Horse or George Edward DeSoto may have originally come from Louisiana or Mississippi before moving to Laguna Beach CA in the late 1960s. According to an article in the New Orleans Times Picayune (1976 photo) dated July 13, 1976, "As far back as the fourth grade, Crazy Horse knew he was destined for greatness. Pushing a pencil to the back of his rather large mouth to jar loose a peanut hung up on a molar, Crazy Horse found he could stick the pencil all the way down his throat without choking. A star, of sorts, had discovered his talent. George E. "Crazy Horse" DeSoto didn't start swallowing swords seriously until seven years ago. He's 30 now but despite graying hairs, he always has the smile and demeanor of a six year old. Crazy Horse can do 50 calisthenic jumping jacks with a 20-inch sword rammed down his gullet. "The record swallow is 27 inches." he said hoarsely after one of his demonstrations. "The longest sword I've ever swallowed was 23 inches. It was so long it touched the internal organs under my belly button. It hurt so much it felt like someone punched me in the groin." "When Crazy Horse has swallowed a sword, his eyes are cast heavenward and he is at the mercy of the audience. It's a queasy sight. When he bends over double to stare you in the face, he has to reach down to calm an uneasy stomach with his hands. He can play a harmonica with a sword down his throat and even smoke a cigarette. He hasn't discovered a way to drink a beer, but he's tried. "I've done a lot of things with a sword in my throat," Crazy Horse said proudly between his Monday evening shows. He appears in the Friendship House, a neighborhood tavern on Canal and Jeff Davis that boosts attendance at sword swallowing shows by selling beer at a penny a draft. "I've dived off diving boards, executed pushups and jumping jacks, and rode a bicycle for 15 miles," he said. For the last trick, he had to stop every 100 yards and take the sword out of his mouth to get a fresh breath of air. His best trick is downing three swords at once. He may gag once or twice as he deftly removes them from his stomach. Most people who have never seen him perform think Crazy Horse's stunt is a put-on. "I sent a fact sheet to the National Enquirer with my background and accomplishments, but they didn't believe me," he laments. Any of his admirers would gladly testify for him, because he passes his swords through the audience before each performance.
Crazy Horse's wife Cindy can swallow a sword too. He thinks she's the only woman in the world who can. Though she doesn't quite manage his 20-inch machete, she can handle an 18-inch bayonet with astonishing dexterity. Even Crazy Horse is often amazed. Cindy stands 5 feet 2 inches tall. "My secret," Crazy Horse explains, pointing to his Adam's apple, "is to get the sword past here. You have to teach yourself not to buckle over. As soon as you bend over, your stomach gets the message that something is caught and has to come up. Once you get past that nerve, you have clear sailing down the rest of your throat." Crazy Horse, who claims lineage from several Louisiana Indian tribes, recently purchased a new stage costume in honor of the nation's 1976 birthday. His red-and-white striped pants are a perfect match for his white tank top graced with blue stars. "It only cost me $3.80," he said. Crazy Horse and Cindy have one more potential sword swallower in the family, one year-old Spanky DeSoto, or "Little Pony" ("He was named after his father," says Cindy)." In March 2005, George E. "Crazy Horse" DeSoto was convicted for "indecent behavior with juveniles" and released on probation. He may be living in Westwego, LA or Pineville, LA.
Seeking dates, photos, and more information. Crazy Horse in New Orleans Times Picayune (7-13-1976) Crazy Horse article NOrleans Times Picayune (7-13-1976) |
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Lady Sandra Queen of Swords Sandy Reed Sandra Reed Sandra Spohn Sandy Conner Sandra Dee Reed |
Born 1945 Learned 1969 Performed 1969-80 Died 2019 |
Kelly/Sutton Show James E. Strates Shows Ringling Brothers Clyde Beatty Cole Bros Circus Vargas Circus World John Bradshaw Ward Hall's World of Wonders Tampa, FL (USA) |
Sandra Reed was an albino sword swallower known as Lady Sandra, "Queen of the Swords". Born Sandra Dee Reed in 1945 to Dora and King Reed (married 23 Sept 1933 in Hermon, near the Adirondacks in New York state), Sandy Reed grew up in Hermon, NY. Along with her sisters, Doreene Reed (also albino) and Rita Reed (mentally handicapped), Sandy got her start in the sideshow industry in 1969 at the age of 24 as an albino lecturer with the Slim Kelly and Whitey Sutton shows on the James E. Strates Shows. "I wanted something else to do," Reed reflected.
After working with the sword swallower Louise Chevanne in the late 60s, Sandy began to learn the art of sword swallowing from fellow performer sword swallower Ricky Richiardi in Gibsonton Florida in the fall of 1969. Ricky made Sandra's sword shield, gave her some of his swords, and taught her how to put together a good act with a repertoire of feats. "The lady sword swallower, Lady Louise, had broken her ankle and couldn't perform," Reed recalls. Reed was asked to fill in and soon was performing as a featured act. She had never heard of photographer Diane Arbus when the photographer and a male companion approached her before a carnival show in Hagerstown, MD in 1970. "When I first saw them, I thought they were hippies," says Reed, recalling that Arbus was dressed entirely in denim. "She told me she was putting together a book, traveling around and seeking out people to photograph people doing things that people do." Arbus convinced Reed to pose for her and spent about 45 minutes photographing the sword swallower as she did her act in full costume in front of a billowing canvas tent. Although Arbus photographed several other performers the same day (including Reed's sisters, Doreene and Rita), her portrait of Lady Sandra entitled "Albino sword swallower at a carnival, Md. 1970," became the most well-known. Reed has fond memories of her brief encounter with Arbus and staunchly defends the photographer's methods and goals. "You wouldn't mind going out of your way to do things for her," says Reed. "She just had a way about her, very relaxed. She said, in essence, 'This is who you are, this is what you do, and this is what I want'." Sandra married 820 lb fat man Harold "Big Jim" Spohn (1936-1980) while with Ward Hall's World of Wonders Show, worked with Ward Hall and Chris Christ's World of Wonders Show and Ringling Brothers in 1973, then back with Kelly/Sutton on Strates Show in 1974-75, Clyde Beatty-Cole Brothers, Circus Vargas in 1977, and Ringling Brothers Circus World, and at one time, Sandy and Harold were featured on the Dick Cavette Show. From 1975-1977 Sandra Reed was featured in the Guinness Book of World Records for swallowing 5 swords at a time. In 1978-79, Lady Sandra worked with Francis Doran on the John Bradshaw show. Hired originally as an albino lecturer, Sandra performed as a sword swallower only a few times when Frank Doran was ill. In 1979 Lady Sandra worked with the Clyde Beatty-Cole Brothers Circus. In her act, Sandy would swallow a French bayonet that had a point on the tip, and then swallow a WWII bayonet. She would then swallow 3 at a time, and eventually she would swallow 5 Japanese ceremonial dress swords, with the weight of the handles combined with the weight of the blades at about five pounds. Sandra also did a 7 sword sandwich with a little patter. The center sword was a Knights of Columbus sized sword, the outer swords were progressively shorter and made of thinner, more flexible steel. If the carnival crowds would start losing interest midway through her sword-swallowing act, Lady Sandra knew how to get their attention. With her head thrown back and a solid steel bayonet down her throat, she would suddenly and dramatically drop to one knee. "If the audience was asleep, it would wake them up," Sandra said with a smile. Sandy Reed retired in 1980 after Harold's death on April 1, 1980, and lives modestly in south Tampa, Florida. According to a September 28, 1981 Circus Report: "Sandra Dee Reed (Lady Sandra) wife of the deceased Circus Fat Man Harold Spohn, herself a Guinness Book or Records sword swallower, has enrolled in the Hillsborough Community College and plans to become a legal secretary." Although she no longer owns any swords, Reed proudly displays a small collection of photographs from her days with the carnival. Among her most treasured possessions is a poster found on a marquee in Rome by her agent, sideshow operator Ward Hall. The poster features multiple images of Reed simultaneously swallowing two swords, lifted from the famous 1970 portrait, "Albino sword swallower at a carnival, Md. 1970," by photographer Diane Arbus.
Sandy Reed died in 2019 at the age 73 or 74.
Lady Sandra Reed Timeline
1981: Enrolls in Hillsborough Community College in Tampa to become a legal secretary
Sandy Reed (1970) Sandy Reed with sister (1970) Sandy Reed with sister (1970) Sandra Reed with Harold Spohn on sideshow Lady Sandra Reed World of Wonders Ringling Bros Wash DC (4-1973) Sandy Reed with John Bradshaw on Sutton (1974) Sandy Reed with John Bradshaw on Sutton (1974) Sandy Reed, Harold Spohn, John Bradshaw Sandy Reed with CBCB (1979) Sandy Reed interview |
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Jackie Lynn Jack Loonie Jack Looney Jackie Lynn Looney |
Performed 1950-1986 Died Feb 6, 2006 |
Ringling Bros Circus King Bros Circus Clyde Beatty-Cole Bros Lewis Bros Circus World of Wonders Toby Tyler Circus Jenkins, KY (USA) |
Jackie Lynn Looney was born and raised in a small town in eastern Kentucky, joined a circus in his early teens in the 1940s, and as he would say, "never looked back". Early in his career, Jack went to work with Ringling Brothers Circus while they were still under canvas in 1944, and worked his way into clown alley working as a clown. During his years with Ringling Brothers, he learned sword swallowing on the Ringling Brothers Sideshow around 1950 (from Lady Patricia Zerm?).
According to an April 1955 Billboard article, "Jackie Lynn guested on "Coffee Time" over WSAZ-TV, Huntington, W Va. recently. Lynn did his sword swallowing and mental act. He and Howard Smith have signed on tour with an eastern organization this season..." In 1967 and 1968, Jackie Lynn worked as sword swallower with Clyde Beatty Cole Bros Circus Sideshow. Jack also worked with managers Jim and Sandy Windland, Kay Pittinger, and with the "World's Tallest Sword Swallower" and fire-eater Paul Adams (on the right in photo) with the King Brother's Circus in the 1970s. In 1978 and 1979 Jack did two tours with Rick Dennis on the Clyde Beatty-Cole Bros Circus as their sideshow sword swallower. He had dyed his hair a bright orange and would beat on a big bass drum on the bally to attract attention. During his sword swallowing show, Jack would pick a young pre-teen person from the audience and bring them on stage, and then he would swallow one sword all the way down and let the child slowly pull it out of him, while kneeling down on his knees at the child's level. Jackie also worked with John Bradshaw in the Clyde Beatty-Cole Bros Circus in 1981, when he claimed he had been swallowing swords for 31 years. Jack taught sword swallowing to Ricky Hargrove when they both worked with Lewis Brothers Circus in 1981-83. Jack had a big scrapbook loaded with newspaper clippings and photographs, which he was very proud of. If he liked you, he would pull it out and share stories from it, including his experience with the great Ringling Brothers circus fire in Hartford, CT on July 6, 1944, and the time he swallowed a neon tube on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson. Jack did not own a home of his own, so he tried to tour as much as possible. When he did have down time, he would go to Kentucky. In 1985 he was with Chris Christ and Ward Hall's World of Wonders on Circus USA. His last season on the road was with Ward Hall and Chris Christ's World of Wonders Show with the Toby Tyler Circus in 1986. According to Ward Hall, Jackie "was also a good front talker, and great to have on the show. He knew how to put it up and take it down!" In the late '80s, Jack took out an advertisement in "Amusement Business" magazine, saying that he was confined to a state nursing home in Jenkins, Kentucky, and he was asking for donations. Rumor had it he had had a stroke and was unable to care for himself. Jack Looney dressed up as a clown and entertained children in hospitals around KY-VA until about 2000 when he was unable to get around any longer. Jack Looney lived in the retirement home in Jenkins, KY where he passed away Feb. 6, 2006 in Pikeville Hospitial. His sister Ardath L Looney-Ratliff and her children and grandchildren were his closest family and he loved them as if they were his own, as he had no children of his own. Jackie Lynn Looney was cremated and his ashes are buried at the Ratliff Family Graveyard at the old home place in Burdine, KY. Seeking photos and more information.
Jackie Lynn Looney Timeline:
Jackie Lynn on Cole Bros (1968) Jackie Lynn on Cole Bros (1970s) |
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Walter Hall Wally Hall Paul Adams "Sir Walter Hall" "Tall Paul Adams" "Sebastian" "Tall Tex" "World's Tallest Sword Swallower" Walter A. Hall III |
Born 27 Feb 1953 |
Lawrence Carr Show King Brothers Circus Clyde Beatty-Cole Bros. Circus Ringling Brothers Circus World (USA) |
At 6 feet, 11 inches tall, Walter Hall safely billed himself as the World's Tallest Sword Swallower.
Walter Hall was born in Wilmington, Delaware on February 27, 1953. At 6 foot 11 inches tall, Hall first worked as the "Cowboy Giant" on the Lawrence Carr Show. But after sword swallower Toni Del Rio left the show in 1974, Hall learned sword swallowing at the age of 21 from showman Dean Potter and half-man/half-woman Jadi Easton. No longer just a giant, he now swallowed swords under various stage names, including Sir Walter, Tall Tex, Tall Paul Adams, and Sebastian, the "World's Tallest Circus Sword Swallower". Hall later worked for the Lamottas in their cookhouse. Being taller and having a longer torso than others, Hall claimed to be able to swallow longer swords than other sword swallowers. His maximum length, in 1978, was 27 inches while performing at the Skowhegan State Fair in Maine. Sir Walter worked as the "World's Tallest Sword Swallower" and fire-eater (fire-eater on the right in photo) when he worked with managers Jim and Sandy Windland, Kay Pittinger, and sword swallower Jackie Lynn on the King Brother's Circus in the 1970s. (Henry Thompson was sword swallower with King Brothers Circus the season before in Nov 1973). When he worked with the King Brothers Circus, Sir Walter Hall performed an act called "The Spider Web," in which he swallowed multiple swords, then pulled them out and spread the blades. The saliva between them created the effect of a web. In December 1978, while performing with the Clyde Beatty-Cole Bros. Circus in West Palm Beach, Florida, a reporter asked the 25-year-old sword swallower if he felt uneasy about his act. "What I feel isn't paranoia or stage fright. it's just the jitters," Hall replied. "But once I begin my act, I loosen up and everything is smooth." According to the Circus Report, "Walter Hall (Wally) former Clyde Beatty-Cole Bros. Circus side show performer is now busy swallowing swords at Circus World, and is happy over the new wardrobe they have made for him. Wally is 6 ft. 11 in. tall so you cannot miss him on your visit to Circus World." The giant sword swallower continued performing into the 1980s, but passed away in San Francisco California on December 9, 1991 at the age of 38. The cause of death is unknown.
Walter Hall is buried at Silverbrook Cemetery and Memorial Park in Wilmington, Delaware Seeking photos and more information.
Sir Walter Hall obituary |
| Dean Potter |
Born 1934 Performed 70s-80s Died May 30, 2005 |
Gibsonton, FL (USA) |
Dean Potter was a sideshow owner and sword swallower from Gibsonton, FL. Ward Hall first met Potter when he worked as a sword swallower and half-and-half for Woolsey in the 1950s before he framed his own show. In the early 1970's, Potter read an article about a snake that had killed its owner, and came up with the concept for the "Bloody Mama Snake Show" based on snakes that had injured or killed their owners. Red Stuart met Potter in 1976, and Toni Del Rio persuaded Red to sell a set of his swords to Potter, including a serpentine, a rapier, and other swords, which Potter had chromed. In 2004, Potter lost all of his big snakes, so Ward Hall gave him 2 big snakes, including a large albino python named Al that had previously belonged to Red Stuart. Potter had been on the road with his show for many years, developed diabetes, became unhealthy, and passed away in his sleep in Gibsonton, FL on May 30, 2005 at the age of 71. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Red Trower John Trower John Red Trower |
Born Oct 31, 1939 Performed 1972-98
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C.M. Christ Show Ward Hall World of Wonders Dailey Bros Circus Houston, TX (USA) |
Born in Cheboygan, Michigan on October 31, 1939, the fifth of six children, John "Red" Trower ran away to join the circus in 1953 at the age of 14, again at 15, and 16, until he finally left for good at the age of 17. In the cIrcus, Johnny first began working with elephants and as an electrician, and later worked his way into the carnival and sideshow business as a sword swallower and knife thrower with his assistant Alexandria. On February 6, 1965, Trower was married to his first wife Eloise Cantu in San Antonio, TX; They divorced in 1969. Trower performed with the C.M. Christ and Ward Hall World of Wonders Show for many years starting in 1972. At one point while Chris Christ was swallowing a sword, his dentures came loose and dropped down his throat, lodging the sword in place. Noticing that Christ was struggling to remove the sword, Trower jumped into action and managed to remove the sword and dentures from Christ's throat. During his career, Trower swallowed swords, scissors, multiple swords up to 7 or 8 swords, as well as the neon tube, and a government bayonet that was shot down his throat with a pistol. According to a 1976 Circus Report, Red Trower performed as sword swallower with the Dailey Bros Circus in Texas in 1976, and with Ward Hall's World of Wonders in 1979. In the late 1990s (circa 1998?), Trower sustained an accident when a neon tube broke inside him and he was rushed to the hospital. Details from a medical paper in the Texas Heart Institute Journal described, "An esophagogram established the diagnosis, and surgical repair was attempted. However, 19 days later, a persistent leak and deterioration of the patient's condition necessitated a transhiatal esophagectomy with a left cervical esophagogastrostomy. The patient recovered and resumed his daily activities at the circus, with the exception of sword swallowing."
It wasn't until several years later when Trower was x-rayed for damages after falling out of a tree, that the x-rays revealed that he still had 4 inch pieces of glass and pieces of the electrical connectors for the neon tube left in his stomach. Red Trower is now retired and living in Houston, TX with his wife Alexandria, and his blades are now owned by Todd Robbins. Seeking photos and more information. Red Trower at Sideshow Gathering (2002) (L-R: Rodderick Russell, Red Trower, Ward Hall, Dan Meyer, Toni-Lee Sangastiano) |
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John Bradshaw |
Born March 20, 1947 Sideshows 1970-92 Died Dec 21, 2008 |
Ward Hall World of Wonders Sideshow Whitey Sutton on Strates Shows Coney Island Sideshows by the Seashore John Bradshaw Shows Richmond, VA (USA) |
John Bradshaw was born in Burkeville, VA on March 20, 1947. He had been working as a recruiter and organizer with Chavez in the formation of the farm worker's union in California until 1970, when he joined Ward Hall and Chris Christ's World of Wonder show in Gibsonton FL in the spring of 1970. This was Bradshaw's first experience with a sideshow. He was a very intelligent man who quickly learned all aspects of the sideshow. During his early years he performed as a sword swallower and taught several others how to swallow swords. Ward Hall called him, "a fine performer, a very good manager, a caring husband and father." In 1973 Bradshaw worked on Dick Johnson's unit of the Hall/Christ sideshows where Sandra Reed was sword swallower. In 1974 and 1975, he was with Whitey Sutton on Strates with Sandy Reed. In 1976, Bradshaw started his own 10-in-1 without a sword swallower, but hired "Sir Frances Durran" (Francis Doran) in 1977. Doran worked 2 seasons in 1977 and 1978, until his health began to fail. In 1979 Diane Falk started as Bradshaw's "Bally Girl", learned sword swallowing from Doran, and began filling in as Bradshaw's sword swallower later in 1979 under the stage name "Lady Diane". In Ohio, fat man Big John Conners and his wife Sandy Reed Conners joined Bradshaw's show. Reed was originally hired as an albino lecturer, not a sword swallower, and she only performed sword swallowing a few times when Frank Doran was ill. At the Midsouth Fair in Memphis in 1979, Bradshaw added knife thrower Eddie Miller, who had a flashy knife act using butcher knives, and who also filled in as sword swallower on a few occasions. The 1979 Bradshaw Sideshow line-up included 110 feet of banners, most by Snap Wyatt, John Bradshaw as Inside Talker, "Sir Frances Duran" as Sword Swallower, "Lady Diane" as Bally Girl and part time sword swallower, Eddie Miller as knife thrower, Otis Jordan, Albert Short, Big John Conner as Fat Man, and Sandy Reed Conner as Albino Lecturer and later sword swallower. Bradshaw also worked with sword swallower Jackie Lynn on Clyde Beatty-Cole Bros Circus in 1981. Over Labor Day weekend 1985, Bradshaw was booked as "The One Man Sideshow" at Sideshows by the Seashore at Coney Island, hired Louisa Jatoba as his snake charmer, and was a huge success. Bradshaw was then booked at Coney Island again for the 1986 season and created "Bradshaw's Circus of World Curiosities", a traditional 10-in-1 sideshow. Diane Falk worked as Bradshaw's sword swallower again in 1989 and 1990 at Sideshows by the Seashore at Coney Island. Tisha Vudie worked as Bradshaw's Sword Swallower and Human Pin Cushion at Coney Island in 1991 and in the 1992 Bradshaw Sideshow road show. Bradshaw left Coney Island in 1991 after his young daughter was shot in the leg by a stray bullet near their home in Far Rockaway, and he took the sideshow banners with him. In 1996, Bradshaw taught sword swallowing to Natasha Veruschka, and later sold his swords to her. Bradshaw continued to run a small show on the road for a few years, but retired from sword swallowing. Bradshaw spent his last days in the intensive care unit at Chippenham Hospital in Richmond VA where he died of kidney failure on December 21, 2008 at the age of 61. He is survived by his wife Elisa, a 22 year old daughter Keshia Bradshaw, and an 8 year old adopted daughter Shin Bradshaw. Seeking photos and more information. John Bradshaw at Coney Island '80s John Bradshaw with Sandy Reed John Bradshaw at Coney Island with Melvin Burkhart |
| Skippy the Clown | Performed ? |
Chuck Brown Shows New York, NY (USA) |
Skippy The Clown was originally from New York, worked as a clown with Chuck Brown, and occasionally worked as a sword swallower. On a few occasions, he swallowed a car axle that was suspended from an A-frame tripod. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Henry Thompson Tommy Thompson Clarence Henry Thompson |
Born May 12, 1923 Performed 1942-1978? Died June 12, 2008 |
Joe Hilton Side Show Wallace Bros Circus Dale Bros Circus King Brothers Circus Hagen Bros Circus Al G Kelly Miller Bros Sells & Gray Circus Clyde Beatty Circus Hoxie Bros Circus Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Circus World Sideshow Springfield, IL Vicksburg, MS (USA) |
Clarence Henry Thompson was born May 12, 1923 in Vicksburg, MS. Henry "Tommy" Thompson was a veteran sideshow operator and talker for the sideshow who "swallowed swords, ate fire, threw knives, did Punch and Judy, and beat the bass drum for the cooch".
According to the May 16, 1942 Billboard Magazine, Tommy Thompson worked as sword swallower and impalement act with Wallace Bros Side Show with his impalement assistant Marie Pettus. Henry Thompson served in the US Army in North Africa as a tank driver before being transferred to the European campaign. He was in the Stars and Stripes in World War II, where he performed with Burt Lancaster, who was also an acrobat in the circus before serving in the U.S. Army in North Africa and Italy from 1943 to 1945. According to the June 19, 1943 Billboard Magazine, "SWORD SWALLOWER and knife thrower with Wallace Bros.' Circus in pre-war days, Pvt. Clarence H. (Tommy) Thompson is now throwing steel at the Axis somewhere overseas. His APO number is 8961, care of Postmaster, New York." Sometime between 1943 and 1944, Thompson married his wife Saundra (sometimes spelled Sondra or Sandra Lee) who hailed from Springfield, IL. Together they began performing a knife throwing impalement act as The Thompsons around 1944 with Henry throwing knives at Saundra. They refered to their "Wheel of Death" knife act as "The Girl on the Flying Saucer." According to the March 8, 1947 Billboard Magazine, "Line-up on the Joe Hilton Side Show includes: Henry Thompson, sword swallowing and impalement act." According to the June 7, 1947 Billboard Magazine, Henry Thompson worked as sword swallower and impalement act with a sideshow in Easton, PA on May 31, 1947. According to the October 4, 1947 Billboard Magazine, "Mr. and Mrs. Tommy Thompson joined for a restful vacation but are now working harder than anyone on the Stevens Bros show. Mrs. Thompson is the former Juanita Hobson." According to the March 19, 1949 Billboard Magazine, Tommy Thompson worked as impalement and sword swallower with Dale Bros Circus. According to the 1950 Billboard Magazine, Volume 62: "The Kelly-Miller Side Show line-up now includes Sandra Lee, impalement act; Tommy Thompson, sword swallower." According to the June 28, 1952 Billboard Magazine, while performing with Wallace Bros. Circus, "Sondra and Henry Thompson lost their sword box at Sante Fe, NM." Thompson later said that in several of the truck circuses of the 1950s, he also worked the cooch, but could only work the cooch on the last show of the night. As the crowd came out of the marquee, they were greeted by Thompson and his spiel: "Wait a minute, wait a minute, look in the doorway, look in the doorway, see who you can see from TV land." He would gesture towards a dummy made up to look like Howdy Doody. "Wait just a minute. This is where you're going to see the mogul show, the after guy show, the old-time coochie-coochie show where we are going to shake it, break it, tear it down to the ground, but we're not going to drop it because it is so hot, boys and girls, we don't want to leave blisters on your hands. This is where you will hear the canon roar, see the flame, and smell the smoke. You're at the right place at the right time. Let all the short boys come down front where they can see the whole darn show." Once inside, there was a very brief sideshow performance and the pitch for the cooch blowoff, where Thompson collected the money for the after-show in a cigar box. After the girls did a short dance, he would come onstage and announce, "The girls are getting ready behind the curtain for the special dance of the night, but before they come out, and while you are waiting, we have some games for the men amongst you." Thompson and the cigar box disappeared behind the curtain and out of the tent. The dancers had already left. The grift got what they could, then the side wall was dropped, and the tent came down. According to the August 7, 1954 Billboard Magazine, "In the King Bros.' Side Show, Henry and Sandra Lee Thompson are doing their impalement act and knife throwing as well as working Punch and doing sword swallowing. The Thompsons, after 10 years in show business, plan to retire from the road next year. They plan to open a "Grocetaria" in his home town of Vicksburg, Miss. Mrs. Thompson hails from Springfield, Ill." However, a few years later, The Thompsons were still performing in Cuba in 1959 when Fidel Castro took over, and they barely made it out safely. Thompson worked as the kidshow manager with Hagen Bros. Circus in 1961, where he was also known for painting the scrollwork on the circus wagons. In 1962 and 1963, Thompson worked as the sideshow manager and circus painter with Al G Kelly Miller Bros Circus. He also worked as sideshow manager and sword swallower with King Brothers Circus in the 1972 and 1973 seasons, while Saundra sold tickets for her husband's sideshow. Thompson also worked as sideshow manager for the Sells & Gray Circus, Hoxie Bros Circus, and Clyde Beatty Cole Bros Circus for many years. He also went by the name Tommy Thompson, and was known for swallowing a small 12" bayonet on the bally. Because his act was so short, he would say "Would you like to see that again?" and then quickly repeat the act. Thompson was renowned for painting the scrollwork on the circus wagons, one of which is in the Circus Hall of Fame in Baraboo, WI.
The Thompsons performed their knife throwing act for over 20 years; during that time Henry only hit Saundra once. Thompson worked with circuses for 30 years and retired in the late 1970's. Warren Torzewski learned sword swallowing from Thompson while working at Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Circus World Sideshow in Orlando, FL around 1978. Thompson lived the end of his life at his hometown of Vicksburg, MS in poor health with emphysema. Thompson died without any children on June 12, 2008 at the age of 85. Seeking photos and more information.
Henry Tommy Thompson Timeline:
Henry Thompson swallowing gun barrel (1940s) Henry Thompson's target, Saundra Thompson Henry Thompson with Ruskins on Kelly-Miller Circus (1962) Henry Thompson, talker with King Bros Circus, Enid OK (1972) Henry and Saundra Thompson in retirement |
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Wayne LeSharique Wayne LaSharique Wayne LeShariet Wayne LaShariet Wayne Lecherit Wayne Lacherit Wayne Wade "The Gay Blade" |
Performed mid 1970s |
Ward Hall's World of Wonders Gibsonton, FL (USA) |
Wayne Wade was a sword swallower known as "Wayne Wade, the Gay Blade" who taught sword swallowing to Dale Pritchard during winter quarters in Gibsonton, Florida in the mid 1970's. Wayne also worked with Ward Hall's World of Wonders under the name "Wayne LeSherique". Seeking photos and more information. |
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Sammy Johnson Sam Johnson Samuel Johnson "Sammy the Sword Swallower" |
Born c 1950 Performed 1968-81 Died before 1984 |
Children's Magic Circus Clyde Beatty Cole Bros Carson and Barnes Circus Circus Vargas Circus Genoa Ward Hall's World of Wonders Hoxie Great American Circus Atlanta, GA (USA) |
Sammy Johnson was originally from Atlanta, GA. He started working for Jim Nordmark and Ralph Hood with the Children's Magic Circus in 1968, and learned to sword swallow shortly thereafter.
Johnson learned to swallow swords by himself with direction from George Allen, who never swallowed swords but had been around it quite a bit. Sammy started with a doubled coathanger, and picked up tips from other sword swallowers along the way. He learned quickly, and almost immediately became part of the Children's Magic Circus show. He also clowned, made his own wardrobe, assisted in other acts and handled a big snake. His strong points were his ability to take a few pieces of cloth and a sewing machine and turn it into just about anything overnight. Sammy was good with people. He was decidedly quite gay, and had worked in drag shows and as a waiter. George Allen was straight, yet he and Sammy shared a trailer and made a team. Nordmark and Hood split at the end of 1969. Sammy and George stayed with Nordmark a while, then tried their own show for a while which was unsuccessful. A few years later, in the mid 1970s, Sammy was clowning on the Clyde Beatty Cole Brothers Circus the year that Johnny Frazier was running it. In 1975, Sammy performed as the sword swallower with Circus Vargas, was photographed while working with Circus Vargas in April, 1975, and toured with Circus Vargas in St. Catherines, Ontario, Canada, Buffalo, NY, Pennsylvania, and throughout the east coast of the US to Louisville, KY by October 1975. According to those who worked with him, Sammy swallowed multiple swords, up to three swords at once, screwdrivers, scissors, neon tube, did fire-eating along with Cherokee Sammy (possibly Cherokee Dingi?), and had a chimp named Bobo the Chimp. Johnson called himself "Deep Throat the Second". After he swallowed a sword, he would hold the tip of the blade to his lips, eye someone in the audience, usually male, and wink at them. Sammy made all of his own wardrobe which was very flashy, he loved to wear pantsuits with as much glitter, sequins, and rhinestones as possible, and always loved dramatic poses. In 1978 and 79, he worked as a clown for Carson and Barnes Circus (owned by D.R. Miller and managed by Johnny Frazier) where he also did a rolla-bolla act, then Sammy continued on with Frazier in 1979 when the circus changed its name to "Circus Genoa". He also served as the circus barber and cut the hair for many of the performers on the show. This photo of Sam Johnson swallowing 3 swords on an unknown circus sideshow was dated August 7, 1980 and is labelled "Newkirk".
In 1981, Sammy Johnson was on the roster as sword swallower and fire-eater with the Hoxie Great American Circus. When he had free time in Atlanta, Sammy worked as a hair dresser and he would perform a dance act in drag shows in a routine where he pretended to be a Salvation Army woman. During the act he passed a tambourine and got a lot of tips. Sammy favored gin and coke, and was known for a quote that he would often use to admonish others, "Don't tear yourself down; There are always other people who will do that for you." Ralph Hood saw George Allen briefly in 1984, when George informed Ralph that Sammy Johnson had died of unknown causes sometime prior to 1984, but details were vague. Seeking photos and more information. Sammy Johnson on Circus Vargas (1970s) Sammy Johnson on Circus Vargas (1970s) Sammy Johnson on Circus Vargas (4-1975) Sammy Johnson on Circus Vargas (4-1975) Sam Johnson swallowing 3 swords (8-7-1980) |
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Jimmy Rapp Jimmy Rap Jimmy Rapp Jimmy Hilpel Jimmy Hilple James Hilpel James Hilple |
Performed 1973-81 |
Melvin Wise's Palace of Oddities James E. Strates Shows Ward Hall's World of Wonders Carson and Barnes Circus Lexington, KY (USA) |
Jimmy Rapp was a former motorcycle gang member from Lexington, KY who began working with Ward Hall's World of Wonders Show in the early 1970's as a backyard boy and all-around helper with the show. His real name was James Hilpel (or Hilple), but while traveling with the motorcycle gang, he adopted the nickname "Jimmy Rap", and later changed it to "Jimmy Rapp". In 1973, Mephisto Fred Lulling was the fire-eater with the World of Wonders show, Francis Doran was the sword swallower, and Jimmy Rapp became interested in his flashy swords. One day in 1973, Doran agreed to let Rapp try swallowing a sword after disinfecting it. To everyone's amazement, it slid right down, almost to the hilt on his first try. Somebody started a rumor that Jimmy Rapp had been practicing secretly late at night with Doran's swords without permission for some time before that, and Mephisto said he had watched Rapp attempt to swallow Doran's swords when Doran wasn't around, thinking Rapp would get hurt, and was surprised when the sword went all the way down. It is unclear if Doran actually gave Rapp any tips on sword swallowing after that. When Doran later got sick and had to retire, Rapp took the stage.
From 1976 to 1977, Jimmy Rapp worked with Melvin Wise's "Palace of Oddities" with James E. Strates Shows performing at big state fairs around the US. Jimmy performed as the show's "Anatomical Wonder" and sword swallower and claimed to be double-jointed because he could tie himself into knots - He would put his legs behind his ears and just become a little tiny ball of a person. Jimmy didn't hang around with lots of people, but he would hang out with his two best sideshow friends - Kathy Thompson, who was 17 years old when her boyfriend Jerry asked her to work sideshows with him as "Miss Electra" the electric girl, and "Zula" the snake charmer with an 8 foot Burmese Python - and with Jimmy's other inseparable friend, BJ Robinson (Bisona Jeremiah Robinson), who was known in the sideshow as "Bisona The Quarter Boy". BJ was born with no legs and was Jimmy's best friend. Jimmy, BJ and Kathy spent many hours drinking beer, smoking weed, and listening to Jimmy Rapp tell stories of his adventures and experience during his career. Jimmy seemed to make his stories come alive. The three grew to love each other like family and were very protective over each other, with Jimmy and Kathy taking turns carrying BJ on their backs completely covered with a blanket through the midway as Melvin Wise didn't want one of his star performers to be seen for free on the Midway. During this time, the show had humongous crowds, and Jimmy Rapp mesmerized them at each and every performance. Jimmy Rapp went on to be the sword swallower with Ward Hall's World of Wonders from 1977-1979, and "did a pretty good job of it" according to those who knew him. In 1979, Jimmy Rapp spent 12 weeks on the set of Ward Hall's World of Wonders in Savannah, GA filming the Gary Busey-Jodie Foster movie Carny, which was released in 1980. According to the Kokomo (IN) Tribune dated August 13, 1981, "Jimmy Rap has been with carnivals all his life. In 1979, the Raps (sic) -- contortionist wife Elina and daughter Jamie Marie - had parts in the Gary Busey-Jodie Foster movie "Carny". Seeking photos and more information on sword swallower Jimmy Rapp.
Jimmy Rapp Timeline:
Jimmy Rapp on Ward Hall's World of Wonders (1977) Jimmy Rap on Ward Hall's World of Wonders (1978) Jimmy Rap Kokomo Tribune (9-13-1981) |
| Dale Pritchard |
Born Dec 19, 1950 Performed 1975-date |
Circus Vargas World of Wonders Mallory Square Key West, FL (USA) |
Dale Pritchard was born in Modesto, CA on December 19, 1950. After returning to the US from Vietnam, he worked with Circus Vargas as a stuntman cycle rider. During winter quarters in Florida, Pritchard worked with Roller Bros Circus with Ward Hall and Chris Christ on their World of Wonders sideshow winter route, when he began adding sideshow stunts to his repetoire. In 1975, Pritchard learned sword swallowing from Count Desmond and Wayne Wade in Gibsonton, FL, with tips and help from Chris M. Christ. During the winter of 1980-81, Pritchard moved to Florida. Pritchard taught sword swallowing to Joey Joey Colon in New York in the 1980s, and gave some of his 18" blades to Joey. Pritchard has been sword swallowing for over 40 years, and living in Key West for about 35 years, with the exception of a 3 1/2 year period starting in 1999 when he performed in San Francisco, then Hawaii, Japan, Bangkok, Thailand, Hong Kong, and elsewhere around the world before returning to Key West in December 2003. In the early days, Pritchard would start his show by performing some magic, then do fire-eating, then swallow an 8" blade, an 18" blade, a 25" blade, and then five 18" blades at once. However, he now mostly performs with his favorite large eastern sword with 25" blade which he bought in Bangkok, Thailand and shipped home after 9-11. Pritchard is now retired from the American Stunt Man Association (ASMA), and enjoys living on his 57' ketch sailboat in Key West, FL. Pritchard is legendary as one of the Founding Fathers of Mallory Square, and the one and only sword swallower still performing on Mallory Square in Key West, Florida. Seeking photos and more information. Dale Pritchard, San Francisco (1999) Dale Pritchard, Key West Dale Pritchard, Key West (Feb 2005) Dale Pritchard, Key West (2005) Dale Pritchard, Key West (2005) Dale Pritchard, Key West (2005) |
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John Strong John Augustus Strong III JS3 World's Youngest Sword Swallower |
Born Oct. 16, 1958 Learned 1969-76 Performed 1969-date |
Ringling Brothers Circus World Big John Strong Circus Brownsville, TX (USA) |
John A. J. Strong III was born in Hollywood, CA on Oct 16, 1958. His grandfather John Strong and father, John Strong II were both showmen, his grandfather doing acts like juggling and balance acts, and his father "Big" John Strong Jr. ran the Big John Strong Circus. In his early years, "Little" John Strong performed magic, juggling, hat-juggling, fire-eating, plate spinning, the one-finger handstand, and other circus acts. John learned sword swallowing around the age of 11 from watching an unknown sword swallower on his father's circus around 1969. When the sword swallower left the show, his father bought his 7 swords, which young John practived with. Around 1969, they added fire-eater and sword swallower The Swami Amazo Benbota, (Leo Griep), who performed with his father's circus until around 1978 or 1979. Greip was a very showy performer who would fling his swords several feet up into the air. Young John studied his every move. One day, 11 year old John has his own smalll tent where he did a full variety of acts. At the end of the show, the audience began to get untuly as they were promised a sword swallower. You g John quciklu took one of the seven swords he'd been practicing with, and knew he had to give them his money's worth, so he pushed the sword down his throat and it worked. He continued on with his practice by studying the techniques of Leo Greip.
In 1978, John Strong worked as a manager at Ringling Brothers Circus World in Haines City, Florida, where he met Knoxville magician and ventriloquist "Magic Mark" Young, who later learned sword swallowing there from sword swallower Warren "Ski" Torzewski around 1978-79. John Strong held the Guinness Book of Records record for swallowing 11 swords at one time, and was the fire-breather and sword swallower in the 1992 movie Batman Returns. John Strong swallowed a record 16 swords at one time around 1997. He was married to Tammy Wallenda of the renowned Wallenda circus family fame.
John Strong Timeline:
Young John Strong at 16 (1972) John Strong (1970s) Young John Strong handstand/plate spinning John Strong hypnotizing girl caught by Magic Mark (1978) John Strong balancing ladder on chin |
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Swami Amazo Benbota Rollick Montebank Rolick Montebanc Rollick Montbanc Swami Amaazo World's Only Dancing Sword Swallower Leo Griep-Ruiz Leo J. Greip Leo J. Griep Lu J. Griep Leo Greip Leo Griep L. J. Griep Lu Griep |
Born Jan 1, 1946 Performed 1976-83 |
Big John Strong Circus Holloway Productions El Salvador Southgate, CA Boulder, CO Colorado Springs, CO Denver, CO (USA) |
Leo Griep-Ruiz performed as fire-eater, fire-breather, sword swallower, and assistant ringmaster with Big John Strong's Circus from 1976-1983 as "Swami Amazo Benbota", Rollick Montebank, Rolick Montebanc or Rick Montbanc. He claimed to be "the world's only dancing sword swallower". His real name was Leo Griep-Ruiz (sometimes misspelled Leo Greip), and he lived in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
According to some, Rolick or Rollick (Leo Griep-Ruiz) was "one of the best street performers ever. He could gather and keep a crowd anywhere, any time of the day or night." He grew up an over-protected child of a Salvadoran mother and a German father. Growing up as a child in Los Angeles, he was a voracious reader and researcher. He studied anatomy, collected first-edition books on magic and comedy legends, and practiced swallowing things tied to strings and then bringing them back up. He once said he saw his reflection in the window as he was carrying a torch outside as a teenager, and he decided right then he was going to eat fire. When his parents enrolled him in Catholic seminary, he hit the road working the streets and passing the hat until he eventually met up with the Big John Strong Circus. His mother clutched her rosary beads and wept about it until her death.
According to the November 15, 1976 Circus Report article on the Big John Strong Circus, "Another feature act on the show is Swami, the fire eater and sword swallower, whose performance draws standing ovations at every show." Leo performed sword swallowing, fire-eating and assistant ringmaster, while his wife, Marsha Kennington, performed three aerial acts on the Big John Strong Circus from 1977 to 1979. In his act, Rollick would swallow three swords, all of them very old swords: First, a very thick bayonet about 8-10 inches long and 2 inches wide; second, a longer bayonet with an 18 inch long blade, also very thick and wide. The third was a saber from the Spanish American war with a 22 inch long blade. Rollick finished his act with a sword sandwich swallowing all three swords at the same time and ending with a bow from the waist. According the June 12, 1978 Circus Report, the line-up on Big John Strong's Circus included "Marsha Kennington, web, Marsha Kennington and Lu J. Griep, comedy knock-about; Chris Burell and Marsha Kennington, swinging ladders, Swami Amazo, fire eating, sword swallowing and bed of nails." Leo and Marsha worked Big John's tent show and winter dates for Holloway Productions. In 1979, according to John Strong III, "The sword swallower and fire-eater in 1979 was Leo Greip. (sic) He was a great act. He blew big fire balls and broke a block of cement on his chest." Leo Griep became an inspiration for sword swallowers John Strong III and Johnny Fox, who spent a year studying Leo Griep's act intently in the late 1970s.
In 1979, Leo and Marsha got married on the Big John Strong Circus in New Port Beach, CA. The couple got married on Nina the elephant, with her very own corsage of edible vegetables. The working men created a kind of canopy by holding up shovels and sledge hammers that the couple walked under. Rolick designed the invitations that stated, "No toasters, please. We need tires!" The tent boss, former Hell's Angel Big Wally rolled out the tires with the cake. And Rolick's mother clutched her rosary beads and wept through the entire affair. During the 1979 season, Marsha performed while pregnant until Big John Strong remarked that she "didn't look fat anymore, just pregnant," and she was "scaring people." According to John Strong III, during the last few months of her pregnancy, Marsha "did a great clown washer woman gag with Sparky (Don Washburn), who was a very fine clown." On September 13, 1979, the Griep's daughter Ginger Ana Griep-Ruiz was born on the Big John Strong Circus. According to the October 29, 1979 Circus Report, "GINGER ANN GRIEP, daughter of Marsha and Lu Griep, was born at home in Southern California on Sept. 13th, 1979. She weighed in at 5 Ibs. 6 oz. Her parents were both with the Big John Strong Circus, and her father worked as "Swami" doing fire eating and handling the press." In actuality, Ginger was actually born on September 13, 1979 in Albuquerque NM. According to the January 1980 Circus Report, Swami Leo Griep worked as fire-eater and MC with the Big John Strong Circus on Santa's Xmas Revue in 1979. In April 1980, the team worked with Big John Strong's Circus Variety Show (indoor), with Swami doing fire and Marsha Griep on trapeze, and again in September of 1980. Leo Griep loved the traveling circus, and he loved Big John Strong, but he was primarily a street performer, so Leo and Marsha performed coast-to-coast doing street performing in the late 1970s and early 80s. But Boulder Colorado was their favorite site, so around 1980-81, they bought a house in Colorado Springs and performed at Pearl Street Mall in Boulder on the weekends. A young comedy magician named Johnny Fox was also performing at Pearl Street Mall at this time and he studied Griep's sword swallowing act intently. At one time in 1980-81, when the Grieps returned to Boulder after performing around the country, they found Johnny Fox performing a fire-eating sword swallowing act at the Boulder Pearl Street Mall very similar to Leo Griep's act. According to the January 1982 Circus Report, the line-up on John Strong's Southern Unit Christmas Show included Marsha Montbanc on trapeze and Rolick Montbanc, announcer. According to the February 1, 1983 Circus Report, the line-up on the 1982 Big John Strong's Eastern Christmas Unit included Marsha Griep on trapeze and Leo Griep as Emcee. Leo and Marsha continued working all of John Strong's indoor Holloway Productions dates until the winter of 1983. During this time, they worked the Pearl Street Mall in Boulder, Colorado to venues in California, and locations in between. At one time Leo Griep ran for Pueblo City Council in the 1980s, and worked for KGNU radio in Boulder, Colorado. In 1984, Leo Griep stopped performing and became very involved in political issues regarding his home country of El Salvador and stayed in Colorado Springs, while Marsha moved on to Canada. Marsha Kennington has worked as a circus camp coordinator and social circus instructor with Cirque du Monde in Toronto, Ontario Canada since 1988. In November of 1997, Leo Griep-Ruiz authored a book on poetry entitled, "Daily in All the Small" (ISBN: 978-0-939558-08-3). The book "constitutes a return to Ruiz's origins in El Salvador and thrust into a chaotic present in the United States."
Their daughter Ginger Ana Griep-Ruiz performed as an aerialist with Circus Chimera (1999). On July 2, 2002, Ginger joined Cirque du Soleil and performed on Cirque du Soleil's Delirium and Cirque's Mystère in Las Vegas (2007 video) and at TEDxTokyo on May 15, 2010. After over 15 years of performing numerous solo acts and thousands of gigs with four different shows on Cirque du Soleil, Ginger's final day with Cirque du Soleil was December 31, 2017. Seeking photos and more information.
Leo Griep-Ruiz Timeline
Rolick Montebanc Denver 5-31-77 Rick Montebank Denver 5-31-77 |
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Johnny Fox "King of Swords" John Robert Fox |
Born Nov 13, 1953 Learned 1978 Performed 1978-2017 Married March 30, 1985 Freakatorium 1995-2005 Died Dec 17, 2017 |
Colorado Renn Festival Boulder Pearl Street Mall Texas Renaissance Festival Scarborough Ren Festival Maryland Renn Festival Georgia Renaissance Festival Georgia Renaissance Festival Freakatorium El Museo Loco Crownsville, MD Manhattan New York, NY Seymour, CT (USA) |
Johnny Fox was a professional sword swallower and sleight of hand expert, performing for 37 seasons at the Maryland Renaissance Festival. Johnny Fox was born John Robert Fox on Friday, November 13, 1953 in Minneapolis, MN. He grew up in Hartford, Connecticut, attended Wm. H. Hall High School, and spent his early years in and around Hartford CT, with frequent trips to New York City. When he was about 8 or 9 years old in 1961 or 62, Johnny saw his first sword swallower. His father, Joseph Fox, an architect, took his two sons, Johnny and Patrick, to the Eastern States Exposition, held the last two weeks in September in West Springfield, Massachusetts. If this was a fateful trip, so was the next gift from his father - a book about Harry Houdini that described how Houdini swallowed a key on a string. "He cut a potato in the shape of a key, and if he swallowed it, he could digest it," Fox said. So that night, at the dinner table, Johnny swallowed a spaghetti strand, holding on to the end, and then pulled it up from his throat. ''My dad said: 'You're excused. You can leave the table,' '' he recalled. About this time, his best friend's father often teased him that he should live up to his name and be "clever like a fox". Eager to learn, Johnny Fox answered the challenge by becoming a magician and putting on shows for his neighborhood friends, charging 10 cents admission. Johnny Fox would later put his comedy and magic skills to use while working as a waiter waiting tables by adding sleight of hand and table magic to the menu to amaze customers in the upscale restaurants of Clearwater and St. Petersburg Florida. In 1973, Fox lived in Clearwater and first started doing table magic at Slager's in Clearwater, then moved to Indian Rocks Beach and worked at 94th Aero Squadron for almost 2 years. In 1974, Johnny Fox was put on the fast track of performing after a chance encounter with legendary magician Jim Cellini, a full-time street performer since the early 1970s. Cellini performed with a band known as Rainbow Magic in the Largo area, Soon Johnny Fox was in New York City learning sleight-of-hand from one of the best, Tony Slydini, an Italian magician known as "the Master of Misdirection" at his Studio of Magic on 45th Street, and whenever Slydini would come down to Largo/Clearwater to visit Cellini. In 1976, Johnny Fox moved to Denver Colorado and rented a room from Spanish magician Antonio Marte who was the house magician at Colorado Mine Company. Around 1976, Johnny learned fire-eating. One time, while performing fire-eating at Boulder Mall, the wind shifted and blew back in his face, leaving him with second degree burns. He finished his show, but learned a healthy respect for fire that day. Around this time, Johnny Fox, Jim Cellini and Antonio Marte began performing at the Colorado Renaissance Festival in Larkspur, Colorado. By 1978, Johnny had moved to Aspen, Colorado and was performing with some of the country's top comedy magicians. While performing at Pearl Street Mall in Boulder, Colorado, Fox heard that his comedy magic act had been stolen by a competing magician. He looked for an angle to set his act apart from others. ''I had to come up with an act people couldn't copy easily,'' he said. It was sword swallowing. For a year, he watched local Colorado sword swallower Swami Amazo Benbota Rollick Monteback (Leo Griep) performing at Pearl Street Mall and studied his sword swallowing act intensely. Fox gave himself a year to learn sword swallowing. He got a sword with a 16-inch blade, cleaned it and made sure it was dull, and practived five minutes before breakfast, lunch and dinner every day. Fox was a quick learner, and it only took him eight months to learn and master the art. He studied Rollick Montebank's act so intently, that when Rollick returned to Boulder in 1980 after a few months performing in California, he found Johnny Fox performing an act very similar to his own act at Boulder Pearl Street Mall. In 1980, Johnny began performing at the Texas Renaissance Festival in Plantersville, Texas, and at Scarborough Renaissance Festival Waxahachie, TX. In 1981, Johnny began performing at the Maryland Renaissance Festival in Crownsville, MD. In 1982 he was back again performing at the Texas Renaissance Festival in Plantersville, Texas. In 1988, he performed at the Georgia Renaissance Festival in Atlanta, GA, and in 1997 he worked the Sterling Renaissance Festival in Sterling, NY. On March 30, 1985, Johnny Fox married his wife Susie in Boulder Creek, CO. May of 1986 marked Johnny's debut on national television as a guest on "The Merv Griffin Show." On May 22, 1987, Johnny Fox and his wife Susie gave birth to their son Kelly Fox. Later in 1987, Fox was featured on episode 14 of Dick Clark's Keep on Cruisin' hosted by comedian Sinbad and singer/songwriter Stephen Bishop. In 1988, Fox performed at the New Zealand Theatre Festival in Wellington, NZ. On February 4, 1989, Johnny Fox appeared on the Paul Daniels Magic Show in London England. After working in comedy clubs with comedians such as Roseanne Barr, Drew Cary, Gary Shandling, Robin Williams and many others, Johnny Fox was invited to perform on the 1992 Showtime Television Special "Jonathan Winters and Friends" Comedy Magic Roadshow". On the Jonathan Winters Comedy Magic Special, Fox swallowed 16 swords at once, and couldn't swallow solid food for a week afterwards. Over 20 other major TV appearances would follow, including a Maalox TV commercial in 1989 where Johnny ate a glass lightbulb. In 1993, Johnny Fox appeared at Caroline's Comedy Club and on Viva Cabaret in London England. In 1996, Johnny made the move from Colorado to New York City. In 1999, he calculated that he was "one of only 20 professional sword swallowers in the United States", noting that the number had increased since he began sword swallowing in the late 1970s. From working Las Vegas casinos to performing in Off Broadway theaters, Johnny Fox continued to refine his shows, creatng a constantly evolving show of wonders. In June of 1999, Johnny Fox decided to share his collection of wonders with the world by opening "The Freakatorium: El Museo Loco", a collection of oddities amassed from his years of travel that he exhibited as a museum of sideshow curiosities in a storefront at 57 Clinton Street on the Lower East Side of Manhattan in New York City. Partially inspired by his childhood visits to Hubert's Museum and Flea Circus in Times Square in the early 1960s (before Hubert's closed in 1965), Johnny Fox's collection of oddities included narwhal tusks, an elephant's-foot liquor chest, a two-headed turtle, a vest owned by General Tom Thumb, and the glass eye of Sammy Davis, Jr. The Freakatorium was embraced by the public and featured in worldwide publication and numerous TV shows, such as Barbara Walters' The View in 2002, twice on "Late Night with David Letterman", and programs on The History Channel and The Discovery Channel, including the 2003 documentary Traveling Sideshow: Shocked and Amazed. However, due to an increase in rent and a decrease in customers, the Freakatorium was eventually forced to close its doors in January 2005. In 2002, Johnny Fox married his wife Valeria, an Argentine dancer and photographer while seated atop elephants in Annapolis, Maryland. They lived in Connecticut. In August 2002, Johnny Fox attended the first Sideshow Gathering and Sword Swallowers Convention in Wilkes-Barre, PA, where he did TV interviews with Jeanne Moos on CNN. On Friday, Aug 30, 2002 when 19 Sword Swallowers stepped on stage to set a Guinness World Record by swallowing 50 swords simultaneously, Johnny Fox refused to set foot on stage to join the other sword swallowers in the record attempt and missed his chance at being part of the Guinness World Record. In 2009, Johnny sported a new shaved head look at the Maryland Renn Festival. In 2011, he sported a blond look on the Wendy Williams' Show. Fox has sustained a few injuries from sword swallowing. Once, in Hartford, CT, he failed to extend his arms all the way while extracting two swords and cut himself inside his throat. The four-day recuperation consisted of drinking juices, eating no solid food and sipping tablespoons of aloe vera extract three times a day. In over 38 years of performing, Johnny Fox has appeared at numerous venues such as comedy clubs, renaissance festivals, casinos, and tattoo conventions, as well as special events such as an Aerosmith album release party. In his act, Fox swallows a steel sword "with a blade so dull it could not cut butter", a long handled spoon, a giant screwdriver, a Malaysian Kriss serpentine sword, and a glowing neon sword. According to calculations, Johnny Fox has entertained approximately 7.5 million people over 35 years from 1981 to 2016 at the Maryland Renaissance Festival alone. His Jadoo act at the MDRF became so popular, that the stage he performed on, technically named the Royal Stage, is commonly known as the "Johnny Fox Stage" and audience members repeat his lines along with Johnny when he pours out his legendary "holy water from India." In early 2017, Johnny Fox was diagnosed with stage 2 liver cancer which he may have had undiagnosed the previous 2 to 3 years. The cancer was limited to the liver, but because of the large size of the tumor (10.3 cm) and 5-6 smaller tumors, the doctors said there was nothing more they could do for Fox as there was no conventional treatment available for his situation. They gave him a prognosis of only 6 months to a year to live. On March 20, 2017, Johnny Fox slipped and fell on black ice in Seymour, CT. Complications from the fall enraged his liver exaserbating a life-or-death situation. He was taken to Griffin Hospital in Derby CT. On March 26, he was transported to Yale Hospital in New Haven, CT in critical condition fighting for his life. Doctors said he wouldn't make it through the night. But he survived. In March 2017, a Friends of Johnny Fox Facebook page and a GoFundMe page were set up to raise $100,000 to support Johnny in his fight against cancer. After raising $50,000+, Johnny was accepted at An Oasis of Healing, a nathropathic center in Mesa, Arizona, and after a 52 hour drive from CT to AZ, he began cancer treatment there on May 5, 2017 for 8 weeks. On May 30, 2017, Fox posted, "I'm continuing to improve out here in Arizona. Spent an amazing 2 nights and 2 days with a friend and fellow comedy sword swallower Geo Cobb and his gorgeous wife Jessica Cowan Cobb. They manage one of the most incredible AirB&Bs. It's very close to Nogales, Mexico. Such a wonderful place to recharge. Today I start week 4 here in Arizona. Let's go." While in Mesa on June 20, 2017, Fox requested optimism in getting his white and red blood cell count up to a healthy level. Geo Cobb later posted, "As "competitors" Johnny and I met many times but never became friends until this past summer while he was here in Arizona and came down for a couple of visits at our ranch. I so wish that we had become friends years ago. What a delightful soul. So wonderful that he got to perform in Maryland last year, I know that meant the world to him. As a cancer survivor, I find his drive and journey amazing. That all of our stories must end is a foregone conclusion. My hope is that Johnny's story ends peacefully and that he is remembered with the same love that he gave." On August 3, 2017, after making marked improvements through wholistic health treatments at An Oasis of Healing Nathropathic Center in Mesa, Arizona ("Catscan shows no live tumors"), Johnny Fox returned to Connecticut and the Maryland Renaissance Festival where he was welcomed by enthusiastic audiences during his final season August 26, 2017 through October 22nd, 2017. On Sunday, December 17, 2017 at 2:24am, Johnny Fox died of liver cancer at the age of 64 at the home of a friend in Damascus MD. On January 6, 2018, fans, friends, and co-workers gathered at the Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts in Annapolis MD to celebrate the life of Johnny Fox. 14 sword swallowers from around the country gave a 21 sword swallowing salute in memory of Fox. The gesture garnered a standing ovation from the packed theater.
Johnny Fox Timeline:
Johnny Fox with snake Johnny Fox MD Renn Fair (1980s) Johnny Fox swallows 16 swords (1992) Johnny Fox Johnny Fox Johnny Fox Johnny Fox Johnny Fox Johnny Fox Johnny Fox with wife Valerie Johnny Fox with friend |
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Rhea Roma Lucille Chiodo |
Born Dec 6, 1957 Learned 1977 Performed 1977-date |
Hollywood, CA (USA) |
Rhea Roma was born December 6, 1957 as Lucille Chiodo and learned sword swallowing from sword swallower Count Desmond at the age of 19 in the winter of 1977. Rhea became Ms. Nude World '80-81. Her Sword and Fire Show includes swallowing two swords at the same time, and in her famous Suicide Show, she is blind-folded and a random audience member shoves a 22" sword down her throat. Rhea learned these act from Count Desmond when they toured together in Deadwood, South Dakota in the winter of 1977. Rhea Roma has been swallowing swords for over 35 years, and currently resides in Hollywood, CA where she is involved in film and other entrepreneurial projects. Seeking photos and more information. Rhea Roma Rhea Roma Rhea Roma Rhea Roma Rhea Roma Rhea Roma fire |
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Ski Torzewski Warren Torzewski |
Learned 1978 Performed late 70s |
Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Circus World Sideshow Orlando, FL (USA) |
Warren Torzewski learned sword swallowing from veteran sideshow performer Henry Thompson around 1978, and worked as a sword swallower with John Strong under the name "Ski" Torzewski with Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Circus World Sideshow in Haines City, FL around 1979. He taught sword swallowing to magician and ventriloquist Mark Young around 1978-79, and may now be living in Davie, FL. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Mark Young "Magic Mark" |
Performed 1979-80 |
Ringling Brothers Circus World Oak Ridge, TN (USA) |
Mark Young worked as a magician and ventriloquist at Ringling Brothers Circus World in Haines City, FL around 1978-80. In 1978 he worked with "Little" John Strong III and learned sword swallowing from sword swallower Warren "Ski" Torzewski around 1979. His favorite sword was a bayonet that he would sometimes swallow in his magic act. Young now lives in Oak Ridge in east Tennessee, where he works as a school teacher and still performs magic as "Magic Mark". Seeking photos and more information. |
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John Stevens Jack Stevens |
Born c1954 Performed 1978-80s |
Ward Hall's World of Wonders Carson and Barnes Circus Gibsonton, FL Venice Beach, CA (USA) |
Iowan John Stevens learned sword swallowing and fire-eating in Florida around 1978 from Rick Dennis, worked with Rick Dennis on Ward Hall's World of Wonders with Carson and Barnes Circus around 1978-79, and performed as a fire-eater, chainsaw juggler and sword swallower at Westwood and Venice Beach, CA in the 1980s. Besides eating fire and swallowing swords, Stevens was also known for swallowing oil dipsticks. Los Angeles Magician Tom "Jorgini" Jorgenson worked with Stevens at a Steve Jobs' US Festival in Devore, California in the mid-1980s, before working his way into acting in Los Angeles. During his time in Los Angeles, Stevens was trying to make it in the L.A. film industry as a screenwriter and actor. He had written about 20 different screenplays, and acted in bit parts in the film "The Best of Times" with Kurt Russell, a film with Grace Jones, and a Kodak TV commercial. Stevens also wrote the 42-page manual "How to Eat Fire and Swallow Swords" in 1985. He later went by the name "Jack Stevens" when he learned there was another "John Stevens" in Hollywood. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Captain Nelson Capt. Nelson |
Performed 1948-1950 |
O.C Buck Shows Carnival Earl Myers Northeast US (USA) |
Captain Nelson worked mostly in the Northeast US, once for Earl Myers on the O.C. Buck Show Carnival. Nelson's "Captain" title was valid, as he was a crew member of the "SS Pemiquid", a ferry boat that ran between New London, CT and Block Island, RI. Apparently, when he tired of sea life, he would return to show business for brief periods as a sword swallower. He is listed as "Capt. Nelson, sword swallower" in the January 3, 1948 Billboard Magazine mail call. According to the April 22, 1950 Billboard Magazine, Captain Nelson was the sword swallower with the Jake Sealo Oughtman Side Show with Coleman Bros. in Middletown, CT. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Eric Tauber Joe Abrams |
Performed 1973 |
Hoxie Bros Circus (USA) |
Joe Abrams worked under the stage name Eric Tauber for Peter G. Hennen for several seasons and for Hoxie Bros Circus when Stu Miller managed the sideshow in 1973. Seeking photos and more information. |
| Billy Costello | Performed May 1967 |
Dick Best Sideshows Royal American Shows Riverview Park Chicago, IL (USA) |
Billy Costello worked for a large number of big operators over the years including Dick Best of the Dick Best Sideshows on Royal American Shows and his permanent operation at Riverview Park in Chicago, IL. Billy Costello was known for his stacatto patter delivery and for swallowing multiple swords, and would finish his act by swallowing a neon tube. Seeking photos and more information.
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| Lee Courtland | Performed ? |
(USA) |
Lee Courtland worked on many carnival sideshows, then quit his sword swallowing act and operated small grind shows and game concessions for a number of years. Seeking photos and more information. |
| Steve Hester | Performed 1987 |
Minnesota State Fair St. Paul, MN (USA) |
In 1987, Steve Hester worked as sword swallower at the Minnesota State Fair in St. Paul MN. Seeking photos and more information. |
| Jim Judkins | ? |
Circus Chimera Hugo, OK (USA) |
Jim Judkins left college 26 years ago to cook for a circus, only to become a sword swallower, flame swallower, announcer, and now, owner of Circus Chimera. Seeking photos and more information. |
| Michael Harbison | ? |
Ashton Circus Adelaide (Australia) |
Michael Harbison was once a circus fire-eater, sword swallower, ringmaster, and tent manager at Ashton Circus. He is now Lord Mayor of Adelaide, Australia. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Butch Shutte Butch Schutte Otto Stephen 'Butch' Schutte Jr. |
Born 1 June 1949 Married 20 July 1986 Performed 1970s-90's |
Ward Hall's World of Wonders Gibsonton, FL Kansas City, KS (USA) |
Butch Schutte lived in Gibsonton, FL and worked as a sword swallower in the 70's-90's with Jeff Murray, Rick Kale, Ward Hall's World of Wonders (1993), and Dean Potter in the late '90's, and eventually moved to Kansas City, KS.
Otto Stephen 'Butch' Schutte Jr. was born on June 1, 1949, in Hastings, Nebraska to Dorothy Agnes Arterburn, age 29, and Otto S Schutte, age 33. Schutte worked as a sword swallower in the 70's-90's with Jeff Murray, Rick Kale. Butch Schutte was married on July 20, 1986 when he was 37 years old. He worked with Ward Hall's World of Wonders (1993), and Dean Potter in the late '90's, and eventually moved back to Kansas City, KS. Butch Schutte may have returned to live in Gibsonton, FL at one point. Otto Stephen 'Butch' Schutte died in 2016 in Colby, Kansas at the age of 67. One of Schutte's swords is now in the collection of sword swallower Alex Zander. |
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Lady Diane Diane Falk |
Born 1959 Learned 1978 Performed 1978-90s |
Ward Hall's World of Wonders John Bradshaw Sideshow Coney Island Sideshows by the Seashore Conklin Amusement Carnival Shows Sutton Sideshow Circus Strates Midway Capt. Don Leslie Show Magic Circus of Samoa Washington DC/VA (USA) |
Diane Falk was born January 24, 1959. Falk got her start working in sideshows in 1979 at the age of 20 by working as a Bally Girl for John Bradshaw's Sideshow. Falk learned sword swallowing from Francis Doran in 1979 when they were both with John Bradshaw, and began filling in as Bradshaw's sword swallower later in 1979 under the stage name "Lady Diane". When she performed with Francis Doran, they would both swallow a sword sandwich, each swallowing up to three swords at once. Francis Doran gave Lady Diane some of his swords including his ceremonial Knights of Columbus swords, and after Doran died in 1979, Lady Diane continued to use his swords in her act until they were stolen in the winter of 1981. From 1979 to 1981 Lady Diane worked on the road throughout the midwest with John Bradshaw. In 1981 she spent winter quarters in Gibsonton FL where she spent time with sword swallower Eddie Miller. In August, 1983, Falk was performing with Sutton Sideshow Circus on Strates Midway at the New York State Fair. Lady Diane later went on to work for Ward Hall's World of Wonders Show, Coney Island Sideshows by the Seashore from 1987 to 1988.
Lady Diane did a boat tour of the Micronesian Islands and Guam in the South Pacific with Capt. Don Leslie from October 1988 into 1989 where she celebrated her 30th birthday in 1989. (Lady Diane at the Magic Circus of Samoa where she performed for 4 months in Mauritius and Seychelles). Falk worked as John Bradshaw's sword swallower again in 1989 and 1990 at Coney Island Sideshows by the Seashore. In 1991 she worked with Coney Island Sideshows by the Seashore again, then toured Canada with Capt. Don Leslie's show on Conklin Amusement Carnival Shows into 1992. Capt. Don gave some of his swords to Lady Diane after he suffered a serious injury in 1992. Lady Diane also worked with Ward Hall's World of Wonders Last American Freak Show in 1994 and as recently as 2006, 2007, and 2008. Falk studied at George Mason University in Fairfax, VA, became a photographer in 1993, and now lives in the Washington DC area where she works in medical supplies. She still performs on occasion with World of Wonders show. Lady Diane has a sideshow banner painted by Tony-Lee Sangastiano in 2008-9. When not in use on the road, it is prominantly displayed in a room in Lady Diane's home. Seeking photos and more information.
Sword Swallower Lady Diane Falk Timeline
Diane Falk (early) Diane Falk with Sutton Sideshow Circus NY State Fair (8-29-1983) Diane Falk with Sutton Sideshow Circus NY State Fair (8-29-1983) Lady Diane at Coney Island (1987-91) Lady Diane at Magic Circus of Samoa Lady Diane with Capt Don Leslie on Conklin Show (1992) Lady Diane tattooed on Capt. Don's hand Diane Falk, York Fair (2006) Diane Falk with Chris Christ WoW (2007) Diane Falk with Ward Hall WoW (2007) Diane Falk relaxing at home (2007) Diane Falk's banner (2008-09) Diane Falk |
| Brad Byers |
Born Oct 8, 1959 Learned 1981 Performed 1981 to date |
Moscow, ID (USA) |
Brad Byers was born in Moscow Idaho on October 8, 1959. Byers began learning variety arts as a hobby starting with yo-yos, juggling, and chin balancing at age 15. Shortly after graduating from Moscow High School, at the age of 19, Byers joined a traveling circus as a juggler. Two years later, he learned sword swallowing in 1981 at the age of 21. Byers had never even seen a sword swallower, but borrowed a friend's college anatomy book for research. After careful study, Byers began measuring swords at the local Moscow Army Navy Store. After finding a sword that appeared to be the proper length, Byers asked the clerk if he could try the sword out. With only the store clerk in attendance, and never having watched anyone swallow a sword, Byers swallowed his first sword in the store.
Byers' first national television appearance was on "That's Incredible" in the early 1980's. In 1993, Byers represented the USA in the International Circus Festival in Verona, Italy. In 2000, Byers received a Guinness World Record™ for swallowing 10 28" swords inserted one at a time, and then twisting them 180 degress on August 13, 1999 in Hollywood, CA. Byers appeared in 5 episodes of the Fox TV show Guinness World Records Prime Time and was featured on Late Night with David Letterman. Byers performs over 20 different acts, including yoyos, juggling, top spinning, bed of nails, human blockhead with a drill, and other feats. Byers appeared on the Peruvian TV show Que Noche every night for a week and performed different acts each night. He also spins large items on the tips of his fingers. Byers trained and choreographed the actor Johnny Depp in his spinning routine for the motion picture "Benny and Joon". In 2009, Byers was featured on America's Got Talent Season 4 for inserting an 18 inch hook into his nose, through his nasal passages, and out his mouth, and swinging anchor attached to the hook. In 2015, Byers performed on the Italian TV show Tu Si Que Vales. In 2018, Byers blew bubbles with a tarantula for Stage 56 Bar Tricks on the Late Late Show with James Corden.
Byers has performed in over 20 countries for numerous TV shows and other venues. The country of Grenada has even pictured him swallowing swords on an official postage stamp. Taped performances of Byers were shown in Ripley's Believe It or Not museums around the world for several years. Byers swallows a curved sword, a serpentine sword, a keyhole saw, and a common wire coat hanger which he bends with it in his esophagus.Seeking photos and more info.
Brad Byers Timeline:
Brad Byers Guinness Record (2000) Brad Byers swallowing 10 swords Brad Byers swallowing 10 swords Brad Byers x-ray Byers swallowing 10 swords (video) |
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Howard Morgan The Magic Man |
Performed early 1980s |
Six Flags Magic Mountain Orange County Fair South Coast Actors Studio Magic Castle Costa Mesa, CA (USA) |
According to an April 16, 1982 article in the Los Angeles Times: "Howard (The Magic Man) Morgan, who has appeared at the Six Flags Magic Mountain park and Orange County Fair, has joined the teaching staff of the South Coast Actors Studio, 3303 Harbor Blvd, Costa Mesa. Morgan is associated with the Magic Castle in Hollywood, and has coordinated entertainment for United Way of Orange County. His specialties include sword swallowing and fire eating. An introduction to his series in solo performing will be held at 7:30pm Monday at the studio. Morgan has also performed for shows for Rotary, Disabled American Veterans, and Boys Club organizations and the Special Olympics held at UCLA." Seeking photos and more information. |
| Fakir Tanskanen | Performed early 1980s | (Finland) | Fakir Tanskanen swallowed a small sword in his fakir act in the early 1980's. |
| Miss Leane | Performed 1980s to 90s? |
Södertälje (Sweden) |
Miss Leane lived in Södertälje and performed in Sweden into the '90s. Sök efter fotos och upplysningen. |
| Moz Wright | Born Nov 21, 1953 Learned in 1975 Performed 1987-date Married in 2012 |
Paul Daniels Show Oregon Country Fair Eugene, OR (USA) |
Moz Wright born on November 21, 1953. Wright graduated from Hastings Sr. High School in Hastings Nebraska in 1971, and learned sword swallowing in 1975 at the age of 22. In 1972 he performed at the Oregon Country Fair in Veneta Oregon. In 1981, he was at first Chautauqua, The Old Time, New Age Chautauqua. From 1981 to 1991, Wright was Entertainment Coordinator at Oregon Country Fair in Veneta, Oregon. In 1982, Wright opened for Jerry Garcia in Eugene Oregon at the South Eugene High School Auditorium on June 5th and 6th, 1982. In 1985 he performed at Chautauqua 1985. In 1987, Wright was featured as a fire-eater and sword swallower on the Paul Daniels Show in England. He continued performing at the Oregon Country Fair for many years from 1972 to 2017. While performing at the Oregon Country Fair in 2012, he announced that he was getting married to a girl whose father was a sword dealer. In his act, Moz Wright would eat fire and swallow up to 3 or 4 long swords at a time. Seeking photos and more information.
Moz Wright Oregon Country Fair (1978) Paul Daniels Show England (1987) Oregon Country Fair (2012) |
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James Locke James LaDini The Great LaDini Zing the Clown |
Born Feb 11, 1945 Performed 1957-2013 Died Sept 14, 2017 |
York's Wild Kingdom Downey Brothers Circus Zabini's Circus McLean Brothers Circus Holiday Magic Circus Acton Fair Farmington, NH Rochester, NH (USA) |
James Locke was a juggler, unicyclist, rola bola performer, plate spinner, magician, illusionist, escape artist, fire-eater and sword swallower from New Hampshire. Locke performed under different names for different acts including the James LaDini, The Great LaDini and Zing the Clown. He was with a number of different circuses over the years including his own one ring "Holiday Magic Circus" where he was ringmaster and the entertainers were mostly family members.
According to a 2014 article on his life entitled The Great LaDini winds down 50-year career, "I am 98% retired from show business," said James Locke, aka James LaDini, The Great LaDini and Zing the Clown, as he looked back on his lifetime career as an entertainer. Disappearing venues, health complications and advancing age are all contributing factors. Now approaching his 69th birthday, Locke can still recall his first paid performance. It was in the Rochester Opera House and he was a 9-year-old kid opening the show for a Nashville Country singer and his band. "I did seven or eight minutes and got paid $5. That was a lot of money in those days and it was a great experience," he said. There was a gap of 58 years before Locke played the Rochester Opera House again, closing the season in 2012 with a magic show. Between times, he performed all over the country, including Las Vegas and Atlantic City, and even bought a circus, in which he was ringmaster for many years and, on occasions, was a magician and illusionist, fire eater, low wire balancer, and more. At an early age, Locke, then living in Rochester, was much impressed by a circus and sideshows that came through Dover. "I watched the magician, and the fire eater and sword swallower, and it amazed me that they could make a living at it," said Locke, who was prompted to take magic books out of the library and teach himself. "I taught myself to juggle balls and rings and clubs," he said, adding that arthritis rules this out for him, nowadays. Moving to Dover at high school age, Locke became more interested in music, and led a band called Little Caesar and the Roman. "They called me Caesar, because I was a dictator with the other band members," reminisced Locke, with a chuckle. Then the mathematical side of Locke's brain kicked in. His band could get $100 a gig, but split four ways, his share was $25, whereas, performing solo as a magician at a birthday party, he could net $35 or $40. "There were a million bands out there, but very few magicians," he said, explaining how magic won out over music. He still plays the guitar today, as best as arthritis allows, but has not learned any new songs, he said, since the early 1960s. In 1965, Locke joined the U.S. Army and served until 1977, being posted to various parts of the globe. In this period, he would work nightclubs in his off-duty time, and thus can say that he has performed internationally, including in Japan and Greece. In 1977, Locke and his first wife (who passed away just a few years ago) moved to Farmington, and he got back into show business full time. "I developed the clown character, Zing, and had a weekly TV show on New England Cablevision for two years. Every now and then, I'd do the show as a regular magician," said Locke. He began to perform at York's Wild Kingdom, and took the name LaDini from a European magician whose heyday was in the early 1900s. The Great LaDini has played amusement parks up and down the East Coast, as well as night clubs, fairs and other venues. In the 1980s, after getting into the circus business as a ring master with the Holiday Magic Circus, Downey Brothers, Zabini's, and McLean Brothers up in Canada, he bought out Holiday Magic Circus. He owned it from 1984 until its last performance in 2011. He is now in the process of selling of his equipment through Daytona Magic. "I probably have more illusions than anyone else in the Northeast. Some are custom made. They can make girls disappear. The ZigZag can cut a girl in three, and the Crystal Casket...that's a beautiful illusion. It cost $7,000 new," said Locke. "And the Metamorphosis - that takes a lot of practice, and I can't move that fast anymore." He waved an arm over the boxes of equipment in the storage facility attached to his home, and to the long rack of glittering stage wear favored by magicians. "I will keep my illusionettes," said Locke, referring to his smaller accoutrements, "but I am selling my Hindu wicker basket. The whole package goes together - 30 big illusions." While not touring any more, Locke said he will continue to perform at Acton Fair, as he has for decades, and he plans to pass along his illusionettes, at some point, to his son and grandson. His son, BJ Locke, is primarily an escape artist, but according to James Locke, there is no longer enough money or venues in the business to provide full-time work. Thus BJ works for a construction company for his day job. Grandson Devon James Locke is a magician and escape artist, but is also in college in Massachusetts studying robotic engineering. Locke entertained for 60+ years, and left behind his wife Beth Marie Locke who entertained with him for about 7 years as part of "The Magic of James and Marie". James Locke was born on February 11, 1945 and passed away on Thursday, September 14, 2017 in Rochester, NH at the age of 72. Seeking photos and more information.
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| Todd Knight | Performed 1980s |
John Bradshaw Sideshow Coney Island Brooklyn, NY (USA) |
Todd Knight worked for John Bradshaw in the John Bradshaw Sideshow in Coney Island Brooklyn, NY in the mid 1980s. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Geoffrey Cobb "Thom Sellectomy" |
Born March 11, 1968 Learned 1987 Married 2005 Performed 1987-2015 Injured 2016 Retires Mar 11 2018
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Michigan Renaissance Festival Clyde Beatty Circus Florida Keys Renaissance Festival Texas Renaissance Festival Ohio Renaissance Festival Michigan Renaissance Festival Georgia Renaissance Festival Arizona Renaissance Festival Bristol Renaissance Faire Carolina Renaissance Festival Colorado Renaissance Festival Dublin Street Performers World Championship Nogales, AZ (USA) |
Geoffrey Cobb worked as professional sword swallower under the stage name Thom Sellectomy on stages and streets across the US, Canada, Europe and Australia from 1987 to 2015.
Born Geoffrey William Cobb on March 11, 1968, he began working at the Michigan Renaissance Festival in Holly Michigan in 1983 at the age of 15. In 1986, he attended Ringling Brothers Clown College and gratuated from Clown College in 1986 with a "Bachelor of Fun Arts". In 1987, he began working as a clown with Clyde Beatty Circus based out of Sarasota, FL. While working at Clyde Beatty Circus, he learned the basics of sword swallowing from Mike Schneider in 1987 at the age of 19. In 1988, Geoffrey Cobb began working as a sword swallower under the stage name Thom Sellectomy. From 1991 to 1993, he worked at the Texas Renaissance Festival in Todd Mission, Texas, and the Ohio Renaissance Festival, in Waynesville, Ohio. From there, he went on to perform at Renaissance festivals across the US, and at busker fests on streets and stages across the US, Canada, Europe and Australia from 1987 to 2015. Cobb tells a story of performing in Iceland: "I went to Iceland a couple of years back. And when I went into Iceland, I come in with a big bag of swords, and nobody cares, no work permit, no nothing, just 'Come on in!' But when I leave, I go to the airport. And I go to check the bag through, and the lady checking the bags says, 'What's in the bag?' And I said, 'Swords.' " "She gets on the phone, and all of a sudden all these cops show up around me. And the first cop that shows up says, 'Only an idiot brings a sword to a gun fight!' I'm thinking, 'I got like the only cowboy cop in all of Iceland!' "And then he goes, 'It's okay. I saw him on TV last night. He's pretty cool.' So I'm huge in Iceland, baby!"
On his promo video Cobb recalls a story, "I was doing a show at the Arizona Renaissance Festival in Phoenix, and there was this little kid sitting towards the back. When I asked if anyone thought it was fake, his hand shot up. He was like ten or eleven, and he was being real snotty - imagine that for a ten or eleven-year-old! So he shoots his hand up. In March 2015, Cobb left the Arizona Renaissance Festival, and on August 20, 2015, he began working at Oak Bar Ranch in Nogales, AZ. Cobb returned to perform at the Arizona Renaissance Festival again in the spring of 2016. He sustained a serious injury during the 2016 season, requiring sword swallower Johnny Fox to fill in for him for 3 weekends. On March 17, 2018 , Cobb posted, "As of this morning I should have had 18 shows to go, but a mini stroke (TIA) last night means those 18 shows will never happen. I am fine, no long term effects other that a prescription for blood thinners. And blood thinners and sword swallowing don't mix. So it seems that I as I lie here in a hospital bed I must accept that the shows last Sunday March 11, on my fiftieth birthday, were indeed my last. Thanks to everyone along the way. God damn it was fun. Now I'll just ride off onto the Oak Bar. Happy trails."
Rennaisance Festivals
Geoffrey Cobb/Thom Sellectomy Timeline:
Seeking photos and more information on Geoffrey Cobb/Thom Sellectomy.
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Slug Enigma The Enigma Thenigma Nigma (Paul Lawrence) |
Born Dec 20, 1968 Learned 1985 Performed 1991-date |
Jim Rose Circus Human Marvels Seattle, WA NJ (USA) |
Paul Lawrence was raised in Seattle, WA, and began studying music, piano, and dance lessons at the age of 6. He continued with piano and took up singing and flute lessons at age 9. Because he spent most of his time in the back seat of a car traveling to private lessons, his peers came out of comic books and late night television. In 1985 he began teaching himself sword swallowing at the age of 15 from the book "Thrilling Magic". (Early photo with sword before tattoos) Originally known as "The Slug", in 1991, he became known as "Engima" as a founding member of the Jim Rose Circus Sideshow, which he toured with until he left the show in 1998. The Enigma has undergone extensive body modification, including horn implants and a full-body jigsaw-puzzle tattoo. His tattooing process began on December 20, 1992, under the needle of "Katzen the Tiger Lady," heavily tattooed herself, whom he later married. The Enigma then toured with Katzen, playing music and doing sideshow performances under the moniker "Human Marvels." Being a founding member of the Lollapalooza sideshow (which toured the world 1992-1998), appearances included festivals around the world such as Lollapalooza in 1992, Edinburgh Fringe Festival in Scotland, the Adelaide Festival in Australia, Mydfyn in Denmark, Kalvoya (opening for David Bowie) in Norway, Pink Pop in Holland, Leysin in Switzerland, Skelefteå in Sweden, the Doctor Music Festival in Spain, Larote Fabric in Switzerland, and opening for Nine Inch Nails around the US, including two nights at Madison Square Garden in New York. Two books written about those years are "Freak Like Me", and "Circus of the Scars". In 1995, Enigma appeared on the television show The X-Files in an episode entitled "Humbug," where he played a character called "The Conundrum.". In June of 1995, Enigma was featured in National Geographic magazine. In 2004, The Enigma appeared with Mike Patton, Jane Wiedlin, Karen Black and Katzen in Steve Balderson's film Firecracker. The film had a very limited theatrical release but was released on DVD on July 4, 2006. In 2005, the Enigma appeared in toy form as "The Conundrum" in Palisades Toys' X-Files PALz action figure line. He has appeared on Penn & Teller's Sin City Spectacular, Penn & Teller: Bullshit!, Fox Files, Sally Jessie Raphael, Joan Rivers, Ricky Lake, Guinness Prime Time, World's Biggest Headlines (Japan), Record setters, Jeopardy (he was a question), Stephan Rob (Austria), Arabella (Germany), Donny & Marie, Ricky Lake, Rob Nelson, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, and Ripley's Believe it or Not Sideshow documentary. He has also appeared as a deformed monster at a dinner party in the music video of "Fallen Leaves" by Billy Talent , and as a "stranger" on the game show Identity. The Enigma and Katzen had a daughter together before they were divorced. Their daughter now resides with Katzen in Austin, TX. In 2005, Enigma began working alone, and then toured the US with Pigface as a guitar player.
The Enigma plays keyboards and guitars, composes music as an ASCAP registered songwriter. As a sword swallower, he swallows a sword with 21 inch long blade and a neon tube, and is often featured at Knott's Berry Farm and various other haunted house attractions throughout North America. Seeking photos and more information. Enigma in National Geographic (1995) Enigma in Vienna (2002) Enigma with guitar Enigma swallowing with guitar |
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Tisha Vudie Tisha Voodie Tisha Vooda Tisha Booty Isha Vudi Human Pin Cushion Elpidio Rivera |
Performed 1991-92 |
John Bradshaw Shows (USA) |
Tisha Voodie worked for John Bradshaw in 1991 and in his short-lived '92 road show. One of the best unadvertised attractions was the "Human Pincushion." Customers always paid an extra buck to see "Isha Vudi", the mystic from the Bronx, push hatpins through his eyebrows, cheeks, and lips and then allow disgusted spectators to pull them out. Seeking photos and more information.
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Sir James Baron of the Blades "Sword Swaler" James Cook |
Born c. 1962 Performed 1986 Injured Sept. 7, 1986
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Cavalcade of Oddities Arlington, TX Hutchinson, KS (USA) |
24-year old James Cook of Arlington, TX performed as a sword swallower under the stage names "Sir James", "Baron of the Blades" at the Kansas State Fair in Hutchinson, KS until he injured himself while attempting to swallow a decorative 24-inch Samuarai sword on Saturday, September 7, 1986. According to an Associated Press article dated September 11, 1986 and entitled "Sword Swallower Who Injured Himself Plans To Resume His Act": "WICHITA, Kan. -- A sword swallower recuperating after cutting a two-inch gash in his esophagus with a 24-inch-long Samurai sword says he plans to resume his act, but not with the same blade. James Cook of Arlington, Texas, was in fair and stable condition Thursday at St. Francis Regional Medical Center. Cook, 24, was injured Saturday while performing at the Kansas State Fair in Hutchinson. Surgery was required to close the wound and doctors expect to release him within a week, he said."No way I'll use that sword again. Not in my life," he said. Cook said the sword hadn't been used in his act before and wasn't sharp. He blamed the accident on grooves in the blade. "Only a fool would swallow a sharp blade," he said. "I won't go back to sword-swallowing right away," Cook said. "I'm going to lay off of it for a few days, rest, recuperate. I'll definitely go back."
A followup Associated Press article dated September 12, 1986 reports: Sore-Throated Sword Swallower Will Work Again - WICHITA, Kan. -- The "Baron of Blades" says he will be back to swallowing swords in The Cavalcade of Oddities, as soon as he recovers from a very sore throat. James Cook, 24, cut a two-inch gash in his esophagus last weekend when he swallowed a 24-inch Samurai sword in his state fair act. The Arlington, Texas, resident was listed in fair and stable condition today at St. Francis Regional Medical Center, where he was taken after experiencing throat and stomach pains. Cook, who bills himself as the "Baron of Blades" and "Sir James," said Thursday he will perform again, but not with the same decorative sword he was using for the first time when he was hurt. "No way I'll use that sword again. Not on my life," he said. According to a Washington Post article dated September 13, 1986: Sword Swallower Recovering -- The "Baron of Blades," James Cook, 24, is recovering from a very sore throat after swallowing a 24-inch samurai sword in his Kansas State Fair act last weekend. The sword cut a two-inch gash in Cook's esophagus. The Arlington, Tex., resident was listed in fair and stable condition yesterday. He said he will perform again soon with a slight alteration in his act: "No way I'll use that sword again. Not on my life," he said. According to his hand-written business card, he was known as "Sir James, Sword Swaler". Seeking photos and more information. |
| Brad Stine |
Born 1960 Learned 1986 Performed 1986-90s |
Brentwood, TN (USA) |
Brad Stine was born in Bremen, IN in 1960, and moved to California in his early years, where he lived for about 30 years. Stine started out performing magic, and in about 1986 at the age of 26 taught himself fire eating and sword swallowing from the John Stevens booklet "How to Eat Fire and Swallow Swords". Stine's act was mostly comedy magic, but he would end his act by eating fire and swallowing a wrought iron stove poker with leather loop, which he would invite the audience to pull out of his mouth with a rope that he tossed into the audience. He also swallowed a sai, and created a type of chair that had four sais as chair legs, one of which he swallowed. Stine worked at Knottsberry Farm in California doing a Halloween fright show as "Sado the Masochist" working with Zamora the Torture King right after Zamora's book "Circus of the Scars" came out in 1998. Stine moved to Nashville around 2002, and is now booked by the William Morris Agency doing standup comedy around the country. Stine lives in Brentwood, TN with his wife and 2 children. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Emil Ondracek Emil Ondrácék "The Czech Fakir" |
Performed 1989-2001 Died 2003 |
Prague (Czech Republic) |
Czech sword swallower Emil Ondracek taught himself sword swallowing in 1989 after the Czech "Velvet Revolution" when cut-backs were made on Czech state employees. Because Ondracek was disabled after one of his legs was amputated above the knee, he wore a prosthetic leg and found it difficult to find work after the cutbacks. After teaching himself sword swallowing in 1989, he became a well-known sight at Prague's Wenceslsa Square where he performed sword swallowing and human blockhead for tourists while seated wearing a Metallica T-shirt. According to a 1996 article, he said: "I saw this number being performed before I learned to do it myself. I thought if somebody else can swallow swords, I can do it too. And I'm an invalid, and I needed to make some money - that was at the time of the political changes in 1989. I trained hard for a month, using a plastic pipe, which I had sort of adapted myself. Of course there was some injury when I was training, but that healed up a long time ago. As for the tourists who watch me, the Germans laugh, the Chinese like it, but the Japanese run away when they see me swallowing swords. Most likely they're afraid I'd attack them or something. The Scots...the Scots clap, they take photos and film me, but really, a Scot who would actually throw me some money is a real rarity. The Poles are the most suspicious - they always want to check my swords, to see if they're real. After the floods, and with the metro system out of order, it's not just restaurants and bars that are hit, it's services like me too - my business is down around 70 percent. Why do I wear a Metallica t-shirt? Well, I bought it more for the picture, not because I'm a fan." In 1992, Ondracek set his own personal record by swallowing 8 swords at once, which was included in a Czech book of records. In 2001, Ondracek developed serious back problems with his spine, and was hospitalized for a long period after surgery in 2003. The surgery was unsuccessful, and Ondracek relied heavily on pain killers. He died in 2003 from an overdose of drugs. His grave is in Prague, Czech Republic. Seeking photos and more information. Emil Ondracek (1994) Emil Ondracek Emil Ondracek Emil Ondracek Emil Ondracek (Business Card) Emil Ondracek Emil Ondracek |
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Jean-Francois "Le Fakir" |
Born ? Performed ? |
Paris (France) |
French sword swallower Jean-Francois performed as "Le Fakir" performing bed of nails, chain escapes, and sword swallowing on television programs around Europe. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Rodolfo Guani Rudolfo Guani Günter Petermann Schwertschlucker |
Performed 1984-88 Died 2011? |
Europa-Park Zirkus Williams Althoff Rust Bochum (Germany) |
Rodolfo Guani (or Rudolfo Guani) was a German sword swallower fakir who performed in the ring at Zirkus Williams Althoff and at the Europa-Park themepark in Rust, Germany. His real name was Günter Petermann and he and his wife/assistant Gina lived in Bochum Germany.
Guani is known to have performed as a sword swallower in 1984, and possibly long before that. On December 12, 1988, Guani set a world record in sword swallowing by swallowing 5 swords at once.
Guani's wife's name was Gina Guani, and their granddaughter Nicole Nowak transitioned from the circus world as a snake handler as a little girl to become a musical artist in her teen years. According to his grand daughter, Rudolfo died around 2011. Seeking photos and more information. Rodolfo Guani swallowing 3 swords Rudolfo Guani (1988) |
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Yemlian Yemlian FakirShow Yemlian Fakir Show Schwertschlucker |
Performed 1995 |
Europa Park Hansa Theater (Germany) |
Yemlian was a sword swallower fakir who performed around Europe. He studied sword swallowing under sword swallower Rodolfo Guani. Yemlian performed a fakir show including sword swallowing, fire eating and bed of nails, and was known to have performed at Hansa Theater in Hamburg, and at Europa Park in Rust Germany in 1995.
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Fakir Zdenek Zahrádka Fakir Zdenek Zahradka Ben Ghan |
Born c 1954 Performed 1979?-2016? |
(Czech Republic) |
Fakír Zdenek Zahrádka was a Czech fakir and sword swallower. He was born around 1954 as Ben Ghan. In 1979, he claimed to be the first in the world to swallow a sword that measured 55 centimetres (about 27 inches) long. Around 1980, he was x-rayed while swallowing a sword. According to the caption, "With the aid of science, we can now see through a stuntman's favourite trick - and see that this is no trick at all! An X-ray picture of Czech stuntman Zdenek Zahradka's sword swallowing act proves that the 26 year old daredevil isn't cheating. The sword is 55 cms long and 2 cms wide. The lino-layer from northern Bohemia is also master of lying on a bed of nails - he is preparing an attempt on the world record - swallowing razor blades, fire-eating and other wonders." In 1989, Fakir Zdenek Zahradka broke German sword swallower Rodolfo Guani's sword swallowing record of 5 swords by swallowing 6 swords at once. In 2004, the 50-year-old Czech fakir survived 10 days buried underground in a wooden coffin without food or water, setting what he claimed was a new world record, the CTK news agency reported. "Zdenek Zahradka, a holy man or fakir, was connected with the outside world only by a ventilation pipe and said Friday that the most difficult thing to endure during the feat was severe thirst. Zahradka said he spent most of the time sleeping or contemplating and sometimes spoke to friends through the pipe. "While I was underground I thought about all the things happening in the world, and I realised that human life is so futile that we must be glad for the time given to us. We should respect our lives." Zahradka said he beat the previous world record for being buried alive by four days and will apply to be registered in the Guinness Book of World Records. "Of course I do not agree with what he did, but now that he has succeeded, I am glad. The main thing is that it has turned out well," his wife Alena said. According to doctors, Zahradka lost 8.5 kilograms (almost 19 pounds) during his time in the coffin. Zahradka, alias Ben Ghan, has already set several records during his career."
Seeking photos and more information on Ben Ghan Fakir Zdenek Zahradka. Fakir Zdenek Zahradka Fakir Zdenek Zahradka x-ray (c 1980?) Fakir Zdenek Zahradka flaming sword |
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Angelo Healy Angelo Helay Angelo Healey "Angelo the Blade" Allen Healy Alfred Healey |
Born July 1, 1953 Learned circa 1973 Performed 1973-2001 Died Dec 31, 2016
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Johnny Ryan Sideshows Peter G. Henning Hells Bells Patty & Melvin Wise J&J Amusements Tim Deremer's Sideshow Newport, NC Morehead City, NC (USA) |
Alfred "Angelo" Healey was born into the world of entertainment in Dover, NJ on July 1, 1953. His grandfather Johnny Ryan owned sideshows and burlesque shows, and young Angelo grew up in the sideshow after his father left when he was about 1 1/2 years old. Around 1963 or 1964 when he was about the age 10 or 11, young Angelo worked his first show for Peter G. Henning's Hells Bells at the Kentucky State Fair in Louisville, KY as "Spidora the Spider Girl" for about one or two days. He later worked for Patty and Melvin Wise for 8 years, then got his own show through J&J Amusements. Around 1973, while Angelo was working for Tim Deremer Productions, their regular sword swallower quit the show and Deremer was left with the banner of a sword swallower but without an actual real live sword swallower. Angelo decided to learn the feat, and began teaching himself to swallow coat hangers in 1973 at about the age of 20-21. Eventually he worked his way up to swallowing bayonets, sais, British dueling swords, bridge bolts, keyhole saws, phillip's head screwdrivers, and pool cue sticks. After deciding he needed a stage name, he came up with the stage name "Angelo Helay" (sometimes "Angelo Healy" or "Angelo Healey"). He also performed fire-eating, fire-breathing, glass-dancing, the Human Blockhead, the Iron Tongue, outside talking, inside talking, and virtually all of the sideshow acts as a 1-man sideshow at county and state fairs across the US. At the prime of his career, he swallowed up to 5 swords at once, but refused to swallow neon tubes.
Angelo Helay's worst accident occurred at the Tampa State Fair while working for Tim Deremer when a Phillips-head screwdriver punctured his stomach, and he was rushed to the emergency room with blood coming out of his eyes, ears, mouth, and rectum. He refused to stay admitted in the hospital and discharged himself by walking out against doctor's orders, and the next day climbed back onstage and performed shows the rest of the day. In 1988, while working with J&J Amusements, Healey took on a 17-year-old assistant named George Gockman, who stayed with Healey for about 13 years until they finished the 2001 season on September 10, the day before 9-11, when Gockman quit the sideshow business, and Healey informally adopted him as a surrogate son.
Healey worked as a fire breather and sword swallower with his sideshow on J & J Amusements in the 1990s. He performed at the Georgia State Fair with Tim Deremer Productions on the Amusements of America midway in Macon, GA Oct 15-20, 1990. Around 1992-93, Angelo was interviewed and photographed by National Geographic while performing at the "Nightmare" in Painsville, OH. During that run, his wife, who had spinal bifida, was crossing the road in her wheelchair when she was struck by a truck. On the final day of the show, Angelo was scheduled to perform his last show, when he was notified that his wife had died. With this sad news on his mind, he climbed up onto the stage and performed his final show of that run, which was photographed by the National Geographics photographer. A few years later, the photo of him sword swallowing was published in National Geographic's Carnival Edition, 2nd Volume, published in October, 1997. Healey retired from performing in 2001 for about 10 years, worked as a painter, and lived in Newport, NC just outside Morehead City, NC. In the 2010's, he re-emerged from retirement to perform again, and performed for Tim Deremer's Sideshow in Ohio during the summer of 2011 before having to leave with a collapsed lung and return to Newport NC. On December 31, 2016, Healey died at the age of 63 at a hospice in Havelock NC of cancer, emphysema, COPD, and complications from pnuemonia and infections around his pacemaker. His props and costumes were donated to the archives of the Sword Swallowers Association International. Seeking photos, articles, and more information. Angelo Healy fire-breathing (1997) Angelo Healy (2016) |
| David Earl Seawright |
Born 19 Nov 1939 Died 12 Jan, 1996 |
James E. Strait Shows Syracuse, NY (USA) |
According to his obituary in the Syracuse Herald American (NY) dated January 14, 1996: David Earl Seawright, 56, of 550 S. Clinton St., Syracuse, NY died Friday (January 12, 1996) at Community-General Hospital. A Syracuse native, Mr. Seawright was a retired circus performer and spent many years traveling throughout the continental United States and Puerto Rico as a fire eater and sword swallower with the James E. Strait Shows. He was a volunteer with the AIDS Community Resources. Surviving are his mother, Helen Griffin of Liverpool; a sister, Estelle I. Smart of Clay; a brother, Russell Seawright of Liverpool; his friend and companion, Remo Bianco of Syracuse; and several nieces, nephews and cousins. Services are 2 p.m. Monday at Greenleaf Funeral Home, 503 W. Onondaga St., Syracuse. Private burial in Loomis Hill Cemetery. Seawright was 56 at the time of his death. Seeking photos and more information. |
| Kelek |
Learned 1998 Performed 1998-1999 Injured 1999 Retired 1999
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Oakland, CA (USA) |
Kelek learned sword swallowing in 1998 in Oakland, California. She had a serious sword swallowing accident and injury in 1999 which left her with a scar on her neck. Kelek retired from sword swallowing in 1999. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Johnny Massacre John Doran |
Born 1976 Performed 1999-2003 Died July 18, 2003 |
Galway (Ireland) |
John Doran performed under the stage name Johnny Massacre throughout Europe, appeared regularly on TV, and was known around the world for performing a variety of circus and sideshow acts including bed of nails, fire-eating, juggling, and unicycle riding. He learned sword swallowing in 1999, and later became known for his specialty of swallowing a sword while riding a tall unicycle. Massacre died on Friday, July 18 2003 at the age of 27 after being involved in a three car accident during the Galway Arts Festival in Galway, Ireland. The city of Galway went into a state of mourning, and photos and piles of flowers were placed on his patch where he had performed. There is now a plaque in memory of him displayed above his pitch in Galway. Seeking photos and more information. Johnny Massacre Video of Johnny performing Johnny Massacre Obituary |
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Pandora Pandemonium Naomi Seraphina |
Performed July 2002 Injured 2004 Retired 2004
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Cirkus Pandemonium Portland, OR (USA) |
Naomi Seraphina was performing sword swallowing with Cirkus Pandemonium in the Pacific Northwest in July 2002 under the name Pandora Pandemonium. In her act, she would swallow a sword and do the splits. She encountered a near fatal injury while performing in 2004 when she punctured an artery in her stomach and nearly bled to death, but didn't realize it until the next morning after the accident. She received four complete blood transfusions after regurgitating blood over the nearby EMTs in the emergency room. She is now permanently retired as a sword swallower since her injury in 2004. Seeking photos and more information. Pandora Pandemonium Pandora Pandemonium Pandora Pandemonium Pandora Pandemonium Pandora Pandemonium |
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Matty Blade Matty The Blade Matthew Henshaw |
Born April 27 1963 Performed 1990-2104 Died March 25 2014 |
Fremantle Busker's Festival Perth (Australia) |
Matty "the Blade" Henshaw was born April 27, 1963. Infatuated with imagery of pirates from a young age, Blade was taught the dangerous art of sword swallowing by a native American in 1990 at 27 years of age. He was raised in the US and Papua New Guinea, but spent most of his adult life in Perth Australia. Patrick Fraher of Arizona knew Blade before he started sword-swallowing. "I knew Matty Blade during his time in the States. We worked security together at the Flamingo Hilton and he would entertain us at after shift parties with his magic," Fraher said. "He was just starting with his life's passion, but even then he could amaze a crowd."
At the Fremantle Busker's Festival in 2000, Matty Blade set a Guinness World Record by swallowing 14 swords simultaneously with blades 60 cm long. That record was broken by another sword swallower in 2008, but Blade reclaimed the Australian record by swallowing 21 swords at the Perth Tattoo Expo in 2010. Matty also made the 2002 Guinness Book of World Records for swallowing 14 swords while balanced on top of a 10 foot pole (3 meters). Matty also held the record for most swords swallowed in a year, with 3782 swords in 2003, and appeared in the 2007 Guinness World Record Book after swallowing a sword that weighed 20.1kg. In his act, Blade regularly swallowed 14 swords at a time, which garnered him a Guinness World Record for the "Hungriest Sword Swallower". There is an exhibit in the Guinness World Record Museum in Los Angeles, CA with a sign that says "Matthew Henshaw swallowed 14 swords simultaneously on April 6, 2006 at Fremantle, Perth, Western Australia. The swords were 1.5 inches wide and almost 2 feet long, and weighed a total of about 15 pounds." Matty Blade was a regular performer at Fremantle Prison's Torchlight Tours. One of Blade's final performances was for Medieval Fayre at the Perth Supreme Court Gardens on Saturday, March 22, 2014.
Matty Blade died on March 25, 2014 at the age of 50 in Perth Australia of an apparent suicide. He is survived by a sister, Lily Gower. Seeking photos and more information. Matty Blade Matty Blade Guinness LA |
| Claudio Borghi |
Born early 1950s Performed 1976-2006 Died June 5, 2006 |
Florencia/Correggio (Italy) |
Claudio Borghi was born in the early 1950s and grew up in Florence, Italy. Originally trained as a church restorer, Borghi later turned to performing in the mid 1970s. Renowned as a fakir, fire-eater and one of only three known sword swallowers in Italy, Borghi performed at festivals, historical reenactments, and on the road throughout Italy and Europe for over 30 years, and was known as the last of the old-time sword swallowers in Italy.
Borghi was short and stocky, but modest and well-loved as a very talented performer. Borghi swallowed swords, daggers, sabers, serpentine kriss blades, and katana swords up to 56 cm in length. He was very controlled - He claimed he never had to learn to overcome the gag reflex as a sword swallower. He worked "rough", with old swords wrapped in a rag which was often soaked in gasoline to wipe the blades down. To demonstrate the swords were made of metal, he would tap the tips of the blades on the street a few times then scrape them around him in a big circle to make a metallic grating sound (which also gnarled up the tips of this blades). As a fire performer, Claudio Borghi was known for blowing mammoth blasts from gasoline that created huge fire rings and spectacularly breathtaking deep orange fire balls in excess of five meters. Sometimes he would start a flame then twirl around on himself until the flame had made a complete ring of fire with a huge black plume above it.
Borghi died after commiting suicide on Monday, 5 June 2006 in Correggio, Italy. The visitation and funeral were held on Thursday, 8 June, 2006 at San Sebastian Hospital (Ospedale San Sebastiano in Via Mandriolo a Correggio). Several street entertainers attended his funeral, including Italy's last two remaining sword swallowers, Marco Cardona and Thomas Blackthorne. The performers sat outside on the grounds of the crematorium in a big circle on the grass. Planted in the center of the circle was one of Borghi's swords. After pouring a libation to Claudio, the performers passed around a bottle of wine and drank to his memory. Some said a few words. Someone had made a large white paper hot air balloon. Everyone signed the balloon and most wrote personal messages. Thomas Blackthorne drew a sword and wrote, "Claudio - A life lived to the hilt. We miss you, Thomas and your friends in the SSAI". A small flame filled the balloon and it lifted slowly into the air. As the balloon floated up and off into the distance, the group of street artists whooped and cheered in a final goodbye to Claudio Borghi. Claudio Borghi Claudio Borghi |
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Phoemix Blaze Edward Robinson Edward D. Robinson |
Born Sept 19, 1963 Learned 1984 Injured Apr 1, 2010 Performed 1984-2017 Injured in 2016 Retired 2017
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Escondido Renaissance Fair Big Bear City Renaissance Fair Northern California Renaissance Faire Riviera's Le Bistro Theatre El Centro, CA (USA) |
Edward D. Robinson, a.k.a. Phoenix Blaze was born on September 19, 1963.
In a 2024 interview, Robinson explained, "I learned to breathe fire from Brian LaPalme -- he's a big-time circus performer who taught Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat to breathe fire. I watched his act and learned fire. "In 1984, I was playing the Xoma the wild boy character with a show, and Ward Hall's World of Wonders was two shows down. Red Stuart was in a good mood and he showed me how to swallow swords. It took three weeks total. with additional tips from Ward Hall and Chris Christ. It took two actual tries to get past the throat. I was 21." "LaPalme also did a sword-balancing act, and I watched that act so much I learned to do it too. I started doing it with a swallowed sword. So, I swallowed one sword and then did a sword-balancing routine on top of the swallowed sword, and then I had a spinning sword balanced on the handle of that one. So there were three swords in play. One time while I was doing it, I messed up and they came down. The spinning one hit my eyeball and scratched my cornea. I had to wear a mask for months. Not fun. I have never gotten all my sight back." Robinson performed first with World of Wonders Sideshow, and later on the Renaissance Faire circuit as Phoenix Blaze. In 2002, Robinson performed as sword swallower on the "Shock" show at the Riviera's Le Bistro Theatre in Las Vegas, NV. In 2009, after his 23rd year as a professional sword swallower, Edward Robinson said he had been a regular at the Escondido Renaissance Fair for the past three years from 2006 to 2009. "Wherever there's a renaissance festival, that's where you'll find me," he said. "I live in a tent and travel around on a motorcycle with a bunch of swords and a sleeping bag..." On April 1, 2010, he sustained a sword swallowing injury. In 2014 he performed as fire eater and sword swallower with the Big Bear City Renaissance Faire in Fawnskin, CA. After a 2016 accident put a damper on his career, Robinson retired from sword swallowing in 2017. He had performed as a sword swallower for 32-33 years. He sold off some of his swords to Dan Meyer and Nick Penney. and by 2018, he was into robotics performing under the name Sharko and Sharkoprian.
Robinson now lives in the mountains of El Centro CA.
Phoenix Blaze Timeline: |
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Folke Vazir Niklas Folkegård |
Born May 20, 1971 Learned 1991 Performed 1992-2007 Retired 2007 |
Vazir Varieté Gävle/Stockholm (Sweden) |
Niklas Folkegård was born in Gävle Sweden on May 20, 1971. He began teaching himself sword swallowing in 1991 at the age of 20 by studying a photocopy of "Handbok för fakirer" by Bercoman. In 1992, Folkegård co-founded the variety group Vazir Varieté, where he worked as performer, writer, and artistic head until 2007. During his career as a sword swallower, he swallowed swords up to 65 cm in length, and helped mentor apprentices Julia Strouzer (Jewels) and Martin Lundström (Fakiren Orthae) in 2003. Special feats included swallowing a flambard sword that got stuck in his throat every time he swallowed it, a magic card trick involving swallowing five meters of gauze bandage, but he was most well-known for swallowing a sparkstötting (Swedish kick sleigh) runner, which is now resides in the Sword Swallower's Museum and Hall of Fame. Folkegård retired from sword swallowing in 2007 under his doctor's advice due to an esophageal hernia, originally diagnosed in 2005, which made it impossible to swallow full length swords. On October 20, 2008, Folkegård was inducted into the Sword Swallower's Hall of Fame before the Swedish media, and his "sparkstötting sleigh" presented to the Sword Swallower's Museum. The event was featured in Expressen TV, Aftonbladet TV, Svenska Dagbladet, Gefle Dagblad, Arbetarbladet and others. Folkegård now works as a writer and standup comedian, and travels between Stockholm and Gävle, Sweden. Seeking photos and more information. Gefle Dagblad 10-22-08 |
| Todd Robbins |
Born 15 Aug 1958 Learned 1992 Married 8 Oct 2001 Performed 1992-date |
Coney Island Ripley's Believe It or Not! New York, NY (USA) |
Todd Robbins was born on August 15, 1958 in Long Beach, California, the son of a soap executive and a schoolteacher. At the age of 10, Robbins was introduced to magic, enrolling in magic lessons at the B&H School of Magic every Saturday afternoon. His regular interaction with seasoned magicians led to his interest in learning the secrets of the sideshow arts. Robbins became the first Junior Member of the famous Magic Castle school of magic. Soon after, Robbins joined the Long Beach Mystics, a troupe run by the students and hosting professional magicians and variety acts, including up-and-coming young juggler/magician Steve Martin.
With his interest in performance, Robbins attended the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco where he earned his degree in Theatre Arts. In 1980 Robbins moved to New York City to pursue a career in theatre. After going on a numerous auditions and landing some small low-paying roles, Robbins found performing in New York dubious. "I did a few readings, a couple of small shows in basement spaces, which was all kind of fun, but it wasn't paying the rent." It was around this time that the new vaudeville movement made a comeback with the likes of Penn and Teller and Bill Irwin gaining in popularity, providing Robbins the incentive to make a change, and resurrecting his interest in magic and carnivals. In 1992, Robbins learned sword swallowing at the age of 34. Robbins began working at Coney Island sideshow swallowing swords, eating fire, doing human blockhead, and other classic sideshow acts. Robbins inherited the sideshow tradition almost literally from Melvin Burkhart, one of the pioneers in the field. Born in 1907, Burkhart had worked venues from Ringling Brothers to Ripley's Believe It or Not, making a name for himself as the father of the Human Blockhead act by hammering a nail into his nostril. Burkhart's final performance took place on October 8, 2001 at Robbins' wedding to Krista Brown. About a month after the performance, Burkhart died, leaving his props to Robbins; his costume and signature enormous nail arrived in the mail. His cremated remains were also left to Robbins, who sprinkled the ashes at Coney Island. Robbins has been featured on more than 100 television shows, which include multiple appearances on David Letterman, Jay Leno and Conan O'Brien, Masters of Illusion, and the NBC special Extreme Variety. He was a featured guest on Criss Angel Mindfreak, and is also the subject of the 2005 documentary American Carny: True Tales From The Circus Sideshow directed by Nick Basile. Robbins starred in the off-Broadway show Carnival Knowledge which ran from 2002 to 2004, and featured Robbins eating light bulbs and swallowing swords. The show was nominated for a Drama Desk Award. Robbins is also one of five partners in the longest running off-Broadway show, Monday Night Magic. Robbins also served as dean of the sideshow school in Coney Island, where, for $600 per student, he taught the history of sideshow as well as instructed students in the sideshow arts of sword swallowing, fire eating, bed of nails and human blockhead. In 2008 Robbins toured as part of a stage show called Hoodwinked with Bob Arno, Banachek and Richard Turner. In 2009 Robbins was featured in a Ripley's Believe It or Not! cartoon for chewing and swallowing over 4,000 light bulbs. In 2010 Robbins starred in Play Dead, a stage show written by Robbins and Teller of Penn & Teller, a "throwback to the spook shows of the 1930s and '40s" that ran from September 12-24, 2010 in Las Vegas, before opening off-Broadway at The Players Theatre in New York. In 2015, Robbins began hosting a TV series on ID network entitled "True Nightmares" in which he presents 3 strange-but-true characters known to history as nightmares that came all too true. In 2019, Robbins began hosting and producing a weekly showcase of stage and close-up magic called, "Speakeasy Magick", at The McKittrick Hotel in New York City. Robbins has been associated with the Big Apple Circus for more than a dozen years in various roles, including ringmaster, Robbins is known for a variety of sideshow acts including sword swallowing, human blockhead and glass eating, including wine glasses and light bulbs. Robbins estimates he has eaten more than 5,000 light bulbs throughout his career, sometimes consuming up to 21 bulbs per week. Robbins currently performs regularly at New York's longest running off-Broadway magic show, Monday Night Magic, and can often be seen playing piano with Woody Allen's jazz band at the Cafe Carlyle. Seeking photos and more information.
Todd Robbins Timeline: |
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George the Giant George McArthur |
Born Sept 19, 1969 Learned 1995 Married Jul 31 1998 Performed 1995-date
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Ripley's Believe It or Not! America's Got Talent Beanstalk Entertainment Bakersfield, CA (USA) |
At 7'4" (2.24 m), George the Giant is the world's tallest sword swallower, and holds the world record for longest sword swallowed at 33 inches long. George has had parts in feature films such as Big Fish, Firecracker and Tough Luck, and on television shows such as According to Jim, Touched by an Angel, The Strip, The Tonight Show, and Carnivale, often cast as a circus or sideshow giant.
When he was born on September 19, 1969 in Bakersfield, California, George McArthur weighed only 7 pounds, 8 ounces, the youngest of five children born to Marilyn Baird and Howard McArthur. In 1982, at the age of 12, George witnessed a sword swallower and fire-eater perform on the bally stage at a local county fair, and he was hooked. It wasn't until 1990, at the age of 21, when George began to study the sideshow arts seriously. George began performing in 1991, and has been performing professionally since then. In 1995, at the age of 26, George learned sword swallowing from sideshow showman Bobby Reynolds. On one of his first gigs, Reynolds used a coat hanger to teach George how to swallow swords quickly, just in time for the show. "Go on! Shove it down your throat!" Reynolds instructed him. And George did! In 1998, 7' 3" tall George the Giant married his fiancee Stacie Bird, who stands at only 4 feet 10 inches tall. In the late 1990s, George began receiving opportunities to be featured on TV and film. In 1999, George appeared in the TV series Touched by an Angel with Roma Downey. In August 2002, George attended the first Sideshow Gathering and Sword Swallower's Convention in Wilkes-Barre PA, where on Friday, August 30, 2002, he was one of 19 sword swallower to set the Guinness World Record for the Most Sword Swallowers Swallowing Swords Together, that received international coverage on CNN by Jeanne Moos. In 2003, George appeared in the TV series The Guardian and the Ripley's Believe It or Not! TV Series, and in the films Tough Luck and the Tim Burton film Big Fish. In 2004, George was featured as a sideshow performer in the the HBO series Carnivale that was filmed in the mountains of California. In 2005, he was featured in the film Firecracker. In September 2005, George attended the Sideshow Gathering and Sword Swallower's Convention in Wilkes-Barre PA, where he was part of another Guinness World Record for the Most Swords Swallowed Simultaneously that was filmed in the Discovery Channel documentary "Stomachs of Steel". In 2008, George the Giant was featured on Season 3 of America's Got Talent through to the Las Vegas semi-finals and all the way to the Finals in Hollywood. In 2009, he was featured in documentary 1000 Ways to Die where he portrayed a fictional sword swallower "Boris" On August 15, 2018, George and Stacie opened the George the Giant's Strange Museum of Oddities and Wonders in Bakersfield, California. Since 2003, George has worked with a security and fire system in Bakersfield, CA. Today, George and his wife Stacie live with their hairless dog Percilla in Bakersfield, California. Seeking photos and more information.
George the Giant on Ripley's Believe It or Not! TV (2003) George the Giant on America's Got Talent (2008)
George McArthur Timeline: |
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Fakiren Orthae Martin Lundström |
Born June 21, 1977 Learned 2003 Injured Nov 27 2008 Injured 2013 Performed 2003-date
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Stockholm (Sweden) |
Martin Lundström was born on June 21, 1977. He did his first street performances as a firebreather, juggler, jester and fakir on the streets of Stockholm at the age of 16 around 1993. Lundström learned sword swallowing by studying medical writings and x-rays, doing research on the Internet, consulting other sword swallowers, and studying the books "Handbok för självplågare" by Jaime Perez, "Trollare och andra underhållare" by Christer Nilsson, and others. In 2003 he studied sword swallowing under Niklas Folkegård, and in 2003 swallowed his first sword at around the age of 26.
In his act, Lundström performs fakir feats such as fire-eating, blockhead, mental floss, mousetrap on tongue, crushing lightbulb by hand, glass-eating, walking on broken glass, sword swallowing, larva-eating, being shot by a pellet-gun, human pincusion, and lifting a mini-motorcycle with hooks in chest. Highlights have included pulling a 12 ton train cargo wagon using hooks in his back (shown in both Swedish and Norwegian television), as well as being featured on Swedish television programs such as "Vetenskapsmagasinet", "Outsiders", "Wimans", "O som i Ortmark", "TV Nord", "ID", "Rampljuset", doing a gastroscope on "Dr åsa", and being featured on "Gogo" and "äläkatsu" on Finnish TV. On October 20, 2008, Lundström was inducted into the Sword Swallower's Hall of Fame before the Swedish media, and one of his swords presented to the Sword Swallower's Museum. The event was featured in Expressen TV, Aftonbladet TV, Svenska Dagbladet, Arbetarbladet and others.
On November 27, 2008, Lundström received his worst sword swallowing injury at a performance. Lundström lives in Bandhagen Sweden where he is the SSAI Regional Representative for Scandinavia, and he performs his fakir act around Stockholm and throughout Scandinvia. Seeking photos and more information. |
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Hans Rosling Hans Gösta Rosling |
Born July 27, 1948 Performed 2003-2007 Died Feb 7, 2017
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Gapminder Foundation Karolinska Intitutet TED Conferences Uppsala/Stockholm (Sweden) |
Hans Rosling was a Swedish doctor, academic, statistician, public speaker, TED speaker, and sword swallower. Rosling was Professor of International Health at Karolinska Institutet in Stockhom, and co-founder and chairman of the Gapminder Foundation, that developed the Trendalyzer software system. Rosling was known for his TED Talks and animated presentations on data around the world in which he promoted the visual use of data to explore development issues.
Hans Rosling was born in Uppsala, Sweden on July 27, 1948. In 1968, when he was 20, doctors informed Rosling that there was something wrong with his liver. As a result, Rosling stopped drinking alcohol. Rosling studied statistics and medicine at Uppsala University from 1967 to 1971. During his time in medical school, his best friend in medical school was a magician. Upon seeing an x-ray of a sword swallower, Rosling attempted to learn sword swallowing, but failed. It wasn't until later when he had a patient who was a sword swallower, that he learned sword swallowing from his patient. In 1972, Rosling studied public health at St. John's Medical College in Bangalore, India, where he witnessed sword swallowing first-hand. He returned to study statistics and medicine at Uppsala University from 1973 to 1974. In 1976, Rosling became a licensed physician, and from 1979 to 1981 he served as District Medical Officer in Nacala in northern Mozambique, Africa. On August 21, 1981, Rosling began investigating an outbreak of konzo, a paralytic disease in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. His investigations earned him a PHD at Uppsala University in 1986. In 1989, Rosling was diagnosed with Hepatitis C, which progressed over the years into cirrhosis of the liver. In March 2007, Rosling shocked TED audiences when he demonstrated sword swallowing by swallowing an 1850 Swedish military bayonet in the final moments of his second TED talk at the TED conference in Monterey, California. The TED talk, one of the first to be published openly to the general public on YouTube, went viral and promoted Rosling to world prominence and rock-star status among TED fans worldwide. In October, 2008, Hans Rosling was inducted into the Sword Swallowers Association International Hall of Fame in Stockholm, Sweden. (article) In 2009 Rosling was listed as one of 100 leading global thinkers by Foreign Policy, and in 2011 as one of 100 most creative people in business by Fast Company. In 2011, he was elected member of the Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences, and in 2012 as member of the Swedish Academy of Sciences. In 2012, Rosling was included in the Time 100 list of the world's 100 most influential people in 2012.
In early 2013, Rosling was diagnosed as being in the early stages of liver failure. However, new hepatitis C drugs were being released about this time, and Rosling traveled to Japan to buy the drugs needed to fight the infection. Rosling expressed concerns in media over the restricted use of the new drugs due to high costs, expressing concern that it was a crime to not provide the drugs to everyone with hepatitis C who needed them. In 2016, Rosling was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. A year later, on February 7, 2017, Hans Rosling died of cancer at the age of 68. He was buried in Uppsala gamla kyrkogård, Uppsala, Uppsala kommun, Uppsala län, Sweden. He is survived by his son Ola Rosling, and daughter Anna Rosling Rönnlund who continue to run and manage Gapminder. Seeking photos and more information on Hans Rosling.
Hans Rosling swallowing Swedish bayonet at TED (3-2007) Hans Rosling Sword Swallowing at TED (3-2007) Hans Rosling: Sincere Thank You and Sincere Request (2017) Quora: Hans Rosling: Sincere Thank You and Sincere Request (2017) |
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Pétur Pókus Pétur Gísli Finnbjörnsson |
Born Sept 22, 1973 Learned 1997 Injured 1997 Xrayed 1998 Performed 1997-2002
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Reykjavík (Iceland) |
Pétur Pókus was born in Reykjavík Iceland on September 22, 1973 as Pétur Gísli Finnbjörnsson. In a 2024 interview, he explained how he got interested in sword swallowing: "When I was a little kid about six or seven years old, there was a circus show on Icelandic national television once a year, and I always waited all year to see that one show at the end of the year. There was a guy there doing a great fire routine, doing dragon's-breath blowing fire, and at the end, swallowing a long sword. And I thought to myself, I want to do that!
"As the years went by, I became a magician. I did magic tricks with some sideshow tricks, escape, straitjacket, a fire routine, things like that. But there was always in my mind swallowing swords, so I looked to the magic world to find out how to do it. I went to the International Magic Institute in the UK, but they said, "No, no, no... This is a bad idea! Don't do it!" I bought a book from Abbott's Magic called Strange Secrets, and in that book, it told how it was done. I practiced like it said, training for three months, three times a day, each time three times. So, I was self-trained, and it took me over three months to learn. I later found out that I was doing both sideshow and magic blended together. Sword swallowing was just one trick in my magic show, but it's not a trick, it's a real thing, of course," "Right after I learned in 1997, I got booked to do a party in Ísafjörður Vestfirðir, in the west of Iceland. This was a country party with a DJ, and I was on the stage at two o'clock at night. Everybody was drunk, everybody was saying, "You're never gonna get the crowd." But I said, "It won't be a problem." I had been performing all day in the parade, and warming up for the night show. So the DJ introduced me, and I went onstage, and I tried to swallow this sword. But the sword stopped in the middle of my chest. The audience was screaming and applauding and going crazy because I was the last act in that show. So, I took it out and I look at the crowd, and I put my sword back in, and it stops somewhere in my lung. I took it out and held it up for a second time. And the crowd was screaming, "Yeah, yeah, yeah!" So, I did it a third time, but this time I pushed it down. But something hurt this time. But after the show you cannot say, "I have to go to the hospital" with all the crew there in Vestfirðir. I thought I would go to Reykjavík, because it hurt a lot. I couldn't even complain." "It took about six hours to drive back to Reykjavík. When I got to Reykjavík, I went to the hospital, and I sat down with the woman at the desk. "What happened to you?" she asked, "I was swallowing swords in Ísafjörður, and I think I hurt myself." I said. "What are you saying?" "I was in Ísafjörður swallowing swords, and I think I hurt myself." She said, "I'm not working here to play with you, to have fun!..." I said, "I'm not here to have fun either. I'm telling you, it's an old stunt, I was swallowing swords, and I think I really hurt myself.'' She took a long pause, and the pause went on." "I went to three specialists, and they put me in an x-ray and let me drink some kind of shadow drink. When I was drinking the barium drink, they tried to take photos, to see if something was leaking, but they did not see anything wrong. But after a few takes, they finally saw something. When I left that office, the three doctors came over to me. They were very nice, and I think they respected that I was a sword swallower. One of the doctors shakes my hand, and he said to me, "And you will never do that again..." I took hold of his hand, and I said to him, "This was just the first time..." "In 1998, I got a call from a big national newspaper called Séð og Heyrt (a popular yellow-press tabloid sold at checkout lines that published flashy photos with catchy headlines). They said, "Pétur, we're going prove to the world that you are not really a sword swallower, that you're just faking it. We're going to expose you!" I said, "Really? How are you gonna do that?" "Put you in an x-ray!" they answered. And I said, "Great!" "I went back to the same hospital that treated me for my injury, and they took x-rays with a 52-centimeter sword inside me so I could show them that the magician was not fooling them by any tricks. After that article, my phone rang off the hook, and I got very famous around Iceland -- and around the world." "In 2002 I got a phone call from Mr. Dan Meyer, president of the Sword Swallowers Association International, inviting me to come to the Sideshow Gathering in Pennsylvania in America, and to set the record for the "Most Sword Swallowers Swallowing Swords Together". But I hadn't sword swallowed for more than a month until I got that phone call. So I started practicing again." In August 2002, Pétur attended the first Sideshow Gathering and Sword Swallower's Convention in Wilkes-Barre PA. "I didn't know anyone, but I flew from Reykjavík to New York to Pennsylvania, and I attended the Sideshow Gathering, where I met some great people, most of them famous in America. I felt really welcomed at the Sideshow Gathering because I was from Iceland, and because everyone knew about Jóhann Pétursson, the Icelandic Viking giant, He had been in the sideshow business, and he was treated very well in America. I met Ward Hall, the man that he was last working for who was retiring. Ward Hall had Jóhann on his World of Wonders Sideshow for many years. And he told me lots of stories about Jóhann and what he did in his sideshow. Somehow I felt welcomed because of Ward Hall and Jóhann the Giant. And there was Ripley's Believe It or Not, and Shocked and Amazed, and CNN and all the press, ambulances and everything while we were doing it. It was a big honor to be invited to come and be part of it." On Friday, August 30, 2002, Pétur was one of 19 sword swallower to set the Guinness World Record for the Most Sword Swallowers Swallowing Swords Together that received international coverage on CNN by Jeanne Moos. "So 19 of us sword swallowers did the "Most Sword Swallowers" world record for the first time: 19 sword swallowers at the same time, at the same moment in history, thanks to Dan Meyer. And we swallowed 50 swords." "The hardest trick was getting swords back into Iceland, because in Iceland, we can't have swords, except the Freemasons and things like that. Iceland is a Viking country where everyone used to have swords. Today it's illegal unless you have a license. Now, today, I can have a sword because I do have a license. But the cops got my swords right now because I did the world record. And they destroyed my sword in 2002 because I was swallowing it. After that, I stopped, I did not swallow a sword for 10 years after that. About 3 years later, I got a notification from Mr. Dan Meyer that we had gotten the official Guinness World Record for the "Most Sword Swallowers Swallowing Swords Together". That was a huge honor that went viral in Iceland and I became very famous from it." Seeking photos and more information.
Petur Pokus being xrayed (1998) Petur Pokus after getting x-rayed (1998) Petur Pokus x-ray (1998)
Pétur Pókus Timeline: |
| Dan Meyer |
Born April 7, 1957 Learned Feb 12, 2001 Injured October 14, 2005 Injured March, 2010 Injured March 28, 2015 Injured June 21, 2018 Performed 2001-2023
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Hoxie Bros Circus Ringling Brothers Circus Cirque Eloize Carnivale Lune Bleue Brooks & Dunn's Neon Circus 2007 Ig Nobel Prize in Medicine at Harvard TED Talks Guinness World Records Ripley's Believe It or Not Stan Lee's Superhumans America's Got Talent America's Got Talent Italy's Tu Si Que Vales France's Got Talent Israel's Got Talent Australia's Got Talent Sweden's Got Talent Talang Golden Buzzer Sweden's Got Talent Talang Golden Buzzer Croatia's SuperTalent Spain's Got Talent Germany's Das SuperTalent Canada's Got Talent Huckabee Show Faith-based events Upward Unlimited Awards State and County Fairs East Texas State Fair Eastern Idaho State Fair Western Idaho State Fair North Idaho State Fair Wyoming State Fair Alaska State Fair Kenai Peninsula State Fair Nebraska State Fair Tennessee State Fair Central Oregon Fair Renaissance Faires Ren Fests Tennessee Renaissance Festival Alabama Renaissance Festival Ardmore Renaissance Faire Clayshire Castle Medieval Faire Historical Reenactments Costumed Themed Events Oktoberfests Cutting Edge Innertainment Mesa, AZ (USA) |
Dan Meyer was born in Michigan City, Indiana on April 7, 1957. He first saw sword swallowers in the 1960s when his father took him to Clyde Beatty Cole Bros and Carson and Barnes circuses at Pullman Field in Michigan City, and later Ward Hall's World's of Wonders Sideshow at the La Porte County Fair Indiana in the late 1960s.
In 1975, while a student at Waldorf College in Forest City, Iowa, Meyer learned clowning, juggling, and unicycle riding from a circus clown, and fire-eating from a local magician behind the magician's barn. From 1975 to 1977 Meyer hitchhiked around Iowa, Wisconsin and Minnesota performing on weekends with small circuses like Hoxie Bros Circus. In 1978, while serving as a Lutheran missionary in Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh south India, Meyer was mesmerized by seeing Indian fakirs, snake charmers and sword swallowers up close on the streets of Andhra Pradesh India, where the art of sword swallowing was believed to have first originated. As a result, Meyer became fascinated with studying the ancient Indian arts, especially sword swallowing. In 1997, after reading "Memoirs of a Sword Swallower" by Daniel Mannix, Meyer bought a copy of "Gray's Anatomy" and began studing studying sword swallowing seriously at the age of 40. In 1998, Meyer met sword swallowers George the Giant and Zamora the Torture King when they were performing at Exit Inn in Nashville, TN, where Meyer got some early tips from McArthur. On February 12, 2001, after nearly 4 years of practicing 10-12 times per day, a total of nearly 14,000 unsuccessful attempts, Meyer successfully swallowed his first sword, a 22 inch saber he knicknamed "My Pride". In 2001, Meyer co-founded the Sword Swallowers Association International and Sword Swallower's Hall of Fame and Museum. In 2002 Meyer organized the first Sword Swallower's Convention in conjunction with the Sideshow Gathering in Wilkes-Barre, PA, and together with 20 other sword swallowers who attended from around the world, set the Guinness World Record for multiple sword swallowers swallowing swords at once. The event was covered by Jeanne Moos on CNN. In 2002 and 2003, Meyer toured as opening act with the CMA award-winning Country artists Brooks & Dunn's Neon Circus, Trick Pony, Dwight Yoakim, Rascal Flatts, and Cletus T. Judd. In April 2005, Meyer toured Ireland performing in kilt as the sword swallower and pennywhistle player with the Celtic pop/rock band Ceili Rain. On September 2, 2005, Meyer and 8 other sword swallowers set a new Guinness World Record by swallowing a total of 52 swords between 9 sword swallowers, with Meyer swallowing 7 swords at once. On October 14, 2005, Meyer sustained his worst injury when he punctured his stomach while swallowing 5 swords at once, sending him to a Decatur Alabama hospital and leaving him incapacitated and unable to eat solid food for nearly 4 weeks. A month later, on November 14, 2005, Meyer climbed out of bed to shoot an episode of "Unwrapped" for Food Network. A few months later, his injury was featured in the Discovery Channel documentary "I Survived Impaling" and The Learning Channel documentary "99 Most Bizarre Self-Inflicted Injuries". In 2006, Meyer won 2nd place in the USA Networks national "You've Got Character" contest. On May 18, 2007, Meyer became the first person in America to swallow a 30" sword while submerged 20' underwater in a tank of 88 sharks and stingrays at Ripley's Aquarium Myrtle Beach, SC. On October 4, 2007, Meyer won the 2007 Ig Nobel Prize in Medicine at Harvard University for the research study paper "Sword Swallowing and its side effects", with co-author Dr. Brian Witcombe that was published in the December 2006 British Medical Journal. In 2008, Meyer founded World Sword Swallower's Day, and the first World Sword Swallower's Day was held worldwide on February 28, 2008. In 2008, Meyer was also featured on seven episodes of NBC's hit reality show America's Got Talent, making it to the Top 50 in the Las Vegas semi-finals, and ultimately to the live America's Got Talent Finals in Hollywood, California in August 2008. In October 2008, Meyer met TED speaker sword swallower Hans Rosling in Stockholm Sweden, and it was at this time that Rosling inspired Meyer to do his first TED Talk. In 2009, Meyer spoke at the International World Peace Conference in Huntsville, AL where he received a standing ovation after requesting world peace delegates from three different countries, cultures, and religions come together in cooperation to remove the "Sword of War" from his throat, which was then presented to the International World Peace Conference. In 2010, Meyer was featured on History Channel's Stan Lee's Superhumans (Season 1, Episode 7 ) for swallowing 7 swords at once, and for swallowing a sword heated red-hot to over 1500 degrees. In March 2010, Meyer received two Guinness World Records for swallowing swords underwater on Guinness World Record TV Lo Show Dei Record in Rome Italy. However, during filming of the show, he sustained an injury by perforating his esophagus while swallowing two swords underwater and was rushed to a hospital in Rome, where he remained on IV drip for 2 weeks. On November 14, 2010, Meyer swallowed 15 swords at once at the Bruce Museum in Greenwich, CT, including 6 swords and a 100-year-old saw previously owned and swallowed by World Champion Sword Swallower Edith Clifford in the 1890s. This feat was later featured as a Ripley's Believe It or Not cartoon published worldwide on April 8, 2011. Meyer was also featured twice on NBC's The Today Show, The Learning Channel, The Discovery Channel, NTV (Russia), the Alan Titchmarsh Show on ITV (UK), Aftonbladet (Sweden), "Go' Aften Danmark" TV2 (Copenhagen Denmark), and many other programs around the world. Meyer has swallowed swords with Ringling Brothers Circus, Cirque Eloize in Montreal, Canada, with sword swallowers Tommy Breen on 999 Eyes Sideshow and Red Stuart on Ward Hall's World's of Wonders, with Half-Boy Danny Frasier at the Tennessee State Fair on John Strong's Sideshow, with Leathal Weapon actor Danny Glover in Nassau, Bahamas, at CityFest Hyderabad India, and at Souq Waqif Festival in Doha, Qatar. Besides circus clowing, juggling, stilt-walking, human blockhead, fire-eating, and glass-eating, during his career as a sword swallower Meyer has swallowed daggers, bayonets, rapiers, cutlasses, flamberge, sai, and other swords with blades from 15 to 30 inches in length and up to 29 swords at once. Special feats included swallowing a hedge clippers, a large surgical forceps, a serpentine sword, a giant straight razor, a giant saw, a curved sword, a flaming sword with blade on fire, a glowing light saber, and swallowing a 30 inch sword with 24 inch blade while submerged 20 feet underwater in a tank of sharks and stingrays at Ripley's Aquarium, Myrtle Beach, SC on May 18, 2007. This feat landed him in a Ripley's Believe It or Not cartoon and a place in the 2008 Ripley's Believe It or Not book, as well as on programs such as ESPN and MTV. On February 23, 2013, Meyer pulled a 3700 lb Mini Cooper car encrusted in over 1Million Swarovsky gems weighing 300 lbs out of Ripley's Believe It or Not Baltimore by sword for World Sword Swallower's Day 2013. On February 28, 2015, Meyer and sword swallowers Bill Berry and Ted Campbell set a new World Record for swallowing 3 swords and passing 9 juggling clubs together on World Sword Swallower's Day 2015 at Ripley's Believe It or Not Orlando Florida. On February 28, 2015, Dan Meyer and German sword swallower Franz Huber broke the current Guinness World Record for Most Swords Swallowed and Rotated 180 Degrees (previous Guinness World Record: 10 swords), by both swallowing 12 swords at once and twisting them 180 degrees for World Sword Swallower's Day 2015 at Ripley's Believe It or Not Orlando Florida. On March 28, 2015, Meyer broke his previous record swallowing 21 swords at once by swallowing 29 swords at once measuring 27 inches long with 20 inch long blades at Ripley's Believe It or Not St. Augustine Florida. On March 30, 2016, Meyer swallowed a long sword and a car axle at Pasadena Convention Center on America's Got Talent Season 11. Then he pulled host Nick Cannon across the stage in a 1974 Triumph Spitfire car by swallowed sword to receive 4 Yes votes. The episode aired on June 28, 2018 and received over 40 million views on YouTube. On October 10, 2016, Meyer pulled Argentinian supermodel Belén Rodríguez across stage in a convertible by swallowed sword for Italy's Got Talent Tu Si Que Vales TV show in Rome Italy in the exact same film studios where he sustained a serious life-threatening injury in 2010. His act received 4 Yes votes from the judges and an 82% YES vote from the audience. The episode aired on October 22, 2016 to 5.5 million viewers in Italy. On August 29, 2017, Meyer performed on France's Got Talent, La France a un Incroyable Talent in Paris, France, where he had judge Hélène Ségara pull a sword from his throat. He then pulled soccer football star David Ginola in a Mini Cooper car by swallowed sword across stage and received 4 enthusiastic "Yes" votes. The episode aired on French channel M6 on November 16, 2017 to 6.7 million viewers in France. On October 29, 2018, Meyer performed on Israel's Got Talent in Tel Aviv Israel where he pulled two male hosts across stage in a BMW car by swallowed sword to receive 4 unanimous enthusiastic Yes votes from judge Uri Geller and the panel of judges. A few days later, on October 31, 2018, Meyer swallowed Napolean Bonaparte's 1877 bayonet owned by mentalist Uri Geller in Old Jaffa Israel at the site where Napolean broke through the Old Jaffa wall in 1879. The Israel's Got Talent episode aired 31 January, 2019 on Reshet 13 TV to 8.7 million viewers in Israel. In 2021 and 2022, Meyer flew to Sydney Australia to audition on Australia's Got Talent. During his performance, Meyer broke a Guinness World Record and received a spontaneous standing ovation from the audience. His performance was featured on Season 10 Episode 2 of Australia's Got Talent on Channel7TV Sydney Australia. After filming, he toured and performed in Tasmania and Christchurch and Queenstown, New Zealand. In October 2022, Meyer performed on Talang Sweden's Got Talent where he received the Golden Buzzer and was sent on to the Finals in March 2023. During the Finals, Meyer swallowed a Swedish kick sleigh runner that was lowered down from the ceiling, and had judge David Batra whip a sword from his throat from 10 feet away. Meyer made it to the Top 5 of the Finalists. In June 2023, Meyer auditioned on Croatia's Supertalent in Zagreb Croatia, where he received two standing ovations and four Yes votes and was sent on to the SemiFinals. In June 2023, Meyer also auditioned on Spain's Got Talent Espana at the Teatro Nuevo Apolo in Madrid Spain, where he received two standing ovations and an invitation to return to the SemiFinals. In October 2023, Meyer auditioned on Canada's Got Talent Season 3 in Niagara Falls, Canada. In December, 2023 Meyer auditioned on Germany's Das Supertalent in Cologne Germany, where he pulled judge Ekaterina Leonova in a car across the stage by swallowed sword. Meyer has now auditioned on 15 Got Talentcompetitions around the world. Meyer performs at Ripley's Believe It or Not locations around the world, and his swords, photos and x-rays are on display at the Ripley's Believe It or Not Odditorium, London Piccadilly Circus, Ripley's Odditorium, Copenhagen Denmark, Ripley's Odditorium Times Square New York, Ripley's Orlando, Ripley's Panama City Beach, and an exhibit of his underwater sword swallow in the shark tank is on display at the Ripley's Odditorium Myrtle Beach, SC. Meyer is known as a TED speaker for explaining the details of the history, art, and science of sword swallowing at 8 TED Talks on 4 continents around the world, after his viral TED talk "Cutting through Fear" received a standing ovation at TEDxMaastricht, one of the largest TEDx events in Europe, and has now been translated into over 80 languages as the #1 Most Translated TED Talk in the world. Meyer speaks at science medical lectures around the world on numerous Ig Nobel world tours, at science festivals, science musems, and medical associations and hospitals. Meyer also performs as a featured performer for IAFE State Fairs, county Fairs, and festivals around the United States, at colleges and universities including Harvard, MIT, Vanderbilt, Oxford, Cambridge, Imperial College (UK), for churches and large youth conventions, and Upward Unlimited Sports Awards Night Celebration programs around the world. Meyer has performed in 48 US states, in over 60 countries around the world, has been featured on 9 TED Talks, 15 Got Talent shows, at 15 Ripley's Believe It or Not! museums, on over 100 major TV shows and documentaries on over 700 TV stations, 800 radio stations, 1000 newspapers/magazines, and has been seen by over 800 million people in over 65 countries around the world.
Dan Meyer Timeline:
Dan Meyer America's Got Talent (2008) Dan Meyer TED Talk TEDxMaastricht (2013) Dan Meyer America's Got Talent (2016) Dan Meyer Italy's Tu Si Que Vales (2016) Sword Swallower Dan Meyer at a Carnivale (2017) Sword Swallower Dan Meyer at a Carnivale (2017) Sword Swallower Dan Meyer at a Carnivale (2017) Sword Swallower Dan Meyer at a Carnivale (2017) Sword Swallower Dan Meyer at a Carnivale (2017) Sword Swallower Dan Meyer at a Carnival (2017) Dan Meyer pulling car on France's Got Talent (2017) Israel's Got Talent (2018) Huckabee Show (2020)
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| Sword Swallowing Study | Published Dec 23, 2006 |
British Medical Journal London England (UK) |
The first comprehensive international medical study over the 4000 year history of sword swallowing ever recognized by the international medical community was conducted by SSAI Director Dan Meyer and Dr. Brian Witcombe of Gloucestershire, England using data from 46 sword swallowers around the world over a period of two years from 2004 to 2006. The study focused on the act of sword swallowing, its side effects, injuries, and treatment of injuries that occurred as a result of sword swallowing. The results of the study were published in the December 22-23, 2006 in the January 2007 issue of the British Medical Journal which was covered by the press and other including the USA Today, Newsweek, New York Times, London Times, The Guardian, ABC Medical News, the BBC, Scientific American, Forbes, and articles in dozens of other newspapers, magazines, radio and TV programs around the world. The authors were nominated for and received the 2007 Ig Nobel Prize in Medicine at Harvard University on October 4, 2007 for their work.
"Sword Swallowing and its Side Effects" (Dec 23, 2006) |
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Alex Magala Alexandr Magala Alexander Magala Александр Магала |
Born June 24, 1989 Learned 2011 Performed 2011-date
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Orhei, Moldova (Moldavia) Los Angeles, CA (USA) |
Alex Magala was born Александр Магала (Alexandr Magala) in Orhei, Moldova on June 24, 1989.
In 2008, at the age of 19, Magala competed in a breakdancing competition in the Breakdancing Championship of Moldova, where he won 3rd place. From there, he started developing other tricks such as the "hollowback", that he soon began doing over high cliffs. After this, he learned juggling and worked up to 5 ball juggling, using some balls he borrowed from McDonald's that he filled with Russian oatmeal. He also learned hand balancing and fire-breathing at this time, and began experimenting with mixing genres, combining breakdancing, hand balancing and hollowback with fire-breathing at the same time. In his YouTube video My Sword Story, Magala explains how he continued his progression into circus arts. "And then I saw Dan Meyer on America's Got Talent 2008 on a YouTube video, and that was just like a complete game changer for me. It was so inspiring, and the video was so strong, and the reaction from the audience - it has like a "WOW" factor, and I really liked it, so of course, I decided to try sword swallowing. On New Year's Eve 2010, Magala put together a small show for his friends from his dance company with all the tricks that he had learned in the past year, including breakdancing, hollow back, nose drilling, fire-breathing and knife swallowing (as he did not yet own a sword). In 2011, he moved to Hollywood California to try performing professionally. Magala has performed on at least 15 Got Talents around the world:
Alex Magala Timeline: |
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Franz Huber Schwertschlucker The Bavarian Daredevil |
Born 10 Feb 1981 Learned 17 Oct 2013 Performed 2013-date Injured 3 Dec 2017 Married 5 Dec 2018 Married 14 Sept 2019
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Ripley's Believe It or Not St, Augustine Ripley's Believe It or Not Orlando Ripley's Believe It or Not Panama City Beach Ripley's Believe It or Not Amsterdam Sideshow Wonderground Das SuperTalent Holland's Got Talent Red Hot and Sharp Entertainment Garching an der Alz Bayern/Bavaria (Germany) |
Franz Huber was born on February 10, 1981 in Garching an der Alz, Bavaria, Germany. Over the years growing up, Huber heard stories from his father about a well-known local German sword swallower Joe Jagger who had lived in Garching an der Alz and died there in 2007.
In February 2013, Huber began studying and practicing sword swallowing. In August of 2013, he swallowed his first plastic sword after only 6 months of practice. In October 2013, Huber bought his first stainless steel sword and succesfully swallowed it on 17 October, 2013. Within a few months, he had worked up to swallowing 3 swords at once on December 15, 2013, and 4 swords by January 10, 2014. In February 2014, Huber travelled to the United States and on February 22, 2014, performed at Ripley's Believe It or Not St. Augustine Florida for World Sword Swallower's Day 2014. In March 2014, he became the official SSAI Representative for Germany. On March 19, 2014, Huber set a new world record for swallowing a 45 cm (17.72 inch) sword for 35 seconds and knocking down 14 Kugeln bowling pins with 3 bowling balls at SKC Garching an der Alz in Garching an der Alz in Bavaria, Germany (video). This record was certified as a Record Setter World Record on April 3, 2014. On April 12, 2014 Huber swallowed 9 swords at once. On September 7, 2014 Huber performed with legendary sword swallowers the "Space Cowboy" and "The Lizardman" in Sideshow Wonderground in London England. On December 31, 2014, Huber swallowed 9 swords at once and rotated them with a 180 degree twist for his personal record in Garching an der Alz, Bavaria, Germany. On February 17, 2015 Huber swallowed 14 swords at once. On February 20, 2015, Huber swallowed 21 swords at once measuring 27 inches long (68 cm) with blades 20.25 inches (51 cm) long by .5 inches wide by 1 mm thick in Garching an der Alz, Bavaria Gemany (photo). On Saturday, February 28, 2015, Franz Huber swallowed 22 swords at once measuring 27 inches long (68 cm) with blades 20.25 inches (51 cm) long by 1 mm thick before a live audience for World Sword Swallower's Day 2015 at Ripley's Believe It or Not Odditorium in Orlando Florida USA. On February 28, 2015, sword swallowers Franz Huber and Dan Meyer each swallowed 12 swords at once measuring 27 inches (68 cm) long with 20.25 inch (51 cm) long blades by 1 mm thick for a total of 24 swords at once, and rotated them simultaneously with a 180 degree twist before a live audience on World Sword Swallower's Day 2015 at Ripley's Believe It or Not museum in Orlando, Florida USA. This record was certified as an official world record by Record Setter World Records on March 12, 2015. (video) On May 25, 2015 Huber set a world record by doing 10 situps while swallowing a sword measuring 23.5 inches with blade length of 17.5 inches in Garching an der Alz, Bavaria, Germany. (video) This record was certified a world record by Record Setter World Records. On August 6, 2015, Huber broke the record by swallowing 13 swords at once measuring 27 inches (68 cm) long with 20.25 inch (51 cm) long blades by 1 mm thick and twisting them 180 degrees before a live audience on the set of Germany's Got Talent Das SuperTalent in Essen, Germany. On November 10, 2015 Huber became the first person in the world to swallow a double curved sword. On February 27, 2016, World Sword Swallower's Day 2016, Huber swallowed 25 swords at once with 5 other sword swallowers to break several world records at once before a live audience and a film crew of Discovery Channel Canada. On March 1, 2017, Huber met Moldovan sword swallower Alex Magala at a filming of Sat.1's "It´s Showtime" in Munich Germany, where they swallowed swords together backstage. On July 7, 2016, Huber swallowed 5 swords upside down to set a new Guinness World Record for "Most Swords Swallowed Upside Down". On January 9, 2017, Huber set a world record by swallowing a curved sword with a 133 degree curve. On February 25, 2017, Huber swallowed and twisted a record 14 swords at once at Ripley´s Amsterdam for World Sword Swalower's Day 2017. On March 9, 2017, he was featured in a Ripley's Believe It or Not cartoon. On December 3, 2017, while filming the Bavarian TV program "Heimat der Rekorde" ("Home of the Records"), Huber sustained his worst injury while swallowing 20 swords at once when the tips of 4 of the swords splayed outward, cutting and perforating his esophagus. Huber was first taken to the Burghausen hospital, then about an hour later, admitted to the endoscopy hospital in Altötting. When he developed a bacterial infection in his chest that became inflamed, he was transported on December 4 to Großhadern hospital in Munich where he was in a coma for 2 days with an infection in his chest and fluid around his lungs and heart. After 10 days, on December 13, 2017, doctors successfully operated on Huber, and prescribed 3 more weeks of hospitalization. Huber remained hospitalized on an IV drip in the Munich hospital for several weeks over Christmas and New Years until he was finally released on January 5, 2018 after being hospitalized for 34 days. On July 2, 2019, Huber as featured on the TV show Genial daneben Das Quiz that aired on Sat 1 TV. In July 2020, Huber was filmed auditioning on Holland's Got Talent in Amerstadam, Netherlands. Huber's episode of Holland's Got Talent S11E2 aired on RTL 4 on August 5, 2020.
Seeking dates, photos, and more information.
Franz Huber Timeline: |
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Scott Nelson Murrugun the Mystic |
Born
Injured 2008 Injured Oct 31, 2023 Died Feb 28, 2024
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AMC Freakshow ABC Cougar Town CBS CSI: NY Balboa Park San Diego, CA (USA) |
Scott Nelson also known as Murrugun The Mystic, was born on July 14, 1964. He started sword swallowing in 2004 at the age of 39 and swallowed swords for over 20 years.
He sustained his first serious injury on April 11, 2008. Nelson's worse injury occured on Halloween night, October 31, 2023 while Nelson was performing at a Halloween event at Six Flags of America in Woodmore, Maryland. First responders were called to the theme park - although Nelson reportedly didn't suffer the injury during the show. "It wasn't an accident that happened during the show, but rather other unrelated health issues [that caused Nelson to be hospitalised]," said Josh Bowren, executive producer for Aaron Radatz Productionz, who directed the show Nelson appeared in. Nelson said five swords scissored out in his abdominal cavity - apparently during practice - and he was rushed to a nearby hospital in Washington DC with serious but non-life-threatening injuries. Doctors initially thought Nelson, wouldn't recover from his injuries, which saw part of his lung removed. A GoFundMe page was set up to support Nelson and the cost of his hospital treatment. The page read: "A San Diego staple, Scott Nelson, known popularly as Murrugun The Mystic (a sword swallower, actor, busker, all around entertainer), is in need of our help. "He's been in the hospital in DC for over a month unable to eat solid food. They had to remove most of one of his lungs and initially the doctors did not think he was going to make it. He hasn't been able to eat for a month, he'll be in the DC hospital for at least another week, and he obviously hasn't been able to work and will not be able to work for some time." Nelson reportedly told the founder of the fundraising page: "Five swords scissored out in my abdominal cavity. "It also appears that I pierced the lobe of my liver. "Good news is, I've quit smoking and lost over 50 lbs." Photos posted to social media showed his injuries, which included several visible wounds and stitches on his body. So far $3,225 has been raised to support the San Diego sword swallower and in a recent Facebook post Nelson revealed a series of touching tributes made outside the hospital where he's receiving treatment. "I had a vigil for me going on outside the hospital!" he wrote. "My name carved in cement at a construction site across the street from the hospital!" Nelson called himself "the most dangerous man in show business and the ace of swords". He credits transcendental meditation as the secret to his success. "I can stop my heart, lower my heart rate and lower my blood pressure... I deal with the pain of what I'm doing using meditation, prayer and relaxation techniques," Nelson had said on AMCTV. A well-known sword swallower was hospitalized with life-threatening injuries after an incident during a live performance at Six Flags left him with a pierced esophagus, liver and lung. Over a month after the incident and weeks in a medically-induced coma, Scott Nelson, also known by his stage name "Murrugan The Mystic," is up and talking again and thankful to be alive. Nelson was about a third of the way through his show at Six Flags America in Washington DC on October 31st when he began to feel pain after swallowing the five swords. "It was really hard to breathe, and it felt like my chest was full," Nelson said. "I knew I was in big-time trouble -- I really thought I was going to die," he said. Nelson, 59, swallowed swords that were about a half-inch wide and between 24 and 28 inches long. The San Diego native said that he's been swallowing swords for over 20 years, and that this is the second "scissoring" accident he's had. "I have to keep holding the swords in a bunch. If I let go too soon, that's when the scissoring happens. I let go too soon, and they rocked off of each other and scissored out," he said. "Two penetrated the esophagus all the way through. One nicked my liver, and the other perforated my lung." Nelson was rushed to a local DC hospital and underwent multiple surgeries, including having part of his lung removed, before doctors placed him in a coma for nearly a month. When he woke up, a surgeon told him they didn't think that he was going to survive. Nelson posted photos on his social media showing gruesome scars and bruising from the incident and surgeries. "HOLY MOLLY!!!! I HAD NO IDEA JUST HOW BAD THIS WAS !!!" he wrote in a post on Facebook. Since his miraculous survival, Nelson said he had a "spiritual awakening" and has vowed to never swallow swords again. "I won't be swallowing any more swords. I can never put my mother through this, ever, ever again," Nelson said. However, "The Most Dangerous Man in Show Business" said he would continue performing other sidshow acts such as fire eating, human blockhead, eating lightbulbs and lying on a bed of nails. He launched a GoFundMe page to help assist with the medical costs. He also said he won't be able to work for three to four months. "Five Swords scissored out in my abdominal cavity. It also appears that I pierced the lobe of my liver. Good news is, I've quit smoking and lost over 50 lbs," he wrote on his Facebook page. Nelson was on morphine and in a lot of pain the last few weeks of his life. In the final week of February, he went downhill fast. Nelson died in San Diego CA at the age of 59 on Wednesday, February 28, 2024 from a combination of lung cancer and brain cancer. Nelson had swallowed swords for over 20 years, and had appeared as a sword swallower in porn films and on TV shows such as AMC Freakshow, ABC's Cougar Town, and CBS's CSI: NY.
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Nick Penney The Stoned Magician |
Born Dec 10, 1988 Injured 2015 Died July 9, 2024
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Ripley's Believe It or Not! Telemundo Augusta, ME (USA) |
Nick Penney was born in Augusta Maine on December 10, 1988. When he was 12 years old, Penney saw a History Channel documentary on sword swallowing that intrigued him to pursue the art. In 2007, Penney taught himself sword swallowing at the age of 18 after months of practice. The next year, he graduated from Cony High School in Augusta Maine in 2008.
During his performing career, Penney learned to walk stilts, perform the human blockhead, eat fire, walk on flaming broken glass, and perform sleight-of-hand parlor magic and simulated mind-reading. But of all the performace arts, Nick was most passionate about sword swallowing. He was an avid researcher on the history of sword swallowing and was constantly researching old and new stunts. As a sword swallower, Penney would swallow and bend a steel sword in his throat while bending his body 135°. Penney was also known for swallowing three swords while hanging upside down, and he could swallow up to five swords at once. One of his favorite signature moves was doing cartwheels while sword swallowing. He set a world record for swallowing three swords at once while turning two cartwheels. Penney was featured in two Ripley's Believe It or Not! books where Ripley's called him "the acrobatic swordsman", and he held the Guinness World Record for "Most Consecutive Cartwheels While Swallowing a Sword with the Pommel on Fire." In March 2024, Penney was interviewed for inclusion in the book on the history of sword swallowing where he related a harrowing story of one of his worst sword swallowing accidents. "In 2015, I was doing a meet-and-greet while performing at a bar in Augusta, Maine called Shenanigans." Penney said. "I was taking photos with people for a fee -- swallowing a sword of my choosing for $10 or a sword of their choosing for $20 -- to post during the show." "While I was swallowing a Nippulini sword, a bar fight broke out. Two people bumped into me from behind, and I got knocked to the ground with the sword down my throat. I tried putting my arms out to catch myself, like in a push-up position. But I couldn't stop myself from falling." The pommel of the sword hit the ground at the 90-degree angle where the wall and the floor meet. "Because of the momentum and the angle at which I was falling, the sword bent inside my throat - like a coat hanger would bend. I panicked and freaked out, but I was able to bend my neck straight as I pulled the sword out. I didn't feel any pain in my stomach, which is where I thought the injury would be if the pressure of the pommel hitting the floor pushed the blade into my stomach. Luckily that didn't happen." "I sat around for half an hour and finally went to the hospital to get checked out just in case. Fortunately, there was no serious injury. Everything was fine. It was just a very freaky, panicky moment where I thought that I had severely injured myself." Penney's story is featured along with stories of over 100 other sword swallowers in the upcoming book "To The Hilt: A Sword Swallower's History of Sword Swallowing", scheduled for release by Schiffer Publishing on World Sword Swallower's Day, February 22, 2025. The book is dedicated to the memory of Nick Penney and other sword swallowers who are no longer with us.
Nick Penney was 35 years old when he died on July 9, 2024. He suffered from COPD and other struggles. He had been sword swallowing for over 17 years, nearly half of his life. A celebration of life was held in his honor on August 11, 2024 at Mill Park in Augusta, Maine.
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) gave its first performance in the city of Penza. It was, at long last, the first genuinely Russian circus operating in the Russian Empire.
